Q48:29 Ruthless to unbelievers

Mohammed is God's apostle. Those who follow him are ruthless to the unbelievers but merciful to one another. (48:29).

Qur'aan - 48:29

مُّحَمَّدٌ رَّسُولُ اللَّهِ وَالَّذِينَ مَعَهُ أَشِدَّاء عَلَى الْكُفَّارِ رُحَمَاء بَيْنَهُمْ تَرَاهُمْ رُكَّعًا سُجَّدًا يَبْتَغُونَ فَضْلًا مِّنَ اللَّهِ وَرِضْوَانًا سِيمَاهُمْ فِي وُجُوهِهِم مِّنْ أَثَرِ السُّجُودِ ذَلِكَ مَثَلُهُمْ فِي التَّوْرَاةِ وَمَثَلُهُمْ فِي الْإِنجِيلِ كَزَرْعٍ أَخْرَجَ شَطْأَهُ فَآزَرَهُ فَاسْتَغْلَظَ فَاسْتَوَى عَلَى سُوقِهِ يُعْجِبُ الزُّرَّاعَ لِيَغِيظَ بِهِمُ الْكُفَّارَ وَعَدَ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ مِنْهُم مَّغْفِرَةً وَأَجْرًا عَظِيمًا

Muhammadun rasoolu Allahi waallatheena maAAahu ashiddao AAala alkuffari ruhamao baynahum tarahum rukkaAAan sujjadan yabtaghoona fadlan mina Allahi waridwanan seemahum fee wujoohihim min athari alssujoodi thalika mathaluhum fee alttawrati wamathaluhum fee alinjeeli kazarAAin akhraja shatahu faazarahu faistaghlatha faistawa AAala sooqihi yuAAjibu alzzurraAAa liyagheetha bihimu alkuffara waAAada Allahu allatheena amanoo waAAamiloo alssalihati minhum maghfiratan waajran AAatheeman


48:29 (Asad) MUHAMMAD is God’s Apostle; and those who are [truly] with him are firm and unyielding [This composite gives, I believe, the full meaning of the term ashidda (sing. shadid) in the above context.] towards all deniers of the truth, [yet] full of mercy towards one another.
[Lit., "among themselves". Cf. 5:54 - "humble towards the believers, proud towards all who deny the truth".]

Thou canst see them bowing down, pros­trating themselves [in prayer], seeking favour with God and [His] goodly acceptance: their marks are on their faces, traced by prostration. [The infinitive noun sujud ("prostration") stands here for the innermost consummation of faith, while its "trace" signifies the spiritual reflection of that faith in the believer’s manner of life and even in his outward aspect. Since the "face" is the most expressive part of man’s personality, it is often used in the Qur’an in the sense of one’s "whole being".]

This is their parable in the Torah as well as their parable in the Gospel:
[Regarding the significance of the term Injil ("Gospel") as used in the Qur’an, see the surah 3 note 4] [they are] like a seed that brings forth its shoot, and then He strengthens it, so that it grows stout, and [in the end] stands firm upon its stem, delighting the sowers. [Thus will God cause the believers to grow in strength,] so that through them He might confound the deniers of the truth. [Lit., "infuse with wrath".] [But] unto such of them as may [yet] attain to faith and do righteous deeds, God has promised forgiveness and a reward supreme.[Whereas most of the classical commentators understand the above sentence as alluding to believers in general, Razi relates the pronoun minhum ("of them" or "among them") explicitly to the deniers of the truth spoken of in the preceding sentence - i.e., to those of them who might yet attain to faith and thus achieve God’s forgiveness: a promise which was fulfilled within a few years after the revelation of this verse, inasmuch as most of the Arabian enemies of the Prophet embraced Islam, and many of them became its torchbearers. But in a wider sense, this divine promise remains open until Resurrection Day (Tabari), relating to everybody, at all times and in all cultural environments, who might yet attain to the truth and live up to it.]
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Mike Ghouse: Those who follow the rules for the general wellbeing and goodness of the society, God has rewards for them, those who violate the rules, they get traffic tickets or go to jail depending on the severity of the violation.

Indeed, the Talibans and their likes interpret "those who are good" as their own private club, where as Quraan has been clear that no one needs to worry about earning God's grace whether they are Jews, Christians or others. As Muslims we have a monumental task to let other Muslims understand the universality of Qur'aan; it is about good and bad and not Muslims and non-Muslims.