and who was the great scholar of the Muslim community and the interpreter of the Quran—these two, together with their students, were among the Companions and Successors who most firmly affirmed the divine attributes and most extensively transmitted reports concerning them from the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. Anyone acquainted with hadith and Quranic commentary knows this. Among the Successors, none were more distinguished than the students of these two eminent men. Indeed, the third alongside them, with regard to the foremost Successors, is of their kind or close to them. Comparable to their stature is that of the students of Zayd ibn Thābit. Yet, despite their distinction, his students did not study exclusively under him; they also learned from others, such as ‘Umar, Ibn ‘Umar, and Ibn ‘Abbās.

If the meanings of these verses were to be denied or left unspoken, the godly scholars among the Companions, those versed in the Book and the Sunnah, would not have been the ones who spoke most extensively about them. Moreover, the Companions reported that they learned the explanation of the Quran from the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, along with its recitation. Not one of them ever reported that he declined to explain any verse.

Abū ‘Abd al-Rahmān al-Sulamī said:

“Those who taught us the Quran—‘Uthmān ibn ‘Affān, ‘Abd Allāh ibn Mas‘ūd, and others—told us that whenever they learned ten verses from the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, they would not proceed beyond them until they had learned the knowledge and practice they contained. They said, ‘Thus we learned the Quran, knowledge, and practice together.’”

Likewise, when the leading scholars were asked about any of these matters, they did not deny its meaning. Rather, they affirmed the meaning while disclaiming knowledge of how, as in the statement of Mālik ibn Anas when he was asked about His words,