His saying, exalted and majestic is He: "Indeed, those who distort Our verses are not hidden from Us. So is he who is thrown into the Fire better, or he who comes secure on the Day of Resurrection? Do whatever you wish; indeed, He is All-Seer of what you do." "Indeed, those who disbelieved in the Reminder when it came to them, and indeed, it is a mighty Book." "Falsehood cannot approach it from before it or from behind it; it is a revelation from a Wise, Praiseworthy One." "What is said to you is only what has been said to the messengers before you. Indeed, your Lord is the Possessor of Forgiveness and the Possessor of painful punishment."

This is a verse of warning, and "distortion" means deviation, and here it is from the truth. It is from "distortion" related to the grave, because it is on one side. It is said: The man distorted, and it means he deviated. The majority read: "They distort" with a damm on the ya, meaning those who distort. Ibn Wathab, Talhah, and Al-A'mash read: "They distort" with a fatha on the ya and the ha from the root of distortion.

The commentators differed regarding the distortion referred to here; what is it? Qatadah and others said: The distortion is by denial. Mujahid and others said: The distortion is by whistling, clapping, and the idle talk they engaged in. Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said: Their distortion is that the words are placed in a manner other than their proper place, and the term distortion encompasses all of this.

And His saying, exalted is He: "They are not hidden from Us" means: We are on guard for them and will punish them. Then He affirmed for them, exalted is He, these two categories; is one of them better? This affirmation is what is meant, so say to them, O Muhammad: [Is he who...]. Al-Muqatil said: This verse was revealed about Abu Jahl and about Uthman ibn Affan, may Allah be pleased with him. It was said: It is about Ammar ibn Yasir, may Allah be pleased with him. The preference here between being thrown into the Fire and being secure on the Day of Resurrection is good - even if they do not share in the attribute of goodness - in that the speech is an affirmation, not merely a report; because the one who affirms may affirm his opponent into two categories, one of which is clearly corrupt, so that he sees his response, and perhaps he falls into the corrupt meaning, thus revealing his ignorance. A similar verse has preceded, and the elaboration of the saying in this meaning has been established, and it is not appropriate here to say: He addressed them according to their belief, as it is appropriate in His saying, exalted is He: "A good place of rest" [Al-Furqan: 24]. So reflect on it. And His saying, exalted is He: "Do whatever you wish" is a warning in the form of a command, by consensus of the people of knowledge, and the evidence of the warning and its clarification is His saying, exalted is He: "Indeed, He is All-Seer of what you do."

Then He, exalted is He, said: "Indeed, those who disbelieved in the Reminder when it came to them," referring to the Quraysh, and "the Reminder" is the Qur'an by consensus. People differed regarding the report about them; where is it? A group said: It is in His saying, exalted is He: "Those are called from a distant place" [Fussilat: 44]. Al-Naqqash mentioned that Bilal ibn Abi Burdah asked about this in his gathering and said: I did not find an escape from it, so Abu Amr ibn Al-Ala said to him: It is close to you, "Those are called" [Fussilat: 44].

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

This view refutes the abundance of the barrier. There are people who have mentioned the good response to His saying, the Exalted: ﴿Those are called﴾ [Fussilat: 44] upon them. A group said: The report is implicit, its meaning being: Those who disbelieved in the Reminder when it came to them perished or went astray. Some grammarians of Kufa said: The answer is in His saying, the Exalted: ﴿And indeed, it is a mighty Book﴾. Al-Tabari narrated this, and it is weak and does not hold. 'Isa ibn 'Umar was asked by 'Amr ibn 'Ubaid about this, and 'Amr said: Its meaning in the interpretation is: Those who disbelieved in the Reminder when it came to them, disbelieved in it, and indeed, it is a mighty Book. 'Isa ibn 'Umar said: You have done well, O Abu 'Uthman.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: The best interpretation of this is the implicit report. However, it is in a different context than what these have estimated here. It is rather after ﴿Wise, Praiseworthy﴾, and it is more explicit in condemning the disbelievers by it. This is because His saying, the Exalted: ﴿And indeed, it is a Book﴾ is included in the description of the Reminder that is denied. The mention of what is reported about it is not complete except after fulfilling its description. This is like saying: Do you oppose Zayd, who is the knowledgeable and beloved one, whose matter and character are such? All of these are descriptions. And the Exalted described the Book with might because, with the correctness of its meanings, it is impervious to any attack against it and is preserved by Allah, the Exalted. Ibn 'Abbas, may Allah be pleased with both of them, said: Its meaning is: Noble before Allah, the Exalted. Muqatil said: Protected from the devil. Al-Suddi said: Not created.

And His saying, the Exalted: ﴿Falsehood does not come to it from before it﴾, Qatadah and Al-Suddi said: He means the devil. The apparent meaning encompasses the devil and that something may come that invalidates something of it. His saying, the Exalted: ﴿From before it﴾ means: There is nothing in the previous Scriptures that invalidates anything of it. And His saying, the Exalted: ﴿And not from behind it﴾ means: There will not come after it from the view of a seer or the thought of a rational being anything that invalidates some of it. The intended meaning of the expression in general is: Falsehood does not come to it from any direction. And His saying, the Exalted: ﴿A revelation﴾ is a report of initiation, meaning: It is a revelation.

And His saying, the Exalted: ﴿Nothing is said to you except what has been said to the messengers before you﴾ has two possible meanings: One of them is that it is a consolation for the Prophet ﷺ regarding the sayings of his people, meaning: Whatever you encounter, O Muhammad, from their dislike, and they do not say to you any painful words except what has been said and faced by those who preceded you from the messengers, so take them as an example and proceed with the command of Allah and do not let their affair concern you. The second meaning is that the verse is a clarification of the meanings of the Shari'ah, meaning: Nothing is said to you from the revelation and you are addressed by it from the direction of Allah, the Exalted, except what has been said to the messengers before you. Then Allah, the Exalted, explained that which was said to all of them, which is: ﴿Indeed, your Lord is the Possessor of Forgiveness﴾ for the obedient, ﴿and the Possessor of painful punishment﴾ for the disbelievers. In these words is the essence of prohibition, deterrence, and admonition, and to it returns every consideration.