Chapter Ten (1)
On why figurative reinterpretation (taʾwīl) is worse than outright denial (taʿṭīl)

For it (2) combines anthropomorphic comparison, denial, tampering with the revealed texts, and harboring ill thoughts about them.

The denier and the interpreter are alike in stripping the Divine Names and Attributes of their real meanings. The interpreter, however, adds to this by meddling with the texts themselves, violating their sanctity, thinking ill of them, and accusing their Speaker of uttering words whose apparent sense misleads and leads others astray. In doing so they bring together four grave faults:

1. Their conviction (3) that the outward wording of Allah and His Messenger conveys something impossible and false; thus they first read it as anthropomorphism.
2. From there they move to the second fault—denial—stripping the texts of their true import on the basis of that initial misunderstanding, which befits them but in no way befits the Lord, exalted is His majesty.
3. The third fault is attributing to the Speaker—perfect in knowledge, perfect in clarity, and perfect in sincere counsel—the very opposite of clarity, guidance, and instruction. [Q 12 b] The bewildered, reckless ones (4) claim to have expressed this topic with wording that does not suggest the falsehood implied by the wording used by the Speaker of those texts. No rational person can doubt that this amounts to saying that they were more knowledgeable than He, more eloquent, or more sincere in advising mankind.