1)
Why did they say "do like is good in Your eyes"? Hashem said that He does not want to save them!
1.
Malbim: They asked that He not punish them through people, rather, through Himself. This is like "Niflah Na v'Yad Hashem... uv'Yad Adam Al Apoleh" (Shmuel 2 24:14).
