He had lived in the pre-Islamic era and then accepted Islam. He said, "I saw the Messenger of Allah ﷺ," and he related the hadith, saying, "I asked, 'Who is this?' They said, 'This is Muhammad bin Abdullah bin Abdul-Muttalib, and he is proclaiming his prophethood.' I asked, 'Who is this man calling him a liar?' They said, 'This is his uncle, Abu Lahab.'"Abu Zinad said, I said to Rabia bin Abbad, "You were only a small child at that time."He replied, "No, by Allah, I was old enough to understand. I was already carrying the waterskin," meaning he was strong enough to carry it.
حدثنا سريج حدثنا ابن أبي الزناد عن أبيه
وكان جاهليا فأسلم قال رأيت رسول الله ﷺ فذكر الحديث قال فقلت من هذا قال هذا محمد بن عبد الله بن عبد المطلب وهو يذكر النبوة قلت من هذا الذي يكذبه قالوا هذا عمه أبو لهب قال أبو الزناد فقلت لربيعة بن عباد إنك يومئذ كنت صغيرا قال لا والله إني يومئذ لأعقل أني لأزفر القربة يعني أحملها