سورة الاٴحزَاب
Surah Al-Ahzâb 33:37
The Confederates · Verse 37 of 73
وَإِذْ تَقُولُ لِلَّذِي أَنْعَمَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَأَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيْهِ أَمْسِكْ عَلَيْكَ زَوْجَكَ وَاتَّقِ اللَّهَ وَتُخْفِي فِي نَفْسِكَ مَا اللَّهُ مُبْدِيهِ وَتَخْشَى النَّاسَ وَاللَّهُ أَحَقُّ أَنْ تَخْشَاهُ ۖ فَلَمَّا قَضَىٰ زَيْدٌ مِنْهَا وَطَرًا زَوَّجْنَاكَهَا لِكَيْ لَا يَكُونَ عَلَى الْمُؤْمِنِينَ حَرَجٌ فِي أَزْوَاجِ أَدْعِيَائِهِمْ إِذَا قَضَوْا مِنْهُنَّ وَطَرًا ۚ وَكَانَ أَمْرُ اللَّهِ مَفْعُولًا
Abdul Mannan Omar
And (recall the time) when you said to the man (- Zaid son of Hârithah, a slave freed by the Prophet) on whom Allâh had bestowed His favour and whom you also had favoured, `Keep your wife (- Zainab) to yourself (and do not divorce her) and take Allâh as a shield. And you (O Zaid!) conceal (the cause of the failure of the marriage) in your mind, what Allâh is going to bring to light (that the responsibility of the failure rests more upon Zaid than upon Zainab); and you are (also) afraid of the people whereas Allâh has a better right that you should stand in awe of Him.´ However when Zaid had done what he intended to do with her (- his wife and dissolved the marriage tie with her), We gave her (- the divorced lady) in marriage to you, so that the believers might incur no blame in (getting married to) the wives of their adopted sons after they had dissolved the marriage tie with them. Indeed, the decree of Allâh is ever executed.
Abdullah Yusuf Ali
Behold! Thou didst say to one who had received the grace of Allah and thy favour: "Retain thou (in wedlock) thy wife, and fear Allah." But thou didst hide in thy heart that which Allah was about to make manifest: thou didst fear the people, but it is more fitting that thou shouldst fear Allah. Then when Zaid had dissolved (his marriage) with her, with the necessary (formality), We joined her in marriage to thee: in order that (in future) there may be no difficulty to the Believers in (the matter of) marriage with the wives of their adopted sons, when the latter have dissolved with the necessary (formality) (their marriage) with them. And Allah's command must be fulfilled.
Ahmed Ali
When you said to him who had been favoured by God and was favoured by you: "Keep your wife to yourself and fear God," you were hiding something God was about to bring to light, for you had fear of men, though you should fear God more. And when Zaid was through with her, We gave her to you in marriage, so that it may not remain a sin for the faithful (to marry) the wives of their adopted sons when they are through with them. God´s command is to be fulfilled.
12 more translations
Ali Unal
(Remember) when you (O Messenger) said to him whom God has favored (with guidance to Islam and close companionship with the Prophet), and whom you have favored (with kind treatment, special consideration, and emancipation): "Retain your wife in marriage and fear God (concerning your treatment of her)." You were hiding within yourself what God (had already decreed and) would certainly bring to light: you were feeling apprehensive of people (that they might react in a way harmful to their faith), while God has a greater right that you should fear Him (lest you err in the implementation of His commands). So, when Zayd had come to the end of his union with her (and she had completed her period of waiting after the divorce), We united you with her in marriage, so that there should be no blame (or legal impediment) for the believers in respect of (their marrying) the wives of those whom they called their sons (though they really were not), when the latter have come to the end of their union with them. And God’s command must be fulfilled.
Daryabadi
And recall what time thou wast saying unto him on whom Allah had conferred favour and thou hadst conferred favour: keep thy wife to thyself and fear Allah; so and thou wast concealing in thy mind that which Allah was going to disclose, and thou wast fearing mankind, whereas Allah had a better right that Him thou shouldst fear. Then when Zaid had performed his purpose concerning her, We wedded her to thee, that there should be no blame for believers in respect of wives of their adopted sons, when they have performed their purpose concerning them. And the ordinance of Allah was to be fulfilled.
Faridul Haque
And O dear Prophet, remember when you said to him upon whom Allah has bestowed favour and you had bestowed favour, “Keep your wife with you, and fear Allah”, and you kept in your heart what Allah willed to make known, and you feared criticism from the people; and Allah has more right that you should fear Him; so when Zaid became unconcerned with her, We gave her to you in marriage, so that there may be no sin upon believers in respect of the wives of their adopted sons when they have become unconcerned with them; and the command of Allah must be carried out.
Maulana Muhammad Ali
And when thou saidst to him to whom Allah had shown favour and to whom thou hadst shown a favour: Keep thy wife to thyself and keep thy duty to Allah; and thou concealedst in thy heart what Allah would bring to light, and thou fearedst men, and Allah has a greater right that thou shouldst fear Him. So when Zaid dissolved her marriage-tie, We gave her to thee as a wife, so that there should be no difficulty for the believers about the wives of their adopted sons, when they have dissolved their marriage-tie. And Allah
Maulvi Sher Ali
And call to mind when thou didst say to him on whom ALLAH had bestowed favours and on whom thou also hadst bestowed favours: `Keep thy wife to thyself, and fear ALLAH,' and thou didst conceal in thy heart what ALLAH was going to bring to light, and thou didst fear the people, whereas ALLAH has better right that thou shouldst fear HIM. Then, when Zaid had accomplished his want concerning her, WE joined her in marriage to thee, so that there may be no difficulty for the believers with regard to marriage with the wives of their adopted sons, when they have accomplished their wants concerning them. And ALLAH's decree was bound to be fulfilled.
Muhammad Asad
AND LO, [O Muhammad,] thou didst say unto the one to whom God had shown favour and to whom thou hadst shown favour, "Hold on to thy wife, and remain conscious of God!" And [thus] wouldst thou hide within thyself something that God was about to bring to light - for thou didst stand in awe of (what] people [might think], whereas it was God alone of whom thou shouldst have stood in awe!
Muhammad Musin Khan
And (remember) when you said to him (Zaid bin Harithah radhiallahu'anhu the freed-slave of the Prophet SAW) on whom Allah has bestowed Grace (by guiding him to Islam) and you (O Muhammad SAW too) have done favour (by manumitting him) "Keep your wife to yourself, and fear Allah." But you did hide in yourself (i.e. what Allah has already made known to you that He will give her to you in marriage) that which Allah will make manifest, you did fear the people (i.e., Muhammad SAW married the divorced wife of his manumitted slave) whereas Allah had a better right that you should fear Him. So when Zaid had accomplished his desire from her (i.e. divorced her), We gave her to you in marriage, so that (in future) there may be no difficulty to the believers in respect of (the marriage of) the wives of their adopted sons when the latter have no desire to keep them (i.e. they have divorced them). And Allah's Command must be fulfilled.
Muhammad Pickthall
And when thou saidst unto him on whom Allah hath conferred favour and thou hast conferred favour: Keep thy wife to thyself, and fear Allah. And thou didst hide in thy mind that which Allah was to bring to light, and thou didst fear mankind whereas Allah hath a better right that thou shouldst fear Him. So when Zeyd had performed that necessary formality (of divorce) from her, We gave her unto thee in marriage, so that (henceforth) there may be no sin for believers in respect of wives of their adopted sons, when the latter have performed the necessary formality (of release) from them. The commandment of Allah must be fulfilled.
Muhammad Sarwar
Say to the person to whom you and God have granted favor, "Keep your wife and have fear of God. You hide within yourself what God wants to make public. You are afraid of people while it is God whom one should fear." When Zayd set her free, We gave her in marriage to you so that the believers would not face difficulties about the wives of their adopted sons when they are divorced. God's decree has already been issued.
Muhammed ali Shakir
And when you said to him to whom Allah had shown favor and to whom you had shown a favor: Keep your wife to yourself and be careful of (your duty to) Allah; and you concealed in your soul what Allah would bring to light, and you feared men, and Allah had a greater right that you should fear Him. But when Zaid had accomplished his want of her, We gave her to you as a wife, so that there should be no difficulty for the believers in respect of the wives of their adopted sons, when they have accomplished their want of them; and Allah's command shall be performed.
Rashad Khalifa
Recall that you said to the one who was blessed by GOD, and blessed by you, "Keep your wife and reverence GOD," and you hid inside yourself what GOD wished to proclaim. Thus, you feared the people, when you were supposed to fear only GOD. When Zeid was completely through with his wife, we had you marry her, in order to establish the precedent that a man may marry the divorced wife of his adopted son. GOD's commands shall be done.
Shabbir Ahmed
(In personal matters you may respectfully disagree with Muhammad in the capacity of a human being 3:79. As an example) Recall that you did tell the one to whom God had blessed and you had blessed, “Hold on to your wife and be mindful of God. You seek to conceal within yourself what God intends to reveal. You fear people whereas it is more appropriate to fear God.” But when Zaid had concluded the marriage and divorced her, We gave her to you in marriage, so that henceforth there may be no blame on the believers in respect of marrying the spouses of their adopted children when they have come to the dissolution of their union. The directive of God is always fulfilled.
Commentary 33:37 The Qur’ânic teachings make no distinction of nation, race, or family. In order to give it a practical shape, the Holy Prophet (pbuh) decided to give…
وَإِذْ تَقُولُ لِلَّذِي أَنْعَمَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَأَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيْهِ أَمْسِكْ عَلَيْكَ زَوْجَكَ وَاتَّقِ اللَّهَ وَتُخْفِي فِي نَفْسِكَ مَا اللَّهُ مُبْدِيهِ وَتَخْشَى النَّاسَ وَاللَّهُ أَحَقُّ أَن تَخْشَاهُ ۖ فَلَمَّا قَضَىٰ زَيْدٌ مِّنْهَا وَطَرًا زَوَّجْنَاكَهَا لِكَيْ لَا يَكُونَ عَلَى الْمُؤْمِنِينَ حَرَجٌ فِي أَزْوَاجِ أَدْعِيَائِهِمْ إِذَا قَضَوْا مِنْهُنَّ وَطَرًا ۚ وَكَانَ أَمْرُ اللَّهِ مَفْعُولًا
33:37 The Qur’ânic teachings make no distinction of nation, race, or family. In order to give it a practical shape, the Holy Prophet (pbuh) decided to give Zainab, his cousin, daughter of his aunt Umaimah and ‘Abdul Muttalib, to Zaid Ibn Harithah. He was a slave who was bought and then freed by the Holy Prophet (pbuh). After giving Zaid his freedom, the Holy Prophet (pbuh) adopted him as his son. In spite of this, Zaid still carried the stigma of slavery in the minds of many people. It was this stigma, this invidious distinction between free and slave, which the Holy Prophet (pbuh) sought to remove through this marriage with Zainab, who was considered by the Arabs to be of very high status. But unfortunately the marriage did not bring happiness to either Zainab or Zaid. On several occasions Zaid was about to divorce his new wife. Each time he was persuaded by the Holy Prophet (pbuh) to persevere in patience and hold on to her, as divorce, according to Islam is to be discouraged. He also feared that the breakdown may result in an ostensible failure of the experiment in Islamic brotherhood and this would cause some confusion and uneasiness among people who were weak in faith.
In the end, the marriage proved unstable and Zaid divorced Zainab in the year 5 A.H. Afterwards the Holy Prophet (pbuh) married the divorced Zainab possibly in order to redeem what he considered to be his moral responsibility for her past unhappiness. However, the Holy Qur’ân does not give this as the reason. The reason is plainly given in the second part of the verse, “We gave her in marriage to you, so that the believers might incur no blame in [getting married to] to the wives of their adoptive sons after they have dissolved the marriage tie with them.”
The Divine Purpose in causing him to marry the former wife of his so-called adopted son was to show that an adoptive relationship does not involve any of the marriage restrictions, which result from actual, biological parent and child relations. Thus, this separation also served a very useful purpose by cutting at the very root of the Arab custom, which made it a sacrilege to marry the divorced wife of ones adopted son (cf. 33:4). The next verse shows that this marriage of the Holy Prophet (pbuh) took place in obedience to Divine command. Takhshi al-Nâs تَخْشَى النَّاس – “You are afraid of the people” – refers in the first instance to the person who is being addressed in the foregoing sentence, namely Zaid, the husband of Zainab. “You are afraid of people, whereas Allâh has a better right that you should stand in awe of Him” is a basic Divine Command found at many points within the Holy Qur’ân (cf. 2:150; 5:3; 5:44; 9:13; 33:39). Some opponents of Islam say that here we read that it was the Holy Prophet (pbuh) who was afraid of people, however. verse 33:39 challenges all such allegations. There we read, الَّذِينَ يُبَلِّغُونَ رِسَالَاتِ اللَّهِ وَيَخْشَوْنَهُ وَلَا يَخْشَوْنَ أَحَدًا إِلَّا اللَّهَ “Those who deliver the message of Allâh stand in awe of Him, and stand in awe of none but Allâh.”