Surah Al-Qamar (54): Verse 25

It has already been mentioned that expressing negation through a question (interrogative form) is more emphatic. This is because someone who says, "The Reminder was not sent down to him," might know or suspect that the listener will deny it. However, when phrased as a question, the meaning becomes: "The listener will answer me by saying, 'It was not sent down,' thus making the negation apparent and undeniable to everyone; everyone will say, 'It was not sent down.'"

Here, Adh-Dhikr (the Reminder) refers to the Prophethood or the Book. It could also refer to what he mentions concerning God, just as Al-Haqq (the Truth) is sometimes used to mean what is revealed from God.

There are several related issues:

Their choice of a-ulqiya instead of a-unzila points to the exaggeration in their denial regarding the manner of revelation. Ilqā' (casting down) implies a swift descent. The Prophet (PBUH) used to say, "The revelation came to me with the Angel in a fleeting moment." They seemed to argue: "The Angel is a physical body, and the heavens are distant; how can it descend in an instant?" Therefore, they said, "A-ulqiya" (Has it been cast down?) rather than "A-unzila" (Has it been sent down?).

Their addition of "عليه" (upon him) is another form of denial, as if they meant: "Even if a reminder were cast down, it would not be upon him from among us, especially those superior to him in honor and intellect."

Their use of "أألقى" (Has it been cast down) substitutes for saying, "Has God cast it down?" This implies that descent from the heavens is impossible, let alone descent from God Almighty.

They knew what the Reminder was, yet they did not say, "Has a reminder been cast down upon him?" This is because God recounts their denial of something that should not be denied. It is as if they denied the clear, manifest Reminder, which is like someone denying a known fact (denying the known).

The particle بَلْ necessitates a preceding matter that is being negated or set aside. What is that? Their statement "أألقي" was an expression of denial, so they effectively said, "It was not cast down." Their statement, "Has the Reminder been cast down upon him?" only implies that he is not a Prophet. Then they follow up by saying, "بَلْ" (Nay/Rather), meaning: "Rather, he is a liar."

كَذَّاب (Kadhdhāb) is an intensive form (fa''āl) derived from the active participle (fā'il), indicating exaggeration (i.e., one who lies excessively). Alternatively, it could be derived from the pattern of fa''āl like khayyāṭ (tailor) or tammār (date seller). The first interpretation (intensive exaggeration) is the more apparent and correct one. Even if we accept the second, the intensive meaning is implied, as someone attributed with an action must frequently engage in it; one who sews a garment once is not called a khayyāṭ.

If we accept the intensive meaning, the exaggeration can be in frequency or intensity. Thus, كَذَّاب means either:

1. One who tells lies that defy reason (intensity).
2. One who lies frequently (frequency).

It is also possible they described him this way because they believed both aspects applied to him.

Their statement "أَشِرٌ" (arrogant/wanton) indicates that his lying was not due to necessity or need for salvation (like a weak person might lie), but rather due to self-sufficiency, insolence, seeking preeminence over them, and desiring their followership. Every one of these descriptions prevents acceptance, especially since a liar is not heeded, particularly when his lying is not born of necessity.

There is a variant reading: "أَشَرٌ" (Ashar). The exegetes explain this reading as being based on a rejected root form for ashar (arrogance), while the latter reading is on the pattern of the comparative form (af'al at-tafdīl). The original form is rejected because if af'al is interpreted, it might be interpreted by another af'al, and the second by a third af'al—like asking the meaning of al-'allām (most knowing), and the answer is "one who has much knowledge," and then asking about "much," and the answer is "more in number," or something similar. Therefore, the af'al must be explained by something outside its own pattern.

They state that af'al at-tafdīl (the comparative form) and fadīlah (excellence) fundamentally relate to goodness (khayr). Since khayr is the basis for the af'al pattern, one would not say akhyar (better). However, sharr (evil) is the opposite of khayr, and the same structure used for khayr is applied to it: one says asharr (worse) than so-and-so, just as one says akhyar (better) than so-and-so.

Khayr is used in two contexts:

1. To intensify goodness, using the verb or the af'al pattern (e.g., hādhā khayr or hādhā akhyar).
2. To express goodness based on similarity, not the fundamental root.

Whoever uses "أَشَرٌ" (Ashar) has abandoned the commonly used root form because they adopted the rejected root form, meaning "he is more evil than others." Similarly, the meaning of al-'allām is that his knowledge is better than others' knowledge, or it is better than the ignorance of others. The same applies to al-aḍ'af (weaker) and others.

[Then God Almighty said]: