"Then they denied the truth when it came to them."

The "truth" refers to the Quran, from which they turned away just as they turned away from every single sign (ayah) within it. It is referred to in this manner to demonstrate the complete enormity of what they did toward it.

The fa (then/so) is—on the assumption that "the signs" refers to the revelatory signs (which is the more manifest position, as established by our master, the Shaykh al-Islam)—for the purpose of ordering what follows upon what precedes it. This is not in the sense that the former is a separate entity that occurred after or was caused by the latter, but rather that it is the very same thing in reality, with the ordering being based on conceptual differentiation. For the concept of "denying the truth" is more heinous than the aforementioned "turning away," as it is something that no person could ever be imagined to commit. Therefore, it is articulated in a manner that expresses the obvious futility of their action, and the fa is used to show the extent of that futility. Furthermore, this is qualified by the fact that it occurred without any reflection, indeed, precisely at the moment of its arrival, as an emphasis on the hideousness of their abominable act.

On the assumption that "the signs" refers to existential signs, the fa is introduced as a response to a deleted condition. The meaning, under the first interpretation, is: since they turned away from those signs at the time of their arrival, they denied that which no rational person could possibly deny, and they did so without reflecting upon its state, its outcome, or pausing to consider the evidence contained within its folds that necessitates belief in it. Under the second interpretation, it means: if they were turning away from the signs at the time of their arrival, do not be amazed at that, for they have committed an act even greater than that—a greater act than mere turning away—by denying the Truth, which is the greatest of all signs.

In al-Bahr, it is chosen that the fa is causative, with what follows being a consequence of what precedes it. It is also permitted that it is causative in the sense that what follows is the cause of what precedes it. Al-Radi said: "The causative fa may have the meaning of the 'lam' of causality when what follows it is the cause of what precedes it, such as His saying, Exalted is He: 'Get out from here, for (fa) you are disgraced.'" Many at that point refer to it as the "explanatory fa." Whether it implies sequence in that instance or not, al-Radi did not explicitly state, though the words of some imply that it signifies both sequence and succession.

A difficulty is raised here: a cause precedes the effect and does not follow it. The author of al-Tawdih attempted to resolve this by stating that what follows the fa is a cause in one respect and an effect in another, and its entry upon it is in regard to its being an effect, not a cause. This was refuted by noting that this does not apply in every location. In al-Talwih, the closer view is what the scholars mentioned: that it only enters upon causes in the sense that they are enduring and thus follow the initial ruling. In the Sharh al-Miftah al-Sharifi, it says: "If you say: How can the sequence of a cause after an effect be imagined? I say: In that the mention of the effect necessitates the mention of the cause." On this, the aspect of the sequence here appears absolute. However, the apparent view of the grammarians and others is that this fa is restricted to appearing after a command, such as: "Honor Zayd, for (fa) he is your father," and "Worship Allah, for (fa) worship is a right," and so on. Thus, the first view is more appropriate.

The fa is not an "eloquent fa" (fa fasihah) as some have imagined based on the statement of al-Allamah al-Baydawi in explaining the meaning of the verse: "It is as if it were said: 'Since they were turning away from all the signs, they denied the Quran.'" This is because an eloquent fa cannot be used to estimate a response to "since" (lamma), as the past-tense response to "since" is not conjoined with an eloquent fa. How, then, could that which necessitates its absence be estimated for it? Al-Allamah’s intention was only to explain the gist of the meaning, which is why he dropped the fa. Indeed, it has been said that this meaning is something from which the Revelation should be exonerated, though there is room for reflection on this.

Some critical investigators have stated that the matter of sequence applies in the verse whether "sign" means evidence, miracle, or Quranic verse, due to the difference between "turning away" and "denying" therein.

The fa in His saying, "Then (fa) soon there will come to them the news of what they used to ridicule," is also for sequence, based on the fact that what preceded it—being an immense matter—necessitates that the threat follow it. It is said that "they ridicule" is meant to signify that what preceded it was accompanied by mockery. Abu Hayyan used this to argue that there is an elided coordinated phrase in the speech, i.e., "They denied the truth and ridiculed it." It is not hidden that there is no necessity for that.

"What" (ma) refers to the aforementioned "truth," and it is expressed as such to amplify its magnitude through ambiguity and to provide a reason for the judgment by what is contained within the relative clause. "News" (anba') is the plural of naba', which is news that carries great impact. The intent is the news of the Quran that comes to them, the import of which is realized in them, and to them are revealed the signs of His threat and His informing them of what will befall them in this world—namely killing, captivity, exile, and similar immediate punishments. It is said that the intent includes both that and the punishments that befall them in the Hereafter, such as the torment of the Fire and the like. It is also said that it means the news of what entails the punishments of the Hereafter or the emergence of Islam and the exaltation of its word. The appearance of what follows in the verses favors the first.

Some researchers have stated that the genitive construction of "news" is one of clarification (bayan), and this is an acceptable possibility. The claim that it is superfluous and that the meaning is "there will appear to them that which they ridiculed of the threat contained within it, or of the prophethood of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), or something similar," has no basis, as there is no reason for it to be considered superfluous.

In al-Bahr, it is noted that the denial of the truth was qualified here, and the "softening" (tanfis) was done with sawfa (soon), whereas in Surat al-Shu'ara', it says "They have denied, so (fa) there will come to them" (fa-sayatihim), without qualifying the denial and using the sin (soon) for the softening. This is because al-An'am was revealed before al-Shu'ara', so the phrasing was completed in the former, while it was elided in the latter—which is the intended reference to the former. The elision in al-Shu'ara' is suited to brevity regarding the letter of softening, so the sin was used.