know this interpretation have ascertained precisely what it is; they do not waver and say, “It may mean this, or it may mean that.” Whoever says that the Quran may contain things that some people have no means of knowing is correct. This is due to their own inability, not to any deficiency in the Quran’s indication of its meaning. Many people have no means of learning much of such disciplines as medicine, astronomy, Quranic exegesis, and hadith, although others possess this knowledge. If, however, he means that no one has any means of knowing its explanation, he is mistaken. If he says that no one has any means of knowing its actual reality, its manner of being, its form, and the like, he is correct.

The arguments cited from the speculative theologians show that the Quran contains nothing whose explanation, meaning, and intended sense cannot be known. This is the correct position, and it is the position of the early generations generally. They do not say that the Quran contains anything whose meaning and explanation, and what Allah Most High intended by it, are known neither to the Messenger, nor to Gabriel who brought it, nor to any of the believers. Rather, it contains things whose outcome and ultimate realization are known only to Allah Most High. A detailed discussion of this belongs elsewhere.