An-Nisa · Madani · ayah 130 of 176

An-Nisa 4:130

وَإِن يَتَفَرَّقَا يُغْنِ ٱللَّهُ كُلًّا مِّن سَعَتِهِۦ ۚ وَكَانَ ٱللَّهُ وَٰسِعًا حَكِيمًا

“But if they separate [by divorce], Allāh will enrich each [of them] from His abundance. And ever is Allāh Encompassing and Wise.”

Saheeh International

Essence

If a marriage cannot be saved and the two part, neither was ever the other's true provider: Allah will give each enough from His vastness.

A reflection

Neither of you was ever the provider

The ayah ends with a name left open on purpose: Wāsiʿ, the Vast. One commentator notices that nothing follows it. Not vast in provision, or vast in mercy. Simply vast. Had a domain been named, he explains, the vastness would have been limited to it. Left unqualified, it means vast in every perfection: provision, bounty, mercy, power and knowledge.

The root pictures a vessel with room to spare. Pour in what you will, and it does not overflow. The Arabs used the same verb when people shifted along in a gathering to make room for a newcomer.

Now set that name beside a marriage that is ending. Pride speaks loudly at such moments. He tells himself she will be nothing without his salary. She tells herself he will fall apart without her running his life. Each secretly believes they were the source of the other's survival.

This is where the ego must shrink. The ayah gives both the same answer. Allah will enrich each, from His vastness. Neither spouse was ever the true provider. Each was, at most, a channel. The channel can close; the source does not.

That humbles the one who leaves feeling like a benefactor. It also lifts the one who is left feeling like a dependant. Both stand before the same open vessel.

Does Allah need us to praise His vastness? He needs nothing; it is people who are poor towards Him (35:15). The name is not a demand. It is a door, held open at the exact moment a person feels a door has shut.

The full entry has 5 more reflections, questions to sit with, and "Live it today" - with the words, the roots and the tafsir alongside. Free, no account, works offline.