Tafsir of the Verse “None Touch It Except the Purified”

Question

Zayd says: regarding the noble verse [ar]إِنَّهُۥ لَقُرْءَانٌ كَرِيمٌ فِى كِتَـٰبٍ مَّكْنُونٍ لَّا يَمَسُّهُۥٓ إِلَّا ٱلْمُطَهَّرُونَ تَنزِيلٌ مِّن رَّبِّ ٱلْعَـٰلَمِينَ[/ar] “Indeed, it is a noble Qur’an, in a Book well-guarded, which none touch except the purified, a revelation from the Lord of the worlds” (Surah al-Waqi‘a, 56:77–80) — there are two views among the commentators (mufassirun) concerning the phrase “la yamassuhu”.

Answer

There are two views concerning the tafsir of this verse. The first is that the pronoun in “la yamassuhu” refers back to “kitab maknun”, with “al-mutahharun” meaning the angels; the second view is that the pronoun refers back to the Noble Qur’an, with “al-mutahharun” meaning those who are in a state of ghusl and wudu. [This is stated] in the tafsir “Madarik al-Tanzil”, vol.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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