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Ayah
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سَيَقُولُونَ
They say
ثَلَٰثَةٞ
(they were) three
رَّابِعُهُمۡ
the forth of them
كَلۡبُهُمۡ
their dog
وَيَقُولُونَ
and they say
خَمۡسَةٞ
(they were) five
سَادِسُهُمۡ
the sixth of them
كَلۡبُهُمۡ
their dog
رَجۡمَۢا
guessing
بِٱلۡغَيۡبِۖ
about the unseen
وَيَقُولُونَ
and they say
سَبۡعَةٞ
(they were) seven
وَثَامِنُهُمۡ
and the eight of them
كَلۡبُهُمۡۚ
their dog
قُل
Say
رَّبِّيٓ
My Lord
أَعۡلَمُ
knows best
بِعِدَّتِهِم
their number
مَّا
None
يَعۡلَمُهُمۡ
knows them
إِلَّا
except
قَلِيلٞۗ
a few
فَلَا
So (do) not
تُمَارِ
argue
فِيهِمۡ
about them
إِلَّا
except
مِرَآءٗ
(with) an argument
ظَٰهِرٗا
obvious
وَلَا
and (do) not
تَسۡتَفۡتِ
inquire
فِيهِم
about them
مِّنۡهُمۡ
among them
أَحَدٗا
(from) anyone
سَيَقُولُونَ
They say
ثَلَٰثَةٞ
(they were) three
رَّابِعُهُمۡ
the forth of them
كَلۡبُهُمۡ
their dog
وَيَقُولُونَ
and they say
خَمۡسَةٞ
(they were) five
سَادِسُهُمۡ
the sixth of them
كَلۡبُهُمۡ
their dog
رَجۡمَۢا
guessing
بِٱلۡغَيۡبِۖ
about the unseen
وَيَقُولُونَ
and they say
سَبۡعَةٞ
(they were) seven
وَثَامِنُهُمۡ
and the eight of them
كَلۡبُهُمۡۚ
their dog
قُل
Say
رَّبِّيٓ
My Lord
أَعۡلَمُ
knows best
بِعِدَّتِهِم
their number
مَّا
None
يَعۡلَمُهُمۡ
knows them
إِلَّا
except
قَلِيلٞۗ
a few
فَلَا
So (do) not
تُمَارِ
argue
فِيهِمۡ
about them
إِلَّا
except
مِرَآءٗ
(with) an argument
ظَٰهِرٗا
obvious
وَلَا
and (do) not
تَسۡتَفۡتِ
inquire
فِيهِم
about them
مِّنۡهُمۡ
among them
أَحَدٗا
(from) anyone
Translation
They [i.e., people] will say there were three, the fourth of them being their dog; and they will say there were five, the sixth of them being their dog - guessing at the unseen; and they will say there were seven, and the eighth of them was their dog. Say, [O Muḥammad], "My Lord is most knowing of their number. None knows them except a few. So do not argue about them except with an obvious argument1 and do not inquire about them among [the speculators] from anyone."
Footnotes
1 - i.e., one from the Qur’ān, which is the only sure argument.
Tafsir
They will say, that is, [some of] those disputing the number of the youths [of the cave] at the time of the Prophet may peace and salutation be upon him, in other words, some of these will say that they [the youths] were: 'Three; their dog the fourth of them'; and they, some [others] among them, will say, 'Five; their dog the sixth of them' - both of these sayings were those of the Christians of Najraan - guessing at random, in other words, out of supposition, not having been present with them [at the time], and this [statement 'guessing at random'] refers back to both sayings, and is in the accusative because it is an object denoting reason, in other words, [they said this] for the reason that they were [merely] supposing it. And they, that is, the believers, will say, 'Seven; and their dog the eighth of them' (the sentence is [part of] the subject clause, the predicate of which is the adjectival qualification of sab'a, 'seven' [namely, thaaminuhum, 'the eighth of them'] with the additional waaw [wathaaminuhum], which is said to be for emphasis, or an indication that the adjective is [semantically] attached to that which it is qualifying). The qualification of the first two sayings as being 'random', but not the third, is proof that [the latter] is the satisfactory and correct [number]. Say: 'My Lord knows best their number, and none knows them except a few': Ibn 'Abbaas said, 'I am [one] of these "few" [described]', and he mentioned that they were seven. So do not contend concerning them except with an outward manner [of contention], [except] with that which has been revealed to you, and do not question concerning them, do not ask for opinions [from], any of them, [from] the People of the Scripture, the Jews. The people of Mecca asked him [the Prophet] about the story of the People of the Cave, and so he said to them, 'I will tell you about it tomorrow', but without adding [the words], 'If God wills' (inshaa'a' Llaahu) and so the following was revealed:
"How the People of the City came to know about Them; building a Memorial over the Cave
Allah tells:
وَكَذَلِكَ أَعْثَرْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ
And thus We made their case known,
means, `We caused the people to find them.'
لِيَعْلَمُوا أَنَّ وَعْدَ اللَّهِ حَقٌّ وَأَنَّ السَّاعَةَ لَا رَيْبَ فِيهَا
that they might know that the promise of Allah is true, and that there can be no doubt about the Hour.
Several scholars of the Salaf mentioned that the people of that time were skeptical about the Resurrection.
Ikrimah said:
""There was a group of them who said that the souls would be resurrected but not the bodies, so Allah resurrected the people of the Cave as a sign and proof of resurrection.""
They mentioned that when they wanted to send one of their members out to the city to buy them something to eat, he disguised himself and set out walking by a different route, until he reached the city, which they said was called Daqsus.
He thought that it was not long since he left it, but in fact century after century, generation after generation, nation after nation had passed, and the country and its people had changed. He ﷺ no local landmarks that he recognized, and he did not recognize any of the people, elite or commoners. He began to feel confused and said to himself,
""Maybe I am crazy or deluded, maybe I am dreaming.""
Then he said, ""By Allah, I am nothing of the sort, what I know I ﷺ last night was different from this.""
Then he said, ""I had better get out of here.""
Then he went to one of the men selling food, gave him the money he had and asked him to sell him some food. When the man ﷺ the money he did not recognize it or its imprint, so he passed it to his neighbor and they all began to pass it around, saying, ""Maybe this man found some treasure.""
They asked him who he was and where he got this money. Had he found a treasure! Who was he!
He said, ""I am from this land, I was living here yesterday and Decianus was the ruler.""
They accused him of being crazy and took him to the governor who questioned him about his circumstances, and he told him. He was confused about his situation. When he told them about it, they -- the king and the people of the city -- went with him to the cave, where he told them, ""Let me go in first and let my companions know.""
It was said that the people did not know how he entered it, and that the people did not know about their story.
It was also said that they did enter the cave and see them, and the king greeted them and embraced them. Apparently he was a Muslim, and his name was Tedosis.
They rejoiced at meeting him and spoke with him, then they bid farewell to him and went back to sleep, then Allah caused them to die. And Allah knows best.
وَكَذَلِكَ أَعْثَرْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ
And thus We made their case known,
meaning, `just as We caused them to sleep then woke them up physically intact, We made their story known to the people of that time.'
لِيَعْلَمُوا أَنَّ وَعْدَ اللَّهِ حَقٌّ وَأَنَّ السَّاعَةَ لَا رَيْبَ فِيهَا إِذْ يَتَنَازَعُونَ بَيْنَهُمْ أَمْرَهُمْ
that they might know that the promise of Allah is true, and that there can be no doubt about the Hour. (Remember) when they (the people) disputed among themselves about their case,
meaning, about Resurrection.
Some believed in it and some denied it, so Allah made their discovery of the people of the cave evidence either in their favor or against them.
فَقَالُوا ابْنُوا عَلَيْهِم بُنْيَانًا رَّبُّهُمْ أَعْلَمُ بِهِمْ
they said:""Construct a building over them; their Lord knows best about them,""
meaning, seal the door of their cave over them, and leave them as they are.
قَالَ الَّذِينَ غَلَبُوا عَلَى أَمْرِهِمْ لَنَتَّخِذَنَّ عَلَيْهِم مَّسْجِدًا
those who won their point said:""We verily, shall build a place of worship over them.""
Those who said this were the people of power and influence, but were they good people or not; there is some debate on this point, because the Prophet said:
لَعَنَ اللهُ الْيَهُودَ وَالنَّصَارَى اتَّخَذُوا قُبُورَ أَنْبِيَايِهِمْ وَصَالِحِيهِمْ مَسَاجِد
Allah has cursed the Jews and the Christians who took the graves of their Prophets and righteous people as places of worship.
Warning against what they did.
We have reported about the Commander of the faithful Umar bin Al-Khattab that;
when he found the grave of Danyal (Daniel) in Iraq during his period of rule, he gave orders that news of this grave should be withheld from the people, and that the inscription containing mention of battles etc., that they found there should be buried
Their Number
Allah tells:
سَيَقُولُونَ ثَلَثَةٌ رَّابِعُهُمْ كَلْبُهُمْ وَيَقُولُونَ خَمْسَةٌ سَادِسُهُمْ كَلْبُهُمْ رَجْمًا بِالْغَيْبِ وَيَقُولُونَ سَبْعَةٌ وَثَامِنُهُمْ كَلْبُهُم
They say they were three, the dog being the fourth among them; and they say they were five, the dog being the sixth, guessing at the unseen; and they say they were seven, and the dog being the eighth.
Allah tells us that people disputed over the number of the people of the Cave. The Ayah mentions three views, proving that there was no fourth suggestion. Allah indicates that the first two opinions are invalid, by saying,
رَجْمًا بِالْغَيْبِ
(guessing at the unseen), meaning that they spoke without knowledge, like a person who aims at an unknown target -- he is hardly likely to hit it, and if he does, it was not on purpose.
Then Allah mentions the third opinion, and does not comment on it, or He affirms it by saying,
وَثَامِنُهُمْ كَلْبُهُمْ
(and the dog being the eighth), indicating that this is correct and this is what happened.
سَيَقُولُونَ ثَلَثَةٌ رَّابِعُهُمْ كَلْبُهُمْ وَيَقُولُونَ خَمْسَةٌ سَادِسُهُمْ كَلْبُهُمْ رَجْمًا بِالْغَيْبِ وَيَقُولُونَ سَبْعَةٌ وَثَامِنُهُمْ كَلْبُهُمْ
قُل رَّبِّي أَعْلَمُ بِعِدَّتِهِم
Say:""My Lord knows best their number...""
indicating that the best thing to do in matters like this is to refer knowledge to Allah, because there is no need to indulge in discussing such matters without knowledge. If we are given knowledge of a matter, then we may talk about it, otherwise we should refrain.
مَّا يَعْلَمُهُمْ إِلاَّا قَلِيلٌ
none knows them but a few.
of mankind.
Qatadah said that Ibn Abbas said:
""I am one of the few mentioned in this Ayah; they were seven.""
Ibn Jurayj also narrated that Ata' Al-Khurasani narrated from him,
""I am one of those referred to in this Ayah,""
and he would say:""Their number was seven.""
Ibn Jarir recorded that Ibn Abbas said:
مَّا يَعْلَمُهُمْ إِلاَّا قَلِيلٌ
(none knows them but a few),
""I am one of the few, and they were seven.""
The chains of these reports narrated from Ibn Abbas, which say that they were seven, are Sahih, and this is in accordance with what we have stated above.
فَلَ تُمَارِ فِيهِمْ إِلاَّ مِرَاء ظَاهِرًا
So debate not except with the clear proof.
meaning, gently and politely, for there is not a great deal to be gained from knowing about that.
وَلَا تَسْتَفْتِ فِيهِم مِّنْهُمْ أَحَدًا
And consult not any of them (about the people of the Cave).
meaning, `They do not have any knowledge about it except what they make up, guessing at the unseen; they have no evidence from an infallible source. But Allah has sent you, O Muhammad, with the truth in which there is no doubt or confusion, which is to be given priority over all previous books and sayings.
Saying ""If Allah wills"" when determining to do Something in the Future
Allah says:
وَلَا تَقُولَنَّ لِشَيْءٍ إِنِّي فَاعِلٌ ذَلِكَ غَدًا
إِلاَّ أَن يَشَاء اللَّهُ
And never say of anything, ""I shall do such and such thing tomorrow."" Except (with the saying), ""If Allah wills!""
Here Allah, may He be glorified, shows His Messenger the correct etiquette when determining to do something in the future; this should always be referred to the will of Allah, the Knower of the Unseen, Who knows what was and what is yet to be and what is not to be, and how it will be if it is to be.
It was recorded in the Two Sahihs that Abu Hurayrah said that the Messenger of Allah said:
قَالَ سُلَيْمَانُ بْنُ دَاوُدَ عَلَيْهِمَا السَّلَامُ لَااَطُوفَنَّ اللَّيْلَةَ عَلَى سَبْعِينَ امْرَأَةً وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ تِسْعِينَ امْرَأَةً وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ مِايَةِ امْرَأَةٍ تَلِدُ كُلُّ امْرَأَةٍ مِنْهُنَّ غُلَامًا يُقَاتِلُ فِي سَبِيلِ اللهِ
فَقِيلَ لَهُ وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ قَالَ لَهُ الْمَلَكُ قُلْ إِنْ شَاءَ اللهُ فَلَمْ يَقُلْ
فَطَافَ بِهِنَّ فَلَمْ تَلِدْ مِنْهُنَّ إِلاَّ امْرَأَةٌ وَاحِدَةٌ نِصْفَ إِنْسَانٍ
فَقَالَ رَسُولُ الله
صلى الله عليه وسلّم
وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ لَوْ قَالَ إِنْ شَاءَ اللهُ لَمْ يَحْنَثْ وَكَانَ دَرَكًا لِحَاجَتِه
وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ
وَلَقَاتَلُوا فِي سَبِيلِ اللهِ فُرْسَانًا أَجْمَعُون
Suleiman bin Dawud (peace be upon them both) said:""Tonight I will go around to seventy women (according to some reports, it was ninety or one hundred women) so that each one of them will give birth to a son who will fight for the sake of Allah.""
It was said to him, (according to one report, the angel said to him) ""Say:`If Allah wills'"", but he did not say it.
He went around to the women but none of them gave birth except for one who gave birth to a half-formed child.
The Messenger of Allah said,
By the One in Whose hand is my soul, had he said, ""If Allah wills,"" he would not have broken his oath, and that would have helped him to attain what he wanted.
According to another report,
They would all have fought as horsemen in the cause of Allah.
At the beginning of this Surah we discussed the reason why this Ayah was revealed:when the Prophet was asked about the story of the people of the Cave, he said, ""I will tell you tomorrow."" Then the revelation was delayed for fifteen days. Since we discussed this at length at the beginning of the Surah, there is no need to repeat it here.
وَاذْكُر رَّبَّكَ إِذَا نَسِيتَ
And remember your Lord when you forget,
It was said that this means, if you forget to say ""If Allah wills"", then say it when you remember.
This was the view of Abu Al-`Aliyah and Al-Hasan Al-Basri.
Hushaym reported from Al-A`mash from Mujahid that concerning a man who swears an oath, Ibn Abbas said
""He may say `If Allah wills' even if it is a year later.""
Ibn Abbas used to interpret this Ayah:
وَاذْكُر رَّبَّكَ إِذَا نَسِيتَ
(And remember your Lord when you forget) in this way.
Al-A`mash was asked, ""Did you hear this from Mujahid?""
He said, ""Layth bin Abi Salim told it to me.""
The meaning of Ibn Abbas' view, that a person may say ""If Allah wills"", even if it is a year later, is;
that if he forgets to say it when he makes the oath or when he speaks, and he remembers it later, even a year later, the Sunnah is that he should say it, so that he will still be following the Sunnah of saying ""If Allah wills"", even if that is after breaking his oath.
This was also the view of Ibn Jarir, but he stated that this does not make up for breaking the oath or mean that one is no longer obliged to offer expiation.
What Ibn Jarir said is correct, and it is more appropriate to understand the words of Ibn Abbas in this way.
And Allah knows best.
وَلَا تَقُولَنَّ لِشَيْءٍ إِنِّي فَاعِلٌ ذَلِكَ غَدًا
إِلاَّ أَن يَشَاء اللَّهُ وَاذْكُر رَّبَّكَ إِذَا نَسِيتَ
And never say of anything, ""I shall do such and such thing tomorrow."" Except (with the saying), ""If Allah wills!"" And remember your Lord when you forget,
At-Tabarani recorded that Ibn Abbas said that this meant saying,
""If Allah wills.""
وَقُلْ عَسَى أَن يَهْدِيَنِ رَبِّي لاَِقْرَبَ مِنْ هَذَا رَشَدًا
and say:""It may be that my Lord guides me to a nearer way of truth than this.""
meaning, `if you (O Prophet) are asked about something you know nothing about, ask Allah about it, and turn to Him so that He may guide you to what is right.'
And Allah knows best
The Length of their Stay in the Cave
Allah says:
وَلَبِثُوا فِي كَهْفِهِمْ ثَلَثَ مِايَةٍ سِنِينَ وَازْدَادُوا تِسْعًا
And they stayed in their cave three hundred years, adding nine.
Here Allah tells His Messenger the length of time the people of the Cave spent in their cave, from the time when He caused them to sleep until the time when He resurrected them and caused the people of that era to find them. The length of time was three hundred plus nine years in lunar years, which is three hundred years in solar years. The difference between one hundred lunar years and one hundred solar years is three years, which is why after mentioning three hundred, Allah says, `adding nine.'
قُلِ اللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا لَبِثُوا
لَهُ غَيْبُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالاَْرْضِ أَبْصِرْ بِهِ وَأَسْمِعْ مَا لَهُم مِّن دُونِهِ مِن وَلِيٍّ وَلَا يُشْرِكُ فِي حُكْمِهِ أَحَدًا
Say:""Allah knows best how long they stayed...""
`If you are asked about how long they stayed, and you have no knowledge of that and no revelation from Allah about it, then do not say anything. Rather say something like this:
اللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا لَبِثُوا
لَهُ غَيْبُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالاَْرْضِ
""Allah knows best how long they stayed. With Him is (the knowledge of) the Unseen of the heavens and the earth.""
meaning, no one knows about that except Him, and whoever among His creatures He chooses to tell.
What we have said here is the view of more than one of the scholars of Tafsir, such as Mujahid and others among the earlier and later generations.
وَلَبِثُوا فِي كَهْفِهِمْ ثَلَثَ مِايَةٍ سِنِينَ
And they stayed in their cave three hundred years,
Qatadah said, this was the view of the People of the Book, and Allah refuted it by saying:
قُلِ اللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا لَبِثُوا
Say:""Allah knows best how long they stayed...""
meaning, that Allah knows better than what the people say.
This was also the view of Mutarraf bin `Abdullah.
However, this view is open to debate, because when the People of the Book said that they stayed in the cave for three hundred years, without the extra nine, they were referring to solar years, and if Allah was merely narrating what they had said, He would not have said,
وَازْدَادُوا تِسْعًا
(adding nine).
The apparent meaning of the Ayah is that Allah is stating the facts, not narrating what was said.
This is the view of Ibn Jarir (may Allah have mercy on him). And Allah knows best.
أَبْصِرْ بِهِ وَأَسْمِعْ
How clearly He sees, and hears (everything)!
He sees them and hears them.
Ibn Jarir said,
""The language used is an eloquent expression of praise.""
The phrase may be understood to mean, how much Allah sees of everything that exists and how much He hears of everything that is to be heard, for nothing is hidden from Him!
It was narrated that Qatadah commented on this Ayah:
أَبْصِرْ بِهِ وَأَسْمِعْ
(How clearly He sees, and hears (everything)!),
""No one hears or sees more than Allah.""
مَا لَهُم مِّن دُونِهِ مِن وَلِيٍّ وَلَاا يُشْرِكُ فِي حُكْمِهِ أَحَدًا
They have no protector other than Him, and He makes none to share in His decision and His rule.
meaning, He, may He be glorified, is the One Who has the power to create and to command, the One Whose ruling cannot be overturned; He has no adviser, supporter or partner, may He be exalted and hallowed."
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