According to Taberî, the address in this verse is literally directed at the Prophet (peace be upon him), but it is one of the expression patterns in the Arabic language where a command/prohibition is addressed to one party while the intended meaning refers to another. Allah is informing Muhammad here that the direction of prayer of Abraham and the earlier prophets is correct, that what the Jews and Christians said is not true, and that what came to him is the truth, calling him not to be among those in doubt. Taberî also transmits as one opinion that although the address is literally directed at the Prophet, the actual addressee might be some people who have expressed faith with their tongues but whose insight is not yet fully firm.

قيل: ذلك من الكلام الذي تخرجه العرب مخرج الأمر أو النهي للمخاطب به، والمراد به غيره، كما قال جل ثناؤه: يقول الله جل ثناؤه: اعلم يا محمد أن الحق ما أعلمك ربك وأتاك من عنده، لا ما يقول لك اليهود، والنصارى.

According to Zemahşerî, although the address in this verse is directed at the Prophet (peace be upon him), who cannot possibly fall into doubt, it is in terms of style a matter of 'arousing and incitement' (teheyyüc and ilhâb); the purpose is to emphasize that the People of Scripture know that the Qur'an was sent down as truth, and that the denial and disbelief of most of them should not put one into doubt. Furthermore, it is noted that this address could be a general address directed at everyone, meaning that no one should fall into doubt on a matter where the evidence agrees on its truth and validity. According to another opinion, although the address is literally directed at the Prophet, it is actually directed at his community.

من باب التهييج والإلهاب ، كقوله تعالى : في أن أهل الكتاب يعلمون أنه منزل بالحق ، ولا يريبك جحود أكثرهم وكفرهم به . ويجوز أن يكون خطابا لكل أحد ، على معنى أنه إذا تعاضدت الأدلة على صحته وصدقه ، فما ينبغي أن يمتري فيه أحد . وقيل : الخطاب لرسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم خطابا لأمته .

According to this exegete, the word 'al-Haqq' can be the predicate of an elided subject (that is, 'huwa al-haqq'), and furthermore the phrase 'min rabbika' can be either a second predicate after this predicate, or an adverbial phrase, or an independent subject whose predicate is 'min rabbika'. In the reading of Ali (may God be pleased with him), it is reported that 'al-Haqqu min rabbika' was read, and this serves as a substitute for the first phrase meaning 'they hide the truth from their Lord'. Furthermore, it is noted that the definite article in 'al-Haqq' can be for specific reference (ahid), and it can point to the truth upon which the Prophet stands or to the soundness of his prophethood/law.

المسألة الأولى : يحتمل أن يكون ( الحق ) خبر مبتدأ محذوف ، أي هو الحق ، وقوله : { من ربك } يجوز أن يكون خبرا بغير خبر ، وأن يكون حالا ، ويجوز أيضا أن يكون مبتدأ خبره : { من ربك } وقرأ علي رضي الله عنه : ( الحق من ربك ) على الإبدال من الأول ، أي يكتمون الحق من ربك

The given text passage is extremely brief and fragmented, and it does not contain a concrete view, explanation, or evaluation by Ibn Kesîr regarding this verse. The text contains only a connective phrase meaning 'the verses, ... like the word', but what this connection refers to or in what context it is used is unclear. Therefore, no meaningful inference about exegesis can be drawn from the text.

< الآيات كقوله

According to Beydâwî, the pronoun in the phrase 'they recognize him' refers to the Prophet (peace be upon him); the scholars of the People of Scripture recognize him by his characteristics just as they recognize their own children, and do not confuse him with anyone else. A group of them knowingly conceals the truth; this phrase is specific to those who refuse, and the believers are outside this ruling. The sentence 'The truth is from your Lord' is an independent sentence that announces that what is actually established is what stands with the Prophet, while what is not established is the attitude of the People of Scripture; the phrase 'do not be among the doubters' is not a prohibition of doubt for the Prophet, but rather an emphasis of the certainty of the matter, or a command to the community to acquire knowledge that will remove doubt.

أنا أعلم به مني بابني قال: ولم، قال: لأني لست أشك في محمد أنه نبي فأما ولدي فلعل والدته قد خانت

According to Kurtubî, the 'truth' in the verse refers to the command to face the Ka'ba, not what the Jews spoke about regarding their own direction of prayer. Furthermore, grammatical explanations have been provided according to different readings of the word 'al-Haqq' (raised or lowered case), and linguistic analyses related to the concept of 'imtira' (doubt) have been presented.

يعني استقبال الكعبة لا ما أخبرك به اليهود من قبلتهم