Surah Al-Kahf 18:14
سُورَةُ الكَهۡفِ · Meccan · Verse 14 of 110
وَرَبَطْنَا عَلَىٰ قُلُوبِهِمْ إِذْ قَامُوا۟ فَقَالُوا۟ رَبُّنَا رَبُّ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ لَن نَّدْعُوَا۟ مِن دُونِهِۦٓ إِلَٰهًۭا ۖ لَّقَدْ قُلْنَآ إِذًۭا شَطَطًا
Translation
We gave strength to their hearts when they stood up and said, ‘Our Lord is the Lord of the heavens and earth. We shall never call upon any god other than Him, for that would be an outrageous thing to do.
English translation: M.A.S. Abdel Haleem.
Meaning and reflection
'And We bound their hearts firm, when they stood and said: Our Lord is the Lord of the heavens and the earth; we will never call upon any god besides Him.' al-Saadi and Ibn Kathir note the phrase 'rabatna 'ala qulubihim', We tied down their hearts, gave them steadiness, so that their brave public declaration was itself enabled by God's strengthening. Ask yourself: I imagine courage as something I must summon from my own reserves, and then feel ashamed when my heart trembles and fails. This verse reveals that the firmness to make a hard stand is itself a gift God grants, He steadies the heart He is about to test. So the way to courage is not to manufacture it alone but to ask Him to bind my heart firm. When I face a stand that frightens me, do I try to brace myself by willpower, or beg the One who tied down their hearts to steady mine?
Grounded in classical tafsir: al-Saadi, Ibn Kathir, Ibn Ashur.
Topics that discuss this verse
Surah Al-Kahf 18:14 is discussed in 7 study guides on Maani. Each guide gathers the key verses, Arabic words and lessons of one Quranic topic.
Reflect on this verse
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