for the Arabs say: istawā such-and-such when it has reached its end and become complete, as in the Almighty’s words: “When he reached his full strength and became mature” (Qasas 28:13). They also say: istawā x and y when one is equal to the other, as in the expressions: “The water and the plank are level,” and, “Day and night are equal.” They say: istawā ilā such-and-such when someone sets out toward it, ascending and rising—“He istawā ilā the roof” or “the mountain.” And they say: istawā ʿalā such-and-such when he rises over it and is elevated above it. The Arabs know no other usage.
Thus, in this construction istiwāʾ is an explicit term that can bear no alternative meaning, just as it is explicit in the verse, “When he reached his full strength and became mature” (Qasas 28:13), and equally explicit in their saying, “Day and night are equal.” So stop the obfuscation, for it will earn you nothing but Allah’s wrath and the indignation of the believers (1).
Sixth: When a word is consistently employed in a certain meaning that is obvious in it, and it has never—or only very rarely—been used in the sense to which it is now being allegorically diverted, then construing it in that alien sense and forcing it away from its established usage is invalid. Such a move is mere sophistry and deceit that undermines clarity and guidance. Indeed, whenever speakers intend to use such a word outside its customary meaning, they surround it with contextual clues that make their purpose plain to the listener, so that his mind does not immediately revert to the familiar sense. Whoever reflects on [ق 5 أ] the people’s language, on the perfection of this tongue, and on the wisdom of the One who fashioned it, will see the truth of this.
As for taking a term whose meaning is well-known, wrenching it from that sense, and then making its new usage universal—while also reinforcing it with indicators that show they actually meant the original sense—this is sheer impossibility. An example is the Almighty’s statement: “And Allah spoke to Moses…”