Al-Matalib al-'Aliyah 2947 — Divine decree

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) came out of the door of his house, intending to go to the chamber, when he (peace and blessings be upon him) heard some people arguing among themselves about the matter of divine decree. They were saying: "Did Allah Almighty not say such-and-such a verse? Did Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, not say such-and-such a verse?" The narrator says: (On hearing this) the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) opened the door of the chamber, and his (peace and blessings be upon him) radiant face was so red from intense anger that it was as if pomegranate seeds had been squeezed on his (peace and blessings be upon him) cheeks. Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Is this what you have been commanded? Or is this what you have been sent for? Those before you were destroyed only through deeds like this: they set one part of the Book of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, against another. Follow what Allah has commanded you, and refrain from what He has forbidden you." The narrator says: After this incident people did not hear anyone speaking on this subject until Ma'bad al-Juhani appeared, whom al-Hajjaj later arrested and had killed.
[Takhrij: This narration is found in Musnad Ahmad and other books of hadith; although Yusuf bin Atiyyah in its chain is a weak narrator, the prohibition of quarrelling about divine decree and the mention of the destruction of previous nations are established by other authentic hadith and supporting reports.]