Surah At-Taghaabun (64) — Ayah 14

The word { يٰۤاَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوْۤا اِنَّ مِنْ اَزْوَاجِكُمْ وَ اَوْلَادِكُمْ عَدُوًّا لَّكُمْ … : ’’ عَدُوًّا ‘‘ ’’فَعُوْلٌ‘‘} is used for both singular and plural, as indicated by {’’ فَاحْذَرُوْهُمْ ‘‘}, it is used here for the plural. In {’’ مِنْ اَزْوَاجِكُمْ ‘‘}, {’’ مِنْ ‘‘} is for denoting a part, meaning some wives and children are enemies, not all, rather some are helpers in religion and the coolness of the eyes. In the previous verses, Allah has commanded obedience to Him and His Messenger, and now He commands to beware of something that generally becomes an obstacle in the way of obedience to Allah and His Messenger, and that is a man's wife and his children. Allah Almighty does not tolerate in any way that His believing servant loves anyone more than Him and His Messenger, or prefers the demand of any dear person over the demand of Allah and His Messenger. (See Tawbah: 24) Here, specifically, some wives and some children are mentioned, because a man is always with them and naturally loves them, so sometimes, out of love for them, he puts aside the commands of Allah and His Messenger, and for their comfort and luxury, he does not distinguish between halal and haram. At their insistence, he abandons many obligations, commits many unlawful acts, and thus destroys his Hereafter. Obviously, those family members who become the cause of the ruin of the Hereafter, no one can be a greater enemy to a man than them. Some wives and children, due to incompatibility or rebellion, actually have enmity with their husband or father, but these are such enemies that a man cannot keep enmity with them continuously, nor can he separate from them, rather he has to live with them. Therefore, it is said that the remedy for their enmity is not to beat them, stop their expenses, or separate from them, but instead of beating and being harsh, if you forgive them, overlook them, and cover up their mistakes, it is better for you and pleasing to Allah, because Allah is Oft-Forgiving and very merciful. However, despite this forgiveness and overlooking, remain steadfast on the piety of Allah as much as you can and keep advising them of it. Surely, there is much wisdom in this command of Allah, because sometimes, due to a man's harshness, children become rebellious, whereas with forgiveness, continuous advice, and remaining steadfast on piety oneself, there is more hope for their reform.

Ikrimah says that a man asked Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) about this verse {’’ يٰۤاَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوْۤا اِنَّ مِنْ اَزْوَاجِكُمْ وَ اَوْلَادِكُمْ عَدُوًّا لَّكُمْ فَاحْذَرُوْهُمْ ‘‘}, so he said: "These were some people from the people of Makkah who became Muslim and intended to come to the Prophet (peace be upon him) (remember that in those days, it was obligatory for every new Muslim to migrate to Madinah), but their wives and children did not let them come to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). Then, when they came to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), they saw that other people had already gained understanding of the religion, so they intended to punish their wives and children, so Allah revealed this verse." [ ترمذي، التفسیر، سورۃ التغابن : ۳۳۱۷ وقال الألباني حسن ]