His saying, exalted and majestic is He: "He said, O Aaron, what prevented you when you saw them go astray? Did you not follow me? Did you disobey my command?" He said, O son of my mother, do not seize me by my beard or by my head. Indeed, I feared that you would say, 'You caused a division among the Children of Israel and did not observe my saying.'

In the narration of the story, there is an abbreviation indicated by what has been mentioned. Its meaning is: Moses, peace be upon him, returned and found the matter as Allah, the Most High, had mentioned to him. He began to admonish Aaron with this statement. The majority read: "Did you not follow me?" by omitting the 'ya.' Ibn Kathir and Abu Amr read it with the 'ya' being present in the connection, and Ibn Kathir pauses with the 'ya' while Abu Amr does so without the 'ya.' It is possible that his saying, "Did you not follow me?" means: with the Children of Israel towards Mount Sinai. Thus, Aaron's excuse, peace be upon him, comes in the sense that if I had done that, a group would have followed me while another group would have remained in the worship of the calf, and the gathering would have dispersed. I feared your blame for the division.

It is also possible that his saying, "Did you not follow me?" means: did you not proceed with my way and my method in reform and guidance? Thus, Aaron's excuse, peace be upon him, comes in the sense that the matter was escalating. If I had strengthened myself against it, fighting and disagreement would have occurred, leading to a division among the Children of Israel, and my effort would not have been sufficient.

And His saying, exalted and majestic is He: "Did you not follow me?" means: what prevented you from following me? The people differed regarding the entry of "la." One group said it is extra, while the skilled grammarians held that it is emphatic, and that there is an implied verb in the speech, as if he said: what prevented you from that, or singled you out, or something like this regarding "Did you not follow me?" What comes before and after indicates this and necessitates it.

Ibn Kathir, Nafi', Abu Amr, and Hafs from Asim read: "O son of my mother." It is possible that he meant: "O son of my mother" and omitted the 'alif' for ease. It is also possible that he combined the two names into one: and he built it like 'fifteen.' Abu Bakr read from Asim, Hamzah, and Al-Kisai: "O son of my mother" with the kasrah by omitting the 'ya' for ease, and this is rare because it is not like the 'ya' in your saying: O my boys, but rather it is like the 'ya' in your saying: O the boy of my boy, and this 'ya' is not omitted. It is possible that he combined the two names into one and then added to himself, omitting the 'ya' as is done with singular names when they are appended, like saying: O boy. A group said that Aaron was not the brother of Moses, peace be upon him, except through their mother.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: This is weak. Another group said he was his full brother, and he called him by their mother because invoking by the mother is more compassionate and more of a plea for mercy. Moses, peace be upon him, seized Aaron by his beard in anger, and he was strict in character, peace be upon him.