85.21–22 – Yes! It is a glorious Qur ’ ān, in a guarded Tablet
The word tablet appears elsewhere in relation to the tablets of Moses (7.145, 150, 154). Muslim commentators have interpreted verses 21–22 to mean that the Quran has been kept safe on a heavenly tablet from eternity.
Other quranic passages that seem to support this idea are 80.11–16, which says that the “reminder” is written in “honored pages, exalted (and) purified,” and 56.77–80, where the “honorable qur ’ ān ” is in “a hidden book” that only the “purified” may touch. Three verses also refer to “the mother of the Book” (3.7; 13.39; 43.4), which may indicate a concept of a heavenly source of revelation.
These verses contribute to a quranic “doctrine of scripture” that is never fully explained but rather comes from scattered hints. The claims that Allah reveals ( anzala , nazzala , tanzīl ) his word and inspires ( awḥā , waḥy ) the messenger are clear. But is the Quran revealed in a night (44.3) or a month (2.185), or is it sent down in parts for gradual recitation (17.106)? Another intriguing verse says that Allah speaks to a human by inspiration, from behind a veil, or by sending a messenger (42.51).
A thorough study of this theme is available in a series of articles by Arthur Jeffery titled “The Qur’ān as Scripture”.