Surah At-Talaaq (65) — Ayah 2

(Ayah 2) ➊ { فَاِذَا بَلَغْنَ اَجَلَهُنَّ :} That is, when their waiting period is about to end, because after the waiting period is over, reconciliation is not possible.

➋ {فَاَمْسِكُوْهُنَّ بِمَعْرُوْفٍ اَوْ فَارِقُوْهُنَّ بِمَعْرُوْفٍ … :} That is, when the waiting period of the women is about to end, and only so much remains in which reconciliation is possible, then either retain them in a good (honorable) manner or separate from them in a good manner. Retaining them in a good manner means to reconcile with them with the intention of living together honorably in the future, and keep them as your wife as before, and appoint witnesses to this reconciliation. Separating in a good manner means not to reconcile, but rather leave them as they are, so that the waiting period ends and they are automatically separated from you, then let them go without any quarrel or harsh words. The goodness in this is that although after the waiting period is over, they are free to marry any man they wish, they also have the option to marry their former husbands.

➌ In Surah Al-Baqarah and here, after the first or second divorce, only two options are mentioned: one is to reconcile before the waiting period ends, and the other is to separate in a good manner, that is, not to reconcile but let the waiting period end and separate in a good way. There is no command to give a second or third divorce before the waiting period ends. For a woman who menstruates, this is the Sunnah method of divorce. Some people describe the Sunnah method of divorce as: when the woman is pure from menstruation, give her one divorce without intercourse, give the second divorce in the next purity, and the third divorce in the third purity. However, this is not the Sunnah divorce at all. How can this be Sunnah divorce when the waiting period of the first divorce is still ongoing, it has not reached its end, nor has reconciliation occurred, so what is the meaning of the second and third divorce? Then, in this, without necessity, the woman is made permanently unlawful, which is against the very purpose of Shariah. There are only two Sunnah divorces: one is what is mentioned in the verse, and Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) narrated from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) that when a woman is pure from menstruation, she should be divorced without intercourse, then if there is an intention to keep her, reconcile before the waiting period ends, or let the waiting period end, by which she will be automatically separated. The second form of Sunnah divorce is to divorce during pregnancy, then either reconcile before childbirth or separate after the waiting period ends.

Those who consider divorce in every purity as Sunnah present the statement of Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) as evidence. It is in Sunan Nasa'i: [ أَخْبَرَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ يَحْيَی بْنِ أَيُّوْبَ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا حَفْصُ بْنُ غِيَاثٍ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا الْأَعْمَشُ، عَنْ أَبِيْ إِسْحَاقَ، عَنْ أَبِي الْأَحْوَصِ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللّٰهِ أَنَّهُ قَالَ طَلاَقُ السُّنَّةِ تَطْلِيْقَةٌ وَهِيَ طَاهِرٌ فِيْ غَيْرِ جِمَاعٍ فَإِذَا حَاضَتْ وَطَهُرَتْ طَلَّقَهَا أُخْرٰی فَإِذَا حَاضَتْ وَطَهُرَتْ طَلَّقَهَا أُخْرٰی ثُمَّ تَعْتَدُّ بَعْدَ ذٰلِكَ بِحَيْضَةٍ ] [ نسائي، الطلاق، باب طلاق السنۃ : ۳۴۲۳ ] "Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said: 'The Sunnah divorce is that a woman is divorced once in a state of purity without intercourse, then when she menstruates and becomes pure, she is given the second divorce, then when she menstruates and becomes pure, she is given the third divorce, then after that she observes one menstruation as waiting period.'" But the detail of Sunnah divorce mentioned in this narration is not correct, because it is against the verse of the Qur'an, and from Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) himself, the method of divorce according to the verse is proven with a better chain than this. Ibn Abi Shaybah (may Allah have mercy on him) says: [ حَدَّثَنَا وَكِيْعٌ، عَنْ إِسْرَائِيْلَ، عَنْ أَبِيْ إِسْحَاقَ، عَنْ أَبِي الْأَحْوَصِ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللّٰهِ قَالَ مَنْ أَرَادَ الطَّلاَقَ الَّذِيْ هُوَ الطَّلاَقُ فَلْيُطَلِّقْهَا تَطْلِيْقَةً، ثُمَّ يَدَعُهَا حَتّٰی تَحِيْضَ ثَلاَثَ حِيَضٍ ] [مصنف ابن أبي شیبۃ، الطلاق، باب ما یستحب من طلاق السنۃ : 4/5، ح : ۱۸۰۳۶ ] "Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said: 'Whoever wants to divorce, the real divorce is that he gives the woman one divorce, then leaves her as she is until she has three menstruations.'"

Note that both narrations from Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) have the same chain from Abu Ishaq to Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him), but in the narration of Nasa'i, the one narrating from Abu Ishaq is A'mash, who is a well-known mudallis, whereas in the chain of Ibn Abi Shaybah, the one narrating from Abu Ishaq is his grandson Isra'il bin Yunus bin Ishaq, about whom Abu Hatim said: {’’هُوَ مِنْ أَتْقَنِ أَصْحَابِ أَبِيْ إِسْحَاقَ‘‘} "He is among the most reliable students of Abu Ishaq." Remember that Isra'il is not accused of tadlis, so his narration will be considered reliable. The definition of Sunnah divorce narrated by A'mash from Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) in Nasa'i is not authentic.

➍ { وَ اَشْهِدُوْا ذَوَيْ عَدْلٍ مِّنْكُمْ :} That is, when you intend to reconcile, appoint two just men as witnesses, so that later there is no risk of any kind of dispute or falling into sin. For example, if the husband has reconciled but did not appoint witnesses and dies, his heirs can deprive his wife of inheritance by saying that you were already divorced and there is no witness to reconciliation, so you are neither his wife nor do you have a right to inheritance. Similarly, if the husband reconciles without witnesses and the woman does not fear Allah and wants to marry elsewhere, she can say after the waiting period ends that the husband did not reconcile with me, now I am free and can marry wherever I wish. Likewise, if the condition of witnesses is not met, even after the waiting period ends, the husband can claim that he reconciled before the waiting period ended. Just as in reconciliation, in the case of separation after the waiting period ends, the command is also to appoint witnesses, so that none of the above-mentioned problems arise.

Note that the Sunnah is that witnesses should be appointed for both divorce and reconciliation. Mutarrif bin Abdullah says: [ أَنَّ عِمْرَانَ بْنَ حُصَيْنٍ سُئِلَ عَنِ الرَّجُلِ يُطَلِّقُ امْرَأَتَهُ ثُمَّ يَقَعُ بِهَا وَلَمْ يُشْهِدْ عَلٰی طَلاَقِهَا وَلاَ عَلٰی رَجْعَتِهَا فَقَالَ طَلَّقْتَ لِغَيْرِ سُنَّةٍ وَرَاجَعْتَ لِغَيْرِ سُنَّةٍ أَشْهِدْ عَلٰی طَلاَقِهَا وَعَلٰی رَجْعَتِهَا وَلاَ تَعُدْ ] [أبو داوٗد، الطلاق، باب الرجل یراجع ولایشھد : ۲۱۸۶ ] "Imran bin Husain (may Allah be pleased with him) was asked about a man who divorces his wife and then has intercourse with her, but neither did he appoint witnesses for the divorce nor for the reconciliation? He replied: 'You divorced against the Sunnah and reconciled against the Sunnah. Appoint witnesses for the divorce and for the reconciliation, and do not do this again.'"

➎ { وَ اَقِيْمُوا الشَّهَادَةَ لِلّٰهِ :} This is a command to the witnesses to give testimony for the sake of Allah's pleasure. This command is given because a person faces many difficulties in giving testimony; he has to leave his very important work, appear before the judge, and sometimes come from far away. In addition, there is the risk of displeasing many people and many other obstacles, but only the pleasure of Allah is such a thing for which a person endures every hardship and gives true testimony.

➏ { ذٰلِكُمْ يُوْعَظُ بِهٖ … :} Some scholars have stated here that the commands given above regarding fixing the time of divorce or counting it, not expelling from the house during the waiting period, reconciling or separating before the waiting period ends, and appointing witnesses, are in the nature of advice and admonition, not law. This statement of these scholars is not correct; in reality, these commands also have the status of law. Any action of divorce or reconciliation or otherwise that is against them is not valid. For example, if someone does not count the waiting period at all, how can his reconciliation or separation be valid? Yes, if it is proven by some other evidence that any of these commands is for recommendation, that is another matter. In the terminology of the Qur'an, the word "admonition" is used for highly emphasized commands, about whose legal status there is no disagreement. See Surah Al-Mujadila (3), Al-Baqarah (231), An-Nahl (90), and An-Nur (17).

➐ { وَ مَنْ يَّتَّقِ اللّٰهَ يَجْعَلْ لَّهٗ مَخْرَجًا :} No one except the spouses themselves or Allah knows the mutual matters between husband and wife. If either of them, after oppression, excess, or betrayal, resorts to lying, no one in the world can refute them. Only the fear of Allah is such a thing that can prevent them from every kind of sin. Therefore, Allah has emphasized His piety in the matter of marriage and divorce, as in every matter. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) used to recite three verses at the time of marriage, and in all three, piety is emphasized. Here, attention is drawn to the fact that in domestic disputes, a person does wrong or says wrong things to prove himself right and thinks that in this way his problems will be solved, and if he fears Allah and does the right thing or says the right thing, he will get into trouble. Allah said: In every situation, easy or difficult, keep fearing Allah and do what piety demands. Do not fear getting into trouble; whoever fears Allah, Allah will make a way out for him, and if there is any loss in adopting piety, such as the wife not staying or loss of wealth, Allah will compensate him with something better from where he could not even imagine. Elsewhere, Allah has commanded to fear Him and speak straight and clear words instead of resorting to cunning and lies to prove oneself right in resolving disputes, and has promised to set right all matters and cover past mistakes, saying: « يٰۤاَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللّٰهَ وَ قُوْلُوْا قَوْلًا سَدِيْدًا (70) يُّصْلِحْ لَكُمْ اَعْمَالَكُمْ وَ يَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ ذُنُوْبَكُمْ وَ مَنْ يُّطِعِ اللّٰهَ وَ رَسُوْلَهٗ فَقَدْ فَازَ فَوْزًا عَظِيْمًا » [ الأحزاب : 71،10 ] "O you who have believed! Fear Allah and speak straight words. He will set right your deeds for you and forgive your sins for you, and whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger has certainly attained a great success."

➑ The explanation of {’’ وَ مَنْ يَّتَّقِ اللّٰهَ يَجْعَلْ لَّهٗ مَخْرَجًا (2) وَّ يَرْزُقْهُ مِنْ حَيْثُ لَا يَحْتَسِبُ ‘‘} given above is according to the context of this place, otherwise the words of the verse are general. Therefore, not only in marriage and divorce, but in any matter, whoever fears Allah and avoids His disobedience even in the most difficult circumstances, Allah will surely make a way out for him sooner or later and provide for him from where he could not even imagine. Similarly, whoever keeps fearing Allah, Allah will make a way out for him from the sorrows of the world, the worries of the Hereafter, and the hardships of death and the Day of Judgment.

➒ Ibn Kathir has mentioned, with reference to Ibn Abi Hatim, the statement of Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: [ إِنَّ أَجْمَعَ آيَةٍ فِي الْقُرْآنِ : « اِنَّ اللّٰهَ يَاْمُرُ بِالْعَدْلِ وَ الْاِحْسَانِ» [النحل : ۹۰ ] وَإِنَّ أَكْبَرَ آيَةٍ فِي الْقُرْآنِ فَرَجًا : « وَ مَنْ يَّتَّقِ اللّٰهَ يَجْعَلْ لَّهٗ مَخْرَجًا » [الطلاق : ۲ ] ] "The most comprehensive verse of the Qur'an is {’’ اِنَّ اللّٰهَ يَاْمُرُ بِالْعَدْلِ وَ الْاِحْسَانِ ‘‘} and the greatest verse of relief from difficulty in the Qur'an is {’’ وَ مَنْ يَّتَّقِ اللّٰهَ يَجْعَلْ لَّهٗ مَخْرَجًا ‘‘}." The researcher of Ibn Kathir, Hikmat bin Basheer, said that its chain is good.

➓ Note that at this place, Ibn Kathir has mentioned the incident of 'Awf bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him), the son of Malik bin Ashja'i (may Allah be pleased with him), who was captured by the enemy and they had tied him up. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said to send him a message to recite {’’لاَحَوْلَ وَلاَ قُوَّةَ إِلاَّ بِاللّٰهِ‘‘} abundantly, as a result of which his shackles fell off and he returned safely with the enemy's camels. Upon this, this verse was revealed: « وَ مَنْ يَّتَّقِ اللّٰهَ يَجْعَلْ لَّهٗ مَخْرَجًا (2) وَّ يَرْزُقْهُ مِنْ حَيْثُ لَا يَحْتَسِبُ » In view of Allah's mercy and power, such a thing is not difficult, but the researcher of Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Hikmat bin Basheer, has written that all its chains are weak due to being mursal or munqati'.

2. 1. The waiting period (‘iddah) for a divorced woman who has been consummated with is three menstrual cycles. If reconciliation is intended, then reconcile before the waiting period ends. Otherwise, separate from them according to what is recognized as fair.
2. 2. For this reconciliation, and according to some, for the divorce, appoint witnesses. This command is not for obligation, but for recommendation, meaning appointing witnesses is better, though not necessary.
2. 3. This emphasis is for the witnesses, that they should give their testimony truthfully, without favor or greed.
2. 4. That is, He creates a way out from hardships and trials.

2. Then, when they have reached the end of their waiting period, either retain them in a fair manner [7] or release them in a fair manner. And take two just [8] witnesses from among yourselves, and bear witness for Allah with justice [9]. This is the advice given to whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day [10]. And whoever fears Allah, He will make a way out [11] for him.

[7]
The Plight of Women Regarding Divorce in the Age of Ignorance:

That is, when the waiting period (‘iddah) of your divorced wife in your house is about to end, then you have two options before you: one is that if you definitely want to leave them, then fulfill all their rights and, in addition, treat them generously and give them something more according to your capacity. Do not make any accusations against her as she leaves, nor cause her any kind of pain. Rather, despite any grievances, bid farewell to your life partner like decent and noble people. And if you want to keep her settled in your house, then take her back. In this matter, your intention should be good and you should truly intend to keep that woman settled. It should not be that you take her back just to inflict further punishment on your wife and keep her with you for that purpose. By giving this command, Allah Almighty put an end to the countless oppressions inflicted upon women in the age of ignorance. Imam Tirmidhi has described this painful condition of women as follows: Sayyidah Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) says that a man would give as many divorces as he wished to his wives and then take them back during the ‘iddah. Even if that man gave a hundred or more divorces, he would continue to do so. Until one (Ansari) man said to his wife: “By Allah! I will neither divorce you so that you can separate from me, nor will I keep you settled.” The woman asked, “How is that?” He said: “I will divorce you, and when your ‘iddah is about to end, I will take you back.” Hearing this, the woman went to Sayyidah Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) and told her of her plight. Sayyidah Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) remained silent until the Messenger of Allah ﷺ arrived. Sayyidah Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) narrated the incident to him, and he too remained silent until the Quran (this verse) was revealed: “Divorce is only twice, then either keep them in a good manner or release them with kindness.” [ترمذی۔ ابو اب الطلاق واللعان۔ باب بلا عنوان]

[8]
The Benefit of Appointing Witnesses for Revocation and Divorce:

That is, if you have taken her back and kept her with you, then also appoint two reliable witnesses so that later the spouses are not accused. And if you are to release her, then also appoint witnesses. It should be clear that this witnessing is not a condition for revocation and divorce, such that if witnesses are not appointed, the revocation and divorce would be ineffective and not take place. Rather, this command is given as a precaution so that later no party can deny any incident and, in case of dispute, a decision can be easily made and the door to doubts and suspicions is closed.

[9] That is, if after release or revocation a dispute arises between the parties regarding any matter, the witnesses should never act with partiality, nor speak ambiguously, nor act with deception, but rather give clear and straightforward truthful testimony.

[10]
Moral Instructions Regarding Divorce:

That is, these instructions are for your own welfare and are in the nature of advice and admonition. They do not have the status of law. That is, if a person divorces his wife during menstruation or in a period of purity in which he has had intercourse, then although he has acted against the Sunnah and committed a sin, the divorce will still take effect. Similarly, if he has revoked only to cause distress, this revocation will also be legally accepted. Or if, at the time of release, instead of treating her well, he throws her out harshly, even then there will be no doubt about the occurrence of divorce. These instructions are for the person who believes in Allah and the Hereafter and fears Allah. He will act upon them because it is a requirement of his faith, and also because disobeying these commands will result in questioning and accountability in the Hereafter.

[11] Domestic issues, and especially the relationship between husband and wife, sometimes become so complicated that the more a person tries to resolve them, the more complicated and entangled they become. In such distressing circumstances, a person’s approach should be that whatever he does, he should do it fearing Allah. If clear commands exist, he should act upon them, and if clear commands are not found, then he should make the fear of Allah his guiding light, try to ascertain Allah’s will, and act upon it, entrusting the outcome to Allah. It is Allah’s work to bring one out of these complicated situations and grant deliverance from them. He Himself will make one understand a way out or create a new path.