Koran
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Bible
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Women
Women are your fields:
go, then, into your fields whence you please. Do good works and fear Allah. Bear in mind that you shall meet Him. Give good tidings to the believers. The Cow
2:222 page 35
Menstruation impurity
2:222
Divorced women
2:226, 2:229, 2:230
Nursing children
2:233
Widows waiting period
2:234
Care for the women divorced before marriage is consummated
or dowry settled. 2:236
Widow's public support
2:236, 2:241
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Women
Husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding,
giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs
together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered. 1 Peter 3:7 NKJV
Menstruation impurity
Leviticus 18:19
Divorced women
Deuteronomy 22:13-21, 24:1-4,
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Honor Mother
Fear Allah, in whose name you plead, and honor the mothers
who bore you. Allah is ever watching
you.
An-Nisaa
Women 4:1
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Honor Mother
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Orphan women and marriage
Give orphans the property which belongs to them. Do not exchange their valuables for
worthless things or cheat them of their possessions; for this would surely be
a grievous sin.
If you fear that you cannot treat orphans with fairness,
then you may marry other women who seem good to you: two, three, or four of them.
But if you fear that you cannot maintain equality among
them, marry one only, or any slave girls you may own. This will make it easier for you to avoid
injustice.
Give women their dowry as a free gift; but if they choose
to make over to you a part of it, you may regard it as lawfully yours.
An-Nisaa
Women 4:2-4
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Slave Women and marriage
"And if a man sells his daughter to be a female
slave, she shall not go out as the male slaves do.
If she does not please her master, who has betrothed her
to himself, then he shall let her be redeemed. He shall have no right to sell
her to a foreign people, since he has dealt deceitfully with her.
And if he has betrothed her to his son, he shall deal with
her according to the custom of daughters.
If he takes another wife, he shall not diminish her food,
her clothing, and her marriage rights.
And if he does not do these three for her, then she shall
go out free, without paying money.
Exodus 21:7-11
NKJV
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Inheritance and support
Do not give the feeble minded the property with
which Allah has entrusted you for their support; but maintain and clothe them
with its proceeds, and speak kind words to them.
Put orphans to the test until they reach a
marriageable age. If you find them
capable of sound judgment, hand over to them their property, and do not
deprive them of it by squandering it before they come of age.....
When you hand over to them their property, call in some
witnesses; sufficient is Allah's
accounting of your actions.
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Inheritance and support
"At the end of every third year you shall bring out
the tithe of your produce of that year and store it up within your
gates.
And the Levite, because he has no portion nor
inheritance with you, and the stranger and the fatherless and
the widow who are within your gates, may come and eat and be
satisfied, that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hand
which you do.
Deuteronomy 14:28-29
NKJV
"You shall count seven weeks for yourself; begin to
count the seven weeks from the time you begin to put the sickle to the grain.
Then you shall keep the Feast of Weeks to the LORD your God with the
tribute of a freewill offering from your hand, which you shall give as the
LORD your God blesses you.
You shall rejoice before the LORD your God, you and
your son and your daughter, your male servant and your female
servant, the Levite who is within your gates, the stranger
and the fatherless and the widow who are among you, at the
place where the LORD your God chooses to make His name abide. And you shall
remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and you shall be careful to observe
these statutes.
"You shall not pervert justice due the stranger
or the fatherless, nor take a widow's garment as a pledge. But
you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and the LORD your God
redeemed you from there; therefore I command you to do this thing.
Deuteronomy 24:17-18
NKJV
"When you reap your harvest in your field, and forget
a sheaf in the field, you shall not go back to get it; it shall be for the stranger,
the fatherless, and the widow, that the LORD your God may bless
you in all the work of your hands.
When you beat your olive trees, you shall not go over the
boughs again; it shall be for the stranger, the fatherless, and
the widow.
When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you shall not
glean it afterward; it shall be for the stranger, the fatherless,
and the widow. And you shall remember that you were a slave in the land
of Egypt; therefore I command you to do this thing.
"When you have finished laying aside all the tithe
of your increase in the third year--the year of tithing--and have given it to
the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow,
so that they may eat within your gates and be filled, then you shall say before the LORD your
God:
Y I
have removed the holy tithe from my house, and also have given them to
the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow,
according to all Your commandments which You have commanded me;
Y I
have not transgressed Your commandments, nor have I forgotten them. I have
not eaten any of it when in mourning, nor have I removed any of it for any
unclean use, nor given any of it for the dead.
Y I
have obeyed the voice of the LORD my God, and have done according to all that
You have commanded me.
Y Look
down from Your holy habitation, from heaven, and bless Your people Israel and
the land which You have given us, just as You swore to our fathers, "a
land flowing with milk and honey." '
Cursed is the one who perverts the justice due the stranger,
the fatherless, and widow.' And all the people shall say,
'Amen!'
Deuteronomy 27:19
NKJV
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Inheritance for men and women
Men shall have a share in what their parents and kinsmen
leave; and women shall have a share in what their parents and kinsmen leave:
whether it be little or much, they shall be legally entitled to a share.
If relatives, orphans, or needy men are present at the
division of an inheritance, give them, too, a share of it, and speak kind
words to them.
Let those who are solicitous about the welfare of their
young children after their own death take care not to wrong orphans. Let them fear Allah and speak for justice.
Women 4:6 page 61
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Inheritance
"So the inheritance of the children of Israel shall
not change hands from tribe to tribe, for every one of the children of Israel
shall keep the inheritance of the tribe of his fathers.
And every daughter who possesses an inheritance in any
tribe of the children of Israel shall be the wife of one of the family of her
father's tribe, so that the children of Israel each may possess the inheritance
of his fathers.
Thus no inheritance shall change hands from one tribe to
another, but every tribe of the children of Israel shall keep its own
inheritance." Num 36:7-9 NKJV
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Sexual relationships
Lesbianism
If any of your women commit a lewd act, call in four
witnesses from among yourselves against them; if they testify to their guilt
confine them to their houses till death overtakes them or till Allah finds
another way for them.
Homosexual
If two men among you commit a lewd act, punish them
both. If they repent and mend their
ways, let them be. Allah is forgiving
and merciful.
Allah forgives those who commit evil in ignorance and then
quickly turn to Him in penitence.
Allah will pardon them. Allah
is all knowing and wise. But He will
not forgive those who do evil and, when death cones to them, say: “Now we repent!” Nor those who die unbelievers:
for them We have prepared a woeful scourge.
Inherited women
Believers, it is unlawful for you to inherit the women of
your deceased kinsmen against their will, or to bar them from remarrying, in
order that you nay force them to give up a part of what you have given them,
unless they be guilty of a proven lewd act.
Treat them with kindness; for even if you dislike them, it may well be
that you dislike a thing which Allah has meant for your own abundant good.
Replacing wives
If you wish to replace one wife with another, do not take
from her the dowry you have given her even if it be a talent of gold. That would be improper and grossly unjust;
for how can you take it back when you have lain with each other and entered
into a firm contract?
Forbidden marriages
You shall not marry the women whom your fathers
married; all previous such marriages
excepted. That was an evil practice,
indecent and abominable.
Forbidden to you are your mothers, your daughters,
your sisters, your paternal and maternal aunts, the daughters
of your brothers and sisters, your foster mothers, your foster
sisters, the mothers of your wives, your step daughters who
are in your charge, born of the wives with whom you have lain, (It is no offence for you to marry your
step daughters if you have not consummated your marriage with their mothers),
and the wives of your own begotten sons. You are also forbidden to take in marriage two sisters at
one and the same time: all
previous such marriages excepted.
Surely Allah is forgiving and merciful. Also married women, except those whom you own
as slaves. Such is the decree of
Allah.
Lawful marriages
All women other than these are lawful for you, provided
you court them with your wealth in modest conduct, not in fornication. Give them their dowry for the enjoyment
you have had of them as a duty; but it shall be no offence for you to make
any other agreement among yourselves after you have fulfilled your duty. Surely Allah is all knowing and wise.
If any one of you cannot afford to marry a free believing
woman, let him marry a slave girl who is a believer. Allah best knows your faith: you are born one of another. Marry them with the permission of their
masters and give them their dowry in all justice, provided they are honorable
and chaste and have not entertained other men. If after marriage they commit adultery, they shall suffer half
the penalty inflicted upon free adulteresses.
Such is the law for those of you who fear to commit
sin: but if you abstain, it will be
better for you. Allah is forgiving
and merciful.
An-Nisaa
Women 4:15-25
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Leviticus 18:1-30
Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, "Speak to the
children of Israel, and say to them: `I am the LORD your God.
Y You
shall not do according to the doings of the land of Egypt, where you dwelt.
Y You
shall not do; and according to the doings of the land of Canaan, where I am
bringing you, nor shall you walk in their ordinances.
Y You
shall observe My judgments and keep My ordinances, to walk in them: I am the
LORD your God.
Y You
shall therefore keep My statutes and My judgments, which if a man does, he shall live by them: I am the LORD.
SPECIFICALLY FORBIDDEN
SEXUAL RELATIONS AND PRACTICES:
Y `None
of you shall approach anyone who is near
of kin for sexual purposes:
Y Your
father or your mother.
Y Your
father's wife.
Y Your sister, the daughter of
your father, or the daughter of your mother, whether born at home or
elsewhere.
Y Your
son's daughter or your daughter's daughter.
Y Your
father's wife's daughter.
Y Your
father's sister.
Y Your
mother's sister.
Y Your
father's brother or his wife.
Y Your
daughter-in-law.
Y Your
brother's wife.
Y A
woman and her daughter, or her son's daughter or her
daughter's daughter.
Y A
woman as a rival to her sister, while the other is alive.
Y A
woman as long as she is in her customary impurity.
Y Your
neighbor's wife.
Y You
shall not let any of your descendants pass through the fire to Molech, nor
shall you profane the name of your God: I am the LORD.
Y You
shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination.
Y You
shall not mate with any animal, to defile yourself with it. Nor shall
any woman stand before an animal to mate with it. It is perversion.
Y `Do
not defile yourselves with any of these things; for by all these the nations
are defiled, which I am casting out before you.
Y `Because
of these practices the land is defiled; therefore I visit the punishment of
its iniquity upon it, and the land vomits out its inhabitants.
Y `You
shall therefore keep My statutes and My judgments, and shall not commit any
of these abominations, neither any of your own nation or any stranger who
dwells among you for all these abominations the men of the land have done,
who were before you, and thus the land is defiled.
Y You
shall do none of abominable things lest the land vomit you out also when you
defile it, as it vomited out the nations that were before you.
Y Whoever
commits any of these abominations, the persons who commit them shall be cut
off from among their people.
Y Therefore
you shall keep My ordinance, so that you do not commit any of these
abominable customs which were committed before you, and that you do not
defile yourselves by them: I am the LORD your God.'"
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Superiority over women
Men have authority over women because Allah has made the
one superior to the other, and because they spend their wealth to maintain
them.
Good women are obedient.
They guard their unseen parts because Allah has guarded them.
As for those from whom you fear disobedience, admonish
them and send them to beds apart and beat them.
Then if they obey you, take no further action against
them.
Surely Allah is high, supreme.
An-Nisaa
Women 4:34
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Love of women
Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For
the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He
is the Savior of the body. Therefore, just as the church is subject to
Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything.
Husbands, love your wives,
just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her,
that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word,
that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or
wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish. So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own
bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his
own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord
does the church.
For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His
bones. "For this reason a man shall leave his
father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one
flesh."
This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and
the church. Nevertheless
let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself,
and let the wife see that she respects her husband.
Ephesians 5:22-33
NKJV
Wives, submit to your own husbands, as is fitting in the
Lord.
Husbands, love your wives
and do not be bitter toward them.
Wives, likewise, be submissive to your own husbands, that even
if some do not obey the word, they, without a word, may be won by the conduct
of their wives, when they observe your chaste conduct accompanied by fear. Do
not let your adornment be merely outward--arranging the hair, wearing gold,
or putting on fine apparel-- rather let it be the hidden person of the heart,
with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very
precious in the sight of God. For in this manner, in former times, the holy
women who trusted in God also adorned themselves, being submissive to their
own husbands, as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, whose daughters you
are if you do good and are not afraid with any terror.
Husbands, likewise, dwell with
them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as
to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life;
That your prayers may not be
hindered.
1 Peter 3:1-7
NKJV
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Women fear mistreatment or desertion
If a woman fear ill treatment or desertion on the part of her
husband, it shall be no offence for them to seek a mutual agreement, for
agreement is best. People are prone
to avarice. But if you do what is
right and guard yourselves against evil, know then that Allah is cognizant of
all your actions.
Try as you may, you cannot treat all your wives
impartially. Do not set yourself
altogether against any of them, leaving her, as it were, in suspense. If you do what is right and guard
yourselves against evil, you will find Allah forgiving and merciful. If they separate, Allah will compensate
both out of His own abundance: Allah
is munificent and wise.
An-Nisaa Women
4:128-130
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Treachery of Divorce
And this is the second thing you do: You cover the altar
of the LORD with tears, With weeping and crying; So He does not regard the
offering anymore, Nor receive it with goodwill from your hands. Yet you say, "For what reason?"
Because the LORD has been witness Between you and the wife
of your youth, With whom you have dealt treacherously; Yet she is your
companion And your wife by covenant.
But did He not make them one, Having a remnant of the
Spirit? And why one? He seeks godly offspring.
Therefore take heed to your spirit, And let none deal
treacherously with the wife of his youth.
"For the LORD God of Israel says That He hates
divorce, For it covers one's garment with violence," Says the LORD of
hosts. "Therefore take heed to your spirit, That you do not deal
treacherously."
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Women and marriage
Lawful for you are the believing women and the free women
from among those who were given the Book before you, provided that you give
them their dowries and live in honor with them, neither committing
fornication nor taking them s mistresses.
Al-Maidah The
Table 5:5
Sexual contacts
Those who defame honorable but careless believing women
shall be cursed in this world and in the world to come. Grievous punishment awaits them on the day
when their own tongues, hands, and feet will testify to what they did. On that day Allah will justly requite
them. They shall know that Allah is
the Glorious Truth.
Unclean women are for unclean men, and unclean men for
unclean women. But good women are for
good men, and good men for good women.
These shall be cleared of calumny; forgiveness, and generous
provision, await them.
Al-Nur Light
24:23-26
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Woman and marriage
Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers.
For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion
has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part
has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God
with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said:
"I will dwell in them And
walk among them.
I will be their God, And they
shall be My people."
2 Cor 6:14-16
NKJV
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Adultery and marriage
The adulterer and the adulteress shall each be given a
hundred lashes. Let no pity for them
cause you to disobey Allah, if you truly believe in Allah and the Last Day;
and let their punishment be witnessed by a number of believers.
The adulterer may marry only an adulteress or an
idolatress; and the adulteress may marry only an adulterer or an
idolater. True believers are
forbidden such marriages.
Light 24:1 page
246
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All guilty of adultery
"You have heard that it was said to those of old,
'You shall not commit adultery.' But
I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already
committed adultery with her in his heart.
If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast
it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members
perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. And if your right hand
causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable
for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast
into hell.
Adultery and Marriage
"Furthermore it has been said, 'Whoever divorces his
wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.' "But I say to you that
whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her
to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits
adultery.
Matt 5:27-32
NKJV
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Honorable women
Those that defame honorable women and cannot produce four
witnesses shall be given eighty lashes. Do not accept their testimony ever after, for they are great
transgressors – except those among them that afterwards repent and mend their
ways. Allah is forgiving and
merciful.
If a man accuses his wife but has no witnesses except
himself, he shall swear four tunes by Allah that his charge is true, calling
down upon himself the curse of Allah if he is lying. But if his wife swears four times by Allah
that his charge is false and calls down His curse upon herself if it be true,
she shall receive no punishment.
But for Allah’s grace and mercy, His forgiveness and His
wisdom, [this would never have been revealed to you].
Al-Nur
Light 24:4--10
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False accusation
Deut 22:13-21
13 "If any man takes a wife, and goes in to her, and
detests her, 14 and charges her with shameful conduct, and brings a bad name
on her, and says, 'I took this woman, and when I came to her I found she was
not a virgin,' 15 "then the father and mother of the young woman shall
take and bring out the evidence of the young woman's virginity to the elders
of the city at the gate. 16 And the young woman's father shall say to the
elders, 'I gave my daughter to this man as wife, and he detests her; 17 now
he has charged her with shameful conduct, saying, "I found your daughter
was not a virgin," and yet these are the evidences of my daughter's
virginity.' And they shall spread the cloth before the elders of the city. 18
Then the elders of that city shall take that man and punish him; 19 and
they shall fine him one hundred shekels of silver and give them to the father
of the young woman, because he has brought a bad name on a virgin of Israel.
And she shall be his wife; he cannot divorce her all his days. 20 But if
the thing is true, and evidences of virginity are not found for the young
woman, 21 then they shall bring out the young woman to the door of her
father's house, and the men of her city shall stone her to death with
stones, because she has done a disgraceful thing in Israel, to play the
harlot in her father's house; so you shall put away the evil from among
you.
NKJV
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Modesty
Enjoin believing men to turn their eyes away from
temptation and to restrain their carnal desires. This will make their lives purer. Allah has knowledge of all their actions.
Enjoin believing women to turn their eyes from temptation
(except such as are normally revealed);
to draw their veils over their bosoms and not to display their
finery except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands
fathers, their sons, their step-sons, their brothers,
their brothers’ sons, their sisters’ sons, their women
servants, and their slave-girls; male attendants lacking in
natural vigor, and children who have no carnal knowledge of
women. And let them not stamp their
feet when walking so as to reveal their hidden trinkets.
Al-Nur
Light 24:30-31
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Modesty
1 Timothy 2:8-10
8 I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting
up holy hands, without wrath and doubting; 9 in like manner also, that the
women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, not
with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing, 10 but, which is
proper for women professing godliness, with good works.
NKJV
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Marriage
Take in marriage those among you who are single and those
of your male and female slaves who are honest. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them from His own
bounty. Allah is munificent and all
knowing.
Let those who cannot afford to marry live in continence
until Allah shall enrich them from His own bounty. As for those of your slaves who wish to buy their liberty, free
them if you find in them any promise and bestow on them a part of the riches
which Allah has given you.
Al-Nur
Light 24:32-33
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Marrying captive women
Deuteronomy 21:10-14
NKJV
10 "When you go out to war against your enemies, and
the LORD your God delivers them into your hand, and you take them captive, 11
and you see among the captives a beautiful woman, and desire her and would
take her for your wife, 12 then you shall bring her home to your house, and
she shall shave her head and trim her nails. 13 She shall put off the clothes
of her captivity, remain in your house, and mourn her father and her mother a
full month; after that you may go in to her and be her husband, and she shall
be your wife. 14 And it shall be, if you have no delight in her, then you
shall set her free, but you certainly shall not sell her for money; you shall
not treat her brutally, because you have humbled her.
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Prostitution
You shall not force your slave girls into prostitution in
order that you may enrich yourselves, if they wish to preserve their
chastity. If anyone compels them,
Allah will be forgiving and merciful to them.
Al-Nur
Light 24:33
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Prostitution and its danger
'Do not prostitute your daughter, to cause her to be a
harlot, lest the land fall into harlotry, and the land become full of
wickedness.
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Prophet, Divorced wives, adopted sons, and believers
Allah has never put two hearts within one man’s body. He does not regard the wives whom you
divorce as your mothers, nor your adopted sons as your own
sons. These are mere words which you
utter with your mouths: but Allah declares the truth and gives guidance to
the right path.
Name your adopted sons after their fathers; that is more
just in the sight of Allah. If you do
not know their fathers, regard them as your brothers in the Faith and as your
cousins. Your unintentional mistakes
shall be forgiven, but not your deliberate errors. Allah is forgiving and merciful.
The Prophet has a greater claim on the faithful
than they have on each other. His
wives are their mothers.
Allah ordains that blood relations are closer to one
another than to other believers or Muhajirin, although you are permitted to do your friends a kindness. That is in the Book decreed.
Al-Ahzab The
Confederate tribes 33:4-6
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MARRIAGE A
BLESSING FROM GOD
Marriage is a holy union ordained by God Himself
at the time of Creation. When God created Eve from Adam's rib, He brought her
to him and Adam said, "This is now bone of my bone and flesh of my
flesh; she shall be called Woman because she was taken out of Man." God
responded, "Therefore, a man shall leave his father and his mother,
and shall cleave to his wife, and they shall be one flesh."
Genesis 2:23-24
In
making this statement, God established God's view of the bond of marriage.
This was confirmed by Jesus when He was questioned about divorce, Jesus said,
"Have you not read, that He who made them at the beginning, made
them male and female' and said, `For this cause a man shall leave his father
and mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and they two shall be one flesh.
For this reason they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God
has joined together, do not allow man separate.'"
Matthew
19:4-5 and Mark 10:6-9
Paul
explained the concept of what was implied by the term `what God has joined
together' when he said, `What, do you not know that he who is
joined to a harlot is one body with her? For He said, the two shall be
one flesh.' 1 Corinthians 6:16 In other words, the act of
sexual union is the act described as `what God has joined together.'
Therefore, the involvement of people in the sexual act carries a heavy
responsibility and should not be entered into lightly, God considers it
marriage. When scriptures say that a man took a woman to wife, it did not
suggest that there was a formal ceremony, but rather that they were joined
sexually, and that joining was a permanent union that made them husband and
wife, or one flesh.
Genesis
24:67
Marriage
of man and woman making the two one flesh is the closest human experience to
express the oneness of God who is one unit made up of more than one
component: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In His prayer, Jesus expressed the
oneness of God when He said, `Neither do I pray for these alone, but for
those also who shall believe on Me through their word, that they all
may be one, as You Father are in Me, and I am in You, that they may also
be one in us, that the world may believe that You have sent Me.'
John
17:20-21
God,
the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are one God in just the same way that a
husband and his wife are one flesh. Marriage is a human picture of the divine
union. Hence, it should demonstrate the union found in the divine
relationship.
In
other words the relationship of husband and wife should reflect the
relationship of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit. There should be a
oneness of thought and purpose, of goals toward which each works in harmony
with the other, of love in which each feels what the other feels, joy, pain,
sorrow, and views of life. They should be one in caring for each other and
cherish each other as though the other were, in fact, part of their own body.
When one hurts, the other should feel that hurt and minister to it whether it
is a physical, emotional, or spiritual hurt.
Mates
should minister to the needs of the other just like they minister to the
needs of their own physical body: When hungry, feed it; when thirsty, give it
a drink; when tired, give it rest; when sick, seek help; when injured, bind
up and care for it; and seek ways to bring the other pleasure and enjoyment
trying to make life even more pleasant, striving to be a blessing to your
mate and show appreciation for the blessing he or she is in your own life.
Praise each other publicly to show love and admiration.
Exalt,
honor, and glorify each other. Jesus took what the Father gave Him and
declared it to His followers to bring glory to the Father. The Holy Spirit
took what He received from Jesus and revealed it to man to bring glory to
Jesus. The Father worked miracles, spoke from Heaven, raised Christ from the
dead, and exalted Him to His own right hand in Heaven to glorify the Son.
Paul
said that the wife's body belongs to the husband, and the husband's body
belongs to the wife. When people are married, they give their body to the
other for their needs and pleasure. Failure to meet the other's needs, allows
Satan to gain an opportunity to introduce temptation. 1 Corinthians 7:1-5
When Paul said, `Husbands love your wives like Christ loves
the Church,' Ephesians 5:25 he was calling for total
sacrificial commitment to the welfare and happiness of the wife. The husband
should be totally committed to the wife to the point that he would sacrifice
everything, including his life, for her benefit.
Paul,
in saying, `Husbands love your wives like you love your own flesh' Ephesians
5:28 was calling for loving care that results in cherishing her
with tenderness, nourishing her, bringing her comfort, cheer, and
encouragement. A man should shelter, treasure and protect his wife. He should
sustain and build her up mentally physically, and spiritually with love and
tenderness, and be attentive to her needs. Ephesians 5:25-33 Husbands
should love their wives and not be bitter toward them. Colossians
3:19
A
wise man will be considerate toward his wife, treating her with respect. He
will listen to his wife and consider her advise, taking advantage of the
insights God has given her. Women are very intelligent and their intelligence
should be used in such a way as to enhance the work and efforts of the man,
thus making their joint impact on the world around them a blessing and
testimony to the wisdom of God.
Husbands
should cherish their wives as the more fragile and precious vessel. They
should honor them as joint heirs with themselves of the grace of life. All
this treatment and attitude is important even to the extent that if you abuse
your wife, God will not hear your prayers. Peter says a man should honor his
wife `so that your prayers will not be hindered.' 1 Peter 3:7
The
way a man treats his wife reflects his attitude toward God and his
willingness to submit to the will of God. Paul said, `Husbands and wives,
submit yourselves to one another in the fear of God.' Ephesians
5:21 When a man treats his wife in the pattern God has required,
he makes it easy for the wife to be submissive to him to assure the
relationship is according to the plan of God. The scriptures give
commandments for the wife as well as to the husband.
The
wife is commanded to submit to her own husband as unto the Lord in
everything. The husband is the head of the wife in the same way that Christ
is the head of the Church. He is ultimately responsible for his wife's care
and welfare, and he even has veto powers over her vows to God. With authority
comes responsibility for both the decision and the consequences. Also, the
wife's submission can go a long way in solving the problem of battered wives
and child abuse. Ephesians 5:22-24, Colossians 3:18, & 1 Peter 3:1-6
An
ideal marriage that reflects the love of God and the relationship of
the Godhead will never have a problem that would jeopardize the unity. It
is impossible, where the husband and wife are perfectly following God's
will and plan for their marriage to ever fall into dissension or for the relationship
to deteriorate to the point that divorce is even considered. God wants us to
do everything possible to live at peace with one another. Romans 12:18,
and 1 Corinthians 7:15
Marriage
is binding until the death of one and then the survivor is free to marry
again. Romans 7:1-3 & 1 Corinthians 7:39
Paul's
command to not be unequally yoked to unbelievers is to establish a
relationship that will be in submission to the will of God. Both parties must
be willing to do their part to make the relationship totally and harmoniously
in keeping with the commands of God, with each one responsible for it's
success. 2 Cor 6:14-18
God's command is, "Let the marriage be held in honor by all, and let the
marriage bed be undefiled, because fornicators and adulterers will be judged
by God." Hebrews 13:4
DIVORCE - failure
of man
Divorce
is not found anywhere to be in the divine will of God. GOD HATES DIVORCE.
Divorce is not even an option in God's ideal relationship. The
Lord's command is, "Do not let the wife depart from her husband. If
she departs let her remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband. Do not
let the husband put away his wife." 1 Cor 7:10-11
Divorce
represents human failure to follow the divine pattern of a
marriage relationship. It represents `treachery toward the wife of his
youth.' Malachi 2:13-16 It represents the hardness of
the heart of man against the will of God. Matt 19:8
& Mark 10:2-5
Divorce represents sin, it is a relationship
entirely and irreconcilably on its own out of the will of God. 1 Cor 7:11 It represents unbelief,
even for people who claim to be Christians, because of their unwillingness to
submit to the will of God in their relationship and their violation of the
mandate for peace. Those who refuse to obey God are unbelievers and
should be called to repentance.
1 Corinthians 7:15
DIVORCE
AND ADULTERY
Divorce
is sin, and is viewed by God, the same as adultery. Anyone who divorces his wife and marries
another woman commits adultery against her. And if she divorces her husband
and marries another man, she commits adultery. Mark 10:11,12
The victim and the one who marries her or him is guilty of adultery
according to Matthew 5:32 and Luke 16:18. So everyone who is divorced or who marries one divorced is
guilty of adultery.
Adultery and fornication are defilements from the heart. Matt
15:16-20, Mark 7:18-23, Rom 1:18-32, Gal 5:19-21,
Col 3:5-9, 1 Pet 4:1-6 & 2 Pet 2:1-22 Scriptures
warn against Christians who accept adulterous life styles. Revelation 2:12-29 `The body is to be kept pure, it is not
for fornication, but for the Lord.' 1 Cor
6:12-14, 17-19; 1 Thessalonians 4:1-12 and 1 Peter 2:11
Every
man, whether single or married, is guilty of adultery, when we
consider the full impact of Jesus' statement that `to look on a woman
with lust, is adultery.' Matt 5:27-28 Therefore, it is foolish of us to condemn
others since we are all equally guilty.
As Christians, we are commanded to flee from fornication. Acts 15:1-21; 15:22-29; and Acts
21:25 Every man is
therefore unworthy of an eternal relationship with a Holy God. Without Christ, and trusting in his own
merit alone, he cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. 1 Cor 6:9-11;
10:1-14 & Rev 21:8;22:15
ADULTERY IS NOT
THE UNFORGIVABLE SIN
God
said, `I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than
burnt offerings.' Hosea 6:6 Jesus said, `Go and learn what it means, I
will have mercy and not sacrifice. I am not come to call the righteous, but
sinners to repentance.' Matt 9:13 `He has shown you, O man, what is good. And
what does the Lord require of you, but to do justice, love mercy, and walk
humbly with your God.' Micah 6:8
When
the woman caught in the act of adultery was brought to Jesus to get His
response to the sin of adultery, (I always wondered where the man was, he
must also have been caught in the same act since the act of adultery requires
participation of both a man and a woman, and the law requires death to both)
Jesus responded in mercy, `Let the man without sin cast the first stone.' One
by one they realized that they were all guilty of sin and left. John 8:3-11
Jesus, Who is the
Judge of all, before Whom we shall all stand to give account for what we have
done in our lives; yes, Jesus, the full revelation of God Most High in
Whom dwells the fullness of the Godhead bodily; Jesus the Christ, Who
has the power to cast us into Hell; Jesus, the Second Person of the
Holy Trinity, God Himself; it is this same Jesus Who said, "NEITHER
DO I CONDEMN YOU, GO AND SIN NO MORE." In other words, Jesus
said, "You are forgiven, you only need to repent like everyone else, for the
sin of which you are guilty. God loves mercy, not sacrifice. Praise
God for His great love with which He loves us in that when we were His
enemies, Christ died for us!
John
said, `My little children, these things I write to you that you sin not.
But, if anyone sins, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the
righteous.' 1 John 2:1 `If we confess our sins, He is
faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleans us from all
unrighteousness.' 1 John 1:9 If anyone is caught up in divorce, let us
call them to repentance so they can confess their sin before God and
accept His forgiveness and cleansing.
CONCLUSION
If
God forgives a person of their sin, who are we to hold that sin against them?
We must forgive them just as God forgives us! Do not call unclean what
God has cleansed.
If
a sin is forgiven by God, if it is cleansed away by the precious blood of our
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, then it is removed and they are pure and clean
in Him. Acts 10:15 & Deut 24:2
Let
us then encourage those who have been through divorce and remarriage, to
follow the commandments of God for a holy relationship with their present mate
and make their relationship reflect the holy harmony God calls for. If they have remarried, encourage
them to pattern their marriage God's way. Cleansed by the precious blood of Jesus they are holy and pure
in Christ. Let them therefore
show Christ in their new relationship.
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Wives of the Prophet
Prophet, say to your wives: “If you seek this nether life and all its
finery, come, I will make provision for you and release you honorably. But if you seek Allah and His apostle and
the abode of the hereafter, know that Allah has prepared a rich recompense
for those of you who do good works.
Wives of the Prophet!
Those of you who clearly commit a lewd act shall be doubly
punished. That is easy enough for
Allah. But those of you who obey
Allah and His apostle and do good works shall be doubly recompensed; for them
We have made a rich provision.
Wives of the Prophet, you are not like other
women. If you fear Allah, do not be
to complaisant in your speech, lest the lecherous hearted should lust after
you. Show discretion in what you
say. Stay in your homes
and do not display your finery as women used to do in the days of
ignorance. Attend to your prayers,
give alms and obey Allah and His apostle.
Women of the Household, Allah seeks only to remove
uncleanness from you and to purify you. Commit to memory the revelations of Allah and the wise
sayings that are recited in your dwellings. Gracious is Allah and all knowing.
Al-Ahzab The
Confederate Tribes 33:28-34
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Prophet married divorced woman
You said to the man whom Allah and yourself have
favored: “Keep your wife and have
fear of Allah.” You sought to hide in
your heart what Allah was to reveal.
You were afraid of man, although it would have been more proper to
fear Allah. And when Zayd divorced
his wife, We gave her to you in marriage, so that it should become legitimate
for true believers to wed the wives of their adopted sons if they divorced
them. Allah’s will must needs be
done.
There can be no difficulty to the Prophet in what Allah
has indicated to him as a duty: It was the practice (approved) of Allah
amongst those of old that have passed away, and the command of Allah is a
decree determined. (It is the
practice of those) who preach the Messages of Allah, and fear Him, and fear
none but Allah. Sufficient is Allah’s reckoning.
Al-Ahzab The
Confederate Tribes 33:37-39
Believers, if you marry believing women and divorce them
before the marriage is consummated, you are not required to observe a waiting
period. Provide well for them and
release them honorably.
Prophet, We have made lawful for you the wives to whom you
have granted dowries and the slave girls whom Allah has given you as booty;
the daughters of your paternal and maternal uncles and or your paternal and
maternal aunts who fled with you; and
any believing woman who gives herself to the Prophet and whom the Prophet
wishes to take in marriage. This
privilege is yours alone, being granted to no other believer.
We well know the duties We have imposed on the faithful
concerning their wives and slave girls.
We grant you this privilege so that none may blame you. Allah is ever forgiving and merciful.
You may put off any of your wives you please and take to
your bed any of them you please. Nor
is it unlawful for you to receive any of those whom you have temporarily set
aside. That is more proper, so that
they may be contented and not vexed, and may all be pleased with what you
give them.
Allah knows what is in your hearts. Surely Allah is all knowing and
gracious.
It shall be unlawful for you to take more wives or to
change your present wives for other women, though their beauty please you,
unless they are slave girls whom you own.
Allah takes cognizance of all things.
Al-Ahzab The
Confederate Tribes 33:49-52
Believers, do not enter the houses of the Prophet for a
meal without waiting for the proper time, unless you are given leave. But if you are invited, enter; and when you have eaten, disperse. Do not engage in familiar talk, for this
would annoy the Prophet and he would be ashamed to bid you go; but of the truth Allah is not
ashamed. If you ask his wives for
anything, speak to them from behind a curtain. This is more chaste for your hearts and their hearts.
You must not speak ill of Allah’s apostle, nor shall you
ever wed his wives after him; this would surely be a grave offence in the
sight of Allah. Whether you reveal or
conceal them, Allah has knowledge of all things.
It shall be no offense for the Prophet’s wives to
be seen unveiled by their fathers, their sons, their brothers,
their brother’s sons, their sisters’ sons, their women,
or their slave girls. Women,
have fear of Allah; surely Allah observes all things.
Al-Ahzab The
Confederate Tribes 33:53-55
The Prophet is blessed by Allah and His angels. Bless him, then, you that are true
believers, and greet him with a worthy salutation.
Al-Ahzab The
Confederate Tribes 33:56
Prophet, enjoin your wives, your daughters, and the wives
of true believers to draw their veils close around them. That is more proper, so that they may be
recognized and not be molested. Allah
is ever forgiving and merciful.
Al-Ahzab The
Confederate Tribes 33:59
Women, believing & infidel – Marriage
Believers, when believing women seek refuge with
you, test them. Allah best knows
their faith If you fine them true
believers, do not return them to the infidels; they are not lawful for the
infidels, nor are the infidels lawful for them. But hand back to the unbelievers the dowries they gave
them. Nor is it an offence for you to
marry such women, provided you give them their dowries. Do not maintain your marriages with
unbelieving women: demand the dowries
you gave them and let the infidels do the same. Such is the law which Allah lays down among you. Allah is all knowing and wise.
If any of your wives go over to the unbelievers and you
subsequently gain victory over them, pay those whose wives have fled the
equivalent of the dowries they gave them.
Fear Allah, in whom you believe.
Prophet, if believing women come to you and pledge
themselves to serve no other deity besides Allah, to commit neither theft,
nor adultery, nor child murder, to utter no monstrous falsehoods of their own
invention, and to disobey you in nothing reasonable, accept their allegiance
and implore Allah to forgive them.
Allah is forgiving and merciful.
Al-Mumtahana She
who is Tested 60:10-12
Divorce
Prophet, when you divorce your wives, divorce them at the
end of their waiting period. Compute
their waiting period and have fear of Allah, your Lord. You shall not expel them from their homes,
nor shall they go away, unless they have committed a proven lewd act. Such are the bounds set by Allah; he that
transgresses Allah’s bounds wrongs his own soul. You never know; after that, Allah may bring about some new
event.
When their waiting term is ended, either keep them
honorably or part with them in honor.
Call to witness two honest men among you and give your testimony
before Allah. Whoever believes in
Allah and the Last Day is exhorted to do this. He that fears Allah, Allah will give him a means of salvation
and will provide or him whence he does not reckon: Allah is all sufficient for the man who puts his trust in
Him. Allah will surely bring about
what He decrees. Allah has set a
measure for all things.
If you are in doubt concerning those of your wives who
have ceased menstruating, know that their waiting period shall be three
months. The same shall apply to those
who have not yet menstruated. As for
pregnant women, their term shall end with their confinement. Allah will ease the hardship of the man
who fears Him.
Such is the commandment which Allah has revealed to
you. He that fears Allah shall be
forgiven his sins and richly recompensed.
Lodge the women in your own homes, according to your
means. You shall not harass them so
as to make life intolerable for them.
If they are with child, maintain them until the end of their
confinement; and if, after that, they give suck to the infants they bore you,
give them their pay and consult together in all reasonableness. But if you cannot tolerate each other, let
other women suckle for you.
Let the rich man spend according to his wealth, and the
poor man according to what Allah has given him. Allah does not charge a man with more than He has given him;
Allah, after hardship, will bring ease.
At-Talaq
Divorce 65:1-7
Divorce
Prophet, why do you prohibit that which Allah has made
lawful for you, in seeking to please your wives? Allah is forgiving and merciful.
Allah has given you absolution from such oaths. Allah is your Master. He is the Omniscient One, the Wise One.
When the prophet confided a secret to one of his wives;
and when she disclosed it and Allah informed him of this, he made known one
part of it and said nothing about the other.
And when he had acquainted her with it she said: “Who told you this?” He replied: “The Wise One, the All knowing, told me.
If you two turn to Allah in repentance as your hearts are
inclined, you shall be pardoned; but if you conspire against him, know that
Allah is his protector, and Gabriel, and the righteous among the
faithful. The angels too are his
helpers.
It may well be that, if he divorce you, his Lord will give
him in your place better wives then yourselves, submissive to Allah and full
of faith, obedient, penitent, devout, and given to fasting; both formerly wedded and virgins.
At-Tahrim
Prohibition 66:1-5
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Paradise
But the righteous shall dwell in fair gardens and in
bliss, rejoicing in what their Lord will give them. Their Lord will shield them from the scourge of Hell. He will say: “Eat and drink to your hearts’ content. This is the reward of your labors.”
They shall recline on couches arranged in rows. To dark eyed Houris (nymphs) We shall wed
them.
(We shall unite the true believers with those of their
descendants who follow them in their faith, and shall not deny them the
reward of their good works; each man
is the hostage of his own deeds.)
Fruits We shall give them, and such meats as they
desire. They will pass from hand to
hand a cup inspiring no idle talk, no sinful urge; and there shall wait on them young boys of their own, as fair
as virgin pearls.
They will converse with one another. “When we were living among our
kinsfolk,” they will say, “we were
troubled by many fears. But Allah has
been gracious to us; He has preserved
us from the fiery scourge, for we have prayed to Him. He is the Beneficent One, the Merciful.”
At-Tur The
Mountain 52:17-28
Paradise
But for those that fear the majesty of their Lord there
are two gardens, Which of Your Lord’s
blessings would you deny?
Planted with shady trees.
Which of Your Lord’s blessings would you deny?
Each is watered by a flowing spring. Which of Your Lord’s blessings would you
deny?
Each bears every kind of fruit in pairs. Which of Your Lord’s blessings would you
deny?
They shall recline on couches lined with thick brocade,
and within reach will hang fruits of both gardens. Which of Your Lord’s blessings would you deny?
Therein are bashful virgins whom neither man nor jinnee
will have touched before. Which of
Your Lord’s blessings would you deny?
Virgins as fair as corals and rubies. Which of Your Lord’s blessings would you
deny?
Shall the reward of goodness be anything but good? Which of Your Lord’s blessings would you
deny?
And beside these there shall be two other gardens, Which of Your Lord’s blessings would you
deny?
Of darkest green.
Which of Your Lord’s blessings would you deny?
A gushing fountain shall flow in each. Which of Your Lord’s blessings would you
deny?
Each planted with fruit trees, the palm and the
pomegranate. Which of Your Lord’s
blessings would you deny?
In each there shall be virgins chaste and fair. Which of Your Lord’s blessings would you
deny?
Dark eyed virgins, sheltered in their tents, Which of Your Lord’s blessings would you deny?
Whom neither man nor jinnee will have touched before. Which of Your Lord’s blessings would you
deny?
They shall recline on green cushions and fine
carpets. Which of Your Lord’s
blessings would you deny?
Blessed be the name of your Lord, the Lord of majesty and
glory!
Ar-Rahman The
Merciful 55:46-78
Paradise - two divisions
You shall be divided into three multitudes: Those on the right shall be
blessed; Those on the left
shall be damned; and those to the fore shall be foremost.
The foremost shall be brought near to their Lord in
the gardens of delights: a whole
multitude from the men of old, but only a few from the latter generations.
They shall recline on jeweled couches face to face, and there
shall wait on them immortal youths with bowls and ewers and a cup of purest
wine (that will neither pain their heads nor take away their reason); with fruits of their own choice and flesh
of fowls that they relish. And theirs
shall be the dark eyed houris (nymphs), chaste as virgin pearls: a guerdon for their deeds.
There they shall hear no idle talk, no sinful speech, but
only the greeting, “Peace! Peace!”
Those on the right hand – happy shall be those on
the right hand! They shall recline on
couches raised on high in the shade of thornless sidrs and clusters of
talh; unforbidden, never ending.
We created the houris (nymphs) and made them virgins,
loving companions for those on the right hand: a multitude from the men of old, and a multitude from the
latter generations.
Al-Waqia That
Which Is Coming 56:7-40
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Women of example
Wife of Noah and Wife of Lot
Allah gave an example to the unbelievers in the wife of
Noah and the wife of Lot. They
were married to two of Our righteous servants and deceived them. Their husbands could in no way protect
them from Allah. They were told: “Enter the Fire with those that shall enter
it.”
Pharaoh’s wife
But to the faithful Allah gave an example in Pharaoh’s
wife, who said: “Lord, build me a
house with You in Paradise and deliver me from Pharaoh and his misdeeds. Deliver me from a wicked nation.”
Mary
And in Mary, Imran’s daughter, who preserved her chastity
and into whose womb We breathed Our spirit; who put her trust in the words of
her Lord and His scriptures, and was truly devout.
At-Tahrim
Prohibition 66:10-12
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