When the Prophet ﷺ turned toward the Kaabah, the people asked, "Messenger of Allah, what about our brothers who died while praying toward Bayt al-Maqdis?" So Allah Most High revealed, "And Allah would never let your faith go to waste" [Baqarah 2:143].
لما وجه النبي ﷺ إلى الكعبة قالوا: يا رسول الله! كيف بإخواننا الذين ماتوا وهم يصلون إلى بيت المقدس؟ فأنزل الله تعالى: {وما كان الله ليضيع إيمنكم}
Reported by Abu Dawud (4680), Tirmidhi (2964), and Ahmad (2691), and Ibn Hibban (1717) and Hakim (2/269) both graded it sahih, all of them through various routes from Simak bin Harb, from Ikrima, from Ibn Abbas, who related it.Among these routes is the route of Sufyan Thawri, from Simak. Tirmidhi said, "Hasan sahih." Hakim said, "Sahih in its isnad."I say, its isnad is hasan because of the narration of Sufyan Thawri from Simak, for he narrated from him in his early period, and the narration of those who narrated from him in his early period is sound.