the command of Gon is to be performed. No crime isto becharged on the
prophet, as to what G od hath allowed him, conformable to the ordinance
of G od with regard to thofe who preceded bim% (for the command of G od
is a determinate decree,) who brought the meffages of G o d , and feared him,
and feared none betides G od : and G od is a fufficient accountant. M ohamm
ed js not the father of any man among you y but the apoftle of G o d , and
the feal of the prophets : and G od knoweth all things. O true believers,
remember. G od with a frequent remembrance, and celebrate his praife morning
and evening. It is he who is gracious unto you, and his angels intercede
for you, that he may lead you forth from darknefs into light; and he is merciful
towards the true believers. Their fafutation, on the day whereon they
fhall meet him, Jhall be> Peace 1 and he hath prepared for them an honourable
recompenfe. O prophet, verily we have fent thee to be a witnefs, and
a bearer of good tidings, and a denouncer of threats, and an iiiviter unto
G od, through his good pleafure, and a fhining light. Bear good tidings
therefore unto the true believers, that they fhall receive great abundance
from God,. And obey not the unbelievers, and the hypocrites, and mind
not their evil treatment: but truft in G od *, and G od is a fufficient prote&or.
O true believers, when ye marry women who are believers, and afterwards
put them away, before ye have touched them, there is no term prefcribed you
to fulfil towards thema after their divorce: but make them a prefent'b, ahd
difmifs them freely, with an honourable difmiffion. O prophet, we have
allowed thee thy wives unto , whom thou haft given their dower, and alfo.
the Jlaves which thy right hand pofiefleth, of the booty which G o d hath granted
thee c ; and the daughters of thy uncle, and the daughters of thy aunts,
both on thy father’s fide, and on thy mother’s fide, who have fled with thee
from M e c c a d, and any other believing woman, if fhe give herfelf unto the
prophete j in cafe the prophet defireth to take her to wife. This is a pecua
There is no time prefcribed you to fu lfil to-
wards them;] That is, Ye are not obliged to
keep them any certain time before ye difmifs
them, as ye are thofe with whom the marriage
has been cohfummated. See chap 2. p. 26.
b Make them a prefent;] i. e. If no dower
has been afligned them: for if a dower has been
affigned, the husband is obliged, according to
the Senna, to give the woman half the dower
agreed on^ befides a prefent *. This is flill to
be underftood pf fuch women with whom the
marriage has not been confummated.
c The Jlaves, of the booty which G od hath
granted thee;] It is faid, therefore, that the women
flaves which he ihould buy are not included in
this grant.
4 Who have fed with thee from Mecca ;] But
not the others. It is related of Omm Hani» the
daughter of Abu Taleb, that fhe ihould fay,’ The
apoftle of G od courted me for his wife; but I
excufed myfelf to him, and be accepted of my ex-
cufe : afterwards this verfe was revealed; but he
was not thereby allowed to marry me, becaufe Ifled
not with him *.
It may be obferved that Dr. Prideaux is1 much
miftaken, when he aiferts that Mohammed in this
chapter brings in G od exempting him from the
law in the fourth chapter 3, whereby the Mof-
lems are forbidden to marry within certain degrees,
and giving him an efpecial privilege to
take to wife the daughter of his brother, or the
daugltfer of his filler *.
*e And any believing woman, i f fhe give herfelf
unto the prophet ;] Without demanding any dower.
According to a tradition of Ebn Abbas, the prophet,
however, married no woman without af-.
p figning
1 Tderh*. 2 Idem. Pag. 63. See P r jd . Life of Mah. p. 116.
liar privilege granted unto thee, above the reft of the true believers *. We
know what we have ordained them concerning their wives, and the Jlaves
whom their right hands poflefs : left it Ihould be deemed a crime in thee to
make ufe of the privilege granted thee; for G od is gracious and merciful.
Thou mayeft poftpone the turn of fuch of thy wives as thou fhalt pleafe, in
being called to thy bed ; and thou, mayeft take unto thee her whom thou (halt
pleafe, and her- whom thou fhalt defire of thofe whom thou fhalt have before
rejefted : and it Jhall be no crime in thee b. This wilt be more eafy, that they
may be intirely content, and may pot be grieved, but may be well pleafed
with what thou lhalt give every of them: G od knoweth whatever is in your
hearts ; and G od is knowing and gracious. It fhall not be lawful for thee
.to take, other women to wife hereafter', nor to exchange any of thy. wives for
them', although their beauty pleafe thee; except the jlaves whom thy
right hand fhall poflefs: and G od obferveth all things. O true believers,
enter not the houfes of the prophet, unlefs it be permitted you to eat
meat with him, without waiting his convenient time: but when ye are
invited, then enter. And when ye fhall have eaten, difperfe yourfelves ;
and Jlay not to. enter into familiar difcourfe: for this incommodeth the
prophet. He is afhamed to bid you depart; but G o d is not alhamed
of the truth. And when ye afk of the prophet's wives what ye may have occafion
figning her a dower. The commentators are
not agreed who- was the woman particularly
meant in this pallage ; but they name four who
are fuppofed to have thus given themfelves to the
prophet, viz. Maimdna Bint al Hareth, Zeinab
Bint Khozaima, Ghozia Bint Jdber, furnamed
Omm Shoraic, (which three he adlually married,)
and Khawla Bint Hakim, whom, as it feems, he
reje&ed.
a This is a peculiar privilege granted thee,
above the reft of the true believers ;J For no Mojlem
can legally marry above four wives, whether
free women or flaves; whereas Moharnmed is, by
the preceding paffage, .left at liberty t * take as
many as he pleafed, tho’ with fome reftri£lions.
b Thou mayeft poftpone the turn of fuch of thy
wives as thou fhalt pleafe, &c.] By this paffage
fome farther privileges were granted unto Mohammed
} for, whereas other men are obliged to
carry themfelves equally towards their wives 1,
in cafe they had more than one, particularly as
to the duties of the marriage bed, to which each
has a right to be called in her turn, (which right
was acknowledged in the moft early ages 2,) and
cannot take again a wife whom they have divorced
the third time, till Ihe has been married
to another and divorced by him 3, the prophet
was left ablolutely at liberty to deal with them
in thefe and other relpeéls as he thought fit.
c It fhall not be lawful for thee to take other
women to wife hereafter, &c.J The commentators
differ-as to the exprefs meaning of thefe
words. Some think Mohammed was thereby forbidden
to take any more wives than nine, which
number he then had, and is fuppofed to have
been his flint, as four was that of other men ;
fome imagine that after this prohibition, tho* any
of the wives he then had fhould die, or be divorced,
yet he could not marry another in her
room; fome think he was. only forbidden from
this time forward to marry any other woman
than one of the four forts mentioned in the preceding
paffage ; and others + are of opinion that
this verfe is abrogated by the two preceding
verfes, or one of them, and was revealed before
them, tho’ it be read after them s.
Nor to exchange any of thy wives for them ;]
By divorcing her and marrying another. A l
Zamakhfhari tells us,that fome are of opinion this
prohibition is to be underftood of a particular
kind of exchange ufed among the idolatrous
Arabs, whereby two men made a mutual exchange
of their wives without any other formality.
2 See Genef. xxx. 14, &c. 3 See chap. 2. p. 27.
i A l Z amakh. ^/Beidawi, Jallalo’ddin, & c.
1 See Kor. chap. 4. p. 60, &c.
A s Abu’e K asem Hebataleah.