[3:155] Truly, those of you who turned away the day the two hosts encountered each other - truly, Satan made them slip through some of what they had earned; but God pardoned them; God is Forgiving, Forbearing.
The allusion in this verse is to the states of those whose spiritual desire (irāda) became meager and their intentions (niyyāt) weak. Caprice (hawā) guided them and listlessness overwhelmed them. The counsel of counselors, the call of desires, and the whispers of satans met them face to face, and they put their trust in withdrawing. They preferred caprice to piety, and stayed back from [the fray] but were not pleased with what they chose over it.