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wa-la-qad ʾātaynā mūsā l-kitāba fa-khtulifa fīhi wa-law-lā kalimatun sabaqat min rabbika la-quḍiya baynahum wa-ʾinnahum la-fī shakkin minhu murībin
Certainly We gave Moses the Book, but differences arose about it, and were it not for a prior decree of your Lord, a decision would have been made between them; indeed they are in grave doubt concerning it.
— Ali Quli Qarai
Surah Hud – Verse 110
110. “And We certainly gave Moses the Book, then variance was (created) in it, and had not a Word gone forth before from your Lord, the matter would have been decided between them: but they are in grave doubt concerning it.”
To console the Prophet (S), the Qur’an adds that if his people raised objections and fabricated pretexts concerning the Qur’an, he should not worry, for Allah had also provided Moses with a Celestial Book (the Torah) and it became then an object for their differences, some accepted it while others rejected it. The verse says:
“And We certainly gave Moses the Book, then variance was (created) in it...”
Allah is not hasty in punishing His enemies; it is for the sake of expediency and pragmatism in their education which requires such a course of action. And if pragmatism in such a case did not allow for it, and the program which Allah had preordained for the Prophet in this respect did not require further delays, judgment would have been passed upon them and the punishment would have been inflicted upon them. Nevertheless, they had not yet believed in the Truth, everything about which they entertained with suspicion and viewed with pessimism.
The verse continues saying:
“…and had not a Word gone forth before from your Lord, the matter would have been decided between them: but they are in grave doubt concerning it.”