The tradition of writing commentaries on Nahj al-Balagha—as a sign of intellectual vitality and transformation in Islamic civilization—experienced a decisive and groundbreaking shift during the Safavid era (16th–17th centuries CE). Using a descriptive-analytical method within a historical framework, this study examines the distinctive features, driving factors, and new functions of commentary writing in this period. The findings reveal that with the establishment of a Shiʿi state, engagement with Nahj al-Balagha took on new functional dimensions. Following the official adoption of Persian in the Safavid administration, two parallel and interconnected trends emerged: first, the trend of “popularization” through translations and Persian commentaries, which made the text accessible beyond scholarly elites and available to the broader society; and second, a deeper trend of “specialized reinterpretation,” which redefined Nahj al-Balagha in two key domains: (a) in political discourse, with particular emphasis on the Covenant of Malik al-Ashtar, reinterpreted as a practical charter for Shiʿi governance; and (b) in philosophical-mystical discourse, where, under the strong influence of the Isfahan School of philosophy, the words of Imam ʿAli (a) became an authoritative source for metaphysical reflection and reference in complex philosophical debates. The study concludes that the Safavid era, by pioneering thematic approaches and consolidating both political and philosophical uses of Nahj al-Balagha, played a formative role in shaping the identity of the text for later generations.