Surah Al-A'raaf (7) — Ayah 148

(Ayah 148) ➊ {وَ اتَّخَذَ قَوْمُ مُوْسٰى … :} This story is also mentioned in Surah Ta-Ha. {’’ مِنْ حُلِيِّهِمْ ‘‘} (from their ornaments) These words clearly state that those ornaments belonged to the Israelites themselves, so what is said in the Bible and in the Israelite traditions of our exegeses that those ornaments belonged to the Copts and the Israelites had borrowed them is not correct. For further details, see Surah Ta-Ha (87). When Musa (peace be upon him) went to Mount Tur, one of them, Samiri, took these ornaments from them and, melting them in fire, made a calf-shaped idol from them, from which the sound of a cow would come out. In this verse, the making of this idol is attributed to the Israelites because Samiri made it with their permission and consent, and they desired such a deity for themselves. (Ibn Kathir) In Tafsir Thanai it is stated that what is written in the present Torah, in the second book (Exodus), chapter thirty-two, that Harun (peace be upon him) himself made the calf for them, is clearly wrong; the dignity of prophethood and shirk are mutually exclusive. O Christians! Will you still doubt the {’’مُهَيْمِنٌ عَلَي التَّوْرَاةِ‘‘} of the Qur’an? (To understand the meaning of { مُهَيْمِنٌ}, see the footnotes of Surah Al-Ma’idah: 48.) The commentators differ on whether the calf actually became flesh, blood, and alive, or whether it remained merely an idol, in which air would enter or be made to enter, so that the sound of a calf would come out of it. Those commentators who believe it actually became a living calf say that once Jibril (peace be upon him) came to Musa (peace be upon him) riding a mare, Samiri saw him and took some dust from under the mare’s hoof, and they have interpreted the verse of Surah Ta-Ha (96) «{ فَقَبَضْتُ قَبْضَةً مِّنْ اَثَرِ الرَّسُوْلِ }» in this way. Thus, when he sprinkled this dust on the idol of the calf, it became a real calf. However, this is not proven by any Sahih narration. Also see Surah Ta-Ha (88 to 96).

➋ { اَلَمْ يَرَوْا اَنَّهٗ لَا يُكَلِّمُهُمْ وَ لَا يَهْدِيْهِمْ سَبِيْلًا:} Allah Almighty spoke to Musa (peace be upon him) despite not being visible and also showed the path of guidance. This is a strange deity that, despite being in front of them, can neither speak nor give guidance—then how can it be a deity? Even if, for the sake of argument, it became alive, it is a helpless animal; there are countless cows better than it, wandering around being beaten with sticks and, bound in chains, helplessly giving milk. It is clear that for something to be a deity, it must be able to speak and give guidance. Being “able to speak” means it can command and prohibit, and being “able to give guidance” means it has the power to guide.

148. 1. When Musa (Moses) (AS) went to Mount Tur for forty nights, a man named Samiri gathered gold ornaments and made a calf, into which he also put the dust from under the hooves of Jibril’s (Gabriel’s) (AS) horse, which he had kept safe. Allah had placed a life-giving effect in it, because of which the calf made a sound similar to that of a bull (although it was incapable of clear speech and guidance, as the words of the Quran clarify). There is a difference of opinion as to whether it actually became a flesh-and-blood calf, or if it remained made of gold, but in some way, when air entered it, a sound like that of a cow or bull would come out of it. (Ibn Kathir) Samiri misled Bani Israel with this sound, saying, “This is your deity; Musa (AS) has forgotten and has gone to Mount Tur in search of the deity.”

The tafsir of this ayah is included with the following verse(s).