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Qur'an 4:3

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Qur'an 4:3
Verse's Information
Nameal-'Adad Verse
Suraal-Nisa' (Qur'an 4)
Verse3
Juz'4
Content Information
Cause of
Revelation		Concerning orphan girls and multiple marriages
Place of
Revelation		Medina
TopicJurisprudential
AboutPolygamy
Related VersesVerse 129 of Sura al-Nisa'


Qur'an 4:3, known as the Verse of ʿAdad, addresses the permissibility of polygamy for men. Based on this verse, marriage with a maximum of four women is permissible for men. This ruling is specific to a free man's permanent marriage with free women. However, there is no limitation in regard to marriage with slave women and temporary marriage.

Al-Shaykh al-Tusi has reported six occasions of revelation for this verse. According to exegetes and jurists, polygamy is permissible only if justice and equality in terms of cohabitation and maintenance among the wives are observed.

Occasion of Revelation

Various occasions of revelation have been reported for Qur'an 4:3.[1] According to al-Shaykh al-Tusi, exegetes have mentioned six occasions of revelation for the verse.[2] Some of them are as follows:

  1. According to a narration from Aisha, this verse was revealed concerning an orphan girl whose guardian had his eyes set on her wealth and beauty and intended to marry her without paying her dowry. Therefore, God prohibited marriage with orphan girls, unless they are treated justly and are paid a dowry appropriate to their status. He also made marriage with other women, up to four wives, permissible.[3]
  2. It is narrated from 'Abd Allah b. 'Abbas and 'Ikrima b. 'Abd Allah that Qur'an 4:3 was revealed concerning a man who had married numerous women but when his wealth perished, he set his eyes on the wealth of an orphan under his guardianship. Therefore, God prohibited people from marrying more than four wives so that they would not become needy and take the wealth of orphans. If they feared transgressing upon the orphan's wealth even with four wives, they should suffice with one wife.[4]

Text and Translation of al-'Adad Verse

The third verse of Sura al-Nisa' is called al-'Adad Verse.[5] The text and translation of this verse are as follows:

Permissibility of Polygamy

According to exegetes[6] and jurists,[7] Qur'an 4:3 indicates the permissibility of multiple marriages with a maximum of four wives. Al-'Allamah al-Hilli considered the permissibility of multiple marriages with up to four women to be accepted by all scholars at all times and places.[8] The prohibition of marrying more than four women by permanent contract has also been cited based on this verse.[9] Regarding the impermissibility of marrying more than four women, a claim of consensus has been made.[10] Muhammad Hasan al-Najafi and Sayyid Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr considered the impermissibility of marrying more than four women to be among the essentials of religion.[11] Also, narrations have been cited as evidence for its impermissibility.[12]

Some jurists such as Muhammad Hasan al-Najafi and Sayyid Muhammad Kazim Tabatabai Yazdi, citing Qur'an 4:3 and narrations, consider polygamy to be recommended;[13] however, a group of jurists have rejected the verse's indication to the recommendation of polygamy.[14]

It has been said that most exegetes and jurists did not consider the "wa" (meaning: and) in "malthani wa thulath wa ruba" to mean the conjunctive "and" (implying a collective meaning); because in that case, the permissibility of marriage with up to nine women would be implied.[15] Based on this, the "wa" in this verse means choice[16] and Quran 4:3 indicates the permissibility of marriage with two, three, or four wives, not all those numbers together which would imply the permissibility of marriage with nine women.[17]

Based on Qur'an 4:3, the ruling of marriage with up to four wives is specific to a free man's permanent marriage with free women.[18] However, there is no limitation regarding slave women and temporary marriage.[19] A claim of consensus has been made in this regard.[20]

According to Sayyid Muhammad al-Sadr, the wisdom behind limiting multiple wives to four is not clear.[21]

See also: Polygamy

Condition of Justice

Jurists[22] and Shi'a exegetes[23] consider observing justice a condition for polygamy based on this verse. Therefore, someone who cannot observe justice is not permitted to practice polygamy.[24] The justice intended in this context is considered to be behavioral and economic justice, which includes the equitable distribution of nights (cohabitation), maintenance, and other financial rights,[25] not emotional or heart-felt justice, which is beyond human control.[26] This interpretation is also consistent with the narrations of the Infallibles (a).[27] In some narrations, to resolve the apparent conflict between Qur'an 4:3 (which mentions the condition of justice) and Qur'an 4:129 (which says achieving justice is impossible), the first is interpreted as behavioral, voluntary justice, and the second to heart-felt, involuntary justice.[28]

According to Sayyid Muhammad Husayn Tabataba'i, the phrase "dhalika adna alla ta'ulu" indicates that the foundation of legislating rulings in marriage is based on justice, eliminating deviation, and preventing transgression upon the rights of others.[29]

Rulings Concerning Orphans

According to 'Abd Allah Jawadi Amuli, a Qur'anic exegete, there are three important rulings regarding the wealth of orphans in Qur'an 4:3, which are:

  • The obligation of returning the wealth of orphans to them;
  • The prohibition against the embezzlement of orphans' property, such as devaluing their assets;
  • The prohibition of mixing one's own wealth with the wealth of orphans and disposing of them collectively.[30]
See also: Orphan

Notes

  1. ↑ See: Ṭabarī, Jāmiʿ al-Bayān, 1412 AH, vol. 4, p. 155-159; Ṭūsī, Al-Tibyān, Dār Iḥyāʾ al-Turāth al-ʿArabī, vol. 3, p. 103-104; Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ al-Bayān, 1372 SH, vol. 3, p. 10-11.
  2. ↑ Ṭūsī, Al-Tibyān, Dār Iḥyāʾ al-Turāth al-ʿArabī, vol. 3, p. 102.
  3. ↑ Ṭabarī, Jāmiʿ al-Bayān, 1412 AH, vol. 4, p. 155; Ṭūsī, Al-Tibyān, Dār Iḥyāʾ al-Turāth al-ʿArabī, vol. 3, p. 103; Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ al-Bayān, 1372 SH, vol. 3, p. 10.
  4. ↑ Ṭabarī, Jāmiʿ al-Bayān, 1412 AH, vol. 4, p. 156; Ṭūsī, Al-Tibyān, Dār Iḥyāʾ al-Turāth al-ʿArabī, vol. 3, p. 103; Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ al-Bayān, 1372 SH, vol. 3, p. 10.
  5. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Al-Mīzān, 1390 AH, vol. 4, p. 274.
  6. ↑ For example, see: Fakhr al-Rāzī, Al-Tafsīr al-Kabīr, 1420 AH, vol. 9, p. 487; Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Al-Mīzān, 1393 AH, vol. 4, p. 168.
  7. ↑ For example, see: Mufīd, Al-Muqniʿa, 1413 AH, p. 517; Karkī, Jāmiʿ al-Maqāṣid, 1414 AH, vol. 12, p. 374; Najafī, Jawāhir al-Kalām, 1404 AH, vol. 30, p. 2-3.
  8. ↑ ʿAllāma al-Ḥillī, Tadhkirat al-Fuqahāʾ, 1388 AH, p. 638.
  9. ↑ Karkī, Jāmiʿ al-Maqāṣid, 1414 AH, vol. 12, p. 374; Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Riyāḍ al-Masāʾil, 1419 AH, vol. 10, p. 217; Najafī, Jawāhir al-Kalām, 1404 AH, vol. 30, p. 2-3.
  10. ↑ Ṭūsī, Al-Khilāf, 1407 AH, vol. 4, p. 293; Fakhr al-Rāzī, Al-Tafsīr al-Kabīr, 1420 AH, vol. 9, p. 488; Fāḍil Miqdād, Kanz al-ʿIrfān, 1425 AH, vol. 2, p. 141.
  11. ↑ Najafī, Jawāhir al-Kalām, 1404 AH, vol. 30, p. 2; Ṣadr, Mā Warāʾ al-Fiqh, 1420 AH, vol. 6, p. 178.
  12. ↑ ʿAllāma al-Ḥillī, Tadhkirat al-Fuqahāʾ, 1388 AH, p. 638; Fāḍil Miqdād, Kanz al-ʿIrfān, 1425 AH, vol. 2, p. 141; Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Riyāḍ al-Masāʾil, 1419 AH, vol. 10, p. 216-217.
  13. ↑ Najafī, Jawāhir al-Kalām, 1404 AH, vol. 29, p. 35; Ṭabāṭabāʾī Yazdī, Al-ʿUrwa al-Wuthqá, 1428 AH, vol. 2, p. 748.
  14. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī Yazdī, Al-ʿUrwa al-Wuthqá, 1428 AH, vol. 2, p. 748.
  15. ↑ Fāḍil Miqdād, Kanz al-ʿIrfān, 1425 AH, vol. 2, p. 141.
  16. ↑ Karkī, Jāmiʿ al-Maqāṣid, 1414 AH, vol. 12, p. 374; Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Al-Mīzān, 1390 AH, vol. 4, p. 168; Mughnīyya, Fiqh al-Imām al-Ṣādiq(a), 1421 AH, vol. 5, p. 197.
  17. ↑ Najafī, Jawāhir al-Kalām, 1404 AH, vol. 30, p. 3.
  18. ↑ Mufīd, Al-Muqniʿa, 1413 AH, p. 517; Fāḍil Miqdād, Kanz al-ʿIrfān, 1425 AH, vol. 2, p. 142-143; Karkī, Jāmiʿ al-Maqāṣid, 1414 AH, vol. 12, p. 374.
  19. ↑ Fāḍil Miqdād, Kanz al-ʿIrfān, 1425 AH, vol. 2, p. 142-143; Ṣadr, Mā Warāʾ al-Fiqh, 1420 AH, vol. 6, p. 179.
  20. ↑ Fāḍil Miqdād, Kanz al-ʿIrfān, 1425 AH, vol. 2, p. 143.
  21. ↑ Ṣadr, Mā Warāʾ al-Fiqh, 1420 AH, vol. 6, p. 178.
  22. ↑ For example, see: Ṣadr, Mā Warāʾ al-Fiqh, 1420 AH, vol. 6, p. 162; Mughnīyya, Fiqh al-Imām al-Ṣādiq(a), 1421 AH, vol. 5, p. 197.
  23. ↑ For example, see: Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Al-Mīzān, 1390 AH, vol. 4, p. 169; Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i Nimūna, 1371 SH, vol. 3, p. 254.
  24. ↑ Ṣadr, Mā Warāʾ al-Fiqh, 1420 AH, vol. 6, p. 162.
  25. ↑ Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ al-Bayān, 1372 SH, vol. 3, p. 8 and 11; Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i Nimūna, 1371 SH, vol. 3, p. 255; Mughnīyya, Fiqh al-Imām al-Ṣādiq(a), 1421 AH, vol. 5, p. 197.
  26. ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i Nimūna, 1371 SH, vol. 3, p. 255; Mughnīyya, Fiqh al-Imām al-Ṣādiq(a), 1421 AH, vol. 5, p. 197.
  27. ↑ Kulaynī, Al-Kāfī, 1407 AH, vol. 5, p. 362-363; Qummī, Tafsīr al-Qummī, 1363 SH, vol. 1, p. 155.
  28. ↑ See: Kulaynī, Al-Kāfī, 1407 AH, vol. 5, p. 263.
  29. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Al-Mīzān, 1390 AH, vol. 4, p. 169.
  30. ↑ Jawādī Āmulī, Tasnīm, 1389 SH, vol. 17, p. 213-214.

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