Moses said to his servant, ‘I will not rest until I reach the place where the two seas meet, even if it takes me years!’

but when they reached the place where the two seas meet, they had forgotten all about their fish, which made its way into the sea and swam away.

They journeyed on, and then Moses said to his servant, ‘Give us our lunch! This journey of ours is very tiring,’

and [the servant] said, ‘Remember when we were resting by the rock? I forgot the fish- Satan made me forget to pay attention to it- and it [must have] made its way into the sea.’ ‘How strange!’

Moses said, ‘Then that was the place we were looking for.’ So the two turned back, retraced their footsteps,

وَإِذْ قَالَ مُوسَىٰ لِفَتَىٰهُ لَآ أَبْرَحُ حَتَّىٰٓ أَبْلُغَ مَجْمَعَ ٱلْبَحْرَيْنِ أَوْ أَمْضِيَ حُقُبࣰا

فَلَمَّا بَلَغَا مَجْمَعَ بَيْنِهِمَا نَسِيَا حُوتَهُمَا فَٱتَّخَذَ سَبِيلَهُۥ فِي ٱلْبَحْرِ سَرَبࣰا

فَلَمَّا جَاوَزَا قَالَ لِفَتَىٰهُ ءَاتِنَا غَدَآءَنَا لَقَدْ لَقِينَا مِن سَفَرِنَا هَٰذَا نَصَبࣰا

قَالَ أَرَءَيْتَ إِذْ أَوَيْنَآ إِلَى ٱلصَّخْرَةِ فَإِنِّي نَسِيتُ ٱلْحُوتَ وَمَآ أَنسَىٰنِيهُ إِلَّا ٱلشَّيْطَٰنُ أَنْ أَذْكُرَهُۥۚ وَٱتَّخَذَ سَبِيلَهُۥ فِي ٱلْبَحْرِ عَجَبࣰا

قَالَ ذَٰلِكَ مَا كُنَّا نَبْغِۚ فَٱرْتَدَّا عَلَىٰٓ ءَاثَارِهِمَا قَصَصࣰا

and found one of Our servants- a man to whom We had granted Our mercy and whom We had given knowledge of Our own.

Moses said to him, ‘May I follow you so that you can teach me some of the right guidance you have been taught?’

The man said, ‘You will not be able to bear with me patiently.

How could you be patient in matters beyond your knowledge?’

Moses said, ‘God willing, you will find me patient. I will not disobey you in any way.’

The man said, ‘If you follow me then, do not query anything I do before I mention it to you myself.’

فَوَجَدَا عَبْدࣰا مِّنْ عِبَادِنَآ ءَاتَيْنَٰهُ رَحْمَةࣰ مِّنْ عِندِنَا وَعَلَّمْنَٰهُ مِن لَّدُنَّا عِلْمࣰا

قَالَ لَهُۥ مُوسَىٰ هَلْ أَتَّبِعُكَ عَلَىٰٓ أَن تُعَلِّمَنِ مِمَّا عُلِّمْتَ رُشْدࣰا

قَالَ إِنَّكَ لَن تَسْتَطِيعَ مَعِيَ صَبْرࣰا

وَكَيْفَ تَصْبِرُ عَلَىٰ مَا لَمْ تُحِطْ بِهِۦ خُبْرࣰا

قَالَ سَتَجِدُنِيٓ إِن شَآءَ ٱللَّهُ صَابِرࣰا وَلَآ أَعْصِي لَكَ أَمْرࣰا

قَالَ فَإِنِ ٱتَّبَعْتَنِي فَلَا تَسْـَٔلْنِي عَن شَيْءٍ حَتَّىٰٓ أُحْدِثَ لَكَ مِنْهُ ذِكْرࣰا

They travelled on. Later, when they got into a boat, and the man made a hole in it, Moses said, ‘How could you make a hole in it? Do you want to drown its passengers? What a strange thing to do!’

He replied, ‘Did I not tell you that you would never be able to bear with me patiently?’

Moses said, ‘Forgive me for forgetting. Do not make it too hard for me to follow you.’

And so they travelled on. Then, when they met a young boy and the man killed him, Moses said, ‘How could you kill an innocent person? He has not killed anyone! What a terrible thing to do!’

He replied, ‘Did I not tell you that you would never be able to bear with me patiently?’

Moses said, ‘From now on, if I query anything you do, banish me from your company- you have put up with enough from me.’

And so they travelled on. Then, when they came to a town and asked the inhabitants for food but were refused hospitality, they saw a wall there that was on the point of falling down and the man repaired it. Moses said, ‘But if you had wished you could have taken payment for doing that.’

فَٱنطَلَقَا حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَا رَكِبَا فِي ٱلسَّفِينَةِ خَرَقَهَاۖ قَالَ أَخَرَقْتَهَا لِتُغْرِقَ أَهْلَهَا لَقَدْ جِئْتَ شَيْـًٔا إِمْرࣰا

قَالَ أَلَمْ أَقُلْ إِنَّكَ لَن تَسْتَطِيعَ مَعِيَ صَبْرࣰا

قَالَ لَا تُؤَاخِذْنِي بِمَا نَسِيتُ وَلَا تُرْهِقْنِي مِنْ أَمْرِي عُسْرࣰا

فَٱنطَلَقَا حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَا لَقِيَا غُلَٰمࣰا فَقَتَلَهُۥ قَالَ أَقَتَلْتَ نَفْسࣰا زَكِيَّةَۢ بِغَيْرِ نَفْسࣲ لَّقَدْ جِئْتَ شَيْـࣰٔا نُّكْرࣰا

۞ قَالَ أَلَمْ أَقُل لَّكَ إِنَّكَ لَن تَسْتَطِيعَ مَعِيَ صَبْرࣰا

قَالَ إِن سَأَلْتُكَ عَن شَيْءِۭ بَعْدَهَا فَلَا تُصَٰحِبْنِيۖ قَدْ بَلَغْتَ مِن لَّدُنِّي عُذْرࣰا

فَٱنطَلَقَا حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَآ أَتَيَآ أَهْلَ قَرْيَةٍ ٱسْتَطْعَمَآ أَهْلَهَا فَأَبَوْا۟ أَن يُضَيِّفُوهُمَا فَوَجَدَا فِيهَا جِدَارࣰا يُرِيدُ أَن يَنقَضَّ فَأَقَامَهُۥۖ قَالَ لَوْ شِئْتَ لَتَّخَذْتَ عَلَيْهِ أَجْرࣰا

He replied, ‘Did I not tell you that you would never be able to bear with me patiently?’

Moses said, ‘From now on, if I query anything you do, banish me from your company- you have put up with enough from me.’

And so they travelled on. Then, when they came to a town and asked the inhabitants for food but were refused hospitality, they saw a wall there that was on the point of falling down and the man repaired it. Moses said, ‘But if you had wished you could have taken payment for doing that.’

He said, ‘This is where you and I part company. I will tell you the meaning of the things you could not bear with patiently:

the boat belonged to some needy people who made their living from the sea and I damaged it because I knew that coming after them was a king who was seizing every [serviceable] boat by force.

The young boy had parents who were people of faith, and so, fearing he would trouble them through wickedness and disbelief,

we wished that their Lord should give them another child- purer and more compassionate- in his place.

The wall belonged to two young orphans in the town and there was buried treasure beneath it belonging to them. Their father had been a righteous man, so your Lord intended them to reach maturity and then dig up their treasure as a mercy from your Lord. I did not do [these things] of my own accord: these are the explanations for those things you could not bear with patience.’

۞ قَالَ أَلَمْ أَقُل لَّكَ إِنَّكَ لَن تَسْتَطِيعَ مَعِيَ صَبْرࣰا

قَالَ إِن سَأَلْتُكَ عَن شَيْءِۭ بَعْدَهَا فَلَا تُصَٰحِبْنِيۖ قَدْ بَلَغْتَ مِن لَّدُنِّي عُذْرࣰا

فَٱنطَلَقَا حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَآ أَتَيَآ أَهْلَ قَرْيَةٍ ٱسْتَطْعَمَآ أَهْلَهَا فَأَبَوْا۟ أَن يُضَيِّفُوهُمَا فَوَجَدَا فِيهَا جِدَارࣰا يُرِيدُ أَن يَنقَضَّ فَأَقَامَهُۥۖ قَالَ لَوْ شِئْتَ لَتَّخَذْتَ عَلَيْهِ أَجْرࣰا

قَالَ هَٰذَا فِرَاقُ بَيْنِي وَبَيْنِكَۚ سَأُنَبِّئُكَ بِتَأْوِيلِ مَا لَمْ تَسْتَطِع عَّلَيْهِ صَبْرًا

أَمَّا ٱلسَّفِينَةُ فَكَانَتْ لِمَسَٰكِينَ يَعْمَلُونَ فِي ٱلْبَحْرِ فَأَرَدتُّ أَنْ أَعِيبَهَا وَكَانَ وَرَآءَهُم مَّلِكࣱ يَأْخُذُ كُلَّ سَفِينَةٍ غَصْبࣰا

وَأَمَّا ٱلْغُلَٰمُ فَكَانَ أَبَوَاهُ مُؤْمِنَيْنِ فَخَشِينَآ أَن يُرْهِقَهُمَا طُغْيَٰنࣰا وَكُفْرࣰا

فَأَرَدْنَآ أَن يُبْدِلَهُمَا رَبُّهُمَا خَيْرࣰا مِّنْهُ زَكَوٰةࣰ وَأَقْرَبَ رُحْمࣰا

وَأَمَّا ٱلْجِدَارُ فَكَانَ لِغُلَٰمَيْنِ يَتِيمَيْنِ فِي ٱلْمَدِينَةِ وَكَانَ تَحْتَهُۥ كَنزࣱ لَّهُمَا وَكَانَ أَبُوهُمَا صَٰلِحࣰا فَأَرَادَ رَبُّكَ أَن يَبْلُغَآ أَشُدَّهُمَا وَيَسْتَخْرِجَا كَنزَهُمَا رَحْمَةࣰ مِّن رَّبِّكَۚ وَمَا فَعَلْتُهُۥ عَنْ أَمْرِيۚ ذَٰلِكَ تَأْوِيلُ مَا لَمْ تَسْطِع عَّلَيْهِ صَبْرࣰا