[The word maʿa (with) in Arabic does not imply physical contact or lateral adjacency]:
When the term maʿa is used without qualification, its plain sense in Arabic conveys nothing more than unqualified accompaniment, without necessarily entailing touching or side-by-side positioning. Once it is linked to a specific idea, it denotes companionship in that very respect. People say, for example, "We kept on travelling and the moon was with us," or "the star was with us." They also say, "This luggage is with me" simply because it accompanies you, even though it may be above your head. Likewise, Allah is truly with His creation, and He is truly above His Throne.

[The meaning of the early scholars’ statement: "He is with them by His knowledge"]:
The rulings that flow from this divine companionship (maʿiyya) differ according to the context in which it is mentioned. Thus, when He says, "He knows what enters the earth and what emerges from it, what descends from heaven and what ascends therein; and He is with you wherever you may be" (al-Hadid 4), the plain wording indicates that the consequence of this companionship is His full awareness of you: He witnesses you, oversees you, and knows your every state. This is what the early scholars meant when they said, "He is with them by His knowledge," and it is the text’s clear, real meaning.
The same applies to His statement, "No private counsel occurs among three but that He is their fourth…" up to—