Al-Kahf 18:77

<h2>The Story of repairing the Wall Allah tells us that</h2><div class="arabic uthmani">فَانطَلَقَا</div><p>(they both proceeded) after the first two instances,</p><div class="arabic uthmani">حَتَّى إِذَآ أَتَيَآ أَهْلَ قَرْيَةٍ</div><p>(till when they came to the people of a town,) Ibn Jarir narrated from Ibn Sirin that this was Al-Aylah. According to the Hadith;</p><div class="arabic uthmani">«حَتَّى إِذَا أَتَيَا أَهْلَ قَرْيَةٍ لِئَامًا»</div><p>(When they came there, the people of the town were mean.) i.e., miserly</p><div class="arabic uthmani">اسْتَطْعَمَآ أَهْلَهَا فَأَبَوْاْ أَن يُضَيِّفُوهُمَا فَوَجَدَا فِيهَا جِدَاراً يُرِيدُ أَن يَنقَضَّ</div><p>(they asked them for food, but they refused to entertain them. Then they found therein a wall about to collapse and he (Khidr) set it up straight.) means, he fixed it so it was standing upright properly. We have already seen in the Hadith quoted above that he set it up with his own hands, supporting it until it was standing straight again, which is something extraordinary. At this point Musa said to him:</p><div class="arabic uthmani">لَوْ شِئْتَ لاَتَّخَذْتَ عَلَيْهِ أَجْراً</div><p>(If you had wished, surely you could have taken wages for it!) meaning, because they did not entertain us as guests, you should not have worked for them for free.</p><div class="arabic uthmani">قَالَ هَـذَا فِرَاقُ بَيْنِى وَبَيْنِكَ</div><p>(He said: "This is the parting between you …

So they twain journeyed on till, when they came unto the folk of a certain township, they asked its folk for food, but they refused to make them guests. And they found therein a wall upon the point of falling into ruin, and he repaired it. (Moses) said: If thou hadst wished, thou couldst have taken payment for it.

Then they proceeded: until, when they came to the inhabitants of a town, they asked them for food, but they refused them hospitality. They found there a wall on the point of falling down, but he set it up straight. (Moses) said: "If thou hadst wished, surely thou couldst have exacted some recompense for it!"

Then they both proceeded, till, when they came to the people of a town, they asked them for food, but they refused to entertain them. Then they found therein a wall about to collapse and he (Khidr) set it up straight. [Musa (Moses)] said: If you had wished, surely, you could have taken wages for it!"

So they set out. Until, when they reached the people of a town, they asked them for food, but they refused to offer them hospitality. There they found a wall about to collapse, and he repaired it. He said, “If you wanted, you could have obtained a payment for it.”