Tafsir of An-Nahl 16:105

His saying, Exalted is He: "It is only those who do not believe in the verses of Allah who fabricate falsehood," is a preamble to establishing that they are the true fabricators. It turns the matter back upon them after having confirmed—by demonstrative exposition—the innocence of his (the Prophet’s) sanctity, peace be upon him, from the stain of fabrication. And His saying: "And it is they who are the liars."

This is an allusion to the Quraysh, who said: "You are only a fabricator." This is an explicit statement following an allusion, so that it may serve as a brand upon them. This style is more eloquent than saying, "You, O company of Quraysh, are fabricators," due to what is signaled by it and the establishment of evidence that they are indeed as such, and that the one whom they accused of it cannot be caught by any remnant of it. That is: the fabrication of falsehood is only befitting to one who does not believe, because he does not anticipate any punishment for it, and Quraysh are as such; therefore, they are the [true] liars.

Or, it is an allusion to "those who do not believe," so that the speech continues upon a single trajectory. The meaning is that the true liar is this very liar, according to what they established in His saying: "And it is they who are the successful." The definite article [al-] is for the generic, and it is a testimony against them regarding their perfection in fabrication. Thus, "falsehood" is in reality restricted to the rejection of the verses of Allah the Exalted, and it was mentioned absolutely to suggest that there is no falsehood greater than it, serving as proof of the perfection of their fabrication.

Or, the falsehood is not restricted in this way, but rather means that they are those whose habit is lying; thus, they dared to deny the verses of Allah the Exalted, as an indication that such a thing does not issue except from one addicted to lying. The expression through a nominal sentence indicates this meaning, which is why it was conjoined to the preceding verbal sentence. In this, there is a subtle reversal and an indication that since lying was a habit of the Quraysh, they began to deny the verses of Allah the Exalted and the one who brought them; then they were not satisfied with that until they attributed fabrication to the one they had [previously] witnessed as possessing honesty and truthfulness.

The beauty of this lies in the intimation of the precedence of the states of the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—and the Quraysh.

Alternatively, on this reading, the "falsehood" is restricted to what they attributed to him—peace be upon him—of fabrication. In this interpretation, "those who do not believe" refers to the Quraysh, by substituting the noun for the pronoun. The preference for the present tense over the past tense serves as an indication of the continuity of their disbelief and its renewal following the revelation of every verse, bringing it to mind.

This interpretation is superior in relation to the preceding ones. The author of al-Kashshaf mentioned these aspects, and the learned master elaborated upon them as mentioned in his Kashf. The restriction in the rest of these interpretations is not absolute, and there is no rectification in the verse, especially in the first of them. It is among the fair speech in some of its parts, and its connection to His saying, Exalted is He—as a narration of their words: "You are only a fabricator"—is because it is, as you have heard, a refutation of them, and the interpolation of what was interpolated is due to its intense connection to the first refutation, which is not hidden.