What is the argument and evidence of the scholars who decisively affirmed the non-exoneration of those whom the true message did not reach, and how did the scholars who decisively affirmed their exoneration refute them?

It is permissible for a Muslim to ask about matters of their religion that are unclear to them, and this is commendable. Scholars have differed on the ruling concerning those not held accountable in the Hereafter (such as children who died before discernment, the insane, and those whom the call to Islam did not reach), with eight different views. Among these views is that they will be in Hellfire, based on some hadiths and verses like the Almighty's saying: "And [mention] when your Lord took from the children of Adam—from their loins—their descendants" and the general implication of some hadiths. The preponderant view is that they will be tested in the Hereafter; whoever obeys will enter Paradise, and whoever disobeys will enter Hellfire. This aligns with the sacred texts that prohibit punishment before the sending of a messenger, such as the Almighty's saying: "And never would We punish until We have sent a messenger."