for it is clearly distinct and cannot be confused with anything else: it consists of acts we actually perform and therefore already know through experience, as well as things we must avoid yet still picture in our minds.

Among the occurrences of the word ta’wil (interpretation) in the Quran is His statement, “Yet they denied that whose knowledge they could not encompass, and whose interpretation had not yet reached them” (Yunus 10:39). The pronoun there refers to the Quran itself—or, to phrase it differently, to that which they failed to grasp, which in turn goes back to the Quran.

He, the Exalted, also says:

“This Quran could never have been produced by anyone other than Allah; rather, it is a confirmation of what is before it and a detailed exposition of the Scripture—there is no doubt about it—from the Lord of all worlds” (Yunus 10:37);

“Or do they say, ‘He invented it’? Say, ‘Then produce a surah like it, and call upon whomever you can besides Allah, if you are truthful’” (Yunus 10:38);

“Yet they denied that whose knowledge they could not encompass, and whose interpretation had not yet reached them. Thus did those before them deny; so look how the wrongdoers ended up” (Yunus 10:39);

“Some of them believe in it, while others do not; and your Lord knows best the corrupters” (Yunus 10:40).

Allah, glorified be He, thus informs us that this Quran could never have been forged apart from Him. Such a construction (“it could never be…”) signifies the absolute impossibility of the negated act, just as in His words, “Your Lord would never destroy the towns unjustly” (Hud 11:117), and, “Nor would Allah punish them while you are among them” (al-Anfal 8:33). The reason is that created beings are incapable of producing anything comparable to it, as He challenged and obliged them to do when He said, “Or do they say, ‘He invented it’? Say, ‘Bring a surah like it…’”