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Muhammad Asad   
And [for many a year] thou might have seen the sun, on its rising, incline away from their cave on the right, and, on its setting, turn aside from them on the left, while they lived on in that spacious chamber, [bearing witness to] this of God's messages: He whom God guides, he alone has found the right way; whereas for him whom He lets go astray thou canst never find any protector who would point out the right way
The Clear Quran, Dr. Mustafa Khattab   
And you would have seen the sun, as it rose, inclining away from their cave to the right, and as it set, declining away from them to the left, while they lay in its open space. That is one of the signs of Allah. Whoever Allah guides is truly guided. But whoever He leaves to stray, you will never find for them a guiding mentor.
Safi Kaskas   
And [had you been present], you would have seen the sun, when it rose, veering away from their cave towards the right, and, when it set, passing away from them to the left, while they lay within an opening of that cave. This is one of God's signs. He whom God guides is the rightly guided, but he whom God leaves to stray, you will not find for him a guiding protector.

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Source Arabic and Literal tools
Arabic   
۞ وَتَرَى ٱلشَّمۡسَ إِذَا طَلَعَت تَّزَ ٰوَرُ عَن كَهۡفِهِمۡ ذَاتَ ٱلۡیَمِینِ وَإِذَا غَرَبَت تَّقۡرِضُهُمۡ ذَاتَ ٱلشِّمَالِ وَهُمۡ فِی فَجۡوَةࣲ مِّنۡهُۚ ذَ ٰلِكَ مِنۡ ءَایَـٰتِ ٱللَّهِۗ مَن یَهۡدِ ٱللَّهُ فَهُوَ ٱلۡمُهۡتَدِۖ وَمَن یُضۡلِلۡ فَلَن تَجِدَ لَهُۥ وَلِیࣰّا مُّرۡشِدࣰا ۝١٧
Transliteration (2021)   
watarā l-shamsa idhā ṭalaʿat tazāwaru ʿan kahfihim dhāta l-yamīni wa-idhā gharabat taqriḍuhum dhāta l-shimāli wahum fī fajwatin min'hu dhālika min āyāti l-lahi man yahdi l-lahu fahuwa l-muh'tadi waman yuḍ'lil falan tajida lahu waliyyan mur'shida
Word for Word
Dr. Shehnaz Shaikh, Ms. Kauser Katri, and more
  
And you (might) have seen the sun, when it rose, inclining away from their cave to the right, and when it set, passing away from them to the left while they (lay) in the open space thereof. That (was) from (the) Signs (of) Allah. Whoever guides Allah and he (is) the guided one, and whoever He lets go astray then never you will find for him a protector, a guide.

Generally Accepted Translations of the Meaning
Muhammad Asad   
And [for many a year] thou might have seen the sun, on its rising, incline away from their cave on the right, and, on its setting, turn aside from them on the left, while they lived on in that spacious chamber, [bearing witness to] this of God's messages: He whom God guides, he alone has found the right way; whereas for him whom He lets go astray thou canst never find any protector who would point out the right way
M. M. Pickthall   
And thou mightest have seen the sun when it rose move away from their cave to the right, and when it set go past them on the left, and they were in the cleft thereof. That was (one) of the portents of Allah. He whom Allah guideth, he indeed is led aright, and he whom He sendeth astray, for him thou wilt not find a guiding friend
Yusuf Ali (Saudi Rev. 1985)   
Thou wouldst have seen the sun, when it rose, declining to the right from their Cave, and when it set, turning away from them to the left, while they lay in the open space in the midst of the Cave. Such are among the Signs of Allah: He whom Allah, guides is rightly guided; but he whom Allah leaves to stray,- for him wilt thou find no protector to lead him to the Right Way
The Clear Quran, Dr. Mustafa Khattab   
And you would have seen the sun, as it rose, inclining away from their cave to the right, and as it set, declining away from them to the left, while they lay in its open space. That is one of the signs of Allah. Whoever Allah guides is truly guided. But whoever He leaves to stray, you will never find for them a guiding mentor.
Safi Kaskas   
And [had you been present], you would have seen the sun, when it rose, veering away from their cave towards the right, and, when it set, passing away from them to the left, while they lay within an opening of that cave. This is one of God's signs. He whom God guides is the rightly guided, but he whom God leaves to stray, you will not find for him a guiding protector.
Wahiduddin Khan   
The sun could be observed to incline away from their cave on the right, as it rose, and to turn away from them on the left, when it set, while they lay in the wide space inside the cave. This is one of the signs of God. He whom God guides is rightly guided; but for him whom He lets go astray, you will find no helper or guide
Shakir   
And you might see the sun when it rose, decline from their cave towards the right hand, and when it set, leave them behind on the left while they were in a wide space thereof. This is of the signs of Allah; whomsoever Allah guides, he is the rightly guided one, and whomsoever He causes to err, you shall not find for him any friend to lead (him) aright
Dr. Laleh Bakhtiar   
Thou wouldst have seen the sun when it came up. It inclines from their cave towards the right and when it began to set, it passed them towards the left while they were in a fissure. That is of the signs of God. He whom God guides, he is one who is truly guided. And he whom He causes to go astray, thou wilt never find for him a protector or one who will show him the way.
T.B.Irving   
You should have seen how the sun as it rose, swerved away from their Cave toward the right; and as it set, slanted off toward the left of them, while they lay in a space in between. That was one of God´s signs. Anyone whom God guides, remains guided; while anyone He lets go astray will never find any patron to set him straight.
Abdul Hye   
And you might have seen the sun when it rose, it declines to the right from their cave; and when it set, it turns away from them towards the left while they lay in the middle of the cave. That is one of the signs of Allah. Whoever He guides is rightly guided; but whoever He sends astray, you will never find guiding friend (to lead to the Right Way) for him.
The Study Quran   
Thou wouldst have seen the sun when it rose, slanting away from their cave to the right; and when it set, turning away from them to the left, while they were in an open space within it. That is among the signs of God. Whomsoever God guides, he is rightly guided; and whomsoever He leads astray, thou wilt find no protector to lead him aright
Talal Itani & AI (2024)   
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.
Talal Itani (2012)   
You would have seen the sun, when it rose, veering away from their cave towards the right, and when it sets, moving away from them to the left, as they lay in the midst of the cave. That was one of God's wonders. He whom God guides is truly guided; but he whom He misguides, for him you will find no directing friend
Dr. Kamal Omar   
And you see the sun when it rose, it passes avoiding their cave, to the right; and when it set, it leaves them (while passing), to the left; and they (were) in the spacious hollow thereof. This (scene) is among the signs of Allah. That whom Allah guides so he is rightly guided; and that whom He allows to go astray then you never find for him a wali, (or) murshid
M. Farook Malik   
If you could look at them in the cave, it would appear to you that the rising sun declines to the right of their cavern, and as it sets, passes them on the left, while they lay in an open space in between. This is from the signs of Allah. He whom Allah guides is rightly guided; but he whom He lets go astray, you will find no guardian to lead him to the Right Way
Muhammad Mahmoud Ghali   
And you might have seen the sun when it rose, declining from their cave towards the right; and when it set, it went past them towards the left while they were in a broad fissure of (the cave). That was one of the signs of Allah. Whomever Allah guides, then he is right-guided, and whomever He leads away into error, then you will never find for him a right-minded patron
Muhammad Sarwar   
No sunlight could reach them during their sleep in the cave. One could see the rising sun decline to the right of their cave and the setting sun move its way to the left whilst they were sleeping in an opening of the cave. This is one of the miracles of God. Whomever God guides receives the right guidance and you will never find a guardian or guide for those whom He causes to go astray
Muhammad Taqi Usmani   
You would see the sun, when it rose, turning away from their Cave towards the right; and when it set, it bypassed them towards the left, and they were (lying) in the hollow thereof. That is one of the signs of Allah. Whomsoever Allah guides is the one who gets the right path and whomsoever He lets go astray, for him you will find no one to help, no one to lead
Shabbir Ahmed   
And you might have seen the sun rising on the right side of the Cave, and set, aside from them, on the left while they lived on in that spacious chamber. (The Cave lay North South and while it was roomy from inside its entrance was small). It is a sign of Allah that (He arranged for them excellent camouflage and) whom Allah guides is the rightly guided, and whom He lets go astray for violating the Divine Laws of guidance, for such, you will find no protector who would point out the right way
Dr. Munir Munshey   
(Had you been there) you would see (the rays of) the sun _ as it rises and sets _ falling obliquely across the right of the cave and turning away past its left, while the men lay in the midst (of the cave). These are the signs of Allah. The rightly guided is the one whom Allah guides. You will not find any patron to guide the one who is led astray
Syed Vickar Ahamed   
And you would have seen the sun, when it rose, down below to the right (side) from their Cave, and when it set, turning away from them to the left while they lay in the open space in the middle of the Cave (thus keeping them cool). These are from the Signs of Allah: He whom Allah guides is rightly guided; But he whom Allah leaves to wander (aimlessly)— For him will you find no protector (to lead him to the Right Way)
Umm Muhammad (Sahih International)   
And [had you been present], you would see the sun when it rose, inclining away from their cave on the right, and when it set, passing away from them on the left, while they were [laying] within an open space thereof. That was from the signs of Allah . He whom Allah guides is the [rightly] guided, but he whom He leaves astray - never will you find for him a protecting guide
[The Monotheist Group] (2011 Edition)   
And you see the sun when it rises, it visits their cave from the right, and when it sets, it touches them from the left, while they are in an enclosure from it. That is from God's signs. Whomever God guides is the guided one, and whomever He misguides, you will not find for him any ally to lead
Abdel Haleem   
You could have seen the [light of the] sun as it rose, moving away to the right of their cave, and when it set, moving away to the left of them, while they lay in the wide space inside the cave. (This is one of God’s signs: those people God guides are rightly guided, but you will find no protector to lead to the right path those He leaves to stray.
Abdul Majid Daryabadi   
And thou Woudst behold the sun when it riseth veering away from their cave on the right, and when it setteth, passing them by on the left, while they were in the spacious part thereof: that is of the signs of Allah. Whomsoever Allah guideth, he indeed is the guided; and whomsoever He sendeth astray, for him thou wilt never find a directing friend
Ahmed Ali   
You may well have seen when the sun came up it moved away to the right of the cave, and when it went down it turned away to the left, and they stayed in its open space. This was among the signs of God. Whoever is guided by God follows the right path; and whosoever goes astray will not find a guide to show him the way
Aisha Bewley   
You would have seen the sun, when it rose, inclining away from their cave towards the right, and, when it set, leaving them behind on the left, while they were lying in an open part of it. That was one of Allah´s Signs. Whoever Allah guides is truly guided. But if He misguides someone, you will find no protector for them to guide them rightly.
Ali Ünal   
(They entered the Cave and fell into a deep sleep.) You would have seen the sun, when it rose, moving away from their Cave to the right, and when it set, turning away from them to the left, while they lay in a spacious hollow in the Cave. That was one of God’s signs. Whoever God guides, he alone is rightly guided; and whoever He leads astray, you will never be able to find for him any guardian to guide him to the right way
Ali Quli Qara'i   
You may see the sun, when it rises, slanting toward the right of their cave, and, when it sets, cut across them towards the left, while they are in a cavern within it. That is one of Allah’s signs. Whomever Allah guides is rightly guided, and whomever He leads astray, you will never find for him any guardian or guide
Hamid S. Aziz   
And you might have seen the sun, when it rose, decline from their cave towards the right hand, and when it set leave them on the left hand, while they were in the spacious part thereof. That is one of the Signs of Allah. Whom Allah guides he is guided in
Ali Bakhtiari Nejad   
And you would see the sun when it rose, it turned toward the right side of their cave, and when it set, it passed them from the left, while they were in the spacious part of it (in the middle of the cave). That is among God’s signs. Whomever God guides, he is guided, and whomever He misguides then you will never find any guardian for him guiding him to the right way.
A.L. Bilal Muhammad et al (2018)   
You would have seen the Sun when it rose, setting to the right from their cave, and when it set, turning away from them to the left, while they lay in the open space in the middle of the cave. Such are among the signs of God. He whom God guides is rightly guided, but he whom God leaves to stray, for him will you find no protector to lead him to the right way
Musharraf Hussain   
Messenger, while they laid in the clear opening of the cave, you could see the sun rise then move away from them, and turned to their left as it set. This was from the signs of Allah. Anyone guided by Allah is truly guided, and anyone gone astray won’t find a guide or a protector.
Maududi   
Had you seen them in the Cave it would have appeared to you that when the sun rose, it moved away from their Cave to the right; and when it set, it turned away from them to the left, while they remained in a spacious hollow in the Cave. This is one of the Signs of Allah. Whomsoever Allah guides, he alone is led aright; and whomsoever Allah lets go astray, you will find for him no guardian to direct him
[The Monotheist Group] (2013 Edition)   
And you see the sun when it rises, it visits their cave from the right, and when it sets, it touches them from the left, while they are in an enclosure from it. That is from the signs of God. Whoever God guides is the guided one, and whoever He misguides, you will not find for him any ally to give direction.
Mohammad Shafi   
And you would see the sun bypass their cave, as it rose in the morning on the right; and as it declined in the afternoon on the left, it would pass them by while they lay in the spacious space in the cave. This is one of the signs of Allah. The one whom Allah guides, is the one rightly guided, and the one whom He misleads, you shall not find for that one any wali to direct him to the right path

Controversial or status undetermined works
Ahmed Raza Khan (Barelvi)   
And O beloved! You will see the sun when it rises, moves away from their cave to the right and when it sets, turn away from them on the left, whereas they are in the open space of the cave. This is of the signs of Allah. He whom Allah guides is on the right way, and he whom He sends astray, for him you will never find a supporter to guide.
Rashad Khalifa   
You could see the sun when it rose coming from the right side of their cave, and when it set, it shone on them from the left, as they slept in the hollow thereof. This is one of GOD's portents. Whomever GOD guides is the truly guided one, and whomever He sends astray, you will not find for him a guiding teacher.
Hasan Al-Fatih Qaribullah   
You might have seen the rising sun incline towards the right of their Cave, and, as it set go past them on the left, while they stayed within an open space in the Cave. That was one of the signs of Allah. He whom Allah guides is rightly guided; but he whom He leads astray you shall not find for him a guardian to guide him
Maulana Muhammad Ali   
And thou mightest see the sun, when it rose, decline from their Cave to the right, and when it set leave them behind on the left, while they were in a wide space thereof. This is the signs of Allah. He whom Allah guides, he is on the right way; and whom He leaves in error, thou wilt not find for him a friend to guide aright
Muhammad Ahmed & Samira   
And you see the sun when it rose/ascended/appeared, it bends and curves/visits on their cave that of the right, and when it departed/declined/set, it parallels/crosses/passes them that of the left, and they are in an opening from it; that (is) from God's verses/signs/evidences; whom God guides so he is the guided, and whom He misguides/who misguides (others) so you will never/not find for him a guardian/ally a correct/right guide
Bijan Moeinian   
While they fell asleep in the cave, you could not have seen them in the cave as the sun declined to the right from their cave in sunrise and to the left in the sunset. This was definitely a miracle of your Lord [which was meant to assist them in their hiding. This is mentioned so that you] Know that whoever the Lord guides, is truly guided, and whoever is deprived of His guidance, will never find a guiding teacher
Faridul Haque   
And O dear Prophet (Mohammed - peace and blessings be upon him) you will see the sun that when it rises it shifts away to the right of their cave, and when it sets it shifts away to their left, and they are in the open ground of that cave; this is from among the signs of Allah; whomever Allah guides - only he is therefore guided; and whomever He sends astray - you will never find for him a friend who guides
Sher Ali   
And thou couldst see the sun, as it rose, move away from their Cave on the right, and when it set, turn away from them on the left; and they were in a spacious hollow thereof. This is among the Signs of ALLAH. He whom ALLAH guides is alone rightly guided; but he whom HE leaves to go astray, for him thou wilt find no helper or guide
Dr. Mohammad Tahir-ul-Qadri   
And you see that the sun, when it rises, moves to the right from their cave, and inclines obliquely from them to the left when it sets, whilst they are (lying) in the open chamber of the cave. This (change of the sun’s course) is one of the (great) signs of Allah’s (might). He whom Allah guides is the one who is rightly guided, but the one whom He holds strayed, you will not find for him any wali (friend to help) and murshid (guide to show the path)
Amatul Rahman Omar   
And (O people!) you could see the sun when it rose, inclining to the right of their (spacious) Place of Refuge, and when it set declining to their left, while they were in the open space of this (refuge of theirs); this was one of the signs of Allah. He alone is rightly guided whom Allah guides. As for the person whom He forsakes, you will find no helper, no guide, for him
Muhsin Khan & Muhammad al-Hilali   
And you might have seen the sun, when it rose, declining to the right from their Cave, and when it set, turning away from them to the left, while they lay in the midst of the Cave. That is (one) of the Ayat (proofs, evidences, signs) of Allah. He whom Allah guides, is rightly guided; but he whom He sends astray, for him you will find no Walee (guiding friend) to lead him (to the right Path)

Non-Muslim and/or Orientalist works
Arthur John Arberry   
And thou mightest have seen the sun, when it rose, inclining from their Cave towards the right, and, when it set, passing them by on the left, while they were in a broad fissure of the Cave. That was one of God's signs; whomsoever God guides, he is rightly guided, and whomsoever He leads astray, thou wilt not find for him a protector to direct
George Sale   
And thou mightest have seen the sun, when it had risen, to decline from their cave towards the right hand; and when it went down, to leave them on the left hand: And they were in the spacious part of the cave. This was one of the signs of God. Whomsoever God shall direct, he shall be rightly directed; and whomsoever He shall cause to err, thou shalt not find any to defend or to direct
Edward Henry Palmer   
And thou mightst have seen the sun when it rose decline from their cave towards the right hand, and when it set leave them on the left hand, while they were in the spacious part thereof. That is one of the signs of God. Whom God guides he is guided indeed, and whom He leads astray thou shalt surely find for him no patron to guide aright
John Medows Rodwell   
And thou mightest have seen the sun when it arose, pass on the right of their cave, and when it set, leave them on the left, while they were in its spacious chamber. This is one of the signs of God. Guided indeed is he whom God guideth; but for him whom He misleadeth, thou shalt by no means find a patron, director
N J Dawood (2014)   
You might have seen the rising sun decline to the right of their cavern and, as it set, go past them on the left, while they stayed within. That was one of God‘s signs. He whom God guides is rightly guided; but he whom He confounds shall find no friend to guide him

New, Partial, or In Progress Translations
Fode Drame   
And you see the sun when it rises, that it inclines away from their cave to the right and when it sets, it touches them slightly from the left while they are in the hollow space of it [the cave]. That is from the signs of Allah. Whosoever Allah guides, he is the rightly guided. And whosoever He causes to go astray, you shall never find for him an ally to guide him [to the right way].
Munir Mezyed   
You could see the sun when it rose, declining to the right from their Cave, and when it set, leaving them behind on the left, while they lay in the middle part of the Cave. That is (one) of the Signs of Allâh's (power & glory). And whomever Allâh enlightens his path, he is the one who seeks salvation. And whomever He lets go astray, for him you will find no guardian to lead him to the path of truth.
Sahib Mustaqim Bleher   
And you see the sun pass to the right of their cave when it rises and avoid them on the left when it sets whilst they are in a gap between. This is from the signs of Allah. Whom Allah guides, he is guided, and whom He lets go astray, you will not find a guardian for him to lead him right.
Linda “iLHam” Barto   
[If you had been there] you could have watched the sun rise and climb from the right and the sun decline and set on the left [without your ever suspecting that the cave was inhabited] while they [the inhabitants] lay in the spacious midst of the cave. Such as this is among the signs of Allah. The one guided by Allah is properly guided, but the one Allah leaves astray will find no guardian to lead him/her to the proper way.
Fadel Soliman, Bridges‘ Translation   
And yousg see the sun when it rises, veering away from their cave towards the right, and when it sets, moving away from them to the left as they lie in a hollow therein; that is of Allah’s signs. Whomever Allah guides is the (truly) guided one, but whomever He leads astray—for him yousg will find no guiding guardian.
Irving & Mohamed Hegab   
You should have seen how the sun as it rose, swerved away from their Cave toward the right; and as it set, slanted off toward the left of them, while they lay in a space in between. That was one of Allah (God)'s signs. Anyone whom Allah (God) guides, remains guided; while anyone He lets go astray will never find any patron to set him straight.
Samy Mahdy   
And you see the sun, when it rises, visit their cave sporadically towards the right, and if it sets, lend them to the left, and they are in a cavity among it. That was from Allah’s verses. And whoever Allah guides so he is the guided one; and whoever He strays him, so you will not find for him a conductor guardian.
Sayyid Qutb   
You might have seen the sun, on its rising, incline away from their cave on the right, and, on its setting, turn away from them on the left, while they lay in a space within. That was one of God's signs. He whom God guides is indeed rightly guided, but for him whom He lets go astray you can never find any protector who would point out the right way.
Ahmed Hulusi   
When the sun rises it turns from the right side of the cave... And when it sets it passes from their left side... They are within an open space thereof... This is a sign of Allah... Whoever Allah guides (to his essential reality) is enabled to reach the reality... And whoever He leads astray, never will you find for him a friend/guide to enlighten him.
Sayyed Abbas Sadr-Ameli   
And (had you been there) you might have seen the sun when it rose, declining from their Cave towards the right, and when it set, leaving them away unto the left, and they were in a wide space thereof. This is of the Signs of Allah, whomever Allah guides, he is rightly guided, and whomever He leaves to stray, you shall never find for him any guiding friend
Al-muntakhab fi tafsir al-Qur‘an al-Karim   
You could see the sun O Muhammad as it rose turning aside from their Cave to the right and as it set swerving to the left while they occupied a space within in a state of dead sleep; a divine wonderous sign indeed. He whom Allah guides to His path and Providence his guide is indeed guided into all truth, whereas he whom Allah sends astray, never shall you find for him a tutelary guide
Mir Aneesuddin   
And you would have seen the sun when it rose, move away from their cave to the right and when it set, go past them on the left, and they were in a wide space thereof. That is of the signs of Allah. Whomsoever Allah guides, he (it is who) is (really) guided and whomsoever He leaves in error, then you will never find for him a guardian showing the right way.

Obsolete and/or older editions
Yusuf Ali (Orig. 1938)   
Thou wouldst have seen the sun, when it rose, declining to the right from their Cave, and when it set, turning away from them to the left, while they lay in the open space in the midst of the Cave. Such are among the Signs of God: He whom God, guides is rightly guided; but he whom God leaves to stray,- for him wilt thou find no protector to lead him to the Right Way
OLD Literal Word for Word   
And you (might) have seen the sun, when it rose, inclining away from their cave to the right, and when it set, passing away from them to the left while they (lay) in the open space thereof. That (was) from (the) Signs (of) Allah. Whoever Allah guides and he (is) the guided one, and whoever He lets go astray then never you will find for him a protector, a guide
OLD Transliteration   
Watara alshshamsa itha talaAAat tazawaru AAan kahfihim thata alyameeni wa-itha gharabat taqriduhum thata alshshimali wahum fee fajwatin minhu thalika min ayati Allahi man yahdi Allahu fahuwa almuhtadi waman yudlil falan tajida lahu waliyyan murshidan