Tafsir of An-Naml 27:8

(So when he came to it): Meaning the fire regarding which he said, "I have perceived a fire." It is also said that the pronoun refers to the tree, but this is as you see, and what he imagined to be a caller is not a caller according to what we have indicated.

(He was called): That is, Moses, peace be upon him, from the side of the Mount, (That: Blessed is...). Its meaning is: "Blessed is..." The particle an (that) is explanatory, clarifying the meaning of the call rather than its literal letters. It is also permitted that it is the an (that) which is a softened form of the heavy anna, with its subject being the dameer al-sha’n (the pronoun of the state). Some have rejected this due to the lack of a separator between it and the verb, such as qad, seen, sawfa, or a negative particle, which is a requirement when it is softened. This is because, according to the argument of Abu Ali al-Farisi, since nothing but nouns usually follow it, they considered it distasteful for a verb to follow it without a separator. It was answered that what was mentioned is not absolute, for they have explicitly stated that a separator is not required in certain instances, such as when the verb expresses a supplication. Perhaps the one who permitted it to be the softened form here considered "Blessed" (burika) to be a supplication. It is also permitted that the separator is one of those mentioned in non-excluded cases, per the verse: "They knew that they would be hoped for, so they acted generously before they were asked with the greatest of requests."

It is also permitted that it is the an (that) which is the masdariyyah (infinitive-forming), which governs verbs in the accusative, and "Blessed" (burika) in that case is either a predicate or a performative for supplication. Al-Radi claimed that if "Blessed" is a supplication, then an must be explanatory and nothing else, because the softened an is unanimously never followed by a performative verb, and the same applies to the masdariyyah—though this is a matter of disagreement among grammarians, and the claim of consensus is incorrect. The argument that the meaning of the request is lost after interpretation as an infinitive has already been addressed. In al-Kashf, it rejects interpreting it as masdariyyah because the meaning would not be sound, as "Blessed" would not then be suitable as a glad tiding. They have said that beginning the discourse with this is a glad tiding to Moses, peace be upon him, that a great matter has been decreed for him from which blessing will spread throughout the entire land of Syria. This is unlike the case when "Blessed" is an explanation of the state.

In both views, the speech is based on the omission of the preposition, meaning: "He was called [by the fact] that..." and the prepositional phrase is connected to what is implied by the context. It is not the deputy subject; rather, the deputy subject is the pronoun of Moses, peace be upon him. It is also said: It is the deputy subject, and there is no pronoun. Some have said regarding the first view as well that the pronoun occupying the place of the subject is not for Moses, peace be upon him, but for the infinitive of the verb; meaning, "The calling was done." The calling is then explained by what follows it. The most apparent view regarding the pronoun is its return to Moses, that the an is explanatory, and that "Blessed" is a predicate—it comes from "blessing" (barakah), the meaning of which has preceded. It is said: The meaning here is "sanctified and purified, and increased in good."

(Those in the fire and those around it): A group held that there is an implied genitive construct in two places in the speech, meaning: "Those in the place of the fire and those around its place." They said: Its place is the spot where it occurred, which is the blessed spot mentioned in His saying: "He was called from the side of the right valley in the blessed spot." This is supported by the recitation of Ubayy: "The land and those around it are blessed." It is suggested that "those" refers generally to everyone in that valley and its surroundings, from the land of Syria, which is marked by blessings as it is the place of the mission of the prophets, peace be upon them, and their final resting place, whether alive or dead, especially that spot where Allah spoke to Moses, peace be upon him.

It is also said: "Those in the fire" is Moses, peace be upon him, and "those around it" are the angels present, peace be upon them. This was supported by the recitation of Ubayy—according to what Abu Amr al-Dani, Ibn Abbas, Mujahid, and Ikrimah reported—"And those around it of the angels." According to many, this is an explanation, not a recitation, because it contradicts the text of the agreed-upon codex. It is also said: The first is the angels and the second is Moses, peace be upon him. Some dispense with the need to imply the genitive by treating the locative relationship as a metaphor for complete proximity.

Whatever the case, the intended meaning is a glad tiding to Moses, peace be upon him. The intent of His saying—according to one view—(And exalted is Allah, Lord of the worlds):

Is an expression of astonishment for him, peace be upon him, regarding that, and a notification that the One who wills and creates this is the Lord of the worlds, alerting him that what is occurring is one of the momentous matters and great affairs, and from the decrees of His, the Exalted, providence over the worlds. Or it is a declaration to him, peace be upon him, of the transcendence of the Exalted One, so that it may not be imagined—upon hearing the speech of Allah the Exalted—that there is any resemblance to humans, or it is a request from him, peace be upon him, for that.

It is also permitted that it is astonishment emanating from him, peace be upon him, with an implied verb of saying: "And he said: Exalted is Allah, etc." Al-Suddi said: It is from the speech of Moses, peace be upon him; he said it when he heard the call from the tree, declaring Allah the Exalted to be beyond the attributes of created beings. It seems that this is also based on an implied verb of saying, and the implied verb is considered to be conjoined to "He was called." Ibn Shajarah said: It is from the speech of Allah the Exalted, and its meaning is: "And blessed is He who glorified Allah the Exalted, Lord of the worlds." This is very far from the indication of the wording. It is also said: It is an address to our Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, intended as a declaration of transcendence, and it is made a parenthetical clause between what preceded and His saying: [next verse].