Social Quranevery verse · a conversation
Sign in
سُورَةُ الكَهۡفِ · 18:110
MeccanRevelation order ٦٩Juzʾ ١٦Page ٣٠٤

قُلْ إِنَّمَآ أَنَا۠ بَشَرٌۭ مِّثْلُكُمْ يُوحَىٰٓ إِلَىَّ أَنَّمَآ إِلَٰهُكُمْ إِلَٰهٌۭ وَٰحِدٌۭ ۖ فَمَن كَانَ يَرْجُوا۟ لِقَآءَ رَبِّهِۦ فَلْيَعْمَلْ عَمَلًۭا صَٰلِحًۭا وَلَا يُشْرِكْ بِعِبَادَةِ رَبِّهِۦٓ أَحَدًۢا

١١٠
Saheeh International · EN

Say, "I am only a man like you, to whom has been revealed that your god is one God. So whoever would hope for the meeting with his Lord - let him do righteous work and not associate in the worship of his Lord anyone."

Bio

Introduction

This is āyah 110 of Sūrat Al-Kahf (The Cave), the 69th sūrah in the traditional order of revelation. It was revealed in the Meccan period and sits within Juzʾ 16. Meccan verses tend to address faith, the oneness of God, and the hereafter.

This introduction is a starting point — the community and Bilal will enrich it over time.

Bio

Revelation & occasion

Asbāb al-Nuzūl
Period
Meccan
Order revealed
69 of 114
Surah
Al-Kahf (18)
Occasion of revelation · Al-Wahidi

Whoever hopes for the encounter with his Lord, let him do wholesome deeds. Sahl said, “The wholesome deed is a deed delimited by the Sunnah.” It has also been said, “The wholesome deed is the one toward which the soul has no regard and within which there is no seeking of reward or recompense.” It has also been said, “Here the wholesome deed is believing in the permissibility of vision and waiting for its time.” Whenever someone hopes for the vision of God, let him believe in his heart that God is seeable in face-to-face vision as a hidden mystery and an everlasting love. Whenever someone seeks the vision of God, he is promised that one day he will reach it: Whoever hopes for the encounter with his Lord, God's term is coming [29:5]. He is expecting a great thing and has a tremendous hope. His aspiration has reached such a high place that he hopes for the vision of God. Were there not this hope, what would be the worth of paradise with all its sweetness? Were there not this promise of vision, why would service rise up from the servant's heart? Everyone has a desire after which he runs, and the recognizer is waiting for the time of vision. People are all passionate for life, so death for them is difficult. The recognizer hurries to death in hope of vision. What harm if you suffer for a year so long as you see the Friend one day in vision.

Commentary

Tafsir

4 works

Hafiz Ibn Kathir

Say: "I am only a man like you. It has been revealed to me that your God is One God. So whoever hopes for the meeting with his Lord, let him work righteousness and associate none as a partner in the worship of his Lord. (110) Muhammad (ﷺ) is a Human Being and a Messenger, and the God is One Allah says to His Messenger Muhammad ﷺ, قُلْ (Say) to these idolators who reject your message to them, إِنَّمَا أَنَا بَشَرٌ مِّثْلُكُمْ ('I am only a man like you.) Whoever claims that I am lying, let him bring something like this that I have brought. For I did not know the Unseen, the matters of the past which you asked me about and I told you about, the story of the people of the Cave and of Dhul-Qarnayn, stories which are true – I did not know any of this except for what Allah made known to me. And I tell you, أَنَّمَا إِلَٰهُكُمْ (that your God), Who calls you to worship Him, إِلَٰهٌ وَا…
Provenance

Chains of transmission

Oral — isnād

  1. ~610–632 CERevelation & memorisation

    Received by the Prophet ﷺ and preserved by the ḥuffāẓ (memorisers) among the Companions.

  2. 1st century AHMutawātir transmissionawaiting curation

    Carried by mass-transmission through the generations of qurrāʾ.

  3. TodayLiving chainsawaiting curation

    Continuous ijāzah chains link reciters today back to the Prophet ﷺ.

Verified isnād chains for this āyah will be added by curators.

Written — the manuscript record

  1. ~650 CEʿUthmānic codicesawaiting curation

    The standardised muṣḥaf sent to the great cities (e.g. the Topkapı and Samarqand codices).

  2. 8th–10th c.Early Ḥijāzī & Kūfic foliosawaiting curation

    Surviving leaves in Birmingham, Sanaa, Paris (BnF) and beyond.

  3. Modern printModern printawaiting curation

    The 1924 Cairo edition → today: the standard printed muṣḥaf used worldwide.

A curated chain of manuscript images for this exact āyah — roughly one per century — is coming. Help us source and verify them.

The wall

And now — what do you think?

The text, its history and the classical commentary are laid out above. Share your own understanding, ask a question, or reason with others.

Sign in to add your voice to this verse.
No reflections yet — be the first.
Provenance

Community resources

No community resources for this verse yet.