وَوَٰعَدۡنَا مُوسَىٰ ثَلَٰثِينَ لَيۡلَةٗ وَأَتۡمَمۡنَٰهَا بِعَشۡرٖ فَتَمَّ مِيقَٰتُ رَبِّهِۦٓ أَرۡبَعِينَ لَيۡلَةٗ
Quranic context: Al-Araf 142-145 / Al-Baqarah 51-54
Context: Allah promised Moses thirty nights then completed them with ten, making the appointed time forty nights. Allah revealed the Torah to him. Moses then returned to find his people worshipping the calf in his absence with Aaron. He threw down the tablets and grabbed his brother by the head. Then he prayed: "My Lord, forgive me and my brother."
Lessons:
- Brief absence reveals the depth or shallowness of faith
- Moses reacted with genuine zeal for Allah — but returned to prayer rather than punishment alone
- Aaron defended himself: I could not gather them — "I feared you would say I divided the Children of Israel"
- The tablets he threw were not destroyed — "in their inscription was guidance and mercy"
- Divine legislation was revealed in complete seclusion — away from the people's noise
Question: What did Moses do when he saw his people worshipping the calf after returning from the appointed time?
Answer: He threw the tablets and grabbed his brother Aaron by the hair in anger, then heard his excuse and prayed for forgiveness for himself and his brother.