Tafseer of The Light · An-Noor · 24:6
And those who accuse their wives [of adultery] and have no witnesses except themselves - then the witness of one of them [shall be] four testimonies [swearing] by Allah that indeed, he is of the truthful.
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
Imam al-Ṭabarī says: Allah — exalted be His praise — says: وَالَّذِينَ يَرْمُونَ (And those who accuse) — among the men — أَزْوَاجِهِمْ (their wives) of fornication (zinā), accusing them of unlawful sexual intercourse, وَلَمْ يَكُنْ لَهُمْ شُهَدَاءُ (and they have no witnesses) to testify on their behalf as to the correctness of what they charge against them, فَشَهَادَةُ أَحَدِهِمْ أَرْبَعُ شَهَادَاتٍ بِاللَّهِ إِنَّهُ لَمِنَ الصَّادِقِينَ (then the testimony of one of them shall be four testimonies by Allah that he is of the truthful).
The Qurʾān reciters have differed among themselves over the reading of this passage. Most of the reciters of Medina and Basra read: "أَرْبَعُ شَهَادَاتٍ" with an accusative, and for their accusative there are two explanations: First, that "shahāda" in فَشَهَادَةُ أَحَدِهِمْ is in the nominative on the basis of something preceding it which is not expressed, and that "the four" is in the accusative on the basis of the meaning of the testimony, so that the sentence would then be: It is incumbent upon each of them to give four testimonies by Allah. Second, that "shahāda" is in the nominative on the basis of إِنَّهُ لَمِنَ الصَّادِقِينَ and that "the four" is in the accusative through the operation of the testimony upon it, as one says: "My testimony a thousand times over that you are an evil man" — the Arabs put oaths in the nominative by means of their response clause, and say: "The oath of a sincere man: I shall surely arise" and "The testimony of ʿAmr: he shall surely sit."
Most of the reciters of the Kufans read: أَرْبَعُ شَهَادَاتٍ with "the four" in the nominative, as the predicate of "shahāda," as though they understood the sentence thus: What is required of the testimony is four testimonies by Allah that he is of the truthful.
The most correct of the two readings, in my judgment, is the one in which one reads: "فَشَهَادَةُ أَحَدِهِمْ أَرْبَعُ شَهَادَاتٍ بِاللَّهِ إِنَّهُ لَمِنَ الصَّادِقِينَ" with "arbaʿ" in the accusative, since "shahāda" operates upon it, while "shahāda" is then in the nominative on the basis of the two ways I described earlier. The more beloved of those two ways to me is that it is in the nominative on the basis of the response, namely His words: إِنَّهُ لَمِنَ الصَّادِقِينَ , for the meaning of the sentence is: وَالَّذِينَ يَرْمُونَ أَزْوَاجَهُمْ وَلَمْ يَكُنْ لَهُمْ شُهَدَاءُ إِلا أَنْفُسُهُمْ فَشَهَادَةُ أَحَدِهِمْ أَرْبَعُ شَهَادَاتٍ بِاللَّهِ إِنَّهُ لَمِنَ الصَّادِقِينَ — this takes the place of the four witnesses in averting the prescribed punishment (ḥadd) from him. The mention of "it takes the place of the four witnesses" has been omitted because the listeners understand the import of what is said, and so "shahāda" is in the nominative as I have described.
By فَشَهَادَةُ أَحَدِهِمْ أَرْبَعُ شَهَادَاتٍ بِاللَّهِ He means: The swearing by each of them — four oaths by Allah — sworn with the words "I testify by Allah that he is of the truthful" concerning what he has charged against his wife of fornication (zinā). وَالْخَامِسَةُ (and the fifth): the fifth testimony, أَنَّ لَعْنَةَ اللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ (that the curse of Allah be upon him): that the curse of Allah rest upon him and abide upon him if he is among the liars in what he has charged against her of fornication (zinā).
In line with what we have said concerning this, there have also come narrations from the Prophet ﷺ, and a group of exegetes have held it.
Mention of the narration concerning this and the occasion for the revelation of this verse:
Yaʿqūb ibn Ibrāhīm related to me, saying: Ibn ʿUlayya related to us, saying: Ayyūb related to us, on the authority of ʿIkrima, who said: When the verse came down وَالَّذِينَ يَرْمُونَ الْمُحْصَنَاتِ ثُمَّ لَمْ يَأْتُوا بِأَرْبَعَةِ شُهَدَاءَ فَاجْلِدُوهُمْ ثَمَانِينَ جَلْدَةً (And those who accuse chaste women and then do not bring four witnesses, flog them with eighty lashes), Saʿd ibn ʿUbāda said: By Allah! If I were to see how a low-born woman lets a man make use of her thighs, and I were to speak of what I have seen, then eighty lashes would await upon my back before I could gather four witnesses — by then it would long be over! The Prophet ﷺ said: "O assembly of the Anṣār, do you not hear what your chief says?" They answered: O Prophet of Allah, do not blame him — and they praised his jealousy — for he never married a woman except a virgin, and he never divorced a woman whom one of us then married. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Allah wills only that." Saʿd said: Allah and His Prophet ﷺ have spoken the truth. Thereafter not long passed before a cousin of his accused his wife. This grieved the Muslims, but he said: No, by Allah, I shall never let eighty lashes be struck upon my back — I have seen with my own eyes and am certain, and I have listened until my heart was satisfied. Thereupon Allah revealed the Qurʾān with the mutual imprecation oath (liʿān). It was said to him: Swear! And he swore. They said: Hold him at the fifth, for that one binds. He himself said: Allah will never enter him into the Fire on account of it, just as He averted the eighty lashes from him — I have seen with my own eyes and am certain, and I have listened until my heart was satisfied. And he swore. Then it was said to her: Swear! And she swore. Then they said: Hold her at the fifth, for that one binds. It was said to her: That one is decisive. She hesitated for a moment, then she said: I shall not disgrace my tribe. And she swore. The Prophet ﷺ said: "If she bears him such and such, then he belongs to her husband; if she bears him such and such, then he belongs to the man about whom what was said was said." He said: And she bore a boy like a dusky-grey camel (aoraq), and he later became a governor in Egypt — his lineage was not known, or it was not known who his father was.
Khallād ibn Aslam related to us, saying: al-Naḍr ibn Shumayl informed us, saying: ʿAbbād informed us, saying: I heard ʿIkrima, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, who said: When this verse came down: وَالَّذِينَ يَرْمُونَ الْمُحْصَنَاتِ ثُمَّ لَمْ يَأْتُوا بِأَرْبَعَةِ شُهَدَاءَ فَاجْلِدُوهُمْ ثَمَانِينَ جَلْدَةً وَلا تَقْبَلُوا لَهُمْ شَهَادَةً أَبَدًا وَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْفَاسِقُونَ (And those who accuse chaste women and then do not bring four witnesses, flog them with eighty lashes, and never accept their testimony again, and they are the transgressors), Saʿd ibn ʿUbāda said: Is it thus revealed, O Prophet of Allah? If I were to come upon a low-born woman while a man was making use of her thighs, I would not be allowed to touch him nor to stir him until I brought four witnesses — by Allah, I would never bring four witnesses before he had fulfilled his need! The Prophet ﷺ said: "O assembly of the Anṣār, do you not hear what your chief says?" They answered: Do not blame him, he is a man of great jealousy; he has never married a woman among us except a virgin, and never divorced a woman of his whom one of us dared to marry. Saʿd said: O Prophet of Allah, by my father and mother, I acknowledge that it is from Allah and that it is the truth, but I am amazed: if I were to come upon a low-born woman while a man was making use of her thighs, I would not be allowed to touch him nor to stir him until I brought four witnesses — by Allah, I would never bring four witnesses before he had fulfilled his need! By Allah, only a short time passed before Hilāl ibn Umayya returned from one of his gardens and saw it with his own eyes and heard it with his own ears. He waited until the morning. When the morning came, he went to the Prophet ﷺ while he was sitting with his companions, and he said: O Prophet of Allah, I came to my family this evening and found a man with my wife — I saw it with my own eyes and heard it with my own ears. The Prophet ﷺ was visibly distressed by what he brought him and it weighed heavily upon him, so that this could be read upon his face. Hilāl said: By Allah, O Prophet of Allah, I see the aversion upon your face at what I have brought you, but Allah knows that I speak the truth and have said nothing but the truth; I hope that Allah will provide a way out. The Anṣār gathered and said: We are afflicted by what Saʿd said — shall Hilāl ibn Umayya be flogged and his testimony become void among the Muslims? The Prophet ﷺ was on the point of having him flogged; he was just about to give the command for it and was sitting with his companions, when the revelation (waḥy) descended upon him. His companions ceased speaking as soon as they understood that the revelation had descended, until he was finished. Allah then revealed: وَالَّذِينَ يَرْمُونَ أَزْوَاجَهُمْ وَلَمْ يَكُنْ لَهُمْ شُهَدَاءُ إِلا أَنْفُسُهُمْ ... up to: أَنَّ غَضَبَ اللَّهِ عَلَيْهَا إِنْ كَانَ مِنَ الصَّادِقِينَ . The Prophet ﷺ said: "Rejoice, Hilāl — Allah has provided a way out." Hilāl said: This is what I hoped for from Allah. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Send for her!" She came, and when the two of them were together before the Prophet ﷺ, it was said to her and she denied it. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Allah knows that one of you two is lying — is there either of you who will repent?" Hilāl said: By my father and mother, O Prophet of Allah, I have spoken the truth and have said nothing but the truth. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Let them pronounce the mutual imprecation oath (liʿān)!" It was said to Hilāl: O Hilāl, testify! And he testified four testimonies by Allah that he is among the truthful. At the fifth it was said to him: O Hilāl, fear Allah, for the punishment of Allah is graver than the punishment of men — this is the decisive one, which brings the punishment to rest upon you. Hilāl said: By Allah, Allah will not torment me on account of it, just as the Prophet ﷺ has not flogged me on account of it. And he testified the fifth: أَنَّ لَعْنَةَ اللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ إِنْ كَانَ مِنَ الْكَاذِبِينَ (that the curse of Allah be upon him if he is among the liars). Then it was said to her: Testify! And she testified four testimonies by Allah that he is among the liars. At the fifth it was said to her: Fear Allah, for the punishment of Allah is graver than the punishment of men, and this is the decisive one, which brings the punishment to rest upon you. She hesitated for a moment, then she said: By Allah, I shall not disgrace my tribe. And she testified the fifth: أَنَّ غَضَبَ اللَّهِ عَلَيْهَا إِنْ كَانَ مِنَ الصَّادِقِينَ (that the wrath of Allah be upon her if he is among the truthful). The Prophet ﷺ separated them from each other, judged that the child belonged to her and was not to be called after a father, and her child was not to be accused.
Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad al-Ṭūsī related to us, saying: Abū Aḥmad al-Ḥusayn ibn Muḥammad related to us, saying: Jarīr ibn Ḥāzim related to us, on the authority of Ayyūb, on the authority of ʿIkrima, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, who said: When Hilāl ibn Umayya accused his wife, it was said to him: By Allah, the Prophet ﷺ will surely give you eighty lashes. He said: Allah is more just than to give me a single lash while He knows that I have seen until I was certain, and listened until I was sure of it — no, by Allah, He will never flog me. Thereupon the verse of the mutual imprecation oath (liʿān) came down. The Prophet ﷺ summoned the two of them when the verse had come down and said: "Allah knows that one of you two is lying — is there either of you who will repent?" Hilāl said: By Allah, I speak the truth. The Prophet ﷺ said to him: "Swear by Allah — there is no god but He — that I speak the truth," this four times; and if I lie, may the curse of Allah be upon me. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Hold him at the fifth, for that one binds." And he swore. Then she swore four times: By Allah — there is no god but He — that he is among the liars; and if he speaks the truth, may the wrath of Allah be upon her. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Hold her at the fifth, for that one binds." She hesitated and considered confessing, but then she said: I shall not disgrace my tribe.
Abū Kurayb and Abū Hishām al-Rifāʿī related to us, they said: ʿAbda related to us, on the authority of al-Aʿmash, on the authority of Ibrāhīm, on the authority of ʿAlqama, on the authority of ʿAbd Allāh, who said: We were in the mosque on the night of Friday, when a man entered and said: If a man finds his wife with a man and kills him, you kill him; and if he speaks, you flog him. This was reported to the Prophet ﷺ, whereupon Allah revealed the verse of the mutual imprecation oath (liʿān). Then the man came, accused his wife, and the Prophet ﷺ had them pronounce the mutual imprecation oath. He said: "It may be that she will bring him forth black and curly-haired." And she brought him forth black and curly-haired.
Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: Jarīr ibn ʿAbd al-Ḥamīd related to us, on the authority of ʿAbd al-Malik ibn Abī Sulaymān, on the authority of Saʿīd ibn Jubayr, who said: I asked Ibn ʿUmar and said: O Abū ʿAbd al-Raḥmān, are the two who have pronounced the mutual imprecation oath separated from each other? He answered: Yes, glory be to Allah. The first who asked about that was so-and-so — he went to the Prophet ﷺ and asked him: What is your view if one of us were to catch his wife with a man — how is he to act? He gave him no answer to that. Later he returned and said: What I asked you about has befallen me. Thereupon Allah revealed this verse in Sūrat al-Nūr. The Prophet ﷺ summoned the man, admonished him, reminded him, and informed him that the punishment in this life is lighter than the punishment in the Hereafter. He said: By Him Who has sent you with the truth, I have seen it and have not lied about her. He summoned the woman, admonished her, reminded her and informed her that the punishment in this life is lighter than the punishment in the Hereafter. She said: By Him Who has sent you with the truth, he lies, he has seen nothing. The Prophet ﷺ began with the man, who gave four testimonies by Allah that he is among the truthful.
