Many non Muslims taunt and ridicule Muslims for being "commanded" to marry more than one wife. This allegation is generally aimed at letting down Islam and making caricatures showing Muslim men with four wives and a hoard of children following them. And in this connection they quote the 3rd verse from Surah 4. An Nisa (The Women) which allows men to marry up to four wives. Interesetingly, most of opponent of the substance of this verse are generally unaware of the reference to the context and the condition attached if one elects for polygamy. And they also fail to differentiate between CAN and SHOULD.
Let's explore both the verse and the ambiguity or conditionality that it presents.
Surah An-Nisa (4:3) – The Verse in Focus
وَاِنۡ خِفۡتُمۡ اَلَّا تُقۡسِطُوۡا فِى الۡيَتٰمٰى فَانْكِحُوۡا مَا طَابَ لَـكُمۡ مِّنَ النِّسَآءِ مَثۡنٰى وَثُلٰثَ وَرُبٰعَ ۚ فَاِنۡ خِفۡتُمۡ اَلَّا تَعۡدِلُوۡا فَوَاحِدَةً اَوۡ مَا مَلَـكَتۡ اَيۡمَانُكُمۡ ؕ ذٰ لِكَ اَدۡنٰٓى اَلَّا تَعُوۡلُوۡا ؕ
(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. If you fear that you will not be able to treat them justly, then marry (only) one, or marry from among those whom your right hands possess. This will make it more likely that you will avoid injustice.
Clarifying the Ambiguity: What Does the Verse Actually Say?
1. Historical Context: Orphans and War Widows: Before criticising the verse and the allowance so given in the verse, we must understand the context under which this verse was revealed.
- This verse was revealed after the Battle of Uhud, where many men were killed, leaving behind widows and orphans.
- Some men were marrying multiple widows to protect and provide for them—but may have feared injustice in handling orphaned inheritances or spousal fairness.
- The views of A'isha, Ibn 'Abbas and Sa'id b. Jubayr:
- There is the view of 'A'ishah, the revered wife of Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم, 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Thus this verse addresses social justice and ethical marital responsibility, not personal desire.
2. Not a Command, But a Conditional Permission
- AS generally understood, rather misunderstood, the verse does not command men to marry multiple women, rather have been "allowed" to marry more than one wife with conditions attached.
- The verse thus mean: Men CAN marry more than one women as agaisnt men SHOULD marry more than one women.
- The default recommendation is monogamy, not polygamy.
3. Justice Is a Strict Condition
- The phrase: "But if you fear that you will not be just, then marry only one" is crucial.
- In fact this is the catch point. Justice takes presedence over personal desires and wants. Unless one can treat all wives equally with justice, one is restrained to marry just one woman. For many, ensuring justice between all four wives, or even two wives, is generally not possible.
- It limits the permission to cases where a man is absolutely confident he can treat multiple wives equally in:
- Spending
- Time
- Housing
- Emotional balance (to a degree)
- Justice is not a light requirement. Allah Himself states in verse 4:129: "You will never be able to be perfectly just between wives, even if you strive to do so…" So, there is built-in caution and even skepticism from the Qur’an itself.
- 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.
- And if a man marries more than one women and is unable to ensure equal justice to everyone, then he will be liable to Divine admonishment and wrath for disobeying commandment of Allah.
4. The Ambiguity: How Is “Justice” Defined and Enforced? The verse leaves "justice" undefined in absolute terms, which opens interpretation:
- Can emotional justice be achieved?
- What constitutes inequality?
- How is justice measured between subjective experiences?
Justice is a value that has to be maintained at all costs and cannot be sacrificed even for such a noble cause.
Because of this, many scholars argue that the practical ability to fulfill the condition is so difficult that monogamy is effectively encouraged.
Contemporary Interpretations:
Many modern scholars and reformers argue this verse is actually a limitation on the unlimited polygamy of pre-Islamic Arabia—not an open invitation to marry four women.
Classical & Contemporary Scholarly Views
- Ibn Kathir notes the justice condition as a strict limit; polygamy must not cause harm.
- Imam Al-Shafi’i emphasized the practical impossibility of perfect justice.
- Modern jurists Some say the justice clause discourages polygamy except in rare, clear need.
- Muhammad Abduh (Modernist) argued the verse intended to phase out polygamy by making justice practically unachievable.
Key Takeaway: Is Polygamy an Islamic Ideal?
No. Polygamy is permitted but not encouraged. The Qur’anic conditions make it morally, financially, and emotionally demanding—to the point that many scholars view the permission as highly conditional and in many cases, practically discouraged. " Marry only one" is the only explicit command in the verse, triggered by the likelihood of injustice."
Final Reflection
The "ambiguity" in Surah An-Nisa:3 lies not in contradiction, but in conditionality—the permission to marry up to four women is clearly tied to a near-impossible standard of justice, making it a social solution, not a license for desire.
May Allāh (سبحانه و تعالى) help us understand Qur'ān and follow the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, which is embodiment of commandments of Allah contained in the Qur'ān. May Allah help us to be like the ones He loves and let our lives be lived helping others and not making others' lives miserable or unlivable. May all our wrong doings, whether intentional or unintentional, be forgiven before the angel of death knocks on our door.
وَمَا عَلَيۡنَاۤ اِلَّا الۡبَلٰغُ الۡمُبِيۡنُ
(36:17) and our duty is no more than to clearly convey the Message.”
That is Our duty is only to convey to you the message that Allah has entrusted us with. Then it is for you to accept it or reject it. We have not been made responsible for making you accept it forcibly, and if you do not accept it, we shall not be seized in consequence of your disbelief, you will yourselves be answerable for your actions on Day of Resurrection.
May Allah forgive me if my posts ever imply a piety far greater than I possess. I am most in need of guidance.
Reading the Qur'ān should be a daily obligation of a Muslim - Reading it with translation will make it meaningful. But reading its Exegesis / Tafsir will make you understand it fully. It will also help the Muslims to have grasp over social issues and their answers discussed in the Qur'an and other matter related to inter faith so that they are able to discuss issues with non-Muslims with authority based on refences from Qur'an.
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For more posts on status of women in Islam, please refer to our exclusive page: Women in Islam. You may also refer to our reference page on Selected verses women exclusive Surah An Nisa (The Women)
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