A Guiding Teacher is a Prerequisite
[18:17] You could see the sun when it rose coming from the right side of their cave, and when it set, it shone on them from the left, as they slept in the hollow thereof. This is one of GOD’s portents.* Whomever GOD guides is the truly guided one, and whomever He sends astray, you will not find for him a guiding teacher.
*18:17 This sign, or hint, tells us that the cave was facing north.
[18:18] You would think that they were awake, when they were in fact asleep. We turned them to the right side and the left side, while their dog stretched his arms in their midst. Had you looked at them, you would have fled from them, stricken with terror.
[18:19] When we resurrected them, they asked each other, “How long have you been here?” “We have been here one day or part of the day,” they answered. “Your Lord knows best how long we stayed here, so let us send one of us with this money to the city. Let him fetch the cleanest food, and buy some for us. Let him keep a low profile, and attract no attention.
[18:20] “If they discover you, they will stone you, or force you to revert to their religion, then you can never succeed.”
*18:16-20 Ephesus is located about 200 miles south of ancient Nicene, and 30 miles south of today’s Izmir in Turkey. The dwellers of the cave were young Christians who wanted to follow the teachings of Jesus, and worship God alone. They were fleeing the persecution of neo-Christians who proclaimed a corrupted Christianity three centuries after Jesus, following the Nicene Conferences, when the Trinity doctrine was announced. In 1928, Franz Miltner, an Austrian archeologist discovered the tomb of the seven sleepers of Ephesus. Their history is well documented in several encyclopedias.
When the student is ready the teacher appears
Who are examples of believers guiding who were not messengers/prophets?
- Zul-Qurnain (18:83)
- The Believing Egyptian (40:30)
- Luqman – Sura 31
- Moses’ Teacher (most likely an angel) 18:60
[18:60] Moses said to his servant, “I will not rest until I reach the point where the two rivers meet, no matter how long it takes.”
[2:129] “Our Lord, and raise among them a messenger to recite to them Your revelations, teach them the scripture and wisdom, and purify them. You are the Almighty, Most Wise.”
[13:7] Those who disbelieved say, “If only a miracle could come down to him from his Lord (we will then believe).” You are simply a warner—every community receives a guiding teacher.
[24:54] Say, “Obey GOD, and obey the messenger.” If they refuse, then he is responsible for his obligations, and you are responsible for your obligations. If you obey him, you will be guided. The sole duty of the messenger is to deliver (the message).
If the Nicene Conference took place in 325 AD and Muhammad was born in 570 AD and died in 633 AD then this makes the appearance of the people of the cave occur around 625 AD (300 + 325). This corresponds with this revelation as it was the 69th revelation to Muhammad whose first revelation was received in 610 AD
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