18:1  Praise be to God, Who sent down the Book unto His servant, and placed no crookedness therein

18:2  upright, that He may warn of a great might coming from His Presence and give glad tidings unto the believers who perform righteous deeds that theirs shall be a beautiful reward

18:3  wherein they shall remain forever

18:4  and that He may warn those who say, “God has taken a child.

18:5  They have no knowledge thereof, nor do their fathers. A monstrous word it is that issues from their mouths. They speak naught but a lie

18:6  Yet perhaps thou wouldst destroy thyself with grief for their sake, should they believe not in this account

18:7  Surely We made whatsoever is on the earth an adornment for it, that We may try them as to which of them is most virtuous in deed

18:8  And surely We shall make whatsoever is upon it a barren plain

18:9  Dost thou reckon that the Companions of the Cave and the Inscription are a marvel among Our signs

18:10  When the youths took refuge in the cave, they said, “Our Lord! Grant us mercy from Thy Presence, and make us incline to sound judgment concerning our affair.

18:11  So We placed [a veil] over their ears in the cave for a number of years

18:12  Then We raised them up again, that We might know which of the two parties had best calculated how long they had tarried

18:13  We recount their story unto thee in truth. Verily they were youths who believed in their Lord, and We increased them in guidance

18:14  And We fortified their hearts. When they arose, they said, “Our Lord is the Lord of the heavens and the earth. We shall call upon no god apart from Him, for then we would have certainly uttered an outrage

18:15  These, our people, have taken gods apart from Him. Why do they not bring a clear authority concerning them? For who does greater wrong than one who fabricates a lie against God

18:16  And when you have withdrawn from them and all that they worship save God, then take refuge in the cave. Your Lord will spread forth something of His Mercy for you, and make you incline to ease in your affair.

18:17  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

18:18  Thou wouldst have thought them awake, though they were asleep. And We turned them to the right and to the left, with their dog stretching forth his paws at the threshold. Hadst thou come upon them, thou wouldst have turned away in flight and been filled with terror on their account

18:19  And in this way We raised them up again, that they might question one another. One of them said, “How long have you tarried?” They said, “We have tarried a day or part of a day.” They said, “Your Lord knows best how long you have tarried. So send one of you with this money of yours into the city, and let him observe which of them has the purest food and bring you some provision therefrom. Let him be discreet and make no one aware of you

18:20  Verily, if they come to know of you, they will stone you, or make you revert to their creed, and then you will never prosper.

18:21  And in this way We caused them to be discovered, that they might know that God’s Promise is true, and that there is no doubt about the Hour. When they were disputing among themselves about their affair, they said, “Erect a building over them; their Lord knows them best.” Those who prevailed over their affair said, “We shall build a place of worship over them.

18:22  They say, “[They were] three, and the fourth was their dog.” And they say, “Five, and the sixth was their dog”—guessing at the unseen. And they say, “Seven, and the eighth was their dog.” Say, “My Lord knows best their number; none know them save a few.” So dispute not concerning them, save with clear argument, nor consult any of them about them

18:23  And say not of anything, “Surely, I shall do it tomorrow.

18:24  Save that God wills. And remember thy Lord when thou dost forget, and say, “It may be that my Lord will guide me nearer than this to rectitude.

18:25  And they tarried in their cave three hundred years, plus nine more

18:26  Say, “God knows best how long they tarried. Unto Him belongs the Unseen of the heavens and the earth. How well He sees, how well He hears! They have no protector apart from Him, and He makes no one a partner unto Him in His Judgment.

18:27  Recite that which has been revealed unto thee from the Book of thy Lord. None alters His Words. And thou wilt find no refuge apart from Him

18:28  Make thy soul patient with those who call upon their Lord morning and evening, desiring His Face. Turn not thine eyes away from them, desiring the adornment of the life of this world, nor obeying one whose heart We have made heedless of the remembrance of Us and who follows his caprice and whose affair exceeds the bounds

18:29  And say, “It is the truth from your Lord! So whosoever will, let him believe, and whosoever will, let him disbelieve.” Verily We have prepared for the wrongdoers a Fire whose canopies will encompass them. And if they plead for relief, they will be showered with water like molten lead that will scald faces—an evil drink indeed, and how evil a resting place

18:30  As for those who believe and perform righteous deeds, surely We neglect not the reward of one who is virtuous in deed

18:31  For such as these, theirs shall be the Gardens of Eden with rivers running below. Therein they shall be adorned with bracelets of gold, and shall wear green garments of fine silk and rich brocade, reclining upon couches. Blessed indeed is the reward, and how beautiful a resting place

18:32  Set forth for them the parable of two men: For one of them We made two gardens of grapevines, and surrounded them with date palms, and placed crops between them

18:33  Both gardens brought forth their produce and failed not in the least, and We made a stream gush forth in their midst

18:34  And he had [abundant] fruit and said unto his companion as he conversed with him, “I am greater than you in wealth and stronger in men.

18:35  And he entered his garden, wronging himself, and said, “I think not that this will ever perish

18:36  Nor do I think that the Hour is imminent. And if I am brought back to my Lord, I shall surely find something better than this in the Hereafter.

18:37  His companion said unto him as he conversed with him, “Do you disbelieve in the One Who created you from dust, then from a drop, then fashioned you as a man

18:38  But He is God, my Lord, and I ascribe none as partner unto my Lord

18:39  When you entered your garden, why did you not say, ‘[This is] as God wills. There is no strength save in God.’ If you see that I am less than you in wealth and children

18:40  it may be that my Lord will give me something better than your garden, and unleash against it a reckoning from the sky, so that it becomes a flattened plain

18:41  Or its water may sink deep, so that you cannot seek after it.

18:42  And his fruit was encompassed. So he began to wring his hands on account of what he had spent on it while it lay in waste upon its trellises, saying, “Would that I had not ascribed anyone as partner unto my Lord!

18:43  And he had no party to help him apart from God; nor could he help himself

18:44  There, protection belongs to God, the Real. He is best in reward and best in requital

18:45  Set forth for them a parable of the life of this world: [It is] like water We send down from the sky. Then it mixes with the vegetation of the earth. Then it becomes chaff, scattered by the winds. And God is capable of all things

18:46  Wealth and children are the adornment of the life of this world, but that which endures—righteous deeds—are better in reward with thy Lord, and better [as a source of] hope

18:47  On the Day We will set the mountains in motion, and you will see the earth an open plain. And We will gather them, and leave not one of them behind

18:48  They shall be arrayed before thy Lord in ranks. “Indeed, you have come unto Us as We created you the first time. Nay, but you claimed that We would never appoint a tryst for you.

18:49  And the Book will be set down. Then thou wilt see the guilty fearful of what is in it. And they will say, “Oh, woe unto us! What a book this is! It leaves out nothing, small or great, save that it has taken account thereof.” And they find present [therein] whatsoever they did. And thy Lord wrongs no one

18:50  When We said unto the angels, “Prostrate before Adam,” they prostrated, save Iblis. He was of the jinn and he deviated from the command of his Lord. Will you then take him and his progeny as protectors apart from Me, though they are an enemy unto you? How evil an exchange for the wrongdoers

18:51  I did not make them witnesses to the creation of the heavens and the earth, nor to their own creation. And I take not those who lead astray as a support

18:52  On the Day when He says, “Call those whom you claimed as My partners,” they will call upon them, but they will not respond to them, and We will place a gulf between them

18:53  The guilty will see the Fire, and know they shall fall into it, but they will find no means of escape therefrom

18:54  And indeed We have employed every kind of parable for mankind in this Quran. And man is the most contentious of beings

18:55  And naught prevents men from believing when guidance comes unto them, and from seeking forgiveness of their Lord, save that [they await] the wont of those of old to come upon them, or the punishment to come upon them face-to-face

18:56  And We send not the messengers, save as bearers of glad tidings and as warners. And those who disbelieve dispute falsely in order to refute the truth thereby. They take My signs and that whereof they were warned in mockery

18:57  And who does greater wrong than one who has been reminded of the signs of his Lord, then turns away from them and forgets that which his hands have sent forth? Surely We have placed coverings over their hearts, such that they understand it not, and in their ears a deafness. Even if thou callest them to guidance, they will never be rightly guided

18:58  And thy Lord is Forgiving, Possessed of Mercy. Were He to take them to task for that which they have earned, He would have hastened the punishment for them. Nay, but theirs is a tryst, beyond which they shall find no refuge

18:59  And those towns, We destroyed them for the wrong they did, and We set a tryst for their destruction

18:60  And when Moses said unto his servant, “I shall continue on till I reach the junction of the two seas, even if I journey for a long time.

18:61  Then when they reached the junction of the two, they forgot their fish, and it made its way to the sea, burrowing away

18:62  Then when they had passed beyond, he said to his servant, “Bring us our meal. We have certainly met with weariness on this journey of ours.

18:63  He said, “Didst thou see? When we took refuge at the rock, indeed I forgot the fish—and naught made me neglect to mention it, save Satan—and it made its way to the sea in a wondrous manner!

18:64  He said, “That is what we were seeking!” So they turned back, retracing their steps

18:65  There they found a servant from among Our servants whom We had granted a mercy from Us and whom We had taught knowledge from Our Presence

18:66  Moses said unto him, “Shall I follow thee, that thou mightest teach me some of that which thou hast been taught of sound judgment?

18:67  He said, “Truly thou wilt not be able to bear patiently with me

18:68  And how canst thou bear patiently that which thou dost not encompass in awareness?

18:69  He said, “Thou wilt find me patient, if God wills, and I shall not disobey thee in any matter.

18:70  He said, “If thou wouldst follow me, then question me not about anything, till I make mention of it to thee.

18:71  So they went on till, when they had embarked upon a ship, he made a hole therein. He said, “Didst thou make a hole in it in order to drown its people? Thou hast done a monstrous thing!

18:72  He said, “Did I not say unto thee that thou wouldst not be able to bear patiently with me?

18:73  He said, “Take me not to task for having forgotten, nor make me suffer much hardship on account of what I have done.

18:74  So they went on till they met a young boy, and he slew him. He said, “Didst thou slay a pure soul who had slain no other soul? Thou hast certainly done a terrible thing!

18:75  He said, “Did I not say unto thee that thou wouldst not be able to bear patiently with me?

18:76  He said, “If I question thee concerning aught after this, then keep my company no more. Thou hast attained sufficient excuse from me.

18:77  So they went on till they came upon the people of a town and sought food from them. But they refused to show them any hospitality. Then they found therein a wall that was about to fall down; so he set it up straight. He said, “Hadst thou willed, thou couldst have taken a wage for it.

18:78  He said, “This is the parting between thee and me. I shall inform thee of the meaning of that which thou couldst not bear patiently

18:79  As for the ship, it belonged to indigent people who worked the sea. I desired to damage it, for just beyond them was a king who was seizing every ship by force

18:80  And as for the young boy, his parents were believers and we feared that he would make them suffer much through rebellion and disbelief

18:81  So we desired that their Lord give them in exchange one who is better than him in purity, and nearer to mercy

18:82  And as for the wall, it belonged to two orphan boys in the city, and beneath it was a treasure belonging to them. Their father was righteous, and thy Lord desired that they should reach their maturity and extract their treasure, as a mercy from thy Lord. And I did not do this upon my own command. This is the meaning of that which thou couldst not bear patiently.

18:83  And they question thee about Dhu’l-Qarnayn. Say, “I shall recite unto you a remembrance of him.

18:84  Truly We established him in the land, and gave him the means to all things

18:85  So he followed a means

18:86  till when he reached the place of the setting sun, he found it setting in a murky spring, and there he found a people. We said, “O Dhu’l-Qarnayn! Thou mayest punish, or thou mayest treat them well.

18:87  He said, “As for the one who has done wrong, we shall punish him. Then he shall be brought back to his Lord, whereupon He will punish him with a terrible punishment

18:88  But as for the one who believes and works righteousness, he shall have a reward, that which is most beautiful, and we shall speak unto him that which is easy from our command.

18:89  Then he followed a means

18:90  till he reached the place of the rising sun. He found it rising over a people for whom We had not made any shelter from it

18:91  Thus [it was], and We encompassed that which lay before him in awareness

18:92  Then he followed a means

18:93  till he reached the place between the two mountain barriers. He found beyond them a people who could scarcely comprehend speech

18:94  They said, “O Dhu’l-Qarnayn! Truly Gog and Magog are workers of corruption in the land. Shall we assign thee a tribute, that thou mightest set a barrier between them and us?

18:95  He said, “That wherewith my Lord has established me is better; so aid me with strength. I shall set a rampart between you and them

18:96  Bring me pieces of iron.” Then, when he had leveled the two cliffs, he said, “Blow!” till when he had made it fire, he said, “Bring me molten copper to pour over it.

18:97  Thus they were not able to surmount it, nor could they pierce it

18:98  He said, “This is a mercy from my Lord. And when the Promise of my Lord comes, He will crumble it to dust. And the Promise of my Lord is true.

18:99  And We shall leave them, on that Day, to surge against one another like waves. And the trumpet shall be blown, and We shall gather them together

18:100  And We shall present Hell, on that Day, as an array before the disbelievers

18:101  those whose eyes were veiled from the remembrance of Me, and could not hear

18:102  Do those who disbelieve reckon that they may take My servants as protectors apart from Me? Truly We have prepared Hell as a welcome for the disbelievers

18:103  Say, “Shall I inform you who are the greatest losers in respect to their deeds

18:104  Those whose efforts go astray in the life of this world, while they reckon that they are virtuous in their works.

18:105  They are those who disbelieve in the signs of their Lord, and in the meeting with Him. Thus their deeds have come to naught, and on the Day of Resurrection We shall assign them no weight

18:106  That is their recompense—Hell—for having disbelieved and for having taken My signs and My messengers in mockery

18:107  Those who believe and perform righteous deeds, theirs shall be the Gardens of Paradise as a welcome

18:108  Abiding therein, they seek not any change therefrom

18:109  Say, “If the sea were ink for the Words of my Lord, the sea would be exhausted before the Words of my Lord were exhausted, even if We brought the like thereof to replenish it.

18:110  Say, “I am only a human being like you. It is revealed unto me that your God is one God. So whosoever hopes for the meeting with his Lord, let him perform righteous deeds and make no one a partner unto his Lord in worship.