and so mathānī has been explained as that which covers all the categories: promises and threats, commands and prohibitions, reports and rulings, and the lawful and unlawful. It does not mention one member of a pair without the other, but covers all the categories, just as “mutually resembling” refers to things that are alike.

It has also been explained as that which contains narratives, proofs, commands, and prohibitions, because of the wisdom and clarification these contain, and because each passage contains, for example, beneficial meanings not found in another. This is like a single thing having several names, each indicating a particular attribute. Examples include the names of Allah Most High, the names of His Messenger—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—and the names of His Book.

Thus, repeating statements and commands in different wordings, each conveying a distinct meaning, is like using multiple names for a single referent, each name conveying a distinct meaning. This involves describing the attributes of things, even when the thing described is one and the same. It is therefore repetition and reiteration with respect to the entity itself, not its attributes.

Ibn Abī Hātim related, through a well-known chain of transmission, from Saʿīd ibn Jubayr