and Ibn Abī Ḥātim, Abū Saʿīd al-Ashajj, Abū ʿAbd Allah Ibn Mājah, and Ibn Mardawayh.

The first source of error lies with people who embrace certain preconceived notions and then try to force the wording of the Quran to match them. The second concerns those who interpret the Quran exclusively by what its expressions could plausibly mean in ordinary Arabic, without paying any attention to the One who is speaking, the Messenger upon whom it was revealed, or the people to whom it was addressed.

Commentary

1. The first category comprises those who have adopted a belief and wish to bend the meanings of the text to fit it. What happens in matters of creed and theoretical issues likewise occurs in legal and practical rulings: a person commits himself to a particular school of thought, then strives to divert the meanings of the scriptural passages so that they correspond to the view he already holds—whether the discussion is about Allah’s names and attributes, about monotheism, or similar subjects.

   For example, someone might say, “I permit seeking intercession even through jinn and devils, because Allah says, ‘O you who believe, be mindful of Allah and seek a means of nearness to Him’ (al-Māʾidah 5:35); therefore I may take anything as a means.” Another denies Allah’s attributes altogether, arguing, “Allah says, ‘There is nothing like unto Him’ (ash-Shūrā 42:11); if I affirm an attribute, I will have likened Him to His creation.” Having embraced such convictions, he then imposes them upon the Quran.

2. The second category has no prior creed; rather, they interpret the Quran solely in accordance with what the wording might suggest in ordinary Arabic usage, disregarding that the Speaker is Allah, the One who revealed it, and neglecting the audience to whom it was directed.