His saying, exalted and glorified is He: "Indeed, Allah does not hide anything in the earth nor in the heaven." "He is the One who shapes you in the wombs as He wills. There is no deity except Him, the Exalted in Might, the Wise." "He is the One who has sent down to you the Book; in it are verses that are precise, they are the foundation of the Book, and others that are ambiguous."

This verse is news about the knowledge of Allah, the Most High, regarding things in detail. This attribute was not for 'Isa (may peace be upon him) nor for any of the created beings. Then He informed about His shaping of mankind in the wombs of mothers. This is something that no sane person denies, nor does anyone deny that 'Isa and other humans cannot do it. Nor does anyone deny that 'Isa, peace be upon him, is among those who are shaped in the wombs. This verse is a glorification of Allah, the Most High, and within it is a refutation against the Christians of Najran.

And in His saying: "Indeed, Allah does not hide anything," there is a warning for them. Muhammad ibn Ja'far ibn al-Zubair and al-Rabi' interpreted it in this manner. And in His saying, exalted and glorified is He: "He is the One who shapes you," there is a refutation against the people of nature, as they make it an independent active agent. The Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) explained the manner of shaping in the hadith narrated by Ibn Mas'ud and others: "Indeed, when the drop of fluid falls into the womb, it remains a drop for forty days, then it becomes a clot for forty days, then a piece of flesh like that. Then Allah sends an angel to it and says: 'O Lord, is it male or female? Is it wretched or happy?'" The hadith is lengthy with differing wordings. In the Musnad of Ibn Sanjar, there is a hadith: "Indeed, Allah creates the bones of the fetus and its cartilage from the sperm of the man, and its flesh and fat and other than that from the sperm of the woman." And "shapes" is a form of exaggeration from: he becomes a shaper when he inclines and bends to a certain state. Since shaping is an inclination to a state and affirmation in it, its form is based on exaggeration. The womb is the place of the fetus's creation.

And "as He wills" means in terms of length, shortness, color, health, disability, and other differences. And "the Exalted in Might" means the dominant, and "the Wise" means the one with wisdom or the one who governs in His creations. This is specifically related to what He mentioned regarding shaping.

'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful' And "the Book" in this verse: it is the Qur'an by consensus of the interpreters. The definitive verses: they are the detailed, clarified, and established rulings. The ambiguous verses: they are those in which there is consideration and require interpretation. In them, at first glance, there appears either a contradiction with another or with reason, among other types of ambiguity. This ambiguity, for which they are described as ambiguous, is only between them and the corrupt meanings that the people of deviation and those who do not reflect deeply assume. This is similar to the authentic hadith about the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him: "The lawful is clear and the unlawful is clear, and between them are ambiguous matters." This means that something may be unlawful in itself but appears to someone who does not reflect deeply as something lawful. Likewise, a verse may have a correct meaning in itself but resembles, to someone who does not reflect deeply or to the deviant, another corrupt meaning. Perhaps he intends to object to the Book of Allah. This, in my view, is the meaning of the definitive and ambiguous in this verse. Do you not see that the Christians of Najran said to the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him: 'Do you not have in your Book that Jesus is the Word of Allah and a Spirit from Him?' He said: 'Yes.' They said: 'Then that is enough for us.' This is the ambiguity. And the statements of the interpreters differ regarding the identification of the definitive and the ambiguous intended by this verse. Ibn Abbas said: The definitive verses are His saying, exalted is He, in Surah Al-An'am: ﴿Say: Come, I will recite what your Lord has forbidden to you﴾ [Al-An'am: 151] up to three verses, and His saying regarding the Children of Israel: ﴿And your Lord has decreed that you not worship except Him﴾ [Al-Isra: 23]. This, in my view, is an example he provided for the definitive verses. Ibn Abbas also said: The definitive verses are what is abrogating, and what is lawful and unlawful, and what is believed in and acted upon; and the ambiguous verses are what is abrogated, and what is presented, and what is delayed, and their like, and what is believed in but not acted upon. Ibn Mas'ud and others said: The definitive verses are the abrogating ones, and the ambiguous verses are the abrogated ones. This, in my view, is in the sense of representation, meaning that there is definitiveness in this and ambiguity in that, not that it is limited to this type of verses. This view was also held by Qatadah, Al-Rabi', and Al-Dahhak. And Mujahid and Ikrimah said: The definitive verses are those in which there is lawful and unlawful, and what is besides that is ambiguous, confirming one another. This is similar to His saying: ﴿And He does not lead astray except the disobedient﴾ [Al-Baqarah: 26] and His saying: ﴿Thus Allah places the defilement upon those who do not believe﴾ [Al-An'am: 125]. And these statements and those similar to them are weakened by the fact that the people of deviation have no connection to any of what has been mentioned other than it.

Muhammad ibn Ja'far ibn al-Zubair said: The clear verses are those in which there is the proof of the Lord and the protection of the servants and the refutation of adversaries and falsehood. There is no alteration or distortion from what they were established upon. The ambiguous verses have alteration, distortion, and interpretation, by which Allah has tested the servants. This is the best of the sayings regarding this verse. Ibn Zayd said: The clear verse is what has been firmly established regarding the stories of the Prophets and the nations, and it has been clarified for Muhammad and his nation. The ambiguous verse is that which has ambiguous words regarding their stories when repeated in the chapters, some of which have the same wording but different meanings, and some of which are the opposite of that, like His saying: 'A moving serpent' and 'A clear snake', and similar to: 'Put your hand' and 'Enter your hand'.

A group of scholars said, among them Jabir ibn Abdullah ibn Ri'ab, which is the implication of the saying of al-Sha'bi and Sufyan al-Thawri and others: The clear verses from the verses of the Qur'an are what the scholars know its interpretation and understand its meaning and explanation. The ambiguous verse is what no one has a way to its knowledge from what Allah has reserved for His knowledge without His creation. Some of them said: And that is like the time of the Day of Resurrection, the emergence of Gog and Magog, the Dajjal, and the descent of Jesus, and similar to the separated letters at the beginning of the chapters.

The judge Abu Muhammad Abdul Haqq, may Allah be pleased with him, said: As for the unseen matters that come, they are from the clear verses, because what humans know of them is limited, and what they do not know, which is the specification of the time, is also limited. As for the beginnings of the chapters, they are from the ambiguous because they are subject to interpretation, and for that reason, the Jews followed them and wanted to understand from them the duration of the nation of Muhammad, blessings and peace be upon him.

And in some of these expressions that we mentioned, there are objections from the scholars, and that is because the ambiguity in this verse is constrained by the fact that it is something to which the people of deviation are attached, and in some expressions of the interpreters, there is ambiguity that does not necessitate attachment for the people of deviation.

And His saying, exalted is He: ﴿They are the Mother of the Book﴾ means the indication that it is the most important part of the Book and the foundation of what is in it. The definitive verses in the verses of Allah are many, and they have been detailed, and nothing has been neglected of it. Yahya ibn Yamir said: This is like saying to Mecca: Mother of the Cities, and to Merv: Mother of Khurasan, and as it is said: Mother of the Head for the gathering of affairs, as it is the most critical place. Al-Mahdawi and Al-Naqqash said: Every definitive verse in the Book of Allah is called the Mother of the Book; and this is rejected, for all that is definitive is the Mother of the Book. Al-Naqqash said: This is like saying: All of you are fierce lions to me; and this example is not definitive. Ibn Zayd said: 'Mother of the Book' means the gathering of the Book. Al-Tabari narrated from Abu Fakhita that he said: 'They are the Mother of the Book' refers to the openings of the Surahs, from which the Qur'an is extracted. ﴿Alif Lam Meem﴾ [Al-Baqarah: 1] ﴿This is the Book﴾ [Al-Baqarah: 2] from it was extracted Surah Al-Baqarah, ﴿Alif Lam Meem﴾ [Aali 'Imran: 1] ﴿Allah, there is no deity except Him, the Ever-Living, the Sustainer of existence﴾ [Aali 'Imran: 2] from it was extracted Surah Aali 'Imran. And this saying is subject to rejection; it is confused and does not consider the beginning of the verse and its end and its purpose. Rather, the meaning of the verse is the admonition to the people of deviation, and the reference by that is primarily to the Christians of Najran and to the Jews who were contemporaneous with Muhammad, blessings and peace be upon him, for they were opposing the meanings of the Qur'an. Then it encompasses after that every deviant. So Allah, exalted is He, mentioned that He revealed the Book to Muhammad as a favor from Him and a blessing, and that its definitive and clear parts, in which there is no opposition, are its most important and predominant aspects, and that its ambiguous parts, which require interpretation and understanding, are fewer. Then the people of deviation abandon the definitive parts in which they find their sufficiency, and they follow the ambiguous parts, seeking fitna and to corrupt the relationships and lead people back to their deviation. Thus, the blame is directed at them.

"And others" is the plural of "other" and does not decline because it is an adjective, and it was altered from the definite article in that it is dual and pluralized. All adjectives of preference, when stripped of the definite article, are neither dualized nor pluralized, like "best" and what follows its example. And one does not compare between two things with these adjectives unless they are indefinite. And when the definite article enters upon them, the meaning of preference between two matters is removed. The non-definiteness of "others" from the definite article does not affect the definition as the alteration of "sahar" does. Rather, "others" is indefinite, and as for "sahar," it was altered in that the definite article was removed, and it remained definite in his saying: "I came on Friday morning."

And Al-Mahdawi mixed up in this matter and corrupted the words of Sibawayh, so reflect upon it.

His saying, exalted and mighty is He:

﴿So as for those in whose hearts is deviation, they follow that which is ambiguous of it, seeking fitna and seeking its interpretation. And none knows its interpretation except Allah and those firmly rooted in knowledge say: We believe in it; all of it is from our Lord. And none will be reminded except those of understanding﴾

His saying, exalted is He: ﴿Those in whose hearts is deviation﴾ encompasses every group of disbelievers, heretics, and ignorant people who are innovators. Deviation means inclination, and from it, the sun has inclined, and the sights have inclined. The reference in this verse at that time was to the Christians of Najran due to their exposure to the Qur'an regarding the matter of Jesus, peace be upon him, as said by Al-Rabi'. It also refers to the Jews, and then it extends to every innovator or disbeliever. By deviation from guidance, Muhammad ibn Ja'far ibn Al-Zubair, Ibn Mas'ud, and a group of the Companions and Mujahid and others interpreted deviation.

And ﴿What resembles it﴾ is what was previously described as

And another group said: "And the firmly rooted [in knowledge]" is raised by the beginning and it is disconnected from the first speech, and its news is "They say." The one who is unique in the knowledge of the ambiguous is Allah alone according to the wording in the verse. The action of the firmly rooted is their saying: "We believe in it," which was said by Aisha and Ibn Abbas as well. And Urwah ibn al-Zubair said: Indeed, the firmly rooted do not know its interpretation, but they say: "We believe in it." And Abu Nahik al-Asadi said: You connect this verse even though it is disconnected, and the knowledge of the firmly rooted does not go beyond their saying: "We believe in it; all of it is from our Lord." And Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz said something similar, and al-Tabari reported something like this from Yunus from Ashhab from Malik ibn Anas.

The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

And this issue, when contemplated, shows that the disagreement in it is close to agreement. This is because Allah, the Exalted, divided the verses of the Book into two categories: the clear and the ambiguous. The clear is the one whose meaning is evident to anyone who understands the speech of the Arabs; it does not require reflection, nor is there anything in it that confuses, and the knowledge of it is equal between the firmly rooted and others. The ambiguous varies; some of it is that which is not known at all, like the matter of the soul, and the times of the unseen events that Allah has informed about their occurrence, and other than that. Some of it is that which can be interpreted in various ways in the language and aspects of the speech of the Arabs, so it is interpreted and its correct interpretation is known, and what may be related to it from an incorrect interpretation is removed, like His saying regarding Isa: "And a spirit from Him" and other than that. No one is called firmly rooted except by knowing much of this type according to what has been decreed for him; otherwise, whoever only knows the clear is not called firmly rooted.

And His saying, exalted is He: "And none knows its interpretation except Allah". The pronoun refers to all of the ambiguous verses of the Qur'an, which are of two types as we have mentioned. His saying: "except Allah" necessarily implies by the obviousness of reason that He knows it completely and thoroughly; He knows both types entirely. If we take His saying: "and those firmly rooted in knowledge" as an addition to the name of Allah, exalted is He, then the meaning is that they are included in the knowledge of interpretation, but not completely. Rather, their knowledge is only in the second type of the ambiguous. The obviousness of reason dictates this, and the speech is correct according to the eloquence of the Arabs, as you say: No one stood for my support except so-and-so and so-and-so, and one of them supported you by fighting with you, while the other only aided you with words. This is similar to many examples. The meaning is: "And none knows" the interpretation of the ambiguous except Allah and those firmly rooted, each according to his capacity and what is suitable for him. And those firmly rooted say in all of it: "We believe in it". If they attain from that which is unknown and cannot be conceived a distinction from what is other than it, then that is a measure of knowledge regarding its interpretation. If we take His saying: "and those firmly rooted" as a subject raised, disconnected from what preceded it, then their being called firmly rooted necessitates that they know more than the definitive verses, which are equally known by all who understand the speech of the Arabs. And in what is their firmness, if they do not know except what everyone knows? And what is firmness except knowledge of the nuances of speech, the sources of rulings, and the contexts of admonitions? All of this is with a prepared intellect. The meaning is: And none knows its interpretation completely except Allah, and the people who know from it what can be known say in all of it: "We believe in it; all of it is from our Lord." This measure is what Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, engaged with, and he is the interpreter of the Qur'an. It should not be interpreted that he knew the time of the Hour and the matter of the soul and similar matters. The grammatical analysis of "those firmly rooted" allows for both interpretations, and for this reason Ibn Abbas spoke of both, and the meaning in both is close from this perspective that we have outlined.

As for the one who says: 'The ambiguous verses are only those which no one has a way to know,' he is consistent in his statement by excluding the firmly rooted in knowledge from its interpretation. However, specifying the ambiguous verses to this type is incorrect. Rather, the correct statement in this regard is that of the one who said: 'The definitive verses are those which allow for only one interpretation, and the ambiguous ones are those which allow for multiple interpretations.' This is the path followed by the people of deviation, and upon this the perspective I mentioned is based. And whoever among the knowledgeable scholars says that the firmly rooted do not know the interpretation of the ambiguous verses, they only meant this type, and they feared that someone might think that Allah described the firmly rooted in knowledge with complete knowledge of interpretation. Likewise, Al-Zajjaj went on to say that the reference to what is ambiguous is only to the time of resurrection, which he denied, and he interpreted the rest of the verse accordingly. This too is a specification for which there is no evidence. As for the one who says: 'The ambiguous is the abrogated,' he is consistent in his statement by including the firmly rooted in knowledge of interpretation. However, specifying the ambiguous verses to this type is incorrect. Ibn Furak preferred that the firmly rooted know the interpretation, and he elaborated on that.

Ubayy ibn Ka'b and Ibn Abbas read: 'Except Allah, and the firmly rooted in knowledge say: We believe in it.' Ibn Mas'ud read: 'And seeking its interpretation, its interpretation is only with Allah, and the firmly rooted in knowledge say: We believe in it.' And 'firmness' means stability in something. Its origin in physical bodies is that a mountain or a tree is firmly rooted in the ground. The Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, was asked about the firmly rooted in knowledge, and he said: 'It is the one whose right hand is righteous, whose tongue is truthful, and whose heart is upright.' And His saying: 'All of it is from our Lord' contains a pronoun referring to the Book of Allah, its definitive and its ambiguous. The meaning is: All of it is from our Lord, and the pronoun was omitted due to the indication of the word 'all,' as it is a term that necessitates addition.

Then He, the Exalted, said: 'And none will remember except those of understanding.' This means that none will say this, believe in it, and stop where it stops, and abandon following the ambiguous except for those with understanding, which is the intellect. 'Auli' is the plural of 'Dhu.'