The Role of Context in Determining the Meanings of Imperative and Prohibitive Expressions in al-Biqāʿī's Naẓm al-Durar fī Tanāsub al-Āyāt wa al-Suwar: An Analytical Study

Abstract

This study investigates the role of context in determining the semantic functions of the imperative and prohibitive expressions in the exegesis of Imam Al-Biqāʿī. It presents an analytical study of his Qur'anic commentary, Naẓm al-Durar fī Tanāsub al-Āyāt wa al-Suwar, to reveal how contextual indicators guide the intended meanings of directive expressions within the Qur'anic text. The research aims to clarify Al-Biqāʿī's methodology in interpreting imperative and prohibitive forms and to demonstrate how contextual clues shift their meanings from primary obligations and prohibitions to secondary rhetorical and semantic purposes, such as guidance, recommendation, permissibility, warning, admonition, supplication, challenge, and evaluation. The study employs a descriptive-analytical method by collecting and analyzing relevant examples found in Naẓm al-Durar in light of linguistic, rhetorical, and juristic contextual indicators. The findings reveal that Al-Biqāʿī regarded context as a fundamental interpretive principle for identifying the intended meaning of Qur'anic discourse. His approach reflects the methodology of classical jurists and rhetoricians while highlighting the significance of textual coherence and the interrelationship between Qur'anic verses, thereby enriching semantic interpretation and demonstrating the expressive depth of the Qur'anic text.