Surah Nisa ayat 3 Tafsir Quran 4:3

﴿وَإِنْ خِفْتُمْ أَلَّا تُقْسِطُوا فِي الْيَتَامَىٰ فَانكِحُوا مَا طَابَ لَكُم مِّنَ النِّسَاءِ مَثْنَىٰ وَثُلَاثَ وَرُبَاعَ ۖ فَإِنْ خِفْتُمْ أَلَّا تَعْدِلُوا فَوَاحِدَةً أَوْ مَا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَانُكُمْ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ أَدْنَىٰ أَلَّا تَعُولُوا﴾
[ النساء: 3]

4:3 And if you fear that you will not deal justly with the orphan girls, then marry those that please you of [other] women, two or three or four. But if you fear that you will not be just, then [marry only] one or those your right hand possesses. That is more suitable that you may not incline [to injustice].

If you fear that you will not act justly that you will not be equitable towards the orphans and are thus distressed in this matter then also fear lest you be unjust towards women when you marry them; marry such mā means man women as seem good to you two or three or four that is each man may marry two or three or four but do not exceed this; but if you fear you will not be equitable towards them in terms of their expenses and individual share; then marry only one or restrict yourself to what your right hands own of slavegirls since these do not have the same rights as wives; thus by that marrying of only four or only one or resorting to slavegirls it is likelier it is nearer in outcome that you will not be unjust that you will not be inequitable.

Should you have an uneasy sense of the probability of an unjust action against the orphans interest consequent on volition stronger than your own viz. marriage for selfish motive principles, age incompatibility, inappropriate dower, marriage against their wish then make for them other arrangements

Protecting the Property of the Orphans Allah commands that the property of the orphans be surrendered to them in full when they reach the age of adolescence, and He forbids using or confiscating any part of it.
So He said; وَلاَ تَتَبَدَّلُواْ الْخَبِيثَ بِالطَّيِّبِ ( and do not exchange (your ) bad things for ( their ) good ones;) Sa`id bin Al-Musayyib and Az-Zuhri commented, "Do not substitute a weak animal of yours for a fat animal ( of the orphans )." Ibrahim An-Nakha`i and Ad-Dahhak commented, "Do not give something of bad quality for something of good quality." As-Suddi said, "One of them ( caretakers of orphans ) would take a fat sheep from the orphan's property and put in its place, a weak sheep of his, saying, `A sheep for a sheep.' He would also take a good Dirham and exchange it for a fake Dirham, saying, `A Dirham for a Dirham."' Allah's statement, وَلاَ تَأْكُلُواْ أَمْوَلَهُمْ إِلَى أَمْوَلِكُمْ ( and devour not their substance to your substance. ) means, do not mix them together so that you eat up both, as Mujahid, Sa`id bin Jubayr, Muqatil bin Hayyan, As-Suddi and Sufyan bin Hassin stated.
Allah said, إِنَّهُ كَانَ حُوباً كَبِيراً ( Surely, this is a great sin.
), a major and substantial sin, according to Ibn `Abbas.
This was also reported from Mujahid, `Ikrimah, Sa`id bin Jubayr, Al-Hasan, Ibn Sirin, Qatadah, Muqatil bin Hayyan, Ad-Dahhak, Abu Malik, Zayd bin Aslam and Abu Sinan.
The meaning above is: adding their property to your property is a grave sin and a major mistake, so avoid it. The Prohibition of Marrying Female Orphans Without Giving a Dowry Allah said, وَإِنْ خِفْتُمْ أَلاَّ تُقْسِطُواْ فِى الْيَتَـمَى فَانكِحُواْ مَا طَابَ لَكُمْ مِّنَ النِّسَآءِ مَثْنَى ( And if you fear that you shall not be able to deal justly with the orphan girls, then marry (other ) women of your choice, two) Allah commands, when one of you is the caretaker of a female orphan and he fears that he might not give her a dowry that is suitable for women of her status, he should marry other women, who are plenty as Allah has not restricted him.
Al-Bukhari recorded that `A'ishah said, "A man was taking care of a female orphan and he married her, although he did not desire to marry her.
That girl's money was mixed with his, and he was keeping her portion from her.
Afterwards, this Ayah was revealed about his case; وَإِنْ خِفْتُمْ أَلاَّ تُقْسِطُواْ ( If you fear that you shall not be able to deal justly )" Al-Bukhari recorded that `Urwah bin Az-Zubayr said that he asked `A'ishah about the meaning of the statement of Allah, وَإِنْ خِفْتُمْ أَلاَّ تُقْسِطُواْ فِى الْيَتَـمَى ( If you fear that you shall not be able to deal justly with the orphan girls. ) She said, "O my nephew! This is about the orphan girl who lives with her guardian and shares his property.
Her wealth and beauty may tempt him to marry her without giving her an adequate dowry which might have been given by another suitor.
So, such guardians were forbidden to marry such orphan girls unless they treated them justly and gave them the most suitable dowry; otherwise they were ordered to marry woman besides them." `A'ishah further said, "After that verse, the people again asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ ( about marriage with orphan girls ), so Allah revealed the Ayah, وَيَسْتَفْتُونَكَ فِى النِّسَآءِ ( They ask your instruction concerning the women.. ) 4:127." She said, "Allah's statement in this Ayah, وَتَرْغَبُونَ أَن تَنكِحُوهُنَّ ( yet whom you desire to marry ) 4:127 refers to the guardian who does not desire to marry an orphan girl under his supervision because she is neither wealthy nor beautiful.
The guardians were forbidden to marry their orphan girls possessing property and beauty without being just to them, as they generally refrain from marrying them ( when they are neither beautiful nor wealthy )." The Permission to Marry Four Women Allah's statement, مَثْنَى وَثُلَـثَ وَرُبَاعَ ( two or three, or four ), means, marry as many women as you like, other than the orphan girls, two, three or four.
We should mention that Allah's statement in another Ayah, جَاعِلِ الْمَلَـئِكَةِ رُسُلاً أُوْلِى أَجْنِحَةٍ مَّثْنَى وَثُلَـثَ وَرُبَـعَ ( Who made the angels messengers with wings, - two or three or four ) 35:1, does not mean that other angels do not have more than four wings, as there are proofs that some angels do have more wings.
Yet, men are prohibited from marrying more than four wives, as the Ayah decrees, since the Ayah specifies what men are allowed of wives, as Ibn `Abbas and the majority of scholars stated.
If it were allowed for them to have more than four wives, the Ayah would have mentioned it.
Imam Ahmad recorded that Salim said that his father said that Ghilan bin Salamah Ath-Thaqafi had ten wives when he became Muslim, and the Prophet said to him, "Choose any four of them ( and divorce the rest )." During the reign of `Umar, Ghilan divorced his remaining wives and divided his money between his children.
When `Umar heard news of this, he said to Ghilan, "I think that the devil has conveyed to your heart the news of your imminent death, from what the devil hears during his eavesdropping.
It may as well be that you will not remain alive but for a little longer.
By Allah! You will take back your wives and your money, or I will take possession of this all and will order that your grave be stoned as is the case with the grave of Abu Righal ( from Thamud, who was saved from their fate because he was in the Sacred Area.
But, when he left it, he was tormented like they were )." Ash-Shafi`i, At-Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah, Ad-Daraqutni and Al-Bayhaqi collected this Hadith up to the Prophet's statement, "Choose any four of them." Only Ahmad collected the full version of this Hadith.
Therefore, had it been allowed for men to marry more than four women at the same time, the Prophet would have allowed Ghilan to keep more than four of his wives since they all embraced Islam with him.
When the Prophet commanded him to keep just four of them and divorce the rest, this indicated that men are not allowed to keep more than four wives at a time under any circumstances.
If this is the case concerning those who already had more than four wives upon embracing Islam, then this ruling applies even more so to marrying more than four. Marrying Only One Wife When One Fears He Might not Do Justice to His Wives Allah's statement, فَإِنْ خِفْتُمْ أَلاَّ تَعْدِلُواْ فَوَحِدَةً أَوْ مَا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَـنُكُمْ ( But if you fear that you will not be able to deal justly (with them ), then only one or what your right hands possess.) The Ayah commands, if you fear that you will not be able to do justice between your wives by marrying more than one, then marry only one wife, or satisfy yourself with only female captives, for it is not obligatory to treat them equally, rather it is recommended.
So if one does so, that is good, and if not, there is no harm on him.
In another Ayah, Allah said, وَلَن تَسْتَطِيعُواْ أَن تَعْدِلُواْ بَيْنَ النِّسَآءِ وَلَوْ حَرَصْتُمْ ( You will never be able to do perfect justice between wives even if it is your ardent desire ) 4:129.
Allah said, ذلِكَ أَدْنَى أَلاَّ تَعُولُواْ ( That is nearer to prevent you from Ta`ulu ), meaning, from doing injustice.
Ibn Abi Hatim, Ibn Marduwyah and Abu Hatim Ibn Hibban, in his Sahih, recorded that `A'ishah said that, the Prophet said that the Ayah, ذلِكَ أَدْنَى أَلاَّ تَعُولُواْ ( That is nearer to prevent you from Ta`ulu ), means, from doing injustice.
However, Ibn Abi Hatim said that his father said that this Hadith to the Prophet is a mistake, for it should be attributed to `A'ishah not the Prophet .
Ibn Abi Hatim reported from Ibn `Abbas, `A'ishah, Mujahid, `Ikrimah, Al-Hasan, Abu Malik, Abu Razin, An-Nakha`i, Ash-Sha`bi, Ad-Dahhak, `Ata' Al-Khurasani, Qatadah, As-Suddi and Muqatil bin Hayyan that Ta`ulu means to deviate from justice. Giving the Dowry is Obligatory `Ali bin Abi Talhah reported Ibn `Abbas saying, Nihlah, in Allah's statement, وَءَاتُواْ النِّسَآءَ صَدُقَـتِهِنَّ نِحْلَةً ( And give to the women (whom you marry ) their Saduqat Nihlah) refers to the dowry.
Muhammad bin Ishaq narrated from Az-Zuhri that `Urwah said that `A'ishah said that `Nihlah' means `obligatory'.
Muqatil, Qatadah and Ibn Jurayj said, `Nihlah' means `obligatory' Ibn Jurayj added: `specified.' Ibn Zayd said, "In Arabic, Nihlah, refers to what is necessary.
So Allah is commanding: Do not marry unless you give your wife something that is her right.
No person after the Prophet is allowed to marry a woman except with the required dowry, nor by giving false promises about the dowry intended." Therefore, the man is required to pay a dowry to his wife with a good heart, just as he gives a gift with a good heart.
If the wife gives him part or all of that dowry with a good heart, her husband is allowed to take it, as it is lawful for him in this case.
This is why Allah said afterwards, فَإِن طِبْنَ لَكُمْ عَن شَىْءٍ مِّنْهُ نَفْساً فَكُلُوهُ هَنِيئاً مَّرِيئاً ( But if they, of their own pleasure, remit any part of it to you, take it, and enjoy it without fear of any harm. )

(4:3) If you fear that you might not treat the orphans justly, then marry the women that seem good to you: two, or three, or four. *4 If you fear that you will not be able to treat them justly, then marry (only) one, *5 or marry from among those whom your right hands possess. *6 This will make it more likely that you will avoid injustice.

And if you fear that you will meaning

*4).
Commentators have explained this in the following ways:
( i ) There is the view of 'A'ishah who says that men tended to marry orphan girls who were under their guardianship out of consideration for either their property, beauty or because they thought they would be able to treat them according to their whims, as they had no one to protect them.
After marriage such men sometimes committed excesses against these girls.
It is in this context that the Muslims are told that if they fear they will not be able to do justice to the orphan girls, then they should marry other girls whom they like.
( This interpretation seems to be supported by verse 127 of this surah. )
( ii ) The second view is that of Ibn 'Abbas and his disciple 'Ikrimah who expressed the opinion that in the Jahiliyah period there was no limit on the number of wives a man could take.
The result was that a man sometimes married as many as ten women and, when expenses increased because of a large family, he encroached on the rights either of his orphan nephews or other relatives.
It was in this context that God fixed the limit of four wives and instructed the Muslims that they may marry up to four wives providing they possessed the capacity to treat them equitably.
( iii ) Sa'id b.
Jubayr, Qatadah and some other commentators say that while the Arabs of the Jahiliyah period did not approve of subjecting orphans to wrong, they had no concept of justice and equity with regard to women.
They married as many women as they wanted and then subjected them to injustice and oppression.
It is in this context that people are told that if they fear perpetrating wrongs on orphans they ought to be equally worried about perpetrating them on women.
In the first place they should never marry more than four, and of those four, they should marry only as many as they can treat fairly.
Each of the three interpretations is plausible and all three may possibly be correct.
Moreover, the verse could also mean that if a person does not find himself able to treat orphans in a fair manner, then he might as well marry the women who are looking after those orphans.

*5).
Muslim jurists are agreed that according to this verse the maximum number Of wives has been fixed at four.
This conclusion is also supported by traditions.
It is reported that when Ghaylan, the chief of Ta'if, embraced Islam he had nine wives.
The Prophet ( peace be on him ) ordered him to keep only four wives and divorce the rest.
Another person, Nawfal b.
Mu'awiyah, had five wives.
The Prophet ( peace be on him ) ordered him to divorce one of them.
( For the relevant traditions see the comments of Ibn Kathir and Qurtubi on this verse - Ed. )
This verse stipulates that marrying more wives than one is permissible on the condition that one treats his wives equitably.
A person who avails himself of this permission granted by God to have a plurality of wives, and disregards the condition laid down by God to treat them equitably has not acted in good faith with God.
In case there are complaints from wives that they are not being treated equitably, the Islamic state has the right to intervene and redress such grievances.
Some people who have been overwhelmed and overawed by the Christianized outlook of Westerners have tried to prove that the real aim of the Qur'an was to put an end to polygamy ( which, in their opinion, is intrinsically evil ).
Since it was widely practised at that time, however, Islam confined itself to placing restrictions on it.
Such arguments only show the mental slavery to which these people have succumbed.
That polygamy is an evil per se is an unacceptable proposition, for under certain conditions it becomes a moral and social necessity.
If polygamy is totally prohibited men who cannot remain satisfied with only one wife will look outside the bounds of matrimonial life and create sexual anarchy and corruption.
This is likely to cause much greater harm than polygamy to the moral and social order.
For this reason the Qur'an has allowed those who feel the need for it to resort to polygamy.
Those who consider it an evil in itself may certainly denounce it in disregard of the Qur'an and may even argue for its abolition.
But they have no right to attribute such a view to the Qur'an, for it has expressed its permission of polygamy in quite categorical terms.
Indeed, there is not the slightest hint in the Qur'an that could justify the conclusion that it advocates abolition of polygamy.
( For further elaboration see my book, Sunnat k A'iniHaythiyat, Lahore, 3rd edition, 1975, pp.
307-16. )
*6).
This expression denotes 'slave-girls', i.e.
female captives of war who are distributed by the state among individuals.
The purpose of this verse is to tell men that if their financial circumstances do not permit them to support a free woman as their wife then they may marry a slave-girl ( see verse 25 below ); if they consider it necessary to have more than one wife and it would be difficult for them to treat their free wives equitably they may resort to slave-girls, for here the burden of obligations is lighter by comparison.
( For further injunctions regarding slave-girls seen.
44 below. )
 

Protecting the Property of the Orphans Allah commands that the property of the orphans be surrendered to them in full when they reach the age of adolescence, and He forbids using or confiscating any part of it.
So He said; وَلاَ تَتَبَدَّلُواْ الْخَبِيثَ بِالطَّيِّبِ ( and do not exchange (your ) bad things for ( their ) good ones;) Sa`id bin Al-Musayyib and Az-Zuhri commented, "Do not substitute a weak animal of yours for a fat animal ( of the orphans )." Ibrahim An-Nakha`i and Ad-Dahhak commented, "Do not give something of bad quality for something of good quality." As-Suddi said, "One of them ( caretakers of orphans ) would take a fat sheep from the orphan's property and put in its place, a weak sheep of his, saying, `A sheep for a sheep.' He would also take a good Dirham and exchange it for a fake Dirham, saying, `A Dirham for a Dirham."' Allah's statement, وَلاَ تَأْكُلُواْ أَمْوَلَهُمْ إِلَى أَمْوَلِكُمْ ( and devour not their substance to your substance. ) means, do not mix them together so that you eat up both, as Mujahid, Sa`id bin Jubayr, Muqatil bin Hayyan, As-Suddi and Sufyan bin Hassin stated.
Allah said, إِنَّهُ كَانَ حُوباً كَبِيراً ( Surely, this is a great sin.
), a major and substantial sin, according to Ibn `Abbas.
This was also reported from Mujahid, `Ikrimah, Sa`id bin Jubayr, Al-Hasan, Ibn Sirin, Qatadah, Muqatil bin Hayyan, Ad-Dahhak, Abu Malik, Zayd bin Aslam and Abu Sinan.
The meaning above is: adding their property to your property is a grave sin and a major mistake, so avoid it. The Prohibition of Marrying Female Orphans Without Giving a Dowry Allah said, وَإِنْ خِفْتُمْ أَلاَّ تُقْسِطُواْ فِى الْيَتَـمَى فَانكِحُواْ مَا طَابَ لَكُمْ مِّنَ النِّسَآءِ مَثْنَى ( And if you fear that you shall not be able to deal justly with the orphan girls, then marry (other ) women of your choice, two) Allah commands, when one of you is the caretaker of a female orphan and he fears that he might not give her a dowry that is suitable for women of her status, he should marry other women, who are plenty as Allah has not restricted him.
Al-Bukhari recorded that `A'ishah said, "A man was taking care of a female orphan and he married her, although he did not desire to marry her.
That girl's money was mixed with his, and he was keeping her portion from her.
Afterwards, this Ayah was revealed about his case; وَإِنْ خِفْتُمْ أَلاَّ تُقْسِطُواْ ( If you fear that you shall not be able to deal justly )" Al-Bukhari recorded that `Urwah bin Az-Zubayr said that he asked `A'ishah about the meaning of the statement of Allah, وَإِنْ خِفْتُمْ أَلاَّ تُقْسِطُواْ فِى الْيَتَـمَى ( If you fear that you shall not be able to deal justly with the orphan girls. ) She said, "O my nephew! This is about the orphan girl who lives with her guardian and shares his property.
Her wealth and beauty may tempt him to marry her without giving her an adequate dowry which might have been given by another suitor.
So, such guardians were forbidden to marry such orphan girls unless they treated them justly and gave them the most suitable dowry; otherwise they were ordered to marry woman besides them." `A'ishah further said, "After that verse, the people again asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ ( about marriage with orphan girls ), so Allah revealed the Ayah, وَيَسْتَفْتُونَكَ فِى النِّسَآءِ ( They ask your instruction concerning the women.. ) 4:127." She said, "Allah's statement in this Ayah, وَتَرْغَبُونَ أَن تَنكِحُوهُنَّ ( yet whom you desire to marry ) 4:127 refers to the guardian who does not desire to marry an orphan girl under his supervision because she is neither wealthy nor beautiful.
The guardians were forbidden to marry their orphan girls possessing property and beauty without being just to them, as they generally refrain from marrying them ( when they are neither beautiful nor wealthy )." The Permission to Marry Four Women Allah's statement, مَثْنَى وَثُلَـثَ وَرُبَاعَ ( two or three, or four ), means, marry as many women as you like, other than the orphan girls, two, three or four.
We should mention that Allah's statement in another Ayah, جَاعِلِ الْمَلَـئِكَةِ رُسُلاً أُوْلِى أَجْنِحَةٍ مَّثْنَى وَثُلَـثَ وَرُبَـعَ ( Who made the angels messengers with wings, - two or three or four ) 35:1, does not mean that other angels do not have more than four wings, as there are proofs that some angels do have more wings.
Yet, men are prohibited from marrying more than four wives, as the Ayah decrees, since the Ayah specifies what men are allowed of wives, as Ibn `Abbas and the majority of scholars stated.
If it were allowed for them to have more than four wives, the Ayah would have mentioned it.
Imam Ahmad recorded that Salim said that his father said that Ghilan bin Salamah Ath-Thaqafi had ten wives when he became Muslim, and the Prophet said to him, "Choose any four of them ( and divorce the rest )." During the reign of `Umar, Ghilan divorced his remaining wives and divided his money between his children.
When `Umar heard news of this, he said to Ghilan, "I think that the devil has conveyed to your heart the news of your imminent death, from what the devil hears during his eavesdropping.
It may as well be that you will not remain alive but for a little longer.
By Allah! You will take back your wives and your money, or I will take possession of this all and will order that your grave be stoned as is the case with the grave of Abu Righal ( from Thamud, who was saved from their fate because he was in the Sacred Area.
But, when he left it, he was tormented like they were )." Ash-Shafi`i, At-Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah, Ad-Daraqutni and Al-Bayhaqi collected this Hadith up to the Prophet's statement, "Choose any four of them." Only Ahmad collected the full version of this Hadith.
Therefore, had it been allowed for men to marry more than four women at the same time, the Prophet would have allowed Ghilan to keep more than four of his wives since they all embraced Islam with him.
When the Prophet commanded him to keep just four of them and divorce the rest, this indicated that men are not allowed to keep more than four wives at a time under any circumstances.
If this is the case concerning those who already had more than four wives upon embracing Islam, then this ruling applies even more so to marrying more than four. Marrying Only One Wife When One Fears He Might not Do Justice to His Wives Allah's statement, فَإِنْ خِفْتُمْ أَلاَّ تَعْدِلُواْ فَوَحِدَةً أَوْ مَا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَـنُكُمْ ( But if you fear that you will not be able to deal justly (with them ), then only one or what your right hands possess.) The Ayah commands, if you fear that you will not be able to do justice between your wives by marrying more than one, then marry only one wife, or satisfy yourself with only female captives, for it is not obligatory to treat them equally, rather it is recommended.
So if one does so, that is good, and if not, there is no harm on him.
In another Ayah, Allah said, وَلَن تَسْتَطِيعُواْ أَن تَعْدِلُواْ بَيْنَ النِّسَآءِ وَلَوْ حَرَصْتُمْ ( You will never be able to do perfect justice between wives even if it is your ardent desire ) 4:129.
Allah said, ذلِكَ أَدْنَى أَلاَّ تَعُولُواْ ( That is nearer to prevent you from Ta`ulu ), meaning, from doing injustice.
Ibn Abi Hatim, Ibn Marduwyah and Abu Hatim Ibn Hibban, in his Sahih, recorded that `A'ishah said that, the Prophet said that the Ayah, ذلِكَ أَدْنَى أَلاَّ تَعُولُواْ ( That is nearer to prevent you from Ta`ulu ), means, from doing injustice.
However, Ibn Abi Hatim said that his father said that this Hadith to the Prophet is a mistake, for it should be attributed to `A'ishah not the Prophet .
Ibn Abi Hatim reported from Ibn `Abbas, `A'ishah, Mujahid, `Ikrimah, Al-Hasan, Abu Malik, Abu Razin, An-Nakha`i, Ash-Sha`bi, Ad-Dahhak, `Ata' Al-Khurasani, Qatadah, As-Suddi and Muqatil bin Hayyan that Ta`ulu means to deviate from justice. Giving the Dowry is Obligatory `Ali bin Abi Talhah reported Ibn `Abbas saying, Nihlah, in Allah's statement, وَءَاتُواْ النِّسَآءَ صَدُقَـتِهِنَّ نِحْلَةً ( And give to the women (whom you marry ) their Saduqat Nihlah) refers to the dowry.
Muhammad bin Ishaq narrated from Az-Zuhri that `Urwah said that `A'ishah said that `Nihlah' means `obligatory'.
Muqatil, Qatadah and Ibn Jurayj said, `Nihlah' means `obligatory' Ibn Jurayj added: `specified.' Ibn Zayd said, "In Arabic, Nihlah, refers to what is necessary.
So Allah is commanding: Do not marry unless you give your wife something that is her right.
No person after the Prophet is allowed to marry a woman except with the required dowry, nor by giving false promises about the dowry intended." Therefore, the man is required to pay a dowry to his wife with a good heart, just as he gives a gift with a good heart.
If the wife gives him part or all of that dowry with a good heart, her husband is allowed to take it, as it is lawful for him in this case.
This is why Allah said afterwards, فَإِن طِبْنَ لَكُمْ عَن شَىْءٍ مِّنْهُ نَفْساً فَكُلُوهُ هَنِيئاً مَّرِيئاً ( But if they, of their own pleasure, remit any part of it to you, take it, and enjoy it without fear of any harm. )

( And if ye fear that ye will not deal fairly by the orphans ) and if you fear that you will not preserve orphans’ wealth, you should also fear not dealing fairly with women in relation to providing sustenance and apportionment. This was because they used to marry as many women as they liked, as many as nine or ten. Qays Ibn al-Harth for example had eight wives. Allah forbade them from doing so and prohibited them from marrying more than four wives, saying: ( marry of the women, who seem good to you ) marry that which Allah has made lawful for you, ( two or three or four ) marry one, two, three or four but do not marry more than four wives; ( and if ye fear that ye cannot do justice ) to four wives in relation to apportionment and providing sustenance ( then one (only )) then marry only one free woman ( or that your right hands possess ) of captives, and in that case you do not owe them any apportionment, and they need not observe any waiting period. ( Thus it ) marrying just one woman ( is more likely that ye will not do injustice ) that you will not incline to some at the expense of others or that you transgress regarding the provision of sustenance and apportionment to four wives.

And if you fear that you shall not be able to deal justly with the orphan-girls, then marry (other) women of your choice, two or three, or four but if you fear that you shall not be able to deal justly (with them), then only one or (the captives and the slaves) that your right hands possess. That is nearer to prevent you from doing injustice.

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