4. An-Nisa Page 84 اَلرِّجَالُ [The] men قَوّٰمُوْنَ (are) protectors عَلَی of النِّسَآءِ the women بِمَا because فَضَّلَ (has) bestowed اللّٰهُ Allah بَعْضَهُمْ some of them عَلٰی over بَعْضٍ others وَّ بِمَاۤ and because اَنْفَقُوْا they spend مِنْ from اَمْوَالِهِمْ ؕ their wealth فَالصّٰلِحٰتُ So the righteous women قٰنِتٰتٌ (are) obedient حٰفِظٰتٌ guarding لِّلْغَیْبِ in the unseen بِمَا that which حَفِظَ (orders) them to guard اللّٰهُ ؕ (by) Allah وَ الّٰتِیْ And those (from) whom تَخَافُوْنَ you fear نُشُوْزَهُنَّ their ill-conduct فَعِظُوْهُنَّ then advise them وَ اهْجُرُوْهُنَّ and forsake them فِی in الْمَضَاجِعِ the bed وَ اضْرِبُوْهُنَّ ۚ and set forth to them فَاِنْ Then if اَطَعْنَكُمْ they obey you فَلَا then (do) not تَبْغُوْا seek عَلَیْهِنَّ against them سَبِیْلًا ؕ a way اِنَّ Indeed اللّٰهَ Allah كَانَ is عَلِیًّا Most High كَبِیْرًا Most Great وَ اِنْ And if خِفْتُمْ you fear شِقَاقَ a dissension بَیْنِهِمَا between (the) two of them فَابْعَثُوْا then send حَكَمًا an arbitrator مِّنْ from اَهْلِهٖ his family وَ حَكَمًا and an arbitrator مِّنْ from اَهْلِهَا ۚ her family اِنْ If یُّرِیْدَاۤ they both wish اِصْلَاحًا reconciliation یُّوَفِّقِ will cause reconciliation اللّٰهُ Allah بَیْنَهُمَا ؕ between both of them اِنَّ Indeed اللّٰهَ Allah كَانَ is عَلِیْمًا All-Knower خَبِیْرًا All-Aware وَ اعْبُدُوا And worship اللّٰهَ Allah وَ لَا And (do) not تُشْرِكُوْا associate بِهٖ with Him شَیْـًٔا anything وَّ بِالْوَالِدَیْنِ and to the parents اِحْسَانًا (do) good وَّ بِذِی and with الْقُرْبٰی the relatives وَ الْیَتٰمٰی and the orphans وَ الْمَسٰكِیْنِ and the needy وَ الْجَارِ and the neighbor ذِی (who is) الْقُرْبٰی near وَ الْجَارِ and the neighbor الْجُنُبِ (who is) farther away وَ الصَّاحِبِ and the companion بِالْجَنْۢبِ by your side وَ ابْنِ and the السَّبِیْلِ ۙ traveler وَ مَا and what مَلَكَتْ possess[ed] اَیْمَانُكُمْ ؕ your right hands اِنَّ Indeed اللّٰهَ Allah لَا (does) not یُحِبُّ love مَنْ (the one) who كَانَ is مُخْتَالًا [a] proud فَخُوْرَاۙ (and) [a] boastful لَّذِیْنَ Those who یَبْخَلُوْنَ are stingy وَ یَاْمُرُوْنَ and order النَّاسَ the people بِالْبُخْلِ [of] stinginess وَ یَكْتُمُوْنَ and hide مَاۤ what اٰتٰىهُمُ (has) given them اللّٰهُ Allah مِنْ of فَضْلِهٖ ؕ His Bounty وَ اَعْتَدْنَا and We (have) prepared لِلْكٰفِرِیْنَ for the disbelievers عَذَابًا a punishment مُّهِیْنًاۚ humiliating 4. An-Nisa Page 85 وَ الَّذِیْنَ And those who یُنْفِقُوْنَ spend اَمْوَالَهُمْ their wealth رِئَآءَ to be seen النَّاسِ (by) the people وَ لَا and not یُؤْمِنُوْنَ they believe بِاللّٰهِ in Allah وَ لَا and not بِالْیَوْمِ in the Day الْاٰخِرِ ؕ the Last وَ مَنْ and whoever یَّكُنِ has الشَّیْطٰنُ the Shaitaan لَهٗ for him قَرِیْنًا (as) companion فَسَآءَ then evil قَرِیْنًا (is he as) a companion وَ مَا ذَا And what عَلَیْهِمْ (is) against them لَوْ if اٰمَنُوْا they believed بِاللّٰهِ in Allah وَ الْیَوْمِ and the Day الْاٰخِرِ the Last وَ اَنْفَقُوْا and spent مِمَّا from what رَزَقَهُمُ (has) provided them اللّٰهُ ؕ Allah وَ كَانَ And is اللّٰهُ Allah بِهِمْ about them عَلِیْمًا All-Knower اِنَّ Indeed اللّٰهَ Allah لَا (does) not یَظْلِمُ wrong مِثْقَالَ (as much as) weight ذَرَّةٍ ۚ (of) an atom وَ اِنْ And if تَكُ there is حَسَنَةً a good یُّضٰعِفْهَا He doubles it وَ یُؤْتِ and gives مِنْ from لَّدُنْهُ near Him اَجْرًا a reward عَظِیْمًا great فَكَیْفَ So how (will it be) اِذَا when جِئْنَا We bring مِنْ from كُلِّ every اُمَّةٍۭ nation بِشَهِیْدٍ a witness وَّ جِئْنَا and We bring بِكَ you عَلٰی against هٰۤؤُلَآءِ these (people) شَهِیْدًاؕؔ (as) a witness یَوْمَىِٕذٍ (On) that Day یَّوَدُّ will wish الَّذِیْنَ those who كَفَرُوْا disbelieved وَ عَصَوُا and disobeyed الرَّسُوْلَ the Messenger لَوْ if تُسَوّٰی was leveled بِهِمُ with them الْاَرْضُ ؕ the earth وَ لَا and not یَكْتُمُوْنَ they will (be able to) hide اللّٰهَ (from) Allah حَدِیْثًا۠ (any) statement
(4:34) Men are the protec-tors and maintainers of women56 because Allah has made one of them excel over the other,57 and because they spend out of their possessions (to support them). Thus righteous women are obedient and guard the rights of men in their absence under Allah's protection.58 As for women of whom you fear rebellion, admonish them, and remain apart from them in beds, and beat them.59 Then if they obey you, do not seek ways to harm them. Allah is Exalted, Great.
(4:35) If you fear a breach between the two, appoint an arbitrator from his people and an arbitrator from her people. If they both want to set things right,60 Allah will bring about reconciliation between them. Allah knows all, is well aware of everything.61
(4:36) Serve Allah and ascribe no partner to Him. Do good to your parents, to near of kin, to orphans, and to the needy, and to the neighbour who is of kin and to the neighbour who is a stranger, and to the companion by your side,62 and to the wayfarer, and to those whom your right hands possess. Allah does not love the arrogant and the boastful,
(4:37) who are niggardly and bid others to be niggardly and conceal the bounty which Allah has bestowed upon them.63 We have kept in readiness a humiliating chastisement for such deniers (of Allah's bounty).
(4:38) Allah does not love those who spend out of their wealth to make a show of it to people when they believe neither in Allah nor in the Last Day. And he who has taken Satan for a companion has indeed taken for himself a very bad companion.
(4:39) What harm would have befallen them if they had believed in Allah and the Last Day, and spent on charity what Allah had bestowed upon them as sustenance? For Allah indeed has full knowledge of them.
(4:40) Indeed Allah wrongs none, not even as much as an atom's weight. Whenever a man does good, He multiplies it two-fold, and bestows out of His grace a mighty reward.
(4:41) Consider, then, when We shall bring forward witnesses from every community, and will bring you (O Muhammad!) as a witness against them all.64
(4:42) Those who disbelieved and disobeyed the Messenger will wish on that Day that the earth were levelled with them. They will not be able to conceal anything from Allah.
56. A qawwam or qayyim is a person responsible for administering and supervising the affairs of either an individual or an organization, for protecting and safeguarding them and taking care of their needs.
57. The verb used here - a derivative of the root fdl - is not used to mean that some people have been invested with superior honour and dignity. Rather it means that God has endowed one of the sexes (i.e. the male sex) with certain qualities which He has not endowed the other sex with, at least not to an equal extent. Thus it is the male who is qualified to function as head of the family. The female has been so constituted that she should live under his care and protection.
58. It is reported in a tradition from the Prophet (peace be on him) that he said: 'The best wife is she who, if you look at her, will please you; who, if you bid her to do something, will obey; and who will safeguard herself and your property in your absence.' (Cited by Ibn Kathir, and reported by Tabari and Ibn Abi Hatim. See Mukhtasar Tafsir Ibn Kathir, 3 vols., ed. Muhammad 'All al-Sabuni, 7th edition, Beirut, 1402 A.H./1981 C.E.; vol. 1, p. 385 and n. 1 - Ed.) This tradition contains the best explanation of the above verse. It should be borne in mind, however, that obedience to God has priority over a woman's duty to obey her husband. If a woman's husband either asks her to disobey God or prevents her from performing a duty imposed upon her by God, she should refuse to carry out his command. Obedience to her husband in this case would be a sin. However, were the husband to prevent is wife from performing either supererogatory Prayer or Fasting - as distinct from the obligatory ones - she should obey him, for such acts would not be accepted by God if performed by a woman in defiance of her husband's wish. (See Abu Da'ud, 'Sawm', 73; Ibn Majah, 'Siyam', 53 - Ed.)
59. This does not mean that a man should resort to these three measures all at once, but that they may be employed if a wife adopts an attitude of obstinate defiance. So far as the actual application of these measures is concerned, there should, naturally, be some correspondence between the fault and the punishment that is administered. Moreover, it is obvious that wherever a light touch can prove effective.one should not resort to sterner measures. Whenever the Prophet (peace be on him) permitted a man to administer corporal punishment to his wife, he did so with reluctance, and continued to express his distaste for it. And even in cases where it is necessary, the Prophet (peace be on him) directed men not to hit across the face, nor to beat severely nor to use anything that might leave marks on the body. (See Ibn Majah, 'Nikah', 3 - Ed.)
60. The statement: 'if they both want to set things right', may be interpreted as referring either to the mediators or to the spouses concerned. Every dispute can be resolved providing the parties concerned desire reconciliation, and the mediators too are keen to remove the misunderstandings between them and to bring them together.
61. Whenever the relationship between a husband and a wife starts to break down, an attempt should first be made to resolve the dispute at the family level, before it is aggravated and leads to the disruption of the matrimonial tie. The procedure to be followed is that two persons, one on behalf of each family, should be nominated to look into the matter together and devise means whereby the misunderstanding between the spouses may be brought to an end. Who should nominate these mediators? God has not specified this so as to allow people full freedom to choose the most convenient arrangement. The parties would be free, for instance, to decide that the mediators be nominated either by the spouses themselves or by the elders of their respective families. If the dispute is brought before the court, the latter also has the right to nominate mediators, representing the families of both parties, before referring the matter for judicial verdict.
There is disagreement among Muslim jurists about the extent of the mediators' authority. The Hanafi and Shafi'i schools are of the opinion that they normally have no authority to issue a binding verdict. All they may do is to recommend the solution they advocate, whereafter the spouses have the right either to accept or to reject it. The exception is if the spouses have nominated the mediators to act on their behalf in regard to either talaq or khul': they will then be bound by their verdict. This is the opinion of the Hanafi and Shafi'i schools. Another group of jurists argues that the authority of the mediators is confined to deciding how the spouses should reconcile their differences, and does not extend to the annulment of marriage. This is the opinion of Hasan al-Basri and Qatadah, among others. Yet another group holds the opinion that the mediators have full authority both in respect of reconciliation and annulment of marriage. This is the opinion of Ibn 'Abbas, Sa'id b. Jubayr, Ibrahim al-Nakha'i, al-Sha'bi, Muhammad b. Sinn and several other authorities. The precedents which have come down from early Islam, however, are the judgements of 'Uthman and 'Ali. These indicate that they conferred upon the mediators the authority to issue judgements binding on both parties. When the dispute between 'Aqil b. Abi Talib and his wife Fatimah b. 'Utbah b. Rabi'ah came up for the judgement of 'Uthman, he nominated Ibn 'Abbas and Mu'awiyah b. Abi Sufyan from the families of the husband and the wife respectively. He also told them that if they thought that separation was preferable, they should declare the marriage annulled. In a similar dispute 'Ali nominated mediators and authorized them either to bring about reconciliation or annul the marriage, whichever they considered appropriate. This shows that the mediators do not have judicial authority as such. (See the commentaries of Ibn Kathir and Jassas on this verse -Ed.) Such authority, however, may be conferred upon them by the courts, in which case their decision will have the force of a judicial verdict.
62. The expression al-sahib bi al-janb (the companion by your side) embraces those with whom one has friendly relations of an abiding nature as well as those with whom one's relationship is transient: for instance, either the person who walks beside one on the way to the market or who sits beside one while buying things from the same shop or one's fellow traveller. Even this temporary relationship imposes certain claims on every refined and decent person - that he should treat him, as far as possible, in a kind and gracious manner and avoid causing him any inconvenience.
63. Concealing God's bounty is to live, as if God had not bestowed that bounty. If anyone has considerable wealth and yet lives at a standard strikingly lower than that warranted by his income, if he shuns spending on himself and his family, and also on helping other creatures of God, and avoids providing financial support to any philanthropic cause, then he creates the false impression of being in a state of financial stringency. This is sheer ingratitude to God. The Prophet (peace be on him) is reported, according to a tradition, as saying: 'If God confers a bounty on somebody, He would like to see that benefaction displayed.' (Ibn Kathir, vol. 4, p. 486 - Ed.) This means that a person's day-to-day life, his eating and drinking, his dress and his abode and his spending on others, all these should reflect God's bounty.
64. The Prophet of each age will stand as a witness before God against his people; he will testify that he conveyed to them the true way of life, and showed them the right outlook and the fundamentals of moral conduct revealed to him by God. The testimony of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be on him) will be to the same effect, and the Qur'an indicates that he will stand as a witness to the period beginning with his advent as a Prophet right through to the Day of Judgement. (See Towards Understanding the Qur'an, vol. I, (Surah 3, n. 69.)