Continuous Recitation (tilāwa) and the Secret of Its Precedence over Teaching (taʿlīm)

What has been mentioned in the verse under discussion as the precedence of recitation over explanation and teaching: “reciting to them Your verses and teaching them the Book and wisdom”(136) is expressed in the verses “So when We have recited it [through Gabriel], then follow its recitation. Then upon Us is its clarification”(137) in the form of an actual sequence.

For recitation to lead to teaching, it must be continuous. Therefore, it is mentioned in the form of a present tense verb, which indicates continuity: “recites” (yatlū). Similarly, for the effectiveness of teaching and its fruitfulness in relation to purification, it is also mentioned in the form of a present tense verb: “teaches them” (yuʿallimuhum). And for the continuity of purification and freedom from the constant temptation of Satan and the continuous deception of the commanding self, purification is also mentioned with a present tense verb: “purifies them” (yuzakkīhim), because the continuity of revelation and its permanence until the Day of Resurrection necessitates such an expression.