Al-Jawāb as-Sahīh li-man baddala dīn al-Masīh - Ibn Taimiya - (2/258)

He—exalted be He—also says in Surah Yunus: “Mankind were but a single community, then they differed.” ⦗Yunus 19⦘. This indicates that once the children of Adam disagreed, Allah sent the prophets. Their divergence predates the Messiah, indeed Moses, indeed the Friend-Abraham, and even Noah. Ibn ʿAbbas said: “Between Adam and Noah there were ten generations, all of them upon Islam; then polytheism and discord appeared among them.”

Disagreement manifests in two ways: on occasion they differ so that some believe while others disbelieve, as He—exalted is He—declares: “Had Allah willed, those who came after them would not have fought one another after the clear proofs had come to them; but they differed—some of them believed and some disbelieved.” ⦗al-Baqarah 253⦘. He also says: “These two adversaries have disputed concerning their Lord.” ⦗al-Hajj 19⦘—that is, the people of faith and the people of disbelief.

At other times all the disputants alike are upon falsehood, as in His saying:

وَقَالَ - تَعَالَى -: فِي سُورَةِ يُونُسَ {وَمَا كَانَ النَّاسُ إِلَّا أُمَّةً وَاحِدَةً فَاخْتَلَفُوا} [يونس: ١٩] وَهَذَا يَدُلُّ أَنَّهُ لَمَّا اخْتَلَفَتْ بَنُو آدَمَ بَعَثَ اللَّهُ النَّبِيِّينَ، وَاخْتِلَافُهُمْ كَانَ قَبْلَ الْمَسِيحِ بَلْ قَبْلَ مُوسَى بَلْ قَبْلَ الْخَلِيلِ بَلْ قَبْلَ نُوحٍ ; كَمَا قَالَ ابْنُ عَبَّاسٍ: كَانَ بَيْنَ آدَمَ وَنُوحٍ عَشَرَةُ قُرُونٍ كُلُّهُمْ عَلَى الْإِسْلَامِ، ثُمَّ حَدَثَ فِيهِمُ الشِّرْكُ وَالِاخْتِلَافُ عَلَى وَجْهَيْنِ تَارَةً يَخْتَلِفُونَ فَيُؤْمِنُ بَعْضُهُمْ وَيَكْفُرُ بَعْضُهُمْ ; كَمَا قَالَ - تَعَالَى -: {وَلَوْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ مَا اقْتَتَلَ الَّذِينَ مِنْ بَعْدِهِمْ مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا جَاءَتْهُمُ الْبَيِّنَاتُ وَلَكِنِ اخْتَلَفُوا فَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ آمَنَ وَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ كَفَرَ} [البقرة: ٢٥٣] وَقَالَ - تَعَالَى -: {هَذَانِ خَصْمَانِ اخْتَصَمُوا فِي رَبِّهِمْ} [الحج: ١٩] يَعْنِي أَهْلَ الْإِيمَانِ وَالْكُفْرِ وَقَدْ يَكُونُ الْمُخْتَلِفُونَ كُلُّهُمْ عَلَى بَاطِلٍ كَقَوْلِهِ: