Musnad Shihab

Explanation:
Sayyidah Aisha radi Allahu anha narrates that Uqbah made a bequest to his brother that the son of Zam‘ah’s slave woman is mine, therefore take him into your care. Sa‘d, in the year of the conquest of Makkah, wanted to take the boy and said: This is my brother’s son; he made a bequest to me regarding him. At this, ‘Abd bin Zam‘ah stood up and said: This is my brother and the son of my father’s slave woman; he was born on his (my father’s) bed. Eventually, this case was presented before the court of the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. Sa‘d said: O Messenger of Allah! This is my brother’s son; he made a bequest to me regarding him. ‘Abd bin Zam‘ah said: This is my brother, the son of my father’s slave woman, and he was born on my father’s bed. The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said: “‘Abd bin Zam‘ah! The boy will remain with you. The child belongs to the one on whose bed he was born, and for the adulterer there is nothing but stones.” Then he sallallahu alayhi wa sallam ordered Sayyidah Sawdah bint Zam‘ah radi Allahu anha to observe veiling (purdah) from this boy because he sallallahu alayhi wa sallam had noticed the boy’s resemblance to Uqbah. Thus, after that, the boy never saw the Mother of the Believers until her death. [بخاري : 1749]

In this hadith, the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam has stated a principle that the child will be counted as belonging to the one on whose bed he was born. The meaning is that a child born to a married woman will be considered as belonging to the husband, and similarly, a child born to a slave woman will be considered as belonging to her master, unless the husband or master denies it, even if there is possible evidence of the child being illegitimate. This is because the matter of a child being legitimate or illegitimate is hidden and reaching its reality is a difficult matter. Therefore, the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam has stated a principle that the child will be counted as belonging to the one on whose bed he was born.

“For the adulterer there are stones.” This means that the adulterer will bear the punishment for his crime. If he is married, then for him there are stones, i.e., he will be stoned (rajm), and if he is unmarried, then for him there are one hundred lashes and one year of exile. And Allah knows best.