Tafsir of Al-Ahqaf 46:12

"And before it" refers to before the Quran. It is a predicate moved to the front for the statement of the Exalted: "the Book of Moses." It was advanced for the sake of emphasis. Al-Tabari permitted that "Book" be a conjunction to "a witness," with the adverbial phrase acting as a separator between the conjunction and the conjoined element. The meaning would be: "And the Book of Moses witnessed from before it." He also assigned the pronoun in "before it" to the Quran; however, this is of no substance at all. His statement—the Exalted’s—"an imam and a mercy" is a circumstantial qualifier (hal) for the pronoun in the predicate, or for "Book," according to those who permit a circumstantial qualifier from the subject. It is also said that it is a circumstantial qualifier from an omitted term, and the governing agent is likewise omitted; that is, "We sent it down as an imam," but this is as you can see.

The meaning is: There existed before it the Book of Moses, to be followed in the religion of Allah the Exalted and His laws just as one follows an imam, and it was a mercy from Allah the Exalted to those who believed in it and acted according to its requirements. His statement: "And this"—that is, the Quran, regarding which they say what they say—"is a Book" (the subject), and its predicate follows. His statement—the Almighty’s—"confirming" is an adjective for "Book," and it is the focal point of the benefit; meaning, confirming the Book of Moses, which is an imam and a mercy, or confirming all divine books that came before it. It was also read as "confirming what is before it," and the clause is a conjunction to the clause preceding it, either as a circumstantial or a new initial clause. Regardless, the discourse is a refutation of their saying, "This is an ancient falsehood," and a nullification of it. The meaning is: How can it be valid for it to be an ancient falsehood when they acknowledge the Book of Moses, and the Quran is confirming it—identical to it in meaning—or confirming all divine books? His statement—the Exalted’s—"in the Arabic tongue" is a circumstantial qualifier for the pronoun in "Book" hidden in "confirming," or from the word itself due to its specification by the adjective. Its governing agent, according to the first view, is "confirming," and according to the second, it is the sense of the verb inherent in it. The benefit of this qualifier, despite the fact that its Arabic nature is a matter known to everyone, is to signal—by the indication that it is confirming—that just as it is truth, it is revelation and instruction from Allah the Exalted.

This is based on the position that the discourse is with the Jews, which is manifest. As for the position that it is with the disbelievers of Mecca, it is because they might acknowledge the Torah and similar previous divine books, even if they sometimes deny the sending down of books and the sending of messengers—peace be upon them—altogether. In al-Kashf, the aspect of advancing the predicate in His statement "And before it was the Book of Moses" is that the sending of messengers and the revealing of books is a continuous matter, existing from Allah the Exalted; thus, before the revelation of the Quran as an imam and mercy, the revelation of the Torah was likewise. It is not advanced for the sake of exclusivity, but because of the concern and importance of mentioning it. Since the disbelievers were held accountable for the revelation of a similar one and the testimony of the most learned of the Children of Israel, there was mentioned—by way of parenthetical insertion—the state of the Book of Moses—peace be upon him—what confirms it being from Allah the Exalted, and that whatever corresponds to it must inevitably be from Him—the Exalted. From this, it is concluded that since the Quran is a confirmation of it—nay, a confirmation of all heavenly books—it is obligatory to believe in it and receive it with acceptance. It is, in truth, a repetition of the first claim in a more concise and comprehensive manner, as it demonstrates therein that its being a confirmation is sufficient, just as the "witness from the Children of Israel" testified earlier. Even if it were said that they were placed, due to their obstinacy, in the position of one who does not know that the Book of Moses was before it—for had they known, and it was shown that it is like it, they would have submitted—then to say, "And before it [specifically]," not after it, would have been an aspect that fulfills the right of exclusivity, as al-Sakkaki favored, in that it requires the advancement. This is manifest that the clause is not a circumstantial one.

It is permitted that "a tongue" be an object of "confirming," and the discourse implies an omitted noun—that is, "possessor of an Arabic tongue," which is the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—and his confirmation of it is by his agreement with the Book of Moses or the heavenly books in general, and its miraculous nature. It is also permitted, regarding it being an object, that "this" refers to the Book of Moses, so there is no need to assume an omitted noun, and "in the Arabic tongue" refers to the Quran. The demonstrative was placed in the position of the pronoun for exaltation, and the original is: "And it is confirming [in] an Arabic tongue." It is said that it is in the accusative by the removal of the preposition; meaning, "confirming with an Arabic tongue." Everything is as you can see. Al-Kalbi read "And before it" with a fatha on the mim, and "Book of Moses" in the accusative. This is explained by considering "from" (min) as a relative pronoun governed by a verb [we] estimate, and likewise for "Book"; meaning, "And We gave those who were before the revelation of the Quran from the Children of Israel the Book of Moses."

"To warn those who do wrong" is linked to "confirming," and it contains a pronoun referring to the Book, or to Allah the Exalted, or to the Messenger—peace and blessings be upon him. The latter is supported by the recitation of Abu Raja, Shaybah, al-A'raj, Abu Ja'far, Ibn 'Amir, Nafi', and Ibn Kathir in one narration: "to warn" (litundhira) with the second-person ta. It would not be appropriate without effort for anyone other than the Messenger, and the causation is valid for all. Do not imagine the necessity of omitting the lam if the pronoun refers to the Book, because of the existence of the condition for the accusative, for it is a condition of permissibility.

"And a glad tiding for the doers of good" is a conjunction to the verbal noun derived from "that" (an) and the verb. Al-Zamakhshari said, and was followed by Abu al-Baqa, that it is in the place of the accusative, joined to the place of "to warn" because it is a maf'ul lahu (dative of purpose). Abu Hayyan claimed that this is not permissible according to the correct position of the grammarians because the place is not truly original, and they require that for carrying over to it, as the origin of the maf'ul lahu is the genitive, and the accusative arises from the removal of the preposition. However, it became frequent with its condition. He recounted several ways to parse it, saying: It is said it is joined to "confirming"; it is said it is a predicate for an omitted subject—that is, "it is a glad tiding"; it is said it is in the accusative by an omitted verb joined to "warn"—that is, "and He gives glad tidings of a glad tiding"; and it is said it is in the accusative by the removal of the preposition—that is, "and for a glad tiding." The apparent meaning is that "the doers of good" is in contrast to "those who do wrong." The former refers to the disbelievers and the latter to the believers. In the commentary of al-Tibi: The shift from "the just" to "the doers of good" was to serve as a means to the glad tiding of the negation of fear and sadness for those who said, "Our Lord is Allah," and then remained steadfast. It is also said that it is "the doers of good" rather than "those who did good" after His statement, "those who do wrong," so that the meaning is: to warn those from whom wrongdoing emerged, and to give glad tidings to those who remained firm and upright upon the straight path. Thus, it aligns the reasoning of the glad tiding with His statement...