And when what He, glorified and exalted is He, showed them of the tremendous actions that He rescued them with from that tyrant had passed, He began to mention what they faced from ignorance of Him, glorified and exalted is He, and what He faced them with from forbearance. Then what He imposed upon them after a long respite of humiliation and transformation into the form of apes. He said, adding to His saying: "So We drowned them in the sea" [Al-A'raf: 136] or His saying: "Then We sent after them Musa" [Al-A'raf: 103]. "And We crossed" means: We cut through with what We have of [greatness], and He conveyed it in the form of mutual action to magnify it. It has been narrated that their crossing was on the day of Ashura, and that Musa, blessings and peace be upon him, fasted it in gratitude to Allah, the Most High, for saving them and destroying their enemy. "With the Children of Israel" after the signs they witnessed of the sea. I made it connected to the beginning of the story because all these stories are a clarification that there exists among people the bad essence that the signs suffice him as mentioned in His saying: "And the good land" [Al-A'raf: 58] and the clarification of His saying: "We seized its people with adversity and hardship" [Al-A'raf: 94] to the end of it. And this indicates - along with what the stories began with - that He concluded them with His saying: "That is the example of the people who denied Our signs" [Al-A'raf: 176] and His saying: "And We have created for Hell" [Al-A'raf: 179]. And its position is good after His saying: "And the word of your Lord has been fulfilled in goodness" [Al-A'raf: 137] because when it was said: "For what they endured" [Al-A'raf: 137], the soul yearned for their actions during times of ease: Did they show gratitude? So it was clarified that many of them disbelieved, confirming His saying: "And We did not find for most of them any covenant" [Al-A'raf: 102] and what is similar to it. And how excellent is the follow-up of that - with His saying: "So they came" meaning: they passed - with the conjunction of follow-up "upon a people" meaning: of strength. It was said: they were from Lakhm. "They were devoted" meaning: they circled and gathered, remaining and persevering "around idols of theirs" meaning: there is no strength in them nor benefit, so they are in their devotion to them an example of foolishness. And it was said: they were statues of cows, and that was the first matter of haste.

And when He, glorified and exalted is He, informed of that, the listener knew that they were between two matters: either gratitude or disbelief. So he yearned for what was from them, and He, glorified and exalted is He, answered his question with His saying: "They said" meaning: their mention did not last after He showed them, glorified and exalted is He, of His greatness and their gratitude when He poured upon them of His blessings except for a while when they felt safe from their enemy by their crossing the sea and His drowning them in it until they sought a god other than Him by saying: "O Musa". They named him as you see by his name in rudeness and harshness, relying on what He had granted them of His kindness and forbearance, without being respectful of what had amazed them of the grandeur of His portion from Allah and His oath: "Make for us a god" meaning: something we see and circle around, adhering to delusion "as they have gods". And this from them is the saying of one who does not regard the god - who did these actions with them - as anything, nor does he bring him to mind in any way.

And when this was great among them, he began the response of the one who longed for the words of Musa (peace be upon him) to them, saying: ﴿He said, 'Indeed, you are a people'﴾, meaning: people of standing in the desires of the souls. And he said: ﴿You are ignorant﴾, present tense, indicating that this is from them like nature and instinct, they do not change from it in the past or future. And know that there is no repetition in these stories; for every context of them is for a matter that has not preceded [its like]. The intended purpose of the story of Musa (peace be upon him) and Fir'aun - may the curse and blame be upon him - is this existential proof for His saying: ﴿And indeed, we found most of them to be disobedient﴾ [Al-A'raf: 102]. From here, you know that the context of the story of Bani Israel after their deliverance from their enemy is to clarify their hastiness in disbelief and their breaking of covenants. And He, glorified is He, continued in this proof until the end of the Surah. How appropriate is: ﴿And when your Lord took from the children of Adam﴾ [Al-A'raf: 172] the verse, for His saying: ﴿And we found not for most of them any covenant﴾ [Al-A'raf: 102]. And He mentioned in the first of the following verses their dispute over the spoils, warning them not to be among the most blameworthy in this. This is unlike the intended purpose of the context of the stories of Bani Israel in Al-Baqarah; for there it is to draw them to faith by reminding them of blessings; because that is in the context of His address, glorified is He, to all people with His saying: ﴿Worship your Lord who created you﴾ [Al-Baqarah: 21] ﴿How can you disbelieve in Allah while you were dead and He brought you to life﴾ [Al-Baqarah: 28] and what is similar to it from the appeal by counting blessings and repelling calamities. And Allah knows best.