Thus He states that the directions belong to Him, indicating that this attribution denotes special designation and honor—as though He had said, “Allah’s direction and Allah’s direction of prayer.”
Some people, however, concede that what is meant is Allah’s direction—that is, Allah’s direction of prayer—but say that this verse also indicates the attribute and that the servant faces his Lord, as stated in the hadith:
“When one of you stands for prayer, Allah is before his face.”
And likewise in his saying:
“Allah continues to turn His Face toward His servant as long as the servant turns toward Him. When he turns away, He turns His Face away from him.”
They maintain that the verse indicates both meanings. That, however, is a separate matter, which is not our subject here.
The point is that interpreting it as “there is Allah’s direction of prayer” is not the disputed figurative interpretation rejected by those who oppose interpreting verses concerning the divine attributes figuratively. Nor is it something that the affirmers adduce as evidence against them. This meaning is correct in itself, and the verse indicates it. If the verse also indicates the existence of an attribute, that is a separate matter.
There remains the question of how their words, “there is the Face of Allah,” signify “there is Allah’s direction of prayer.” Is the direction of prayer called a “face” because “face” and “direction” have the same meaning? Or is it because whoever faces the Face of Allah thereby faces Allah’s direction of prayer? These questions require discussions for which this is not the place.
(The second example is the word “command.” Allah, Most High, declares:
“His command, when He wills a thing, is only to say to it, ‘Be,’ and it is.”
And He says:
“Surely, His are creation and command.”
Groups among the early generations cited this verse and others as evidence that the command is uncreated; rather, it is His speech and one of His attributes. Many people consequently began applying this understanding to the word “command” wherever it occurs, treating it as an attribute in order to maintain a uniform interpretation, and regarding its reference to anything other than an attribute as a refutation of that interpretation.