Exegesis of the saying of Allah the Exalted: “Whenever they were provided with a fruit as provision, they would say, ‘This is what we were provided with before,’ and they were brought to it in a similar form.”

That is, they were given from it, meaning from these fruits, that is, a gift because it resembles what came before; it resembles it in size, it resembles it in color, it resembles it in texture. All these are tangible things that a person assumes are similar to what came before in their color, and what else? Their size and texture. But in taste, no, it differs greatly. For this reason, He said: It differs. And how beautiful and delicious it is for a person when he sees this fruit; he sees it as if it were one thing, but when he tastes it, the taste differs greatly. He finds in himself a movement toward this fruit, a pleasure, and an amazement at how this great difference exists while the shape is the same. For this reason, if fruit were presented to you whose colors are the same, whose sizes are the same, and whose textures are the same, and then you taste it, and this one is pure sweet, and this one is mixed, meaning sweet accompanied by sourness, and this one is sour, you would find a greater pleasure than if they were all the same or if they were different. From “ata” or from “uta”? The second one or the first one? The first one, from “uta,” from “ata” or from “uta”? From the first one? No, my brother, from the second one, the second one. Because if it were from the first one, it would have said: “They were given it,” but it said: meaning it was brought to them in a similar form. Similar in what? We said in three things, which is what comes to our mind now, and Allah knows best what will be, in color, size, and texture, but not in taste. Because if it agreed in taste, this would be that, with no difference.