مَّا جَعَلَ ٱللَّهُ لِرَجُلٍ مِّن قَلْبَيْنِ فِى جَوْفِهِۦ ۚ وَمَا جَعَلَ أَزْوَٰجَكُمُ ٱلَّـٰٓـِٔى تُظَـٰهِرُونَ مِنْهُنَّ أُمَّهَـٰتِكُمْ ۚ وَمَا جَعَلَ أَدْعِيَآءَكُمْ أَبْنَآءَكُمْ ۚ ذَٰلِكُمْ قَوْلُكُم بِأَفْوَٰهِكُمْ ۖ وَٱللَّهُ يَقُولُ ٱلْحَقَّ وَهُوَ يَهْدِى ٱلسَّبِيلَ 4
Translations
Allāh has not made for a man two hearts in his interior. And He has not made your wives whom you declare unlawful your mothers. And He has not made your claimed [i.e., adopted] sons your [true] sons. That is [merely] your saying by your mouths, but Allāh says the truth, and He guides to the [right] way.
Transliteration
Mā ja'ala Allāhu lirrajuli min qalbayni fī jawfihi wa mā ja'ala azwājkumu allatī tudhāhirūna minhunna ummahātikum wa mā ja'ala ad'iyā'akum abnā'akum dhālikum qawlukum bi-afwāhikum wa-Allāhu yaqūlu al-haqq wa huwa yahdī as-sabīl
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah addresses three pre-Islamic Arab practices and clarifies Islamic principles: (1) No person possesses two hearts, negating the concept of divided loyalty; (2) Wives obtained through ẓihār (an oath formula meaning 'you are to me like the back of my mother') do not become mothers in reality; (3) Adopted children do not become biological children merely by calling them so. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir emphasize that while such statements are made by the tongue, Allah alone determines true kinship and relationships, establishing that intention and legal truth come from Allah's decree, not human assertion.
Revelation Context
Revealed in Madinah, this ayah addresses cultural practices of pre-Islamic Arabia that Islam sought to reform. It occurs within the broader context of Surah Al-Ahzab, which deals with the Prophet's family, marriages, and laws of inheritance. The specific mention of adoption clarifies the status of Zayd ibn Hārithah, the Prophet's freed slave whom he had raised, establishing that adoptive relationships do not create the same legal rights as biological kinship.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said: 'Whoever claims to be the son of someone other than his father, knowing that he is not his father, will be forbidden from Paradise.' (Sahih Bukhari 3507). Additionally, regarding ẓihār, numerous aḥādīth detail the Prophet's rulings on its expiation (Sunan Ibn Mājah, Sunan Abū Dāwūd).
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches believers that truth and legal reality come from Allah's determination, not from what people claim with their tongues; therefore, Muslims should align their actions and claims with reality and Divine law rather than relying on empty words and cultural practices contradicting Islamic principles.