Tafsir of Saba' 34:6

(That is, those who possess knowledge among the Companions of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, and those who follow in their footsteps from his Ummah, peace and blessings be upon him, or those who believed among the scholars of the People of the Scripture—as narrated from Qatadah—such as ‘Abdullah ibn Salam, Ka‘b, and their likes, may Allah be pleased with them) "that which has been revealed to you from your Lord" (meaning the Quran) "is the truth."

The word "truth" (al-haqq) is in the accusative case (nasb) as the second object of "see" (yara), while the first object is the second relative pronoun (alladhi), and "is" (huwa) is the separator pronoun (damir al-fasl). Ibn Abi ‘Ablah read it in the nominative case (raf‘), making the pronoun the subject and the word "truth" the predicate, with the whole clause occupying the place of the second object of "see." This is a linguistic trait of the tribe of Tamim, who treat what others consider a separator pronoun as a subject.

The saying of the Almighty, "And those who have been given knowledge see," is the beginning of a statement not conjoined to what precedes it; it is presented as a testimony from the people of knowledge against the ignorant who strive against the signs [of Allah]. In al-Kashf, it is held to be conjoined to the saying of the Almighty, "And those who disbelieve say, 'The Hour will not come to us,'" in the sense that the ignorant said, "There is no Hour," while the people of knowledge knew that what was revealed to you is the truth that speaks of it. This has been criticized as a far-fetched interpretation, for the indication of the noble structure is directed solely toward the importance of the Quran. It was said in response to that: You are aware that what precedes it—the saying of the Almighty, "And those who disbelieve say, 'The Hour will not come to us,'" and His saying, "Shall we point you to a man..."—is regarding the Hour and those who deny the resurrection. How, then, can what was mentioned be considered far-fetched? The truth of the Quran is mentioned by way of digression, while the primary intent is the truth of what it speaks regarding the Hour.

Al-Tabari and al-Tha‘labi said: "See" (yara) is in the accusative with an implied vowel, conjoined to "recompense" (yajzi); that is, "And the people of knowledge shall know, upon the arrival of the Hour, by direct observation that it is the truth, just as they knew it before by proof, and they shall argue with it against the deniers." In this case, His saying, "And those who strive..." is either conjoined to the first relative pronoun or is an initial subject, with the clause acting as a parenthetical, so the separation does not cause harm as one might imagine.

It is also permitted that by "those who possess knowledge," those who did not believe among the rabbis are meant—meaning that they will know on that day that it is indeed the truth, and thus their regret and sorrow will increase. This has been criticized on the basis that describing them as "possessors of knowledge" contradicts it, as it is a laudatory description. Perhaps the one who permits this does not concede that point; however, the fact that such an interpretation is far-fetched is not denied, especially since the manifest contrast provided by the Almighty's saying, "And those who disbelieve say," necessitates applying it to the believers.

"And guides to the path of the Almighty" (He who subdues and is never subdued) "the Praiseworthy" (the One praised in all His affairs, Mighty and Majestic is He). The path of the Almighty refers to monotheism and piety. The subject of "guides" (yahdi) is either the pronoun referring to "that which has been revealed" or the pronoun referring to Allah, Mighty and Majestic is He, in which case there is a shift (iltifat) in "the Almighty, the Praiseworthy."

In the first case, the sentence is either starting anew or is in the position of a state (hal) from "that which" (al-ladhi), with an implicit subject—meaning "and it guides," as in the verse: I escaped, and left them Malik as a pledge. Or, it is conjoined to "the truth" (al-haqq), with the implicit understanding "and it guides." It is also permitted that "guides" (yahdi) is conjoined to "the truth" (al-haqq)—a conjunction of a verb to a noun—because it is in the interpretation of a noun, as in the Almighty’s saying: "Ranked, and they hold [them]"—meaning, "rankers and holders." The inverse is found in the saying: I found him one day destroying his enemy / and a sea of giving that deserves to be crossed.