You believed in it by the report, meaning you did this heinous act, as a rebuke to them and a reprimand. And it was recited: "Did you believe?" with the interrogative particle, and its meaning is denial and rejection. Indeed, this is a plot you have plotted in the city. If this deed of yours is a trick you and Moses devised in Egypt before you left it to this desert, you conspired for a purpose of yours, which is to drive out the Egyptians and settle the Children of Israel in it. This statement from Pharaoh was a deception to the people so that they would not follow the magicians in believing. It has been narrated that Moses, blessings and peace be upon him, said to the chief magician: "Will you believe in me if I overcome you?" He replied: "I will bring magic that cannot be overcome by magic." And if I overcome you, I will certainly believe in you, and Pharaoh hears this. Therefore, he said what he said: "You will soon know," a threat he summarized and then detailed with his saying: "I will surely cut off." It was also recited: "I will cut off" with a lighter pronunciation. Likewise, "Then I will surely crucify you from opposite sides, from every side." It was said that the first one to be cut off from opposite sides and crucified for Pharaoh.