Those (who led others to associate partners with God, and) against whom God’s judgment of punishment has been realized will say: "Our Lord! Those whom we led astray, we led them astray just because we ourselves were astray (– they imitated us out of their free will, we never coerced them to it). Now in Your Presence we declare our innocence (of their taking us for partners with You). It was not us that they worshipped. (Rather, they worshipped their own carnal souls.)"