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The phrase بما ظلموا (bimā ẓalamū) appears in only two places in Sūrat al-Shuʿarāʾ (Q 27:52 and 85) and is unattested elsewhere in the Qur’an. The Qur’an could have employed alternative phrases, such as بما كسبوا (bimā kasabū), بما عملوا (bimā ʿamilū), or بما صنعوا (bimā ṣanaʿū)—all of which are Qur’anic and would fit the context without significantly altering the general meaning of the verses. However, none of these alternatives were chosen, because the surah is governed by its own strict diction in vocabulary selection, as this study demonstrates (brill.com/view/journals/isj/…). This strict adherence to the surah’s unique diction strongly suggests a fixed, written text from its inception. It is highly improbable for such precise alignment to have resulted from later editorial work, as these nuanced features were likely beyond the awareness of any hypothetical editors. Even if we assume, for the sake of argument, that later editors meticulously controlled the vocabulary of every surah, achieving such precision would have been impossible without advanced data-mining techniques, which were unavailable in their time. If they nevertheless succeeded, we must commend them for producing one of the most meticulously edited texts in history. This would also mean that no critical edition of the Qur’an is necessary—because we already have one. However, if we insist on preparing one, it must match the Qur’an’s current meticulousness and preserve its equilibrium, or else it would be automatically invalidated. @chonkshonk1 @shahanSean @MohsenGT @KhalilAndani @CellardEleonore @JosephLumbard