—here conveys the sense of transgression. “I seek Allah’s protection from being among the ignorant.”
When they realized that he was telling the truth—and indeed he was—they said, “Pray to your Lord to clarify for us what kind of cow it should be.” Had they taken any cow from the marketplace and slaughtered it, the purpose would have been achieved; but they were obstinate and stringent, so Allah made it stringent for them. They said, “Pray to your Lord to make clear to us what it is,” and he replied, “He says it is a cow neither old nor young, but of middle age; so do what you are commanded” (al-Baqarah 2:68). He ordered them to act, reaffirming the earlier command, “Allah commands you to slaughter a cow,” yet they refused.
They went on, “Pray to your Lord to tell us its color. We now know its age, so inform us of its color.” He answered, “He says it is a yellow cow, bright in hue, delighting the onlookers” (al-Baqarah 2:69). A second restriction was thus placed upon them. Had they slaughtered any cow that was neither old nor young but in between, it would have sufficed; but they were severe, so Allah was severe with them. After all, who can easily find a cow with such specifications—vivid yellow, whose color pleases the beholders, beautiful, pure, and radiant?
Still they did not comply. They said, “Pray to your Lord to make clear to us what it is”—meaning, what work it performs—“for to us all cows look alike. If Allah wills, we shall indeed be guided.” He replied, “He says it is a cow that has not been broken to plough the earth or water the fields, sound, without blemish.” In other words, it has no defect. They retorted, “Now you have brought the truth!”—God protect us from misguidance and from subjecting revelation to the dictates of human reason. “Now you have brought the truth,” as though what he had brought earlier was not the truth! Rather, their whims and their intellects had rejected it. At last they slaughtered it, though they almost failed to do so; it was only after repeated insistence and questioning that they finally complied.