known to anyone but Allah? It would follow that the Quran contains speech that neither the Messenger nor anyone in the Muslim community understands—not even Gabriel. This is the necessary consequence of maintaining that no human being understands the meanings of these verses.

This is not comparable to what was mentioned concerning the angels, the prophets, and Paradise. We have understood the words addressed to us and that they indicate the existence of bliss unknown to us. This is intelligible speech informing us that some created things are unknown to us. This is true, as in His words:

“None knows the hosts of your Lord except Him.”

And His words when they asked him about the spirit:

“You have been given only a little knowledge.”

These statements inform us that Allah has created things of which we have no knowledge, or whose kind we know without knowing their full measure, or whose attributes we know in some respects but not others. All this is true. But none of it means that neither the Messenger nor the believers can comprehend or understand the meaning of the revealed speech that we have been commanded to ponder. That is the objectionable position the scholars rejected. For Allah said:

“Indeed, We have made it an Arabic Quran so that you may understand.”

And He said:

“Do they not ponder the Quran, or are there locks upon their hearts?”

And He said:

“Have they not pondered the message?”

And He said:

“Until, when they leave your presence, they say to those who have been given knowledge, ‘What did he say just now?’ Those are the ones whose hearts Allah has sealed.”

He also drew a distinction regarding what He has not told us about, or whose attributes He has disclosed to us only in part. As for what