Commentary
And when the explanation of His words and their arrangements was in any way that he heard them, like the sound of a ringing bell and others, and the explanation of their meanings and what is in them of the treasures of knowledge from greatness that description falls short of, he indicated it with a tool of delay. So he said, indicating the permissibility of delaying the explanation from the time of the address to the time of need, implying that he would hasten to ask about the meaning just as he would hasten to read: ﴿Then﴾. And he confirmed that by indicating that due to its greatness, it is something that one should pause in. So he said: ﴿Indeed, upon Us﴾ (p-102), meaning by what we have of greatness ﴿is its explanation﴾, meaning the explanation of its words and meanings is the same for you whether you heard it from Gabriel, blessings and peace be upon him, in a manner like the sound of a ringing bell or from the usual speech of people with voice and letters, or from you on your tongue and on the tongues of the scholars from your nation. [And the verse -] indicates leaving absolute haste, for if He forbade it in the greatest of matters and the most important, then it is more so in other matters. Al-Bukhari narrated in the interpretation of the verse in the beginning of his Sahih and its end from Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, who said: "The Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, would struggle with the revelation intensely; he would move his lips. Sa'id ibn Jubair said: Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, said: 'I will move them for you just as the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, would move them.' So Allah, the Exalted, revealed the verse until He said: 'He gathered it in your breast, then you recite it.' ﴿So when We have recited it, then follow its recitation﴾ [Al-Qiyamah: 18]. He said: 'So listen to it and be silent, then indeed upon Us is to have you recite it.' He said: 'So the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, when Gabriel, blessings and peace be upon him, would come to him, would listen attentively, and when Gabriel, blessings and peace be upon him, would depart, the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, would recite it as Gabriel, blessings and peace be upon him, had recited it to him, just as Allah promised him with the guarantee of His saying, the Exalted: ﴿Indeed, he has guardians before him and behind him﴾ [Al-Jinn: 27] ﴿To know that they have conveyed the messages of their Lord and He has encompassed what is with them and has enumerated everything in number﴾ [Al-Jinn: 28].
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