Some verses of the Holy Qur’an express the rule of destiny. They state that nothing happens in the world without the Will of Allah and that everything is brought upon by Allah. Other verses indicate that man is free and that many circumstances depend on man's choice rather than being determined by Allah. Certain verses could be put into one or the other category, depending on how they are interpreted. Many scholastic theologians of early Islam realized that the two categories of verses contradict each other. Accordingly, it was necessary for each theological 'school' to emphasize verses of one category while explaining away or re-interpreting verses of the other category. So in early Islam, scholars and religious leaders divided on how to deal with holy verses which had contradicting implications regarding the issue of human responsibility and divine power, and there were divisions and arguments about how to correctly interpret certain verses.
Here are some verses of the Holy Qur’an that suggest determinism and/or predestination. They suggest that nothing happens in the world without the Will of Allah and some verses state that every event is already recorded in the ‘Book’. Other verses may not directly express predestination, yet nonetheless suggest that Allah is precisely determining and measuring out everything in the world, which could be moment by moment (rather than predestined at some beginning).
“With Him are the keys of the invisible. None but He knows them. And He knows what is in the land and the sea. Not a leaf falls, but he knows it, not a grain amid the darkness of the earth, nor anything green or withered but is recorded in a clear Book”. (Surah al-An’am, 6:59)
“Every affliction that falls on the earth or yourselves, already exists in a Book before it is brought into being by us. No doubt that is easy for Allah to accomplish”. (Surah al-Hadid, 57:22)
“Say: Allah! Owner of Sovereignty! You bestow sovereignty on whomever you will and you withdraw from whomever you will. In your Hand is all that is good. No doubt you have power to do everything”. (Surah Ale Imran, 3:26)
“Then it is for Allah to have in error whom He will and to guide whom He pleases. He is the Mighty, the Wise”. (Surah Ibrahim, 14:4)
The following verses apply the concept of 'measure', or 'measuring out', which is especially significant to the overall meaning of the verse, but this will depend on how the word is interpreted. Very different kinds of interpretation are discussed in the Mu'tazila chapter.
"And there is not a thing but with Us are the treasures of it, and We do not send it down but in a known measure.(biqadarin).” [15.21]
“Allah has set a measure for all things”. (Surah al-Talaq, 65:2)
“Surely We created everything by measure”. (Surah al-Qamar, 54:49)
[9.51] Say: Nothing will afflict us save what Allah has ordained for us;
[42.27] And if Allah should amplify the provision for His servants they would certainly revolt in the earth; but He sends it down according to a measure (biqadarin) as He pleases; surely He is Aware of, Seeing, His servants.
[54.12] And We made water to flow forth in the land in springs, so the water gathered together according to a measure (qudira) already ordained.
[54.49] Surely We have created everything according to a measure (qudira).
[80.19] Of a small seed; He created him, then He made him according to a measure (fa qaddara hu).
[87.1-3] Glorify the name of your Lord, the Most High, Who creates, then makes complete. And Who makes according to a measure, then guides.
The following verse is certainly an example of divine determinism, but also it one of the verses stated sometime near after some harsh losses in the field of battle, so it is obviously an explanation to the followers as to why they were defeated. It also speaks of the theological stance that God has determined the time of death for each person, which just in itself implies a strong view of determination and a very weak view of personal freedom.
“They said: Do we have any say in the matter? Muhammad, tell them: All matters belong to Allah. They try to bide within themselves what they do not reveal to you, saying: Had we had the matter in our hands, we would not have been slain there. Say: Even though you had been in your houses, those appointed to be slain would have been slain by your sworn enemies while you were in your beds”. (Surah Ale Imran, 3:154)
On the other hand, there are different verses that suggest man’s freedom, indicating that people are free to chose right or wrong, and people are not strictly determined by the Power or Will of Allah. In this interpretation, there is a right path and wrong path (or at least there is better vs. worse), and every person is responsible for choosing one or the other, while his choices (and actions) are not decided or strictly determined by Allah.
“Allah never changes the condition of a nation unless it change what is in its heart”. (Surah al-Ra`d, 13:11)
“its people denied the favours of Allah, so He afflicted them with famine and fear because of what they used to do”. (Surah al-Nahl, 16:112)
“Allah did not do injustice to them, but they had wronged themselves”. (Surah al-Ankabut, 29:40)
“Your Lord does no injustice to His slaves”. (Surah Fussilat, 41:46)
“We have shown man the right path. Now it is up to him to be grateful or thankless”. (Surah al-Dahr, 76:3)
“Muhammad say: This is the truth from your Lord. Let him who believe in it, and let him who will reject it”. (Surah al-Kahf, 18:29)
“Corruption has become rife on land and sea because of the misdeeds of the people”. (Surah al-Rum, 30:41)
“Whoever seeks the harvest of the hereafter, We shall give it to him in abundance, and whoever seeks the harvest of the world, We give him a share of it. But in the hereafter he shall have no share”. (Surah al-Shura, 42:20)