It was narrated that Jaabir ibn ‘Abdullaah, may Allaah be pleased with them, said: "Whenever the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, delivered a Khutbah (i.e. sermon), his eyes would become red, his tone loud and he showed anger as if he were warning us against an army. He, peace and blessings be upon him, used to say: "To proceed: The best of speech is the Book of Allaah and the best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad. The worst of things are those which are newly-invented, and every innovation is a going astray…"

Firstly, The Verification of the Hadeeth:

It was reported by Imam Muslim in his Saheeh, the Book of Jumu‘ah (i.e. Friday), the chapter of shortening prayer and sermon (867), An-Nasaa'i in his Sunan, the Book of the prayer of Two ‘Eids, the chapter of How sermon should be? (1578), Ibn Maajah in Al-Muqadimah, the chapter of avoiding innovations and dispute (45) and others.

Secondly: The Meaning of the Hadeeth:

The witness in this Hadeeth is the statement of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him: (The best of speech is the Book of Allah…) and it is in conformity with the saying of Allah, The Almighty: {Allah has sent down the best statement: a consistent Book wherein is reiteration. The skins shiver therefrom of those who fear their Lord; then their skins and their hearts relax at the remembrance of Allah. That is the guidance of Allah by which He guides whom He wills. And one whom Allah leaves astray - for him there is no guide.} [Quran 39: 23]

The Noble Quran is the speech of Allah, The Almighty, and his word to his worshippers, then what speech is better than the speech of Allah, The Almighty? What words is more honored and better than the speech of Allah, The Almighty? (Really, there is no speech better or more honored than that of Allah, The Almighty)

Imam Al-Qurtubi, may Allaah have mercy upon him, said: "When Allah, The Almighty, says (what means): {Who listen to speech and follow the best of it...} [Quran 39: 18], He The Exalted pointed out that the best thing one can hear is what He, The Almighty, sent down which is the Noble Quran.

It was narrated that Sa‘d ibn Abi Waqqaas, may Allaah be pleased with him, said: "The Companions of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said to him: 'Could you speak to us?' Then, Allah, The Almighty, revealed (what means): {Allah has sent down the best statement: a consistent Book wherein is reiteration...} [Quran 39: 23]

Then they said to him, peace and blessings be upon him: 'Could you relate to us stories? Allah, The Almighty, revealed (what means): {We relate to you, [O Muhammad], the best of stories …} [Quran 12: 3]

Then, they said to him, peace and blessings be upon him: 'Could you remind us? Upon this Allah, The Almighty, revealed (what means): { Has the time not come for those who have believed that their hearts should become humbly submissive at the remembrance of Allah and what has come down of the truth?…} [Quran 57: 16]" (1).  

The speech is what one speaks. Quran was called speech because the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, used to speak to his companions and people with it. Also, it is like the saying of Allah, The Almighty:

•   {So in what statement hereafter will they believe?} [Quran 7: 185]

•   {Then at this statement do you wonder?} [Quran 53: 59]

•   {…[O Muhammad], if they do not believe in this message, [and] out of sorrow.} [Quran 18: 6]

•   {… And who is more truthful than Allah in statement.} [Quran 4: 87](2).

The Noble Quran is the best speech and words. Allah has sent down it: a consistent Book wherein is reiteration. It is consistent in its majesty and value, high status, and sublime meanings. It is the truth in its verses and words. All of it is in equal degree of perfection and majesty. It is impossible for a human soul to say it because it has nothing of the characteristics of such soul. We all know that the nature and characteristics of every soul are reflected in its words and one can easily get it out from its speech. The special traits of every soul appear in its words and one can easily recognize everyone from his speech. That is because there is a proverb that reads: 'One should speak so that people may know who he is.'

A poet even said:

 Silence covers the stupid person while one can be easily recognized when he speaks.

The Noble Quran has nothing of such circumstances or of such special traits. You can never find in it the spirit of human soul or any trace of human soul and this is what is indicated in the saying of Allah, The Almighty: {Then do they not reflect upon the Qur'an? If it had been from [any] other than Allah, they would have found within it much contradiction.} [Quran 4: 82]

This means that (If it had been from [any] other than Allah, The Almighty,) it would include the defects of the speech of human such as differences, diversity and inconstancy. Thus strength and weakness will differ in it and also soundness and defectiveness and the like of the defects of the speech of humans and from what their characteristics have that is inevitably included in all what they articulate. The most eloquent and skillful Arabs in rhetoric language realized this well when the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, used to recite the Noble Quran on their delegations that used to come to pilgrimage, conveying to them what he, peace and blessings be upon him, came with. Many of them used to ask the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, to repeat reciting it for them and he, peace and blessings be upon him, used to repeat it for them. Upon this they used to say, this is has nothing to do with the words of the people of the earth. This means that its source is not from humans. As long as this has nothing to do with the words of the people of the earth, then his rhetoric language has nothing to do with the rhetoric language of the people of the earth." (3).

His saying:  {…a consistent Book wherein is reiteration…} means that Quran has explanations for matters and their opposites such as belief and disbelief, guidance and misguidance, good and evil, rewards and punishments, paradise and hellfire. The Noble Quran in both conditions keeps its high level of perfection and majesty. For example, speech regarding disbelief is really miraculous in much the same way as the speech regarding belief. Simply because both of them are from Allah, The Almighty. The Quranic expression (the best speech) and the Prophetic one (the best of speech is the speech of Allah, The Almighty)  to indicates that other than the speech or words of Allah, The Almighty, may be good but the best speech ever and the best words ever is the Noble Quran. If the well saying reads, the kings has the best speeches, then what about the King of all sovereignties and all kings which falsehood cannot approach it from before it or from behind it.  It includes words that if they become strong, they will be like the strong waves of wide oceans, if they become soft, they will be like the breaths of the hereafter, whenever they give a promise from the generosity of Allah, The Almighty, they make the mouths smiles towards the unseen matters, and whenever they threaten with a punishment, they make tongues tremble from the high temperature of the heart.

Allah, The Almighty, is then most truthful when He, The Exalted, says (what means): {Allah has sent down the best statement: a consistent Book wherein is reiteration. The skins shiver therefrom of those who fear their Lord; then their skins and their hearts relax at the remembrance of Allah. That is the guidance of Allah by which He guides whom He wills.} [Quran 39: 23]

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(1)  Reported by Al-Haakim (2/354), Al-Waahidi in As-Baab An-Nuzool, p. 248, Ibn Hibaan (6209), Ibn Jareer, No. (18776 Shaakir), Abu Ya‘la (740), Al-Bazaar, No. (3218) and its Isnaad (chain of transmission) is strong as Al-‘Ali said, its narrators are trustworthy and meet the conditions stipulated by Al-Bukhaari and Muslim, Sheykh Al-Islaam deemed it Hasan (good) in Majmoo‘ Al-Fataawa (17/40). Refer to: Saheeh Asbaab An-Nuzool by Al-‘Ali, p. 190.

(2)  Tafseer Al-Qurtubi (8/335).

(3) Refer to Sharh Ahadeeth min Saheeh Al-Bukhaari (119-120).