They HAD no followers TO deceive. We're talking about the BEGINNING of the
religion. The disciples were the followers of Jesus; after the crucifiction
they were small in number and relegated to the fringe. They had no followers
themselves.
<<However, if the stakes were the risk of being stoned or lynched by an angry
mob who just discovered that they had been deceived, then Pim's argument has
a great deal of plausibility.>>
And since they had no followers that could have been deceived, Pim's argument
fails.
Jim