The Cave (Al-Kahf)
In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful
ALL PRAISE is due to God, who has bestowed this divine writ from on high upon His servant, and has not allowed any deviousness to obscure its meaning: 1 so that he could warn them of His stern retribution, give the glad news of the best and everlasting reward to the righteously striving believers, 2 In which they will abide forever. 3 Furthermore, [this divine writ is meant] to warn all those who assert, "God has taken unto Himself a son." 4 (A thing) whereof they have no knowledge, nor (had) their fathers, Dreadful is the word that cometh out of their mouths. They speak naught but a lie. 5 Yet perchance, if they believe not in this tiding, thou wilt consume thyself, following after them, of grief. 6 We have caused earthly things to seem attractive so that We can see who will excel in good deeds. 7 and, verily, [in time] We shall reduce all that is on it to barren dust! 8 Did you know that the People of the Cave and People close to the Woods, were Our exceptional signs? 9 When the young men sought refuge in the cave, they said, "Our Lord, grant us Your special mercy and give us right guidance in our affair." 10 We sealed their ears in the cave for a number of years. 11 Then We awakened them that We might show which of the two factions was most precise in calculating what [extent] they had remained in time. 12