“There is nothing whatever comparable to Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing” (ash-Shūrā 42:11).

He brought the whole creation into being through His knowledge, for He alone is the Self-Sufficient; He is the One who bestows upon the creation, exalted is He.

This statement categorically negates any likeness between Allah and His creatures, and the particle kāf (“like”) further stresses that negation—just as in His words, “And sufficient is Allah as the All-Knower” (an-Nisāʾ 4:70); the original construction would be “Sufficient is Allah the All-Knower,” but the prefixed bāʾ was added for emphasis.

Nothing at all resembles Him: not the angels, nor the prophets and messengers, nor the righteous saints, nor any created being. Yet He names Himself “the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.”

Thus the beginning of the verse refutes those who liken Allah to His creation, while its end refutes those who deny His names and attributes. It makes clear that affirming the divine names and attributes does not imply any resemblance to created things, for the hearing and sight of the creatures are in no way like the hearing and sight of Allah.

The Exalted says, “Would He who created not know, when He is the Subtle, the All-Aware?” (al-Mulk 67:14). His very act of creation testifies to His knowledge and power, as He also proclaims: “Nothing in the heavens or on earth can frustrate Allah; indeed, He has always been All-Knowing, All-Powerful” (Fāṭir 35:44).