Tafseer of The Cave · Al-Kahf · 18:12
Then We awakened them that We might show which of the two factions was most precise in calculating what [extent] they had remained in time.
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
The statement concerning the explanation of the saying of the Exalted: ثُمَّ بَعَثْنَاهُمْ لِنَعْلَمَ أَيُّ الْحِزْبَيْنِ أَحْصَى — He says:
Then We awakened these young men who had fled to the cave, after We had stilled their ears therein with sleep for a fixed number of years, from their sleep — so that Our servants might investigate and come to know through inquiry: which of the two groups that disagreed about it concerning how long the young men had remained sleeping in their cave was, أَحْصَى لِمَا لَبِثُوا أَمَدًا — He says: the most accurate in determining the duration of their stay therein. By al-amad He means: the end-point, as al-Nābigha said:
"Only for someone like you, or for someone you pass by, like a thoroughbred horse when it reaches the finish line."
It is related that those among the people who disagreed about this concerning the young men were people. Some said: both groups were unbelievers (kāfirūn). Others said: one of the two was a Muslim and the other an unbeliever.
* Mention of those who said that both groups were of the people of the young men:
Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, saying: ʿĪsā related to us, from Ibn Abī Najīḥ, from Mujāhid — أَيُّ الْحِزْبَيْنِ : "of the people of the young men."
Al-Ḥārith related to me, saying: al-Ḥasan related to us, saying: Warqāʾ related to us, from Ibn Abī Najīḥ, from Mujāhid — to the same effect.
Al-Qāsim related to me, saying: al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, from Ibn Jurayj, from Mujāhid — likewise.
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, from Qatāda, concerning ثُمَّ بَعَثْنَاهُمْ لِنَعْلَمَ أَيُّ الْحِزْبَيْنِ أَحْصَى لِمَا لَبِثُوا أَمَدًا — he said: "Neither of the two parties had any knowledge — neither the unbelievers among them, nor the believers."
As for the saying أَمَدًا : the exegetes disagreed about its meaning. Some said: the meaning is "far" (baʿīdan).
* Mention of those who said that:
ʿAlī related to me, saying: ʿAbd Allāh related to us, saying: Muʿāwiya related to me, from ʿAlī, from Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning the saying لِمَا لَبِثُوا أَمَدًا : "far" (baʿīdan).
Others said: the meaning is "number" (ʿadadan).
Mention of those who said that: Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, saying: ʿĪsā related to us, from Ibn Abī Najīḥ, from Mujāhid — أَمَدًا : "a number."
Al-Ḥārith related to me, saying: al-Ḥasan related to us, saying: Warqāʾ related to us, from Ibn Abī Najīḥ, from Mujāhid — likewise.
Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, from Ibn Jurayj, from Mujāhid — likewise.
The accusative of the word أَمَدًا admits of two explanations: the first is that it is in the accusative as the specifier (tafsīr) of the word أَحْصَى — as if it were said: which of the two groups is the most accurate in number with respect to their duration of stay. This is the more correct of the two explanations, because the explanation of the exegetes runs thus.
The second is that it is in the accusative because it is the object of the word لَبِثُوا — as if it were said: which of the two groups is the most accurate as to the duration of their stay as an end-point.
