—meaning, those who worshipped the calf. Moses thought that they had been punished because they had taken the calf for worship, and he said this by way of a question, asking: “Would You destroy us because of the deed of the foolish among us?”

Al-Mubarrad said: His saying, “Would You destroy us for what the foolish among us have done?” is an interrogative appeal for mercy; that is: Do not destroy us. Moses, peace be upon him, knew that Allah Most High is too just to hold anyone other than the offender accountable for the offender’s crime.

His saying, exalted is He, “This is only Your trial”—that is, the trial into which the foolish fell—was nothing but Your test and affliction. By it, You allowed some people to go astray, and so they succumbed to temptation; and You guided others, preserving them so that they remained steadfast upon Your religion. This is the meaning of His saying: “By it You allow whom You will to go astray and guide whom You will. You are our Protector”—our Helper and Guardian—“so forgive us and have mercy upon us; for You are the best of those who forgive.”