إِذ أَوَى الفِتيَةُ إِلَى الكَهفِ فَقالوا رَبَّنا آتِنا مِن لَدُنكَ رَحمَةً وَهَيِّئ لَنا مِن أَمرِنا رَشَدًا

When they sought sanctuary in the cave, they prayed, “Our Lord, shower us with Your mercy, and arrange our affairs with wisdom.”

فَضَرَبنا عَلىٰ آذانِهِم فِي الكَهفِ سِنينَ عَدَدًا

Then We sealed their ears in the cave for some years.

ثُمَّ بَعَثناهُم لِنَعلَمَ أَيُّ الحِزبَينِ أَحصىٰ لِما لَبِثوا أَمَدًا

Then We awakened them, to determine which of the two groups could best estimate the duration of their stay.

نَحنُ نَقُصُّ عَلَيكَ نَبَأَهُم بِالحَقِّ ۚ إِنَّهُم فِتيَةٌ آمَنوا بِرَبِّهِم وَزِدناهُم هُدًى

We tell you their story with truth. They were young men who had faith in their Lord, and We augmented them in guidance.

وَرَبَطنا عَلىٰ قُلوبِهِم إِذ قاموا فَقالوا رَبُّنا رَبُّ السَّماواتِ وَالأَرضِ لَن نَدعُوَ مِن دونِهِ إِلـٰهًا ۖ لَقَد قُلنا إِذًا شَطَطًا

We strengthened their hearts when they stood up and said, “Our Lord is the Lord of the heavens and the earth. We will never call upon any deity other than Him, for then we would be uttering a colossal falsehood.”

وَإِذِ اعتَزَلتُموهُم وَما يَعبُدونَ إِلَّا اللَّهَ فَأووا إِلَى الكَهفِ يَنشُر لَكُم رَبُّكُم مِن رَحمَتِهِ وَيُهَيِّئ لَكُم مِن أَمرِكُم مِرفَقًا

“Now that you have isolated yourself from them and from what they worship other than God, retreat to the cave. Your Lord will extend His mercy upon you and arrange your affairs with ease.”

وَتَرَى الشَّمسَ إِذا طَلَعَت تَزاوَرُ عَن كَهفِهِم ذاتَ اليَمينِ وَإِذا غَرَبَت تَقرِضُهُم ذاتَ الشِّمالِ وَهُم في فَجوَةٍ مِنهُ ۚ ذٰلِكَ مِن آياتِ اللَّهِ ۗ مَن يَهدِ اللَّهُ فَهُوَ المُهتَدِ ۖ وَمَن يُضلِل فَلَن تَجِدَ لَهُ وَلِيًّا مُرشِدًا

You would have seen the sun, as it rose, veering away from their cave to the right, and as it set, bypassing them to the left, while they lay within the spacious area of the cave. This was one of God’s signs. Whomever God guides is guided, and whomever He leaves to stray, you will find no guiding mentor for him.

وَتَحسَبُهُم أَيقاظًا وَهُم رُقودٌ ۚ وَنُقَلِّبُهُم ذاتَ اليَمينِ وَذاتَ الشِّمالِ ۖ وَكَلبُهُم باسِطٌ ذِراعَيهِ بِالوَصيدِ ۚ لَوِ اطَّلَعتَ عَلَيهِم لَوَلَّيتَ مِنهُم فِرارًا وَلَمُلِئتَ مِنهُم رُعبًا

You would have thought they were awake, yet they were asleep. We turned them over, to the right and to the left, with their dog stretching its forelegs at the entrance. If you had observed them, you would’ve turned away from them in fear, and terror-filled.

وَكَذٰلِكَ بَعَثناهُم لِيَتَساءَلوا بَينَهُم ۚ قالَ قائِلٌ مِنهُم كَم لَبِثتُم ۖ قالوا لَبِثنا يَومًا أَو بَعضَ يَومٍ ۚ قالوا رَبُّكُم أَعلَمُ بِما لَبِثتُم فَابعَثوا أَحَدَكُم بِوَرِقِكُم هـٰذِهِ إِلَى المَدينَةِ فَليَنظُر أَيُّها أَزكىٰ طَعامًا فَليَأتِكُم بِرِزقٍ مِنهُ وَليَتَلَطَّف وَلا يُشعِرَنَّ بِكُم أَحَدًا

We then awakened them, prompting them to question each other. One of them asked, “How long did you stay?” They answered, “We stayed a day or part of a day.” They concluded, “Only your Lord knows the duration of your stay.” “Send one of you with your money to the city, and let him find the best sustenance and bring it back to us. He must be discreet and not draw any attention to you.”

إِنَّهُم إِن يَظهَروا عَلَيكُم يَرجُموكُم أَو يُعيدوكُم في مِلَّتِهِم وَلَن تُفلِحوا إِذًا أَبَدًا

“If they discover you, they may stone you or force you to revert to their religion, and then you will never succeed.”