ٱلْكَهْف : ٢١

  • وَكَذَٰلِكَ And similarly
  • أَعۡثَرۡنَا We made known
  • عَلَيۡهِمۡ about them
  • لِيَعۡلَمُوٓاْ that they might know
  • أَنَّ that
  • وَعۡدَ (the) Promise
  • ٱللَّهِ (of) Allah
  • حَقّٞ (is) true
  • وَأَنَّ and that
  • ٱلسَّاعَةَ (about) the Hour
  • لَا (there is) no
  • رَيۡبَ doubt
  • فِيهَآ in it
  • إِذۡ When
  • يَتَنَٰزَعُونَ they disputed
  • بَيۡنَهُمۡ among themselves
  • أَمۡرَهُمۡۖ about their affair
  • فَقَالُواْ and they said
  • ٱبۡنُواْ Construct
  • عَلَيۡهِم over them
  • بُنۡيَٰنٗاۖ a structure
  • رَّبُّهُمۡ Their Lord
  • أَعۡلَمُ knows best
  • بِهِمۡۚ about them
  • قَالَ Said
  • ٱلَّذِينَ those who
  • غَلَبُواْ prevailed
  • عَلَىٰٓ in
  • أَمۡرِهِمۡ their matter
  • لَنَتَّخِذَنَّ Surely we will take
  • عَلَيۡهِم over them
  • مَّسۡجِدٗا a place of worship
And similarly, We caused them to be found that they [who found them] would know that the promise of Allāh is truth and that of the Hour there is no doubt. [That was] when they1 disputed among themselves about their affair and [then] said, "Construct over them a structure. Their Lord is most knowing about them." Said those who prevailed in the matter, "We will surely take [for ourselves] over them a masjid."2
Footnotes
1 The people of the city.
2 i.e., we will make this site a place of worship.
And so, just as We aroused them, it was that We disclosed them, [to] their people and the believers, that they, that is, their people, might know that God's promise, of resurrection, is true: by virtue of the fact that One Who has the power to make them sleep for [such] a long period of time, or sustain them in that state without nourishment, also has the power to resurrect the dead; and that, as for the Hour, there is no doubt, no uncertainty, concerning it. Behold (idh adverbially qualifies a'tharnaa, 'We disclosed') they were disputing, that is, the believers and the disbelievers, among themselves their affair, the affair of the youths, with regard to building something around them [as a monument]; so they, the disbelievers, said, 'Build over them, that is, around them, a building, to cover them up; their Lord knows them best.' Those who prevailed regarding their affair, the affair of the youths, namely, the believers, 'We will verily set up over them, around them, a place of worship', for prayers to be performed therein. And this indeed took place at the entrance of the cave.