110 Preface وَلَقَد آتَينا موسَى الكِتابَ فَاختُلِفَ فيهِ ۚ وَلَولا كَلِمَةٌ سَبَقَت مِن رَبِّكَ لَقُضِيَ بَينَهُم ۚ وَإِنَّهُم لَفي شَكٍّ مِنهُ مُريبٍYusuf AliWe certainly gave the Book to Moses, but differences arose therein: had it not been that a word had gone forth before from thy Lord, the matter would have been decided1 between them, but they are in suspicious doubt concerning it.2Cf. 10:19. Previous revelations are not to be denied or dishonoured because those who nominally go by them have corrupted and deprived them of spiritual value by their vain controversies and disputes. It was possible to settle such disputes under the flag, as it were, of the old Revelations, but God’s Plan was to revive and rejuvenate His Message through Islam, amongst a newer and younger people, unhampered by the burden of age-old prejudices.Cf. 11:62. There is always in human affairs the conflict between the old and the new-the worn out system of our ancestors, and the fresh living spring of God’s inspiration fitting in with new times and new surroundings. The advocates of the former look upon this latter not only with intellectual doubt but with moral suspicion, as did the People of the Book upon Islam, with its fresh outlook and vigorous realistic way of looking at things.