Thus, no one but He knows the meanings of those names which He has reserved to Himself in His knowledge of the unseen. Allah, glorified is He, has informed us that He is All-Knowing, All-Powerful, All-Hearing, All-Seeing, All-Forgiving, and Merciful, along with His other names and attributes. We understand what these mean and distinguish knowledge from power, and mercy from hearing and sight. We know that all these names refer to Allah’s essence, despite their different meanings. They agree and coincide in referring to His essence, while differing in the attributes they signify.

The same applies to the names of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, such as Muhammad, Ahmad, al-Māhī, al-Hāshir, and al-ʿĀqib. Likewise, the names of the Quran include the Quran, the Criterion, the Guidance, the Light, the Revelation, the Healing, and others. People have disputed whether names of this kind are synonymous because they refer to a single entity, or distinct because they signify different attributes.

An example is the use of al-sayf (the sword), al-sārim (the cutting blade), and al-muhannad (the Indian blade), when al-sārim is intended to convey the meaning of cutting, and al-muhannad a connection to India. The precise conclusion is that they are synonymous with respect to the entity they name, but distinct with respect to its attributes.

What further clarifies this is that Allah has described the entire Quran as perfectly formed and as mutually consistent, while elsewhere He has designated some of it as clear and some as ambiguous. One must therefore distinguish the perfection and consistency that apply to the whole Quran from the clarity and ambiguity that apply to particular parts of it. He says: