The reason for this is that teaching, reminding, warning, guidance, and similar activities involve both someone who acts and someone who receives. A person teaches and reminds another, but that other person may or may not learn and take heed. If he learns and takes heed, the teaching and reminding have been fully accomplished. If he neither learns nor takes heed, only one side of the process has been realized: action by the agent, without reception by the recipient.

In such a case, one may say: “I taught him, but he did not learn; I reminded him, but he did not take heed; I commanded him, but he did not obey.” Yet one may also say, “I did not teach him or remind him,” because the process was not fully accomplished and did not achieve its intended purpose. Thus, it is denied because it lacked completeness and failed to benefit the listener being addressed, even though the speaker delivering the address did benefit.

Accordingly, wherever believers are singled out as recipients of reminders, warnings, and the like, what is exclusive to them is the complete, beneficial form through which they attained felicity. Wherever the wording is general, everyone shares in receiving the warning through which the case is established against creation, whether they accept it or not.

This is the guidance mentioned in His words:

“As for Thamūd, We guided them, but they preferred blindness to guidance.”

Guidance here means clarification, showing the way, and direction offered generally to all. It is like warning and reminding in their general sense. In this sense, He has guided both the God-fearing and others, as He says:

“For every people there is a guide.”

As for His words:

“Guide us to the straight path,”

what is sought is the particular guidance