| Al 'Imran: (3) He has sent down to you the Book...

Know that God Almighty described the revealed Book with two descriptions:

The first description is His saying: {with truth} (bil-ḥaqq). Abu Muslim suggested several interpretations for this:

1. It is truthful in the news it contains about past nations.
2. What it contains of promises and warnings compels the accountable person to adhere to the truthful path in beliefs and actions, preventing them from following the false path.
3. It is Ḥaqq (truth) in the sense that it is decisive speech, not idle talk.
4. Al-Aṣamm said: It means God sent it down concerning the truth that is due to Him from His creation—worship, gratitude for blessings, showing submission—and concerning the justice and fairness due to one another in dealings.
5. It was sent down with truth, not with corrupt, contradictory meanings, as stated in: {He has sent down the Book to His Servant, and has not made therein any crookedness} and {If it had been from other than Allah, they would have found therein much contradiction} (An-Nisa': 82).

The second description of this Book is His saying: {confirming what came before it} (muṣaddiqan limā bayna yadayhi). This means it confirms the books of the Prophets (peace be upon them) and what they reported from God Almighty.

There are two perspectives on this verse:

1. God thereby demonstrated the authenticity of the Qur'an. If it were from other than God, it would not conform to the other books, especially since the Prophet was illiterate (ummī), had not associated with scholars, nor studied under anyone. A fabricator in such a state could hardly avoid lying and distortion. Since this is not the case, it proves he learned these accounts only through God's revelation.
2. Abu Muslim said: It means that God never sent a Prophet except by calling people to His Oneness, belief in Him, purifying Him from what is unsuitable for Him, commanding justice and kindness, and establishing laws that benefit every era. Thus, the Qur'an confirms those previous books in all these aspects.

Two questions remain regarding this verse:

The First Question: How is what preceded it referred to as being "before it" (bayna yadayhi)? The Answer: Because those reports were so evident and manifest, they were named by this term.

The Second Question: How can it confirm the preceding books if the Qur'an abrogates most of their rulings? The Answer: If those books foretold the coming of the Qur'an and the Messenger, and indicated that their rulings would remain valid until the time of his advent, and that they would be abrogated upon the revelation of the Qur'an, then they align with the Qur'an, and thus the Qur'an confirms them. As for matters other than the rulings, there is no doubt that the Qur'an confirms them, because the proofs concerning divine matters do not differ. Thus, it confirms the reports found in the Torah and the Gospel.

Then God Almighty said: {And He sent down the Torah and the Gospel}. There are several issues concerning this:

Issue One: The author of Al-Kashshāf said: Tawrāh and Injīl are foreign (non-Arabic) names, and investigating their derivation is unhelpful. Al-Ḥasan recited wa-al-Injīl (with a fatḥa on the hamza), which indicates its foreign origin, as the pattern af'īl (with a fatḥa on the initial hamza) does not exist in Arabic morphology. This view is correct and inescapable, yet we will still present the opinions of linguists regarding them.

Regarding the word {Tawrāh}, there are three points of discussion:

Point One: Its Derivation. Al-Farrā’ said: Tawrāh means light and radiance, derived from the Arabs' saying warā az-zand yarī when striking flint and fire appears. God says: {By those that strike sparks by striking} (Al-'Adiyāt: 2). They also say, Waraytu bika zanādī (You brought forth good for me), meaning "Good appeared through you." Thus, the Torah was named this because the truth became manifest through it. This meaning is supported by God's saying: {And We had given Moses and Aaron the Criterion [Furqān] and a light} (Al-Anbiyā': 48).

Point Two: Its Weight/Pattern. There are three opinions:

1. Al-Farrā’ said: The origin of Tawrāh is tawriyah (pattern taf'ilah), with a fatḥa on the first tā’, a sukūn on the wāw, and fatḥa on the rā’ and yā’. However, the yā’ turned into an alif because it was vocalized and the preceding letter had a fatḥa.
2. Al-Farrā’ also said: It could be taf'ilah like tarfiyah and tawsiyah. Its origin would be tawriyah, but the rā’ was shifted from kasra to fatḥa according to the dialect of Ṭayyi', who say jārāh instead of jāriyah (girl) and nāṣāh instead of nāṣiyah (forehead). A poet said:

   The world will not remain for any living being, Nor will any living being remain upon the world.

3. The view of Al-Khalīl and the Basrans: Its origin is wawriyah (pattern fu'lah), and the first wāw was changed to a tā’—a common shift in their speech, like tijāh (direction), turāth (heritage), tukhmah (indigestion), and tuklān (reliance). Then the yā’ turned into an alif due to vocalization and the preceding fatḥa, resulting in Tawrāh. It was written with a yā’ based on its original form. They criticize Al-Farrā’’s views:
   • The first pattern (taf'ilah) is rare. The pattern fu'lah (like ṣawma'ah, ḥawṣalah, dawsarah) is common, and adhering to the most common pattern is preferable.
   • The second view requires attributing the word to the dialect of Ṭayyi', which the Qur'an never used.

Point Three: Recitations. There are two recitations: Imālah (inclination towards yā’) and Tafkhīm (emphatic pronunciation). Those who use Tafkhīm argue that the rā’ is a letter that prevents Imālah due to its inherent repetition (trill). And God knows best.

Regarding {Injīl}, there are several opinions:

1. Al-Zajjāj said: It is if'īl derived from najl, meaning origin or root. They say, "May God curse his nājalayn (his parents)," referring to the origin. The book was named this because it is the fundamental reference point for that religion.
2. Some said: Injīl is derived from the Arabs' word najala shay’an (he extracted or revealed something). Water emerging from a well is called najl. The valley is said to have istanjala when water comes out of its depths. Thus, the Gospel was named Injīl because God revealed the truth through it.
3. Abu 'Amr Al-Shaybānī said: Tanājul means contention or dispute. The book was named Injīl because the people disputed over it.
4. It is derived from najlā’ (wide-eyed), as in a wide spear thrust (ṭa'nah najlā’). It was named this because it brought expanse, light, and radiance to them.

My Comment: The preoccupation of these linguists is strange, as if they mandate that every word must be derived from something else. If this were true, it would necessitate either an infinite regress or a circular dependency. Since both are false, we must admit that there must be words established by primary designation (waḍ') from the beginning, from which all other words are derived. If this is the case, why can't the word they claim is derived from another word actually be the primary one, and the other word be the derivative? Who informed them that this is the derivative and that is the origin? Perhaps the word they deem derivative is very common, while the word they deem the origin is obscure. Furthermore, if the Torah was named Tawrāh because of its manifestation, and the Gospel Injīl because it was an origin, then everything manifest should be called Tawrāh, and everything that is an origin for something else should be called Injīl. Clay is the origin of the pot, so clay should be Injīl. Gold is the origin of the ring, and thread is the origin of the garment, so these things should be called Injīl. This is clearly not the case. Moreover, when presenting these logical consequences to them, they inevitably resort to asserting waḍ' (primary designation), saying: "The Arabs specifically designated these two words for these two things by way of designation." If the goal can only be achieved by returning to the linguistic designation, why not adhere to it from the start and save ourselves the trouble of these discussions? Also, Tawrāh and Injīl are foreign names—one Hebrew and the other Syriac. How can it be appropriate for an intelligent person to busy himself fitting them to the patterns of the Arabic language? It is clear that the most appropriate course for an intelligent person is to disregard these discussions. And God knows best.

As for His saying: {And the Gospel, before it, a guidance for mankind}.

Know that God Almighty clarified that He sent down the Torah and the Gospel before the Qur'an, and then explained that He sent them down only as guidance for mankind. Al-Ka'bī said this verse proves false the claim of those who assert that the Qur'an was obscured from the disbelievers and is not guidance for them. It supports the meaning of {And to it We shall make them blind} (Fuṣṣilat: 44) by suggesting that upon its revelation, they chose blindness metaphorically, like Noah's saying: {but my call only increased their flight} (Nūḥ: 6) when they fled from him.

Know that His saying {a guidance for mankind} has two possibilities:

1. This description applies only to the Torah and the Gospel. In this case, the Qur'an was described as Ḥaqq (truth), and the Torah and the Gospel were described as Hudā (guidance). These two descriptions are closely related.
   • If one asks: Why did He describe the Qur'an in the beginning of Surah Al-Baqarah as {guidance for the righteous} (lil-muttaqīn), but not here?
   • We reply: There is a subtlety here. As we mentioned in Surah Al-Baqarah, He said {guidance for the righteous} because only they benefit from it, making it guidance specifically for them and no one else. However, here the discourse is directed towards the Christians, who do not follow the Qur'an. Therefore, it was not said here that the Qur'an is guidance; rather, it was said that it is Ḥaqq in itself, whether they accept it or not. As for the Torah and the Gospel, they believe in their authenticity and claim that we are merely fabricating things about our religion based on them. Thus, God Almighty described them as guidance specifically for this context. This is what occurred to me, and God knows best.

2. The Second Opinion (that of the majority): God described all three Books (Qur'an, Torah, and Gospel) as guidance. This description applies to everything mentioned previously and is not exclusive to the Torah and the Gospel. And God knows best His intent.

Then He said: {And He sent down the Criterion} (al-Furqān).

The majority of commentators have several opinions on this:

1. It refers to the Psalms (Zabūr), as in: {And We gave David the Psalms} (An-Nisā': 163).
2. It refers to the Qur'an. Its mention was repeated to honor its status and praise it for being the differentiator between truth and falsehood. Alternatively, God repeated it to show that He sent it down after the Torah and the Gospel to serve as the criterion between the truth and falsehood over which the Jews and Christians differed. In this case, there is no repetition.
3. The Third Opinion (that of the majority): It means that just as God made the three Books guidance and proof, He also made them the differentiator between lawful and unlawful, and concerning all other laws. This statement indicates that God clarified through these Books what is required rationally and textually.

This is the summary of what the commentators said about this verse, but I find it problematic.

• Interpreting it as the Psalms is remote, as the Psalms contain no laws or rulings, only admonitions. Describing the Torah and the Gospel—which contain proofs and clarify rulings—as the Furqān is more fitting than describing the Psalms that way.
• Interpreting it as the Qur'an is problematic because {And He sent down the Criterion} is coordinated ('aṭf) with what preceded it. The coordinated element must differ from the element it is coordinated with, and the Qur'an was already mentioned. This implies that this Furqān must be different from the Qur'an.
• This reasoning also weakens the third opinion, because describing these books as differentiating between truth and falsehood is an attribute of these books. Coordinating an attribute with the qualified object, although found in rare poetry, is weak and far from the eloquence befitting the speech of God Almighty.

My preferred interpretation is a fourth view: That al-Furqān here refers to the miracles that God accompanied the revelation of these Books with. When they brought these books and claimed they were revealed by God, they needed proof to establish this claim and differentiate their assertion from that of liars. When God manifested miracles corresponding to their claims, the distinction between the truthful claim and the false claim was established. The miracle is the Furqān. When God mentioned that He sent down the Book bil-ḥaqq, and that He sent down the Torah and the Gospel before that, He clarified that He also sent down with them the true Furqān—the overwhelming miracle that proves their authenticity and differentiates them from other differing books. This is my view on interpreting this verse. Even if no commentator mentioned this, applying the speech of God to this meaning strengthens the meaning, the eloquence of the wording, and the coherence of the arrangement and structure, whereas the views they mentioned contradict all of that. Therefore, what I have mentioned is more appropriate. And God knows best His intent.

Know that the Exalted is He, in these few words, established everything related to knowing God and everything related to confirming prophethood. He followed this by a warning to deter those who turn away from these clear proofs, saying:

{Indeed, those who disbelieve in the verses of Allah will have a severe punishment, and Allah is Exalted in Might, the Avenger.}