An-Nisa · Madani · ayah 24 of 176

An-Nisa 4:24

۞ وَٱلْمُحْصَنَـٰتُ مِنَ ٱلنِّسَآءِ إِلَّا مَا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَـٰنُكُمْ ۖ كِتَـٰبَ ٱللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ ۚ وَأُحِلَّ لَكُم مَّا وَرَآءَ ذَٰلِكُمْ أَن تَبْتَغُوا۟ بِأَمْوَٰلِكُم مُّحْصِنِينَ غَيْرَ مُسَـٰفِحِينَ ۚ فَمَا ٱسْتَمْتَعْتُم بِهِۦ مِنْهُنَّ فَـَٔاتُوهُنَّ أُجُورَهُنَّ فَرِيضَةً ۚ وَلَا جُنَاحَ عَلَيْكُمْ فِيمَا تَرَٰضَيْتُم بِهِۦ مِنۢ بَعْدِ ٱلْفَرِيضَةِ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ عَلِيمًا حَكِيمًا

“And [also prohibited to you are all] married women except those your right hands possess.[177] [This is] the decree of Allāh upon you. And lawful to you are [all others] beyond these, [provided] that you seek them [in marriage] with [gifts from] your property, desiring chastity, not unlawful sexual intercourse. So for whatever you enjoy [of marriage] from them, give them their due compensation[178] as an obligation. And there is no blame upon you for what you mutually agree to beyond the obligation. Indeed, Allāh is ever Knowing and Wise.”

Saheeh International

Essence

Beyond a few guarded lines, marriage is wide open: sought with a gift, built as a fortress, kept by two people turning towards each other.

A reflection

Written upon you by the One who knows

In the middle of this ayah sits a short, heavy phrase: kitāba Allāhi ʿalaykum, Allah's decree, binding upon you. A concise commentary explains the grammar: Allah has written this upon you. The boundaries of marriage are not a custom, a tribal preference or a passing opinion. They are written.

The ayah then ends: inna Allāha kāna ʿalīman ḥakīman, Allah is ever Knowing, Wise. A concise commentary glosses the pair. He knows the affairs of His servants, and He is wise in His rulings and in how He arranges them.

Why these two names, here? Because desire is where people feel most certain that they know best. My feelings are real. My situation is different. The rules were written for other people. Every generation believes it is the first to understand love. The ego asks: who could know my heart better than I do?

The ayah answers quietly. The One who knows everything about His creation. He sees what a choice will do to a marriage in twenty years, to a child not yet born, to a family's trust. We see the evening in front of us. And He is Wise: He puts each thing where it belongs, even when we cannot yet see why.

Pride resents a law about the heart, because it wants to be the final judge of its own wanting. Humility finds relief in it. You do not have to calculate, alone, every consequence of every desire. Someone who sees further has drawn the map.

Does He need us to call Him Knowing and Wise? He is the Free of need (35:15). Our agreement adds nothing to His knowledge, and our protest takes nothing from it. The names are told to us so that we can rest. A traveller who knows the map was drawn by someone who has seen the whole country walks more lightly.

The decree is written upon you, ʿalaykum. But it was written by the One who knows you, for the life He knows you can have.

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.