And He, glorified be He, said concerning the followers of these leaders—rulers and scholars who opposed the messengers:

“On the Day their faces are turned about in the Fire, they will say, ‘If only we had obeyed Allah and obeyed the Messenger!’”

“They will say, ‘Our Lord, we obeyed our masters and our great men, and they led us astray from the path.’”

“‘Our Lord, give them twice the punishment and lay upon them a mighty curse.’”

He, Most High, said:

“When they argue with one another in the Fire”

—up to His words—

“Allah has already judged between His servants.”

There are many such passages in the Quran describing the words and deeds of the messengers’ enemies and the faculties of perception and action they had been granted, which availed them nothing when they opposed the messengers.

Allah, glorified be He, also mentioned the hypocrisy and misguidance found among scholars, worshippers, and rulers who profess to follow the messengers, as in His words:

“O you who believe, many rabbis and monks consume people’s wealth unjustly and turn people away from Allah’s path. As for those who hoard gold and silver and do not spend it in Allah’s cause, give them tidings of a painful punishment.”

The verb in “and turn people away from Allah’s path” is also used intransitively: one says sadda sudūdan, meaning “to turn away,” as in His words:

“When they are told, ‘Come to what Allah has revealed and to the Messenger,’ you see the hypocrites turn away from you in aversion.”

One also says sadda ghayrahu, yasudduhu (“he turned someone else away; he turns him away”). Both descriptions apply to them. Another example is His saying:

“Have you not seen those who were given a portion of the Scripture