According to search-discovered classical Islamic scholarship, the Quranic command 'Forgive Them' (Fa'fu 'anhum) found in Surah Al-Ma'idah, verse 13, is a profound divine instruction in Islamic ethics. As detailed in the tafsir of authoritative commentators like Ibn Kathir and al-Tabari, this was a direct command to the Prophet Muhammad concerning the Children of Israel who, despite their covenant with God, engaged in treachery and distortion of scripture. The term 'afw, from the root ع-ف-و, signifies pardoning and effacing a wrong. The verse couples this with 'safh' (overlooking), urging a higher moral response that is characteristic of the 'Muhsinin' (good-doers) whom Allah loves. This single verse establishes a powerful principle of responding to betrayal not with equivalent retribution, but with magnanimous pardon as a position of spiritual strength and a means of demonstrating the excellence ('Ihsan') central to the Islamic faith.