Tafsir of Al-Muddathir 74:52

"Nay, every man among them desires that he be given scrolls spread open."

This is a conjunction to an implied statement necessitated by the context; it is as if it were said: "They are not satisfied with that Reminder, nor are they pleased with it; rather, every one of them desires to be brought scrolls that are spread open and read, like the letters by which people correspond."

It is also possible that what is meant are scrolls that were written in the heavens and brought down by the angels at the very moment they were written—spread open in their hands, fresh and moist, not yet folded. There is, however, remoteness in this view.

Under both interpretations, the meaning is that they said to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah Almighty bless him and grant him peace): "If it pleases you that we follow you, then bring to each one of us a book from the heavens, addressed: 'From the Lord of the Worlds to so-and-so, son of so-and-so,' in which we are commanded to follow you." Thus, this verse was revealed. Similar to this is His saying: "We will not believe in your ascension until you bring down to us a book that we may read" [Al-Isra: 93]. Allah says: "And even if We had sent down to you a book written on a parchment, and they had touched it with their hands..." [Al-An'am: 7].

Ibn Jarir and Ibn al-Mundhir narrated from al-Suddi, from Abu Salih, who said: They said, "If Muhammad is truthful, then let there be under the head of every man among us a scroll containing an acquittal and security from the Fire." Previously, they used to say: "We have heard that a man among the Children of Israel would wake up with his sin and his atonement written upon his head; so bring us the like of that." This is distinct from the "spread-open scrolls," unless "spread-open scrolls" is intended to mean writings that are manifest and exposed. What was narrated from Abu Salih leads to the same meaning as the first interpretation, as they share the quality that the "spread-open" item does not remain in its original state, and that for every person, there is a specific scroll—either for his deliverance from sin or regarding the manner of his deliverance. Therefore, the interpretation relied upon is the one mentioned first, which is narrated from al-Hasan, Qatadah, and Ibn Zayd.

Sa'id ibn Jubayr read suhufan (scrolls) with the ha (ح) being silent [vowelless], and munashshara (spread open) with the shin (ش) being lightened [no shaddah], based on the idea that anshara (to spread) and nashara (to spread) a scroll are the same, like anzala and nazzala. In al-Bahr al-Mahfuz, it is stated that regarding a scroll or a garment, one says nashara (lightened, triliteral). It is said regarding the dead that Allah ansharahu (resurrected him) and nasharahu; it is said "Allah ansharahu (resurrected him), so he nashara (became alive)," meaning He brought him back to life, so he lived.