Then, after that long span, He awakened them “so that they might question one another” (18:19) and, in the end, arrive at the truth. One of them said, “How long have you remained?” They replied, “We have remained a day, or part of a day.” They then said, “Your Lord knows best how long you have remained. Send one of you with this silver of yours to the town…” (18:19)—and so the narrative continues.

• From it shine clear signs and numerous benefits:

• First: Although the story of the Companions of the Cave is extraordinary, it is not the most extraordinary of Allah’s signs; Allah possesses signs that are even more wondrous, and every account contains a lesson for those who will heed it.

• Second: Whoever seeks refuge with Allah, Allah grants him refuge, shows him kindness, and makes him a means of guiding the lost. Allah dealt gently with these youths during their long sleep, preserving their faith and their bodies from the trial and the killing intent of their people. He then raised them (1) as one of His signs demonstrating the perfection of His power, the variety of His grace, and so that His servants might know that the promise of Allah is true.

• Third: The passage encourages the pursuit of beneficial knowledge and discussion of it. Allah awakened them for that very purpose, and through their inquiry—and through people’s later knowledge of their condition—the proof was established that the promise of Allah is true and that the Hour is coming without doubt.

• Fourth: It teaches etiquette: when a matter of knowledge is unclear, one should refer it to someone who knows and stop at the limits of one’s own understanding.

• Fifth: It affirms the validity of agency in buying and selling and the permissibility of partnership in such matters, as in their words: “Send one of you with this silver of yours to the town and let him see which food is purest, and let him bring you provision from it” (18:19).