And the angels are Allah’s messengers. The word malak (angel) itself conveys the meaning of bearing a message. Its original form is mal’ak, on the pattern maf‘al, but frequent usage led to its being simplified: the hamza’s vowel was transferred to the preceding unvowelled consonant, and the hamza was dropped. Malāk is derived from ma’luk and mal’ak, with the hamza preceding the lām in the first and the lām preceding the hamza in the second; both mean “message.” Alūka likewise means “message,” with the hamza preceding the lām. The poet said:

“Convey to al-Nu‘mān this message from me:
My confinement and my waiting have grown long.”

Here the hamza comes first. In malak, however, the lām precedes the hamza, and this derivation is preferable. Its counterpart in greater derivation is lāka, yalūku (to chew or roll something in the mouth), as in chewing over words or champing a bridle-bit; the hamza is stronger than the wāw. Next comes, in intermediate derivation, akala, ya’kulu (to eat). For a person chews what he takes into himself—whether food, speech, or knowledge—which enters his inner being and nourishes him.

‘Abd Allāh ibn Mas‘ūd said: “Every host loves to have people attend his banquet, and Allah’s banquet is the Quran.” The word ādib means a host, and ma’duba means the hospitality offered: the food prepared for a guest. He thus explained that Allah has entertained His servants with the words He sent down to them. These are the nourishment and sustenance of their hearts. Their hearts benefit from them and need them even more than the body benefits from and needs its food.

And ‘Alī—may Allah be pleased with him—said: “The godly scholars are those who nourish people with wisdom