Tafsir of Al-Kahf 18:7-11

{ ما على الأرض } Meaning: That which is fit to be an adornment for the earth and its inhabitants, from the decorations of the world and what is deemed beautiful therein.

{ لنبلوهم أيهم أحسن عملا } "Goodness of action" is: asceticism regarding the world and refraining from being deceived by it.

{ وإنا لجاعلون ما عليها صعيدا جرزا } He then expresses disdain for inclining toward it by saying: "We will surely make what is upon it a barren waste," meaning: like a white land with no vegetation, after it had been green and grassy. This refers to the removal of its splendor, the stripping away of its beauty, and the nullification of that which made it an adornment—such as the death of animals, the drying up of plants and trees, and the like. He mentions these universal signs: the adorning of the earth with the countless species created upon it, and the removal of all that as if it had never been.

{ أم حسبت } Meaning: Is this [story of the world's end] not greater than the story of the People of the Cave and the preservation of their lives for a long period?

{ والكهف } The wide cave in a mountain.

{ والرقيم } The name of their dog. Umayya ibn Abi al-Salt said: *And there is none there but the Raqim, as a neighbor,* *And their game, while the people in the cave are silent.*

{ كانوا آية عجبا } One of Our signs, described by the verbal noun, or meaning: "possessing wonder."

{ من لدنك رحمة } Meaning: A mercy from the treasuries of Your mercy, which is forgiveness, provision, and security from enemies.

{ وهيئ لنا من أمرنا رشدا } In which we find ourselves—separating from the disbelievers—so that we may be, by its means, rightly guided. Or: "Make our entire affair one of guidance," similar to your saying: "I saw a lion in you."

{ فضربنا على آذانهم } Meaning: We placed a veil over them so they would not hear. That is: We caused them to sleep a heavy sleep in which sounds would not awaken them, just as you see one who is deep in sleep; one may shout at him, but he does not hear and is not awakened. The object—which is the "veil"—is omitted, just as one says, "He built over his wife," meaning: he built a dome over her.

{ سنين عددا } Possessing a number. It may imply many or few, for the many is little in His sight, as in His saying: "They did not remain except for an hour of a day" (Al-Ahqaf: 35). Al-Zajjaj said: If it is few, its count is known, so there is no need to count it; if it is many, it requires counting.