Tafsir of As-Saffat 37:69-70

{Indeed, they found their forefathers astray, so they hasten in their footsteps.} (69-70)

This is a justification for why they deserve the various forms of punishment previously mentioned, on account of their imitation of their forefathers in the fundamentals of religion, without there being anything for them or their forefathers to hold onto at all.

That is, they found them astray in the reality of the matter; they possessed nothing that could serve as a pretense, let alone be valid as evidence. Yet, without reflecting on whether they were actually upon the truth—despite how evident it was, with the slightest contemplation, that they were upon falsehood—they followed them.

Al-ihra’ (hastening) is intense speed. It has also been said that it is a speed that carries a tremor. The construction of the verb in the passive voice [in the recitation yuhra’un] is an indication of their intense desire to hasten in their footsteps, as if they are being goaded and urged toward them with great force.