So she pointed to him, meaning he is the one who will answer you if you speak to him. It was said that the one who questioned Jesus was Zakariya, may peace be upon him. And from Al-Suddi: When she pointed to him, they became angry and said: Her mockery of us is more severe than her fornication. It is narrated that he was nursing, and when he heard that, he stopped nursing and turned his face towards them, leaning on his left side and pointing with his index finger. It was said that he spoke to them with that, then he did not speak until he reached a stage where children speak. This is to place the content of the sentence in an ambiguous past time that is suitable for both near and far, and here it is specifically for the near. The indication of this is the structure of the speech, which is intended for amazement. Another interpretation is that it is a recounting of a past state, meaning: How was it known before Jesus that a child in the cradle would speak to people in the past until we speak to this one.