1. Psychological Dismissal of Intellectual Objections:
Surah 47:16 and 47:24 attribute any failure to comprehend or accept the Quran to divine sealing or "locks upon hearts," reframing critical intellectual evaluation as moral arrogance or psychological blindness.
2. Historical Incomprehension:
The text acknowledges that native Arabic speakers sitting directly in Muhammad's presence questioned the substance of his discourse, demonstrating that rejection stemmed from textual and logical scrutiny rather than mere obstinacy.
3. Inversion of the Scriptural Test:
While the text blames internal blindness for disbelief, evaluating the Quran against prior scriptures (Surah 46:4) reveals that rejection is rooted in explicit theological contradictions regarding salvation, atonement, and ethics.
Surah 47:16 and 47:24 describe those who listen to Muhammad yet depart asking what he said, attributing their lack of understanding to sealed hearts.
The surah describes those who sit and listen to Muhammad but leave his presence asking mockingly, "What did he just say?"
> Surah [47:16](https://quran.com/47?startingVerse=16):
And among them are those who listen to you, until when they depart from you they say to those who were given knowledge, 'What has he said just now?' Those are the ones of whom Allah has sealed their hearts and who have followed their desires.
Verse 24 adds:
> Surah [47:24](https://quran.com/47?startingVerse=24):
"Then do they not reflect upon the Qur'an, or are there locks upon their hearts?"
The Quran attributes the rejection of Muhammad strictly to psychological blindness or arrogance ("locks upon their hearts"). This shows there was contemporary Arabic speakers who sat directly in Muhammad's presence but walked away unable to comprehend or extract meaningful substance from his discourse.
A Christian can flip this: "We reject the Quran not because of 'locks on our hearts,' but because we do reflect on it and find that it violates the criteria of the previous scriptures. We are obeying Surah [46:4](https://quran.com/46?startingVerse=4) by checking the prior books, and finding that Surah 47's theology of salvation and warfare completely contradicts them."