So when he says:

“A neighbour has a greater claim by virtue of his proximity,”

a neighbour means a neighbour, not a co-owner, for this latter meaning is unknown in their language. Yet nothing in the wording entails that he is entitled to the right of pre-emption; it merely indicates that selling to him is preferable. As for “khamr” (wine), numerous texts and authentic reports establish that it was a name for every intoxicant; nabīdh was not called khamr by analogy. Likewise, they called a grave robber a thief, as ʿĀ’ishah said: “One who steals from our dead is like one who steals from our living.” They also regarded a man who commits sodomy as more culpable than one who commits unlawful intercourse with a woman.

In interpreting the Quran and hadith, one must know how their wording indicates what Allah and His Messenger intend, and how their speech is to be understood. Knowledge of the Arabic language in which we have been addressed helps us understand what Allah and His Messenger intend by their speech, as does knowledge of how expressions convey meanings. Indeed, this was the cause of most of the misguidance of the people of innovation: they came to interpret the words of Allah and His Messenger according to meanings they claimed those words conveyed, when that was not the case. They deemed one meaning literal and another figurative. Thus, the Murji’ah erred concerning the term “faith”: they deemed its application to mere assent literal, and its inclusion of deeds figurative.

They may be answered as follows: If the distinction between literal and figurative usage is invalid, there is no need for this argument. If it is valid, it does not help you; rather, it counts against you, not in your favour. For a literal expression conveys its meaning when used without qualification or any contextual indicator, whereas figurative usage conveys its meaning only through a contextual indicator. It has already become clear that wherever the term “faith” is used without qualification in the Quran and Sunnah, deeds are included within it, and the claim that deeds are excluded from it is made only