Surah Taha Tafseer

قَالُوا

They said:

The Children of Israel said in reply to Musa's blame and rebuke,

مَا أَخْلَفْنَا مَوْعِدَكَ بِمَلْكِنَا

We broke not our promise to you of our own will,

Meaning by our power and our choice.

وَلَكِنَّا حُمِّلْنَا أَوْزَارًا مِّن زِينَةِ الْقَوْمِ فَقَذَفْنَاهَا

but we were made to carry the weight of the ornaments of the people, then we cast them,

Then, they began making lame excuses and they told him how they got rid of that which they were carrying of Coptic jewelry that they had borrowed from them (the Egyptian Copts) when they left Egypt. Therefore they cast it, meaning that they threw it away. Thus, it became a calf that made a moaning sound that would gradually rise in pitch. This calf was an ordeal, a hindrance and test.

This is why Allah said,

فَكَذَلِكَ أَلْقَى السَّامِرِيُّ