وَلَن تَسْتَطِيعُوٓا۟ أَن تَعْدِلُوا۟ بَيْنَ ٱلنِّسَآءِ وَلَوْ حَرَصْتُمْ ۖ فَلَا تَمِيلُوا۟ كُلَّ ٱلْمَيْلِ فَتَذَرُوهَا كَٱلْمُعَلَّقَةِ ۚ وَإِن تُصْلِحُوا۟ وَتَتَّقُوا۟ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ غَفُورًا رَّحِيمًا 129
Translations
And you will never be able to be equal [in feeling] between wives, even if you should strive [to do so]. So do not incline completely [toward one] and leave another hanging. And if you amend [your affairs] and fear Allāh - then indeed, Allāh is ever Forgiving and Merciful.
Transliteration
Wa lan tastatee'oo an ta'diloo bayna an-nisaa wa law haraastum, fala tamiloo kulla al-mayil fatadharo ha ka al-mu'allaqah. Wa in tuslihoo wa tattaqoo fa inna Allah kana ghafoorun raheem.
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah addresses the reality of human nature in plural marriage, acknowledging that perfect equality in emotional affection between multiple wives is impossible despite sincere effort. Classical scholars like Al-Qurtubi and Ibn Kathir interpret this as permitting polygamy while enjoining justice in material provision and treatment, forbidding excessive favoritism that would leave a wife in a state of limbo ('like a hanging thing')—neither properly married nor divorced. The ayah concludes with divine mercy, assuring that those who strive for justice and piety will find Allah forgiving and compassionate.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of Surah An-Nisa's comprehensive regulations on women's rights and family law, revealed in Madinah during the period of legal and social consolidation. It contextualizes the permission of polygamy (mentioned in 4:3) by establishing ethical boundaries, addressing concerns about fair treatment that arose as the Muslim community faced the realities of implementing this practice.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: 'Whoever has two wives and does not treat them equally will come on the Day of Judgment with one of his sides drooping' (Jami' at-Tirmidhi 3895, graded as hasan). Additionally, Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) reported that the Prophet maintained strict equality among his wives in material provisions and time.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that while Islamic law permits certain practices, it does so within strict ethical frameworks that prioritize justice and human dignity—reminding believers that sincere effort toward fairness, combined with taqwa (God-consciousness), invokes Allah's forgiveness for inevitable human shortcomings.
Related Ayahs
أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى ٱلَّذِينَ قِيلَ لَهُمْ كُفُّوٓا۟ أَيْدِيَكُمْ وَأَقِيمُوا۟ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَءَاتُوا۟ ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ فَلَمَّا كُتِبَ عَلَيْهِمُ ٱلْقِتَالُ إِذَا فَرِيقٌ مِّنْهُمْ يَخْشَوْنَ ٱلنَّاسَ كَخَشْيَةِ ٱللَّهِ أَوْ أَشَدَّ خَشْيَةً ۚ وَقَالُوا۟ رَبَّنَا لِمَ كَتَبْتَ عَلَيْنَا ٱلْقِتَالَ لَوْلَآ أَخَّرْتَنَآ إِلَىٰٓ أَجَلٍ قَرِيبٍ ۗ قُلْ مَتَـٰعُ ٱلدُّنْيَا قَلِيلٌ وَٱلْـَٔاخِرَةُ خَيْرٌ لِّمَنِ ٱتَّقَىٰ وَلَا تُظْلَمُونَ فَتِيلًا
Have you not seen those who were told, "Restrain your hands [from fighting] and establish prayer and give zakāh"? But then when battle was ordained for them, at once a party of them feared men as they fear Allāh or with [even] greater fear. They said, "Our Lord, why have You decreed upon us fighting? If only You had postponed [it for] us for a short time." Say, "The enjoyment of this world is little, and the Hereafter is better for he who fears Allāh. And injustice will not be done to you, [even] as much as a thread [inside a date seed]."
أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْكَـٰفِرُونَ حَقًّا ۚ وَأَعْتَدْنَا لِلْكَـٰفِرِينَ عَذَابًا مُّهِينًا
Those are the disbelievers, truly. And We have prepared for the disbelievers a humiliating punishment.
وَدُّوا۟ لَوْ تَكْفُرُونَ كَمَا كَفَرُوا۟ فَتَكُونُونَ سَوَآءً ۖ فَلَا تَتَّخِذُوا۟ مِنْهُمْ أَوْلِيَآءَ حَتَّىٰ يُهَاجِرُوا۟ فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ ۚ فَإِن تَوَلَّوْا۟ فَخُذُوهُمْ وَٱقْتُلُوهُمْ حَيْثُ وَجَدتُّمُوهُمْ ۖ وَلَا تَتَّخِذُوا۟ مِنْهُمْ وَلِيًّا وَلَا نَصِيرًا
They wish you would disbelieve as they disbelieved so you would be alike. So do not take from among them allies until they emigrate for the cause of Allāh. But if they turn away [i.e., refuse], then seize them and kill them [for their betrayal] wherever you find them and take not from among them any ally or helper,
حُرِّمَتْ عَلَيْكُمْ أُمَّهَـٰتُكُمْ وَبَنَاتُكُمْ وَأَخَوَٰتُكُمْ وَعَمَّـٰتُكُمْ وَخَـٰلَـٰتُكُمْ وَبَنَاتُ ٱلْأَخِ وَبَنَاتُ ٱلْأُخْتِ وَأُمَّهَـٰتُكُمُ ٱلَّـٰتِىٓ أَرْضَعْنَكُمْ وَأَخَوَٰتُكُم مِّنَ ٱلرَّضَـٰعَةِ وَأُمَّهَـٰتُ نِسَآئِكُمْ وَرَبَـٰٓئِبُكُمُ ٱلَّـٰتِى فِى حُجُورِكُم مِّن نِّسَآئِكُمُ ٱلَّـٰتِى دَخَلْتُم بِهِنَّ فَإِن لَّمْ تَكُونُوا۟ دَخَلْتُم بِهِنَّ فَلَا جُنَاحَ عَلَيْكُمْ وَحَلَـٰٓئِلُ أَبْنَآئِكُمُ ٱلَّذِينَ مِنْ أَصْلَـٰبِكُمْ وَأَن تَجْمَعُوا۟ بَيْنَ ٱلْأُخْتَيْنِ إِلَّا مَا قَدْ سَلَفَ ۗ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ غَفُورًا رَّحِيمًا
Prohibited to you [for marriage] are your mothers, your daughters, your sisters, your father's sisters, your mother's sisters, your brother's daughters, your sister's daughters, your [milk] mothers who nursed you, your sisters through nursing, your wives' mothers, and your step-daughters under your guardianship [born] of your wives unto whom you have gone in. But if you have not gone in unto them, there is no sin upon you. And [also prohibited are] the wives of your sons who are from your [own] loins, and that you take [in marriage] two sisters simultaneously, except for what has already occurred. Indeed, Allāh is ever Forgiving and Merciful.