Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah. To proceed:
The Names and Attributes of Allah are matters established by revelation; therefore, none of them may be affirmed except what is established by the Qur’an or authentic Sunnah. As far as we know, the name “One Who Speaks” (al-Nāṭiq) has not been established as a name for Allah, and it is not correct to derive this name merely from the affirmation of the attribute of speech or from the occurrence of the verb “speaks” (yanṭiqu) in some narrations. As for the attribute of speech, it is established for Allah by the Qur’an and Sunnah. He, Glorified and Exalted, speaks whatever He wills, whenever He wills, in a manner befitting Him, and His speech is uncreated.
The name “al-Nāṭiq” is not established as a name of Allah تعالى, because it does not occur in the Qur’an or in an authentic Sunnah text establishing this name.
It is important here to distinguish between a name and an action or description mentioned in a revealed text. Not every action attributed to Allah necessarily gives rise to a name for Him.
Thus, even if an authentic hadith were to state that Allah تعالى “speaks” (yanṭiqu), this would establish the action mentioned in the hadith, but it would not necessarily mean that “al-Nāṭiq” is one of Allah’s Names.
This is similar to what scholars mention regarding other actions occurring in the revealed texts: names of Allah are not necessarily derived from them.
What is certainly established is that Allah سبحانه وتعالى speaks, and that speech is an established attribute of Him.
The Qur’an establishes that Allah تعالى spoke to Moses عليه السلام. Allah says:
﴿And Allah spoke to Moses directly﴾ [al-Nisā’: 164].
And He تعالى says:
﴿And when Moses came to Our appointed time and his Lord spoke to him﴾ [al-Aʿrāf: 143].
And He سبحانه says:
﴿O Moses, I have chosen you above the people through My messages and My speech﴾ [al-Aʿrāf: 144].
And He, Mighty and Majestic, says:
﴿It is not for any human being that Allah should speak to him except by revelation, or from behind a veil﴾ [al-Shūrā: 51].
Thus, the affirmation of speech for Allah is established by the revealed texts, and it is not permissible to deny it of Him.
The Speech of Allah تعالى is uncreated, because it is one of His attributes, and the Attributes of Allah are uncreated.
Ahl al-Sunnah affirm the Speech of Allah in a manner befitting Him, without likening His speech to the speech of created beings and without specifying how His speech occurs.
Allah تعالى says:
﴿Say: If the sea were ink for the Words of my Lord, the sea would surely be exhausted before the Words of my Lord were exhausted, even if We brought another like it as a supplement﴾ [al-Kahf: 109].
Accordingly, the Qur’an is the Speech of Allah تعالى and is not created.
The statement mentioned in the question, namely that Allah’s speech is “an eternal meaning subsisting in the self, neither letters nor sounds,” is among the well-known formulations used by the Ashʿarites in presenting their doctrine concerning divine speech; it is not the doctrine of the Muʿtazilah.
The Muʿtazilah, on the other hand, held that Allah’s speech is created and that Allah creates speech in something other than Himself; therefore, they do not affirm speech subsisting in Allah Himself in the literal sense.
Ahl al-Sunnah affirm that Allah تعالى speaks, that His Speech is uncreated, and that He speaks whatever He wills, whenever He wills, in a manner befitting His majesty.
Here, one should be cautious about declaring individuals unbelievers merely because they use a particular expression or hold a particular view concerning Allah’s Speech. Judging a statement is one matter, while judging a specific individual is another, and the latter has conditions and principles that must be considered.
No.
Affirming speech for Allah تعالى does not necessitate affirming a tongue or two lips for Him, because we do not measure the manner of Allah’s Speech according to the manner of the speech of created beings.
Therefore, it is not correct to say “it came upon the tongue of Allah” if what is intended is to attribute a tongue to Allah تعالى.
The tongue is an attribute that has not been established for Allah by the Qur’an or Sunnah, and the Names and Attributes are matters established by revelation.
As for the statement used by some imams or reciters, “as it came upon the tongue of Allah,” if what is intended is merely to express that the words are the Words of Allah, then this is an imprecise expression. It is preferable to use the clear wording: “as Allah تعالى said” or “as it is stated in the Book of Allah.”
The statement of some people, “We interpret the tongue as speech just as we interpreted the hand as power,” is not correct according to the methodology of Ahl al-Sunnah, because the hand is an attribute established for Allah تعالى by the revealed texts, whereas the tongue has not been established as an attribute of Allah سبحانه وتعالى.
Therefore, it is not correct to affirm a tongue and then say that what is meant by it is speech.
Rather, the correct statement is: Allah تعالى speaks in a manner befitting His majesty, and there is no need to affirm a tongue, mouth, or two lips in order to affirm His Speech.
When some people see a person who resembles another person, they may say: “the Creator Who Speaks” (al-Khāliq al-Nāṭiq) or “Glory be to the Creator Who Speaks.” This expression is incorrect and should be avoided.
If by “the Creator” the speaker means Allah تعالى and then describes Him as “the One Who Speaks,” he has attributed to Allah a description that has not been established.
If, however, he intends to describe the created person as “the Creator Who Speaks,” then the word “Creator” is not correct with respect to a created being, because absolute creation is among the particular attributes of Allah تعالى.
If the intended meaning is simply to express amazement at the strong resemblance between two people, one may instead use sound expressions such as:
“How strong the resemblance between them is!”
or:
“Glory be to Allah, they look as though they were one person because of how much they resemble each other.”
This avoids expressions that could be misleading when used concerning Allah تعالى.
And Allah knows best.