وَإِنِ ٱمْرَأَةٌ خَافَتْ مِنۢ بَعْلِهَا نُشُوزًا أَوْ إِعْرَاضًا فَلَا جُنَاحَ عَلَيْهِمَآ أَن يُصْلِحَا بَيْنَهُمَا صُلْحًا ۚ وَٱلصُّلْحُ خَيْرٌ ۗ وَأُحْضِرَتِ ٱلْأَنفُسُ ٱلشُّحَّ ۚ وَإِن تُحْسِنُوا۟ وَتَتَّقُوا۟ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ خَبِيرًا 128
Translations
And if a woman fears from her husband contempt or evasion, there is no sin upon them if they make terms of settlement between them - and settlement is best. And present in [human] souls is stinginess. But if you do good and fear Allāh - then indeed Allāh is ever, of what you do, Aware.
Transliteration
Wa-in imra'atun khafat min ba'liha nushoozan aw i'raaḍan falaa junāḥa alayhimā an yuṣliḥā baynahumā ṣulḥan. Wa-aṣ-ṣulḥu khayrun. Wa-uḥḍirat al-anfusu ash-shuhh. Wa-in tuḥsinū wa-tattaqū fa-inna Allāha kāna bimā ta'malūna khabīran.
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah addresses the situation when a wife fears her husband's nushūz (aversion, abandonment, or ill-treatment) or i'rāḍ (turning away), permitting both spouses to seek reconciliation through mutual agreement without blame. The verse emphasizes that reconciliation (ṣulḥ) is superior to conflict, while acknowledging that human souls are naturally inclined toward self-interest (shuhh); however, those who demonstrate kindness and piety will be rewarded as Allah is fully aware of their deeds. Classical scholars like Al-Qurtubi and Ibn Kathir interpret this as establishing mutual rights and responsibilities within marriage, contrasting with the preceding verse (4:128) which addresses the husband's nushūz.
Revelation Context
This verse is part of Surah An-Nisa's comprehensive treatment of marital relations and women's rights, revealed in Medina. It appears in a passage dealing with marital discord and the remedies available to both spouses, reflecting the Islamic principle of preserving the marital bond through reconciliation while acknowledging the reality of human nature and its challenges.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: 'The best of you are those who are best to their wives' (Jami' at-Tirmidhi). Additionally, the hadith 'Whoever among you can afford to marry should marry, for it helps lower the gaze and guards the private parts' (Sahih Bukhari) relates to the broader context of maintaining healthy marital relationships.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that marriage requires active effort from both partners to maintain harmony, and that seeking peaceful resolution over confrontation—even when requiring personal sacrifice—is spiritually superior and pleasing to Allah. It affirms that women have the agency and right to seek reconciliation on their own terms when their marriage faces difficulties.
Related Ayahs
وَإِذًا لَّـَٔاتَيْنَـٰهُم مِّن لَّدُنَّآ أَجْرًا عَظِيمًا
And then We would have given them from Us a great reward.
وَمَن يَقْتُلْ مُؤْمِنًا مُّتَعَمِّدًا فَجَزَآؤُهُۥ جَهَنَّمُ خَـٰلِدًا فِيهَا وَغَضِبَ ٱللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَلَعَنَهُۥ وَأَعَدَّ لَهُۥ عَذَابًا عَظِيمًا
But whoever kills a believer intentionally - his recompense is Hell, wherein he will abide eternally, and Allāh has become angry with him and has cursed him and has prepared for him a great punishment.
يَسْـَٔلُكَ أَهْلُ ٱلْكِتَـٰبِ أَن تُنَزِّلَ عَلَيْهِمْ كِتَـٰبًا مِّنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ ۚ فَقَدْ سَأَلُوا۟ مُوسَىٰٓ أَكْبَرَ مِن ذَٰلِكَ فَقَالُوٓا۟ أَرِنَا ٱللَّهَ جَهْرَةً فَأَخَذَتْهُمُ ٱلصَّـٰعِقَةُ بِظُلْمِهِمْ ۚ ثُمَّ ٱتَّخَذُوا۟ ٱلْعِجْلَ مِنۢ بَعْدِ مَا جَآءَتْهُمُ ٱلْبَيِّنَـٰتُ فَعَفَوْنَا عَن ذَٰلِكَ ۚ وَءَاتَيْنَا مُوسَىٰ سُلْطَـٰنًا مُّبِينًا
The People of the Scripture ask you to bring down to them a book from the heaven. But they had asked of Moses [even] greater than that and said, "Show us Allāh outright," so the thunderbolt struck them for their wrongdoing. Then they took the calf [for worship] after clear evidences had come to them, and We pardoned that. And We gave Moses a clear authority.
ٱلَّذِينَ يَتَرَبَّصُونَ بِكُمْ فَإِن كَانَ لَكُمْ فَتْحٌ مِّنَ ٱللَّهِ قَالُوٓا۟ أَلَمْ نَكُن مَّعَكُمْ وَإِن كَانَ لِلْكَـٰفِرِينَ نَصِيبٌ قَالُوٓا۟ أَلَمْ نَسْتَحْوِذْ عَلَيْكُمْ وَنَمْنَعْكُم مِّنَ ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ ۚ فَٱللَّهُ يَحْكُمُ بَيْنَكُمْ يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَـٰمَةِ ۗ وَلَن يَجْعَلَ ٱللَّهُ لِلْكَـٰفِرِينَ عَلَى ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ سَبِيلًا
Those who wait [and watch] you. Then if you gain a victory from Allāh, they say, "Were we not with you?" But if the disbelievers have a success, they say [to them], "Did we not gain the advantage over you, but we protected you from the believers?" Allāh will judge between [all of] you on the Day of Resurrection, and never will Allāh give the disbelievers over the believers a way [to overcome them].