Tafsir of Al-A'raf 7:148

(And the people of Musa took after him)—that is, after his departure to the mountain to hold communion with his Lord, Glorified be He—(from their ornaments)—Huly is a collective noun like kudyy and thudyy, referring to what is fashioned for decoration and what one adorns oneself with from gold and silver. The prepositional phrase is connected to took (ittakhadha), just as "after him" (min ba‘dihi) is. There is no harm in this, for the meaning of the two prepositions differs: the first signifies the starting point (of time), and the second signifies partiality (tab’id). Some say it also denotes the starting point, with its connection to the verb following the connection of the first and being considered alongside it. Others say the second prepositional phrase is linked to an implied state (hal) derived from what follows it, for if it were delayed, it would be an attribute. The attribution of the ornaments to the pronoun of "the people" is for the sake of the closest association, as they belonged to the Copts, and the [Israelites] borrowed them from them shortly before the drowning, and they remained in their possession. It is also said that it is taken literally, based on the fact that the people came to own them after the sea cast them onto the shore following the drowning of the Copts, or after they had borrowed them and [the Copts] perished. The Imam said: It is narrated that when Allah, the Exalted, intended to drown Pharaoh and his people, knowing that none of them would believe, He commanded Musa, peace be upon him, to instruct the Children of Israel to borrow the ornaments of the Copts so that they might follow them—either for the sake of wealth or so that their wealth would remain in their hands.

This has been considered problematic, as it appears to be a command to take the property of others without right, and [property] only becomes spoils of war after destruction. Furthermore, spoils of war were not lawful for them, according to the saying of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace: "I have been given five things that no one before me was given: spoils of war were made lawful for me..."—the hadith. Moreover, what is narrated about the people in Surah Taha—their saying: "We were made to carry burdens of the ornaments of the people"—implies that there was no lawfulness in it either.

The response to this is to say: When they enslaved them without right, forced them to work, took their wealth, and killed their children, Allah, the Exalted, made their land and what was in it their possession, for the earth belongs to Allah, the Exalted; He bequeaths it to whom He wills of His servants. This was by revelation from Allah, in the manner of spoils of war, and this is contrary to the general analogy (qiyas), and there are many such instances in the [divine] laws. As for the reported statement, what is in it will be addressed, if Allah, the Exalted, wills. This sentence, as al-Tayyibi said, is a conjunction to His saying: "And We made an appointment with Musa," a narrative linked to a narrative.

Hamza and al-Kisa’i read (hulyihim) with a kasra on the ha, following the kasra of the lam, like dily. Some read (hulyihim) in the singular. His saying, the Exalted: (a calf)—is the object of ittakhadha in the sense of "forged" and "made." It is delayed from the prepositional phrase for the reason mentioned earlier. It is said that ittakhadha is transitive to two objects and is in the sense of "made/rendered," with the second object implied—i.e., "a god." The ’ijl (calf) is specifically the offspring of a cow. This is as one says hiwar for the offspring of a she-camel, muhr for the foal of a horse, jahsh for the foal of a donkey, hamal for the lamb, jadi for the kid, shibl for the lion cub, daghfal for the elephant calf, jarw for the puppy, khashaf for the fawn, ghafar for the young of the ibex, fir’al for the hyena cub, daysam for the bear cub, khunush for the piglet, harbash for the snake hatchling, ra’l for the ostrich chick, farruj for the chick, diras for the mouse pup, hasl for the lizard hatchling, and so on. The intent here is that which is in the form of a calf. His saying, the Exalted: (a body)—is a substitute for "a calf," or an appositive, or an attribute of it interpreted as "corporealized." It is interpreted as a body with flesh and blood. Al-Raghib said: Jasad (body) is like jism (body), but it is more specific. It is said that it is applied to things other than humans from the creation of the earth and the like, and it is also said of that which has color, while jism is for that which has no distinct color, like air. Hence, it is said that saffron is jasad, and clothes saturated with dye are mujassad. Mujassad also comes in the sense of "red." Some have interpreted jasad here as such, saying: "i.e., red from gold."

(It had a lowing sound)—which is the voice specifically of a cow, like thugha' for sheep, ya’ar for goats, nabib for the buck, nubah for dogs, za’ir for lions, ‘awa and wa’wa’a for wolves, dabah for foxes, qama’ for pigs, mu’ah for cats, nahiq and suhayl for donkeys, sahil, dabh, qan’, and hamhama for horses, righa’ for camels, sani for elephants, batgham for deer, da’ib for rabbits, ‘arar for ostriches, sarsara for hawks, ‘aq‘aqa for falcons, safir for eagles, hadir for pigeons, saj’ for turtle doves, saqsaqa for sparrows, na’iq and na’ib for crows, saqa’ and zaqa’ for roosters, quqa’ and naqiqa for hens, fahih for snakes, naqiq for frogs, say' for scorpions and mice, and sarir for locusts, among others. Ali, may Allah honor his face, is reported to have read it as ju’ar with a damma on the jim and an hamza, which means a loud sound; similar to this are siyah and surakh. The prepositional phrase is connected to an implied word functioning as a preposed predicate, with khuwar as the subject, and the sentence is in the position of an attribute to "a calf."

It is narrated that when the Samiri forged the calf, he cast into its mouth dust from the tracks of the horse of Jibril, peace be upon him, and it became alive. Some mentioned as the secret behind this that since Jibril, peace be upon him, is the Greatest Spirit, a power from him flowed into that dust, producing that effect by the permission of Allah for a matter He, the Exalted, intended. It does not follow from this that whatever he, peace be upon him, treads upon comes to life, because the matter is tied to [Divine] permission, which is only according to wisdom that none knows except the All-Wise, All-Aware. So reflect. Many exegetes have inclined toward the view of it having life, supporting it by saying that lowing is only for a cow, not for its image, and by what will come, if Allah wills, in Surah Taha, which is explicit in what the report indicates. A group of Mu’tazila exegetes said: The calf was without a soul, and the Samiri had forged it hollow and placed pipes in its interior of a specific shape, positioning it in the path of the wind, so that as the wind entered those pipes, a sound was heard resembling the lowing of a calf. That is why it was called "lowing." The discussion on what is in Taha will come, if Allah wills. There is a difference of opinion regarding this lowing: it is said it was once, and it is said it was many times; and whenever it lowed, they prostrated to it, and when it fell silent, they raised their heads. From al-Suddi, it is reported that it would low and walk, while from Wahb, movement is denied. The verse is silent regarding the affirmation of [walking], and there are no reports [reliable enough] to rely upon, so withholding from affirming the walking is better. This issue is not one of the important ones.

The "taking" is attributed to the people of Musa, peace be upon him, though it was the act of the Samiri, because they were pleased with it. It is frequent that an action is attributed to a people even when it occurs from one of them—as when it is said, "The tribe of so-and-so killed a man," while the killer was one of them. It is also said that the intent is their taking it as a god; thus, the meaning is "they made it a god and worshipped it," and in that case, there is no figurative speech (majaz) in the wording, because the worship of it occurred from all of them.

Al-Hasan said: All of them worshipped the calf except Harun, peace be upon him, while others excepted others besides him. Regarding the first view, it is said that one must supply "so they worshipped it" so that this may be the focal point of the denunciation, because the prohibition of image-making emerged in our law according to the popular view, and because the intent is to denounce its worship. (Did they not see that it neither spoke to them nor guided them to a path)—a rebuke to them, and an exposure of the extremity of their misguidance and their failure in reflection. That is: did they not see that it is incapable of what even a single human being is capable of—speech and guiding to the path in any way? How, then, could they equate it with the Creator of bodies, strengths, and abilities? Some have made it a hint toward the True God, and His speech which does not end, and His clear guidance which cannot be denied. It is said that it is a hint toward Allah, the Exalted, and His speech with Musa, peace be upon him, and His guidance to his people. (They took it)—a repetition of all the aforementioned "taking," in the specific manner that includes condemnation; it is in the style of writing, [as if to say]: "May a seer see and a listener hear"—that is, they proceeded with what they proceeded with of the abominable matter.

(And they were wrongdoers)—a concluding interjection, meaning that their habit before this was wrongdoing and placing things in other than their proper places; so this great abomination was not strange for them. The verb was repeated to build this upon it. It is also said the sentence is in the position of a state (hal), meaning they took it while being in this continuous state.