Tafseer of The Cave · Al-Kahf · 18:14
And We made firm their hearts when they stood up and said, "Our Lord is the Lord of the heavens and the earth. Never will we invoke besides Him any deity. We would have certainly spoken, then, an excessive transgression.
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 discourse on the explanation of the word of the Exalted: وَرَبَطْنَا عَلَى قُلُوبِهِمْ — the Exalted says:
We inspired them with patience and strengthened their hearts with the light of faith (īmān), so that their souls were turned away from that which they possessed — the ease and comfort of life.
As Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, from Qatāda, concerning وَرَبَطْنَا عَلَى قُلُوبِهِمْ : "by means of faith (īmān)."
His word: إِذْ قَامُوا فَقَالُوا رَبُّنَا رَبُّ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأرْضِ — He says: when they stood before the tyrant Diqyānūs and he reproached them for abandoning the worship of his gods, they said to him: رَبُّنَا رَبُّ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأرْضِ — He says: they said: our Lord is the King of the heavens and the earth and all that is in them. Your gods are themselves created and governed, and it is not permissible for us to abandon the worship of the Lord and to worship the created. لَنْ نَدْعُوَ مِنْ دُونِهِ إِلَهًا — He says: we will never call upon any god besides the Lord of the heavens and the earth, for there is no god other than Him, and everything except Him is His creation. لَقَدْ قُلْنَا إِذًا شَطَطًا — the Exalted says: if we were to call upon a god other than the god of the heavens and the earth, then by that calling upon another as god we would have spoken true excess (shaṭaṭan) — what is meant is: a gross lie, going far beyond all bounds in its nullity and excess. As the poet said:
"Hear now, O my people! My reproachers have gone too far with me, while they claim that my right has vanished through my vanity."
One says: so-and-so exceeded the bounds in his pricing (ashṭṭa fī al-sawm) when he goes beyond the bounds and exaggerates the price — yashshuṭṭu ishṭāṭan wa-shaṭaṭan. As for being far, one says: the dwelling of so-and-so is far (shaṭṭa manzilu fulānin yashiṭṭu shuṭūṭan); and as for being tall: the girl has grown tall (shaṭṭati al-jāriyatu tashiṭṭu shiṭāṭan wa-shiṭāṭatan) — when she grew tall.
In accordance with what we said concerning the explanation of شَطَطًا the exegetes spoke.
Mention of who said that: Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, from Qatāda, concerning لَقَدْ قُلْنَا إِذًا شَطَطًا — he said: "a lie."
Yūnus related to us, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning لَقَدْ قُلْنَا إِذًا شَطَطًا : "then we would have uttered error." He said: al-shaṭaṭ is error in speech.
