What Were the Three Things Al-Khidr Did?
ما هي المواقف الثلاثة والأفعال التي فعلها الخضر؟
1- They found a ship that belonged to some poor men, and they asked them if they could board the ship to get to the other side of the river (or the sea). The poor men agreed and they boarded with them. Once they were on board, al-Khidr made a hole in the ship (Note: the original answer said al-Khidr made the hole when they reached the other side; the Quran says he made it once they had boarded, "after they had boarded a ship, the man made a hole in it" (Al-Kahf 18:71), so this has been corrected). Moses (peace be upon him) asked him: Why did you make a hole in the ship? This is a terrible thing.
(So they set out, but after they had boarded a ship, the man made a hole in it. Moses protested, "Have you done this to drown its people? You have certainly done a terrible thing!") (Al-Kahf 18: 71)
2- Then they walked on and found a boy, and al-Khidr killed him without reason. Moses, peace be upon him, said to him: How could you kill an innocent soul without reason?
(So they proceeded until they came across a boy, and the man killed him. Moses protested, "Have you killed an innocent soul, who killed no one? You have certainly done a horrible thing.") (Al-Kahf 18: 74)
3- They walked on until they reached a town and asked its people for food (hospitality), but they refused to give them anything. They found a broken wall about to fall, and al-Khidr repaired it and set it right so that it would not fall. Moses, peace be upon him, said to him: You could have asked for a fee for repairing it, especially after the way they treated us in refusing us hospitality.
(So they moved on until they came to the people of a town. They asked them for food, but the people refused to give them hospitality. There they found a wall ready to collapse, so the man set it right. Moses protested, "If you wanted, you could have demanded a fee for this.") (Al-Kahf 18: 77)
After those three incidents, and before they parted, al-Khidr explained to Moses why he had done what he did, and he told him as Allah the Almighty narrates:
(He replied, "This is the parting of our ways. I will explain to you what you could not bear patiently.") (Al-Kahf 18: 78)
وجدوا سفينة يمتلكها رجال فقراء فطلبوا منهم أن يركبوا معهم ليذهبوا إلى الطرف الآخر من النهر (أو البحر). فوافق المساكين وركبوا معهم. ولما ركبوا فيها، خرق الخضر السفينة (ملاحظة: ورد في الجواب الأصلي أن الخضر خرق السفينة لما وصلوا إلى الطرف الآخر، والصواب أنه خرقها وهم على متنها، كما في قوله تعالى: "حَتَّىٰ إِذَا رَكِبَا فِي السَّفِينَةِ خَرَقَهَا" (الكهف 18: 71)، فصُحّح). فسأله موسى عليه السلام: لماذا خرقت السفينة؟ إن هذا شيء شنيع.
(فَانطَلَقَا حَتَّىٰ إِذَا رَكِبَا فِي السَّفِينَةِ خَرَقَهَا ۖ قَالَ أَخَرَقْتَهَا لِتُغْرِقَ أَهْلَهَا لَقَدْ جِئْتَ شَيْئًا إِمْرًا) الكهف 18: 71
ثم مشوا فوجدوا غلامًا فقتله الخضر دون سبب. فقال له موسى عليه السلام: كيف قتلت نفسًا بريئة دون سبب؟
(فَانطَلَقَا حَتَّىٰ إِذَا لَقِيَا غُلَامًا فَقَتَلَهُ قَالَ أَقَتَلْتَ نَفْسًا زَكِيَّةً بِغَيْرِ نَفْسٍ لَّقَدْ جِئْتَ شَيْئًا نُّكْرًا) الكهف 18: 74
تابعوا السير حتى وصلوا إلى قرية. طلبوا من أهل القرية أكلًا (استضافة) فرفضوا إعطاءهم أي شيء. وجدوا جدارًا مكسورًا سيقع فرممه الخضر وأصلحه كي لا يقع. قال له موسى عليه السلام: كان من الممكن أن تطلب أجرة على إصلاحه، خاصة بعد هذه المعاملة التي امتنعوا فيها عن استضافتنا.
(فَانطَلَقَا حَتَّىٰ إِذَا أَتَيَا أَهْلَ قَرْيَةٍ اسْتَطْعَمَا أَهْلَهَا فَأَبَوْا أَن يُضَيِّفُوهُمَا فَوَجَدَا فِيهَا جِدَارًا يُرِيدُ أَن يَنقَضَّ فَأَقَامَهُ ۖ قَالَ لَوْ شِئْتَ لَاتَّخَذْتَ عَلَيْهِ أَجْرًا) الكهف 18: 77
بعد المواقف الثلاثة وقبل أن يفترقا، أخبر الخضر موسى عليه السلام عن سبب الأفعال التي فعلها:
(قَالَ هَـٰذَا فِرَاقُ بَيْنِي وَبَيْنِكَ ۚ سَأُنَبِّئُكَ بِتَأْوِيلِ مَا لَمْ تَسْتَطِع عَّلَيْهِ صَبْرًا) الكهف 18: 78
1. The First Test: A Hole in the Ship | الاختبار الأول: خرقٌ في السفينة
The first incident comes almost at once. A poor community lets Moses and Al-Khidr board their ship free of charge, and Al-Khidr repays that kindness, from Moses' own vantage point, by damaging the vessel: "Have you done this to drown its people? You have certainly done a terrible thing!" (Surah Al-Kahf 18:71). Al-Khidr's answer is short and unapologetic, "Did I not say that you cannot have patience with me?" (18:72), and Moses immediately retreats, "Excuse me for forgetting, and do not be hard on me" (18:73), the first of his lapses, which the Prophet ﷺ described as forgetfulness.
تقع الحادثة الأولى على الفور تقريبًا. يسمح قومٌ فقراء لموسى والخضر بركوب سفينتهم مجانًا، فيكافئهم الخضر، من منظور موسى، بإتلاف السفينة: "أخرقتها لتغرق أهلها لقد جئت شيئًا إمرًا" (الكهف 18: 71). فيجيبه الخضر بإيجازٍ لا اعتذار فيه: "ألم أقل إنك لن تستطيع معي صبرًا" (الكهف 18: 72)، فيتراجع موسى فورًا: "لا تؤاخذني بما نسيت ولا ترهقني من أمري عسرًا" (الكهف 18: 73)، وكانت هذه أولى مخالفاته، وقد وصفها النبي ﷺ بأنها كانت نسيانًا.
فَانطَلَقَا حَتَّىٰ إِذَا رَكِبَا فِي السَّفِينَةِ خَرَقَهَا قَالَ أَخَرَقْتَهَا لِتُغْرِقَ أَهْلَهَا لَقَدْ جِئْتَ شَيْئًا إِمْرًا (الكهف 18: 71)2. The Second Test: An Innocent Boy | الاختبار الثاني: غلامٌ بريء
Continuing on, they meet a boy, and Al-Khidr kills him outright: "Have you killed an innocent soul, who killed no one? You have certainly done a horrible thing" (18:74). Why Moses objected so strongly is clear from how Islamic law treats the taking of a life, explained in the types of killing in Islamic law. The reminder comes again in almost identical words to the first, "Did I not tell you that you cannot have patience with me?" (18:75), and Moses, aware he has now broken the agreement twice, offers himself only one remaining chance: "If I ever question you about anything after this, then do not keep me in your company, for by then I would have given you enough of an excuse" (18:76).
يتابعان السير فيلقيان غلامًا فيقتله الخضر دون مقدمات: "أقتلت نفسًا زكية بغير نفس لقد جئت شيئًا نكرًا" (الكهف 18: 74). فيتكرر التذكير بألفاظٍ تكاد تطابق المرة الأولى: "ألم أقل لك إنك لن تستطيع معي صبرًا" (الكهف 18: 75)، فيدرك موسى أنه خالف الاتفاق للمرة الثانية، فيمنح نفسه فرصةً أخيرة: "إن سألتك عن شيء بعدها فلا تصاحبني قد بلغت من لدني عذرًا" (الكهف 18: 76).
فَانطَلَقَا حَتَّىٰ إِذَا لَقِيَا غُلَامًا فَقَتَلَهُ قَالَ أَقَتَلْتَ نَفْسًا زَكِيَّةً بِغَيْرِ نَفْسٍ لَّقَدْ جِئْتَ شَيْئًا نُّكْرًا (الكهف 18: 74)3. The Third Test: A Wall Repaired for Nothing | الاختبار الثالث: جدارٌ يُصلَح بلا مقابل
The pair reach a town, ask its people for food, and are refused hospitality entirely, only for Al-Khidr to find a collapsing wall there and set it upright at no charge. Moses' objection this time is not about harm but about a missed opportunity: "If you wanted, you could have demanded a fee for this" (18:77), given how poorly the townspeople had just treated them. The reasons behind all three acts are given in al-Khidr's explanation of what he did.
يصل الاثنان إلى قرية، ويطلبان الطعام من أهلها فيُرفضان تمامًا، ومع ذلك يجد الخضر جدارًا آيلًا للسقوط فيقيمه دون مقابل. اعتراض موسى هذه المرة ليس على ضررٍ وإنما على فرصةٍ ضائعة: "لو شئت لاتخذت عليه أجرًا" (الكهف 18: 77)، نظرًا لسوء معاملة أهل القرية لهما.
فَانطَلَقَا حَتَّىٰ إِذَا أَتَيَا أَهْلَ قَرْيَةٍ اسْتَطْعَمَا أَهْلَهَا فَأَبَوْا أَن يُضَيِّفُوهُمَا فَوَجَدَا فِيهَا جِدَارًا يُرِيدُ أَن يَنقَضَّ فَأَقَامَهُ قَالَ لَوْ شِئْتَ لَاتَّخَذْتَ عَلَيْهِ أَجْرًا (الكهف 18: 77)4. A Pattern: Unable to Hold to the Condition | نمطٌ متكرر: العجز عن التزام الشرط
After the first two objections, Al-Khidr answers the same way, pointing back to the warning he gave when Moses first asked to follow him (see what Musa asked of al-Khidr): that Moses would not be able to bear this patiently. After the third, he announces their parting. Moses does not deny wrongdoing or lose faith in his teacher; he cannot hold to the condition of silence; in the hadith in Sahih Al-Bukhari (2728), the first objection came from forgetfulness, the second bound him with a condition, and the third was deliberate, exactly the difficulty Al-Khidr had predicted from the very first exchange between them.
بعد الاعتراضين الأولين، يجيب الخضر بالطريقة نفسها، بالإشارة إلى ما سبق أن أخبر به موسى حين طلب صحبته: أنه لن يستطيع الصبر معه، وبعد الثالث يعلن الفراق. ولا ينكر موسى خطأً ولا يفقد ثقته بمعلمه، بل لا يقدر على التزام شرط الصمت؛ ففي الحديث الذي رواه البخاري (2728) كانت الأولى نسيانًا، والثانية ألزمته بشرط، والثالثة كانت عمدًا، وهذا بالضبط ما توقعه الخضر منذ أول حوارٍ دار بينهما.
قَالَ إِن سَأَلْتُكَ عَن شَيْءٍ بَعْدَهَا فَلَا تُصَاحِبْنِي قَدْ بَلَغْتَ مِن لَّدُنِّي عُذْرًا (الكهف 18: 76)5. The Parting Words | كلمات الفراق
After the third incident, Al-Khidr does not wait for a fourth objection. He tells Moses directly, "This is the parting of our ways. I will explain to you what you could not bear patiently" (18:78), turning what could have looked like three unexplained wrongs into a promise that every one of them has a reason still to come. What the whole encounter teaches is gathered in the lessons of the meeting between Musa and al-Khidr.
بعد الحادثة الثالثة، لا ينتظر الخضر اعتراضًا رابعًا، بل يخبر موسى مباشرة: "هذا فراق بيني وبينك سأنبئك بتأويل ما لم تستطع عليه صبرًا" (الكهف 18: 78)، محوّلًا ما بدا ثلاثة أفعالٍ بلا تفسير إلى وعدٍ بأن لكل واحدٍ منها سببًا لا يزال قادمًا.
قَالَ هَـٰذَا فِرَاقُ بَيْنِي وَبَيْنِكَ سَأُنَبِّئُكَ بِتَأْوِيلِ مَا لَمْ تَسْتَطِع عَّلَيْهِ صَبْرًا (الكهف 18: 78)Frequently Asked Questions | الأسئلة الشائعة
What was the first thing Al-Khidr did that troubled Moses?
He made a hole in a ship that had carried them across for free.
What was the second thing Al-Khidr did?
He killed a young boy without any apparent cause.
What was the third thing Al-Khidr did?
He repaired a collapsing wall in a town that had refused to feed them, without asking for payment.
Why did Moses keep speaking up despite his earlier promise not to?
He could not hold to it; according to the hadith in Sahih Al-Bukhari, the first objection came from forgetfulness, the second bound him with a condition, and the third was deliberate, exactly the difficulty Al-Khidr had predicted from the start.
What did Al-Khidr say right before they parted?
That their companionship was ending, and he would now explain what Moses could not bear patiently.