Hawzah News Agency - Muhammad ibn Yahya has narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn ‘Isa from Muhammad ibn ’Isma‘il ibn Bazi‘ from Mansur ibn Hazim from Talha ibn Zayd from abu ‘Abdallah who has said the following.

قَرَأْتُ فِي كِتَابِ علي إِنَّ الله لَمْ يَأْخُذْ عَلَى الْجُهَّالِ عَهْداً بِطَلَبِ الْعِلْمِ حَتَّى أَخَذَ عَلَى الْعُلَمَاءِ عَهْداً بِبَذْلِ الْعِلْمِ لِلْجُهَّالِ لانَّ الْعِلْمَ كَانَ قَبْلَ الْجَهْلِ.

“I read in the book of Imam Ali that Allah had no commitment from and covenant with the ignorant people to seek knowledge before having a commitment from and covenant with the scholars to give knowledge as charity to the ignorant ones because knowledge existed before ignorance.”

Al-Kāfi, v.1, Book 2, Chapter 10