Exegesis of the saying of Allah the Exalted: “And do not mix the truth with falsehood and conceal the truth while you know [it]”

He said: “Talbisu” means to mix. They used to bring forth doubts that resembled the truth to the people. For example, they would say, “Muhammad is the truth, but he was sent to the illiterate, not to all people.” Thus, they mixed the truth with falsehood. For the one who hears such words does not say that the Children of Israel disbelieved in Muhammad, but rather that they believed in him and then disbelieved. However, when they confused the people and said, “Muhammad is an Arab sent to the Arabs,” and they brought forth something like the saying of Allah the Exalted: , they created doubt and confused the people.
He said: Regarding the waw in , is it a waw of conjunction or a waw of accompaniment? It carries two possible meanings. It is possible that the meaning is: “Do not mix the truth with falsehood, and do not conceal the truth while you know [it].” It is also possible that the meaning is: “Do not mix the truth with falsehood while concealing the truth.” However, on this interpretation, there remains a difficulty, which is that His saying: implies that they mention both the truth and falsehood. It is said: Yes, even though they mentioned the truth and falsehood, they in fact concealed the truth, because they mixed it with falsehood, so it remained hidden. Therefore, it remains permissible that the waw is a waw of conjunction and that it is a waw of accompaniment. means: You know that the truth is in what the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) brought, and that you are wrong in concealing it.