Praise be to Allah, and may blessings and peace be upon the Messenger of Allah. To proceed:
There is no contradiction between Allah’s statement: ﴿Allah is the Creator of all things﴾ and the belief that the Qur’an is the uncreated Word of Allah. This is because the Qur’an is the Word of Allah, and the Word of Allah تعالى is one of His attributes, while the attributes of Allah تعالى are not created. The general meaning of the verse is that Allah is the Creator of all created things; as for His attributes, they are not created.
Ahl as-Sunnah wal-Jama‘ah established that the Qur’an is the Word of Allah تعالى, which He revealed to His Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم, and it is uncreated. The claim that the Qur’an is created is among the false statements rejected by the Imams of the Sunnah.
The Qur’an is from the speech of Allah, and His speech is one of His attributes. The principle is that the attributes of the Creator belong to Him and are not created, just as the attributes of a created being are created along with it.
Therefore, it is not correct to say that the Qur’an is created merely because it falls under the word “thing” in Allah’s statement:
﴿Allah is the Creator of all things﴾ [Az-Zumar: 62].
Using this verse to argue that the Qur’an is created is based on assuming that the expression “all things” includes everything that can be called a “thing,” without exception. This is not necessarily the case.
Allah تعالى says:
﴿Say: What thing is greatest in testimony? Say: Allah﴾ [Al-An‘am: 19].
Allah تعالى Himself is described as a “thing,” but this does not mean that Allah is included among the created things that He created.
Allah تعالى also says:
﴿Everything will perish except His Face﴾ [Al-Qasas: 88].
Thus, the word “all” may occur in the revealed texts while its scope is understood according to the context, and it may be accompanied by an exception or specification.
Sufyan ibn ‘Uyaynah رحمه الله said, in response to those who claimed that the Qur’an was created:
“Indeed, Allah is the Creator of all things, and the Speech of Allah, Blessed and Exalted, is outside of creation.”
Ibn Battah رحمه الله explained that the Qur’an is a “thing” insofar as it is the Word of Allah, but it does not fall within the category of created things, just as Allah تعالى is a “thing” but is not created.
Ibn Abi al-‘Izz al-Hanafi رحمه الله said, in response to this doubt, that it is strange to include the Speech of Allah within the general wording of Allah’s statement: ﴿Allah is the Creator of all things﴾, even though His Speech is one of His attributes, while those who raise this objection exclude the actions of human beings from the same general wording.
He also cited Allah’s statement:
﴿Unquestionably, to Him belongs the creation and the command﴾ [Al-A‘raf: 54].
Allah تعالى therefore distinguished between creation and command, and the command occurs through His Speech.
Ibn Abi al-‘Izz رحمه الله explained that the consequence of this argument would be that Allah’s knowledge, power, life, and other attributes would also have to be considered created, because knowledge is a thing, power is a thing, and life is a thing.
This consequence is false, because Allah’s attributes subsist in Him and are not created.
Just as it cannot be said that Allah’s knowledge is created, nor that His power is created, likewise it cannot be said that His Speech is created.
Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen رحمه الله explained that the expression “all things” may appear general while referring, according to the context, to a qualified or restricted generality.
An example is Allah’s statement concerning the Queen of Sheba:
﴿And she was given of everything﴾ [An-Naml: 23].
This does not mean that she was given absolutely everything, since she did not possess what Sulayman عليه السلام possessed. Rather, it means that she was given various types of things that kings normally needed for their kingdom.
Accordingly, Allah’s statement:
﴿Allah is the Creator of all things﴾
does not mean that His attributes are included among created things. Rather, it means that Allah is the Creator of all of His created things, and everything besides Allah تعالى and His attributes is included in His creation.
The verse ﴿Allah is the Creator of all things﴾ does not indicate that the Qur’an is created.
The Qur’an is the Word of Allah تعالى, and His Speech is one of His attributes; the attributes of Allah تعالى are uncreated. The expression “all things” in the verse does not necessarily include Allah’s attributes, just as Allah تعالى described Himself as a “thing” in His statement: ﴿Say: What thing is greatest in testimony? Say: Allah﴾, while He is the Creator and not created.
Thus, it becomes clear that using this verse as evidence that the Qur’an is created is an incorrect argument. There is no contradiction between affirming the generality of Allah’s creation and affirming that the Qur’an is His uncreated Word.
And Allah تعالى knows best.