Al-A'raf: 141

"And [recall] when We saved you from the people of Pharaoh" (by destroying them and delivering you from them). The word "when" (idh) is either an object for an omitted "remember" (udhkuru), based on the view that it transcends the function of denoting time—meaning: remember that time—which acts as a metonymy for remembering what occurred within it. Or, it is an adverbial object for the omitted verb "remember," meaning: remember Our actions with you at that time. This is a reminder from Him, the Almighty, regarding His great favor.

It is recited as najjainakum (We saved you) from tanjiyah (deliverance). Ibn ‘Amir recited anjakum (He saved you), in which case it is from the speech of Moses (peace be upon him). Some have said: It is also on the reading of the majority, based on the understanding that the pronoun in anjaina (We saved) refers to Moses and his brother (peace be upon them), or to them both and those with them, or to him alone (peace be upon him), using the plural for grandeur to signify the magnitude of the deliverance—though this is contrary to the apparent meaning. It is also said that it is the speech of Allah the Almighty, completing the speech of Moses (peace be upon him), just as in His saying: "And We brought forth by it pairs," after His saying: "He is the One who made the earth for you a bed." This acts as an explanation for His saying: "And He favored you."

"They were inflicting upon you the worst of torment" (meaning: they were subjecting you to it and compelling you to endure it). This is either a descriptive continuation (isti'naf bayani), as if to ask: "What did they do to them?" or "From what were they saved?" and the answer is given by what was mentioned. Alternatively, it is a circumstantial clause (hal) referring to the pronoun of the addressed, or to the people of Pharaoh, or both, as it contains both their pronouns.

His saying, the Almighty: "Slaughtering your sons and keeping your women alive" is an appositive (badal) to "inflicting upon you," clarifying it, though it also permits being an independent continuation.

"And in that"—the deliverance or the worst of the torment—"was a trial from your Lord, great." Meaning, it was either a blessing or an affliction; and it is said that it refers to that which encompasses both. "From your Lord" means the Possessor of your affairs. "Great" means that its magnitude cannot be estimated.

In the verse, there is a shift of address (iltifat) related to some of the preceding content. Furthermore, this request [by the Israelites] was not, as the reviver of the Sunnah, al-Baghawi, stated, due to their doubt regarding the Oneness of Allah the Almighty. Rather, their intent was an object of worship that they could venerate, and through its veneration, draw near to Allah the Almighty, believing that this would not harm their religion. This was due to their intense ignorance, as indicated by the verses. It is also said that their intent was the literal worship of an idol, which would render it an act of apostasy on their part. Regardless, the speaker was some of them, not all.

Similar incidents have occurred in this nation. Al-Tirmidhi and others narrated from Abu Waqid al-Laythi that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) went out to the Battle of Hunayn and passed by a tree belonging to the polytheists upon which they used to hang their weapons and devote themselves—it was called Dhat Anwat. They said: "O Messenger of Allah, make for us a Dhat Anwat just as they have a Dhat Anwat." The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said: "Glory be to Allah!" (In one narration: "Allah is the Greatest!"). "This is as the Children of Israel said to Moses: 'Make for us a god just as they have gods.' By Him in whose hand is my soul, you will follow the ways of those who came before you."

Al-Tabarani and others also recorded through Kathir ibn ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Awf, from his father, from his grandfather, who said: "We went out with the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) in the year of the Conquest, and we were over a thousand. Allah conquered Makkah and Hunayn for us, until we were between Hunayn and Ta'if in a land containing a great Lote tree (sidrah) to which weapons were suspended, hence it was called Dhat Anwat, and it was worshipped other than Allah. When the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) saw it on a hot day, he turned away toward a shade that was smaller than it. A man said to him: 'O Messenger of Allah, make for us a Dhat Anwat just as they have a Dhat Anwat.' The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said: 'They are the ways [of the predecessors]. You have said, by Him in whose hand is the soul of Muhammad, what the Children of Israel said: "Make for us a god just as they have gods."'"

This report makes it clear that the speaker was a single man, and perhaps this was out of ignorance for which he would be excused and not considered an infidel. Otherwise, the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) would have ordered him to renew his Islam, and I have not found such a report in what I have reviewed. People today have adopted things from the category of Dhat Anwat in great abundance, which cannot be confined by limits. To enjoin the good is rarer than the eggs of the Anuq (a mythical bird), and the fulfillment of the obligation to enjoin is as distant as the star Al-’Ayyuq. The command belongs to Allah, the One, the Subduer.