Those Who Think They Are On The Right Path...
They said, "Indeed, these are two magicians who want to drive you out of your land with their magic and do away(destroy) with your most exemplary way(their religion-tradions).
This statement is evidence that those who turned tradition into religion considered their own path as the "exemplary way." Conversely, they also leveled accusations against the prophets, portraying them as those who hindered people from their own path or as misleading them. It is clear whom these people, who held such negative attitudes towards revelation and those who conveyed it, followed and whose paths they adopted.
He almost would have misled us from our gods had we not been steadfast in [worship of] them." But they are going to know, when they see the punishment, who is farthest astray in [his] way.
The polytheists, stating that they had demonstrated their resolve and remained steadfast in their beliefs, asserted that the Prophet Muhammad had not been able to divert them from their path or lead them astray. With these statements, the polytheists accused the Prophet Muhammad of heresy.
And when they(polytheists) saw them(muslims), they said: "Verily! These have indeed gone astray!"
Calling Muslims deviant or heretical is a polytheistic morality; it is a grave mistake to substitute one's own group or opinion for truth and accuse others of disbelief and heresy. It should not be forgotten that such an assessment should be avoided. Not calling those who proclaim the truth deviant is among the most important messages of the verse for today. It is extremely important, especially for Muslims, to engage in self-criticism regarding whether they are using the language of the polytheists or the language of the Quran in their discourse, and to adopt an attitude and behavior in the light of the Quran.
Their elite go about [urging others]: ‘Go and stand by your gods! This is indeed the desirable thing [to do].
They told their fellow polytheists that "they should defend their gods, that's all that was asked of them," and tried to motivate them to action.
And Pharaoh said, "Let me kill Moses and let him call upon his Lord. Indeed, I fear that he will change your religion or that he will cause corruption in the land."
Because Pharaoh accepted the traditional understanding of religious life in society as correct, he portrayed Moses, who conveyed the revelation, as "a man who changed the religion" and "a person who sowed corruption in society," and expressed his desire to kill him. The unconscious use of similar rhetoric against revelation today provides a striking example of who is knowingly or unknowingly following whose path.
Just as Pharaoh had said about Moses to the Israelites, the polytheists, following in his footsteps, viewed the Prophet Muhammad as "dangerous" and "misleading ." From these words, it is clear that the Prophet Muhammad was fulfilling his duty completely, concealing no truth, and never, ever resorting to the mistake of displeasing God in order to please his audience.
Clearly, those who opposed the prophets were defending their own deviant religious beliefs, and they described the prophetic teachings that contradicted these beliefs as an attempt to change their religion. This is why Pharaoh said about the revelation conveyed by Moses, "I fear :that he will change your religion and thus cause corruption in the land ." It is all too clear whose interests are served by the reactions of those who mistake their established beliefs for the "true religion" and who resembles whom when they hear the revelation.