ملاك التأويل قاطع بذوي الإلحاد والتعطيل في توجيه المتشابه اللفظ من آي التنزيل

Malak al-Ta'wil al-Qati' bi Dhawi al-Ilhad wa al-Ta'til fi Tawjih al-Mutashabih al-Lafz min Ay al-Tanzil

A major classical work devoted to the verbal similarities and subtle variations between Qurʾānic verses (al-mutashābih al-lafẓī), by the Andalusian scholar Abū Jaʿfar Aḥmad ibn Ibrāhīm ibn al-Zubayr al-Thaqafī al-Gharnāṭī (627–708 AH). It is one of Ibn al-Zubayr’s most important works and a significant contribution to the study of the precise linguistic and rhetorical construction of the Qurʾān.

The work investigates passages in which the Qurʾān relates similar meanings or narratives using slightly different wording. Ibn al-Zubayr asks why one verse employs a particular word, construction or order while a parallel passage uses another; why an expression is added or omitted, advanced or delayed, definite or indefinite, singular or plural, concise or expanded; and why apparently similar passages conclude with different divine names or other expressions. He then seeks to demonstrate how each variation is precisely suited to its particular context. His treatment follows the order of the Qurʾān and commonly presents the problem as a question before giving a detailed explanation of the reason for the difference.

Ibn al-Zubayr’s explanations draw upon a wide range of disciplines, particularly Arabic grammar, morphology, rhetoric, semantics, Qirāʾāt, Asbāb al-Nuzūl, ḥadīth and transmitted tafsīr. He frequently engages the interpretations of earlier authorities and mufassirūn, while also citing Arabic poetry, proverbs and linguistic usage to establish the nuances of particular expressions. The result is a work that demonstrates how seemingly minute differences between parallel Qurʾānic passages can reflect differences in context, emphasis, rhetorical purpose and thematic setting.

Malāk al-Taʾwīl is consequently particularly valuable for students of Tafsīr, Mutashābih al-Qurʾān, Qurʾānic rhetoric, linguistic tafsīr and the stylistic inimitability (iʿjāz) of the Qurʾān. Rather than treating repeated or closely resembling verses as simple repetitions, Ibn al-Zubayr demonstrates the significance of their precise verbal differences and their relationship to the structure and purpose of each Qurʾānic context.