Does the Quran Teach Muslims to be Violent?

this is false and misleading. The fact is that these verses relate, in a restricted sense, to those who unilaterally attacked Muslims. They do not convey a general commandment of Islam. The Quran was revealed from time to time, according to the circumstances, over 23 years. If this is divided into years of war and peace, the period of peace amounts to 20 years while that of war amounts only to 3 years. Therefore, the revelations during the 20 peaceful years were the peaceful teachings of Islam as are contained in verses regarding the realization of God, worship, morality, justice, etc. This division of commandments into different categories is natural and is found in several other religious books. When the Prophet of Islam emigrated from Makkah to Madinah, the unbelieving tribes were aggressive toward him. However, the Prophet averted their attacks by the exercise of patience and the strategy of avoidance. However, on certain occasions, no other option existed save that of retaliation. Therefore, he had to do battle on such occasions. It was these circumstances which occasioned certain revelations relating to war. These commandments, being specific to certain circumstances, had no general application. They were not meant to be valid for all time to come. That is why the permanent status of the Prophet has been termed a “mercy for all humankind” (21:107).