"And We did not create them as bodies"—meaning the Prophets—"that do not eat food," meaning: rather, We created them as bodies that do eat food. He said this in response to the saying of the polytheists, "What is this messenger who eats food?" "And they were not immortal" in the world, such that they would not die.
Muhammad said: His saying "as bodies" is a singular noun that informs about a plural group. The meaning is: We did not create the prophets before him as beings with bodies that do not eat food and do not die, so that We would make him the same.
﴿وَمَا جعلناهم جسدا﴾ يَعْنِي: النَّبِيِّينَ ﴿لَا يَأْكُلُونَ الطَّعَامَ﴾ أَيْ: وَلَكِنْ جَعَلْنَاهُمْ جَسَدًا يَأْكُلُونَ الطَّعَامَ؛ قَالَ هَذَا لِقَوْلِ الْمُشْرِكِينَ ﴿مَا لهَذَا الرَّسُول يَأْكُل الطَّعَام﴾. ﴿وَمَا كَانُوا خَالِدين﴾ فِي الدُّنْيَا لَا يَمُوتُونَ.
قَالَ مُحَمَّد: قَوْله: ﴿جسدا﴾ هُوَ وَاحِد يُنْبِئُ عَنْ جَمَاعَةٍ؛ الْمَعْنَى: وَمَا جَعَلْنَا الْأَنْبِيَاءَ قَبْلَهُ ذَوِي أَجْسَادٍ لَا تَأْكُلُ الطَّعَامَ وَلَا تَمُوتُ؛ فنجعله كَذَلِك.
