Context: The impact of 'Abd Allah ibn al-Mubarak in affirming the above-ness and nearness of Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He).

The Shaykh : And how excellent is the saying of the Shaykh of the Imam, Ahmad (may Allah have mercy on him), whose name is 'Abd Allah ibn al-Mubarak, one of the great Imams of hadith, jurisprudence, and jihad in the path of Allah. He used to say a concise word in which he gathered the reference to the verses that establish for Allah the attribute of being above His creation, and the reference to the verses that establish that Allah (Mighty and Majestic) is with His creation by His knowledge. That word is his saying (may Allah have mercy on him): "Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) is above His Throne by His Self." This is the first clause. The second clause he said: "distinct from His creation." In the third clause: "and He is with them by His knowledge."
So if the Muslim memorizes this word of the Imam of the Sunnah, 'Abd Allah ibn al-Mubarak, he gathers this research and all the researches that the scholars of the Salaf addressed in his mind with the most concise phrase: "Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) is above His Throne by His Self, distinct from His creation, and He is with them by His knowledge."
So if a verse comes to us: , do we know what the answer is? By His knowledge. And if it is said that Allah (Mighty and Majestic) is present in every place, as is said today, we say: No, the Imams of the Salaf, among them 'Abd Allah ibn al-Mubarak, say: "Allah is above His Throne by His Self, distinct from His creation"; meaning separated from them, meaning He is rich in Himself and does not need them, He is not mixed with them.