The Cave (Al-Kahf)
In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate
Praise be to Allah Who hath revealed the Scripture unto His slave, and hath not placed therein any crookedness, 1 Immutable, so that it may warn of a severe punishment from Him; and give happy tidings to those who believe and do the right that there is a better reward (of Paradise) for them, 2 Where they will abide for ever; 3 And that it may warn those who say: God hath taken a son. 4 They have no knowledge of it, nor had their fathers; a grievous word it is that comes out of their mouths; they speak nothing but a lie. 5 Then maybe you will kill yourself with grief, sorrowing after them, if they do not believe in this announcement. 6 Surely We have made all that is on the earth an embellishment for it in order to test people as to who of them is better in conduct. 7 and, verily, [in time] We shall reduce all that is on it to barren dust! 8 [AND SINCE the life of this world is but a test, dost thou [really] think that [the parable of] the Men of the Cave and of [their devotion to] the scriptures could be deemed more wondrous than any [other] of Our messages? 9 When the young men fled for refuge to the Cave and said: Our Lord! Give us mercy from Thy presence, and shape for us right conduct in our plight. 10 We then thumped upon their ears in the Cave for a number of years. (* Put them to sleep.) 11 Afterwards. We raised them up again, that We might know which of the two parties would better calculate the while they had tarried. 12