How is the rule of attributing speech to its first speaker applied to the sayings of the prophets mentioned in the Holy Quran, given that these sayings originally emanated from them and then appeared in the Quran in their meaning, not in their exact wording?

In response to the questioner's concern regarding the statement of Moses (peace be upon him) mentioned in the Qur'an, the Holy Qur'an conveyed the meaning of the speech, not the exact wording. This is permissible in translating speech and conveying religious law from one language to another, as mentioned by Al-Qurtubi.

If the questioner intends to attribute this statement to Moses (peace be upon him) and not to Allah, then the statement can correctly be attributed to Moses in terms of his utterance of it, and it can correctly be attributed to Allah Almighty in terms of His conveyance of it in the Qur'an. This is similar to the Qur'an itself: it can be attributed to Gabriel as an intermediary, and to the Messenger Muhammad (peace be upon him) in terms of his conveying it, as Allah Almighty said: "Indeed, it is the word of a noble Messenger." Scholars have clarified that attributing the statement to the Messenger here means conveying, not that he is the original speaker, for the Qur'an is the Word of Allah.