Umayr ibn Wahb

The Qurayshi scout of Badr and would-be assassin of the Prophet ﷺ who, confronted by a miracle, embraced Islam and became a devoted da’i.

Identity & lineage

Of Banu Jumah of the Quraysh; cousin of Safwan ibn Umayya. Before Islam a fierce enemy who reconnoitered the Muslim army at Badr, counting roughly 300 with “no reinforcements, only death.”

Role in the Seerah

Transformed from a plotting adversary into a missionary — his conversion a signature proof that gentleness and a manifest sign can turn the fiercest foe.

Key episodes

• The assassination attempt (post-Badr): his son sat as a POW in Madinah. Sitting with Safwan in the Hijr, Umayr voiced his grief over the Badr dead; Safwan financed a covert plot — clear Umayr’s debts and care for his family in exchange for killing the Prophet ﷺ. Umayr poisoned his sword and rode secretly to Madinah.
• The confrontation: Umar (ra) spotted and seized him at the mosque. When Umayr gave a false pretext, the Prophet ﷺ recounted his secret Hijr conversation with Safwan word for word. Realizing no human could have known, Umayr declared: “I testify you are the Messenger of Allah,” and accepted Islam on the spot.

Character & lessons

Sincerity once redirected burns as brightly as former enmity. The Prophet ﷺ ordered Umar to teach him the Quran and to free his captive son.

Death

Returned to Makkah as a da’i; many accepted Islam at his hands. At the Conquest (8 AH) he secured aman for his cousin Safwan — the two would-be assassins both ending as Muslims. Died a Companion (ra).

Cross-references

The Battle of Badr · Safwan ibn Umayya · Umar ibn al-Khattab (ra) · Muhammad ﷺ · Quraysh · Da'wah & Its Five Stages

Sources

• S007 — Yasir Qadhi Seerah EP 041–050.
• Ibn Ishaq / Ibn Hisham, Sirat Rasul Allah (the Hijr plot; the word-for-word disclosure; conversion).
• Ibn Sa’d, Tabaqat.