Taberî transmits various views from Companions and Followers in his interpretation of the expression 'and they thought that they had been told lies' in Yusuf 12:110: When the prophets despaired of their peoples believing in them, the peoples also thought that the promises brought by the messengers were lies; this continued until help arrived. He also notes that the word 'zann' (supposition) can mean here 'ilm' (certain knowledge), and that al-Hasan and Qatada interpreted it in this way. Finally, he explains linguistically the differences in reading of the word 'fe nüncî' (whether it has a single or double nun) and the reasons for these differences.

استيأس الرسل من قومهم أن يستجيبوا لهم قال: «ظن قومهم أنهم جاءوهم بالكذب»

According to al-Zamakhsharī, in this verse the word 'they supposed' refers to the prophets and believers losing hope during a prolonged period of rejection, enmity, and waiting for help from Allah; they thought that help would not come to them in this world. This situation changed with the divine help that came suddenly. According to the view transmitted from Ibn Abbas, this means that the prophets, at the moment when they became weak and were defeated, thought that the help promised by Allah would not be fulfilled, because they are also human beings.

والمعنى أن مدة التكذيب والعداوة من الكفار وانتظار النصر من الله وتأميله قد تطاولت عليهم وتمادت ، حتى استشعروا القنوط وتوهموا أن لا نصر لهم في الدنيا ، فجاءهم نصرنا فجأة من غير احتساب

According to this exegete, the fundamental issue in the verse concerns the reading of the word 'they were told lies'; according to the light reading (tahfif), the meaning is that upon the prophets losing hope in their people, the people supposed that they 'lied regarding the promise of help and victory.' Al-Rāzī answers here the question 'how can the pronoun refer to them when there has been no prior mention of the people to whom the prophets were sent' by saying that the mention of the prophets naturally refers to the people to whom they were sent. He also elaborates on the different readings of 'nüjjî' (he was saved/they were saved) regarding the number of nuns, the doubling of the jim letter, and the voweling of the ya letter, discussing their grammatical reasons and whether some readings might be linguistically erroneous.

أن الظن واقع بالقوم ، أي حتى إذا استيأس الرسل من إيمان القوم فظن القوم أن الرسل كذبوا فيما وعدوا من النصر والظفر

Al-Qurṭubī emphasizes that the protection of the prophets' infallibility ('isma) is an important matter in this verse, explaining that the meaning of the verse changes according to different readings of the word 'they lied.' With the doubled reading (كُذِّبُوا), it is understood that the prophets possessed certainty (yaqīn) that their peoples rejected them; with the light reading (كَذَبُوا), it is meant either that the peoples supposed that the prophets lied, or that the communities, thinking that the help promised to the prophets did not materialize, supposed them to be liars. Al-Qurṭubī transmits the report narrated from Aisha, indicating the view that this supposition belonged not to the prophets themselves, but to those of their followers who believed in them.

وهذه الآية فيها تنزيه الأنبياء وعصمتهم عما لا يليق بهم وهذا الباب عظيم وخطره جسيم ينبغي الوقوف عليه لئلا يزل الإنسان فيكون في سواء الجحيم

Ibn Kathīr places at the center the report of Aisha regarding the interpretation of the difference in reading of the expression 'and they supposed that they had been told lies' in the verse: According to Aisha, this verse means that the followers who believed in the messengers supposed that the messengers had lied about themselves when the trial was prolonged and help was delayed; it is unthinkable that the messengers would have such a supposition about Allah. Although different reports are transmitted from Ibn Abbas and Ibn Masud, according to the view preferred by Ibn Jarīr as well, Aisha's interpretation is the famous/majority view and the other interpretation is rejected.

قالت معاذ الله لم تكن الرسل تظن ذلك بربها قلت فما هذه الآية قالت هم أتباع الرسل الذين آمنوا بربهم وصدقوهم فطال عليهم البلاء واستأخر عنهم النصر ممن كذبهم من قومهم وظنت الرسل أن أتباعهم قد كذبوهم جاءهم نصر الله عند ذلك

According to al-Baydāwī, this verse narrates that the previous prophets experienced prolonged delay and help did not reach them, and moreover, in this long period of waiting, a supposition arose in the minds of both their peoples and—according to one interpretation—the messengers that the promised help would not materialize. The expression 'they supposed that they were told lies' has been read in different ways; these differences have led to various interpretations concerning who lied to whom (the people to themselves, the messengers to the people, the people to the messengers). In the end, it is indicated that Allah's help came and saved whomever He willed, and that this salvation was exclusive to those worthy of this deliverance alone.

وظنوا أنهم قد كذبوا