وَٱلَّذِينَ يَرْمُونَ ٱلْمُحْصَنَـٰتِ ثُمَّ لَمْ يَأْتُوا۟ بِأَرْبَعَةِ شُهَدَآءَ فَٱجْلِدُوهُمْ ثَمَـٰنِينَ جَلْدَةً وَلَا تَقْبَلُوا۟ لَهُمْ شَهَـٰدَةً أَبَدًا ۚ وَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْفَـٰسِقُونَ 4
Translations
And those who accuse chaste women and then do not produce four witnesses - lash them with eighty lashes and do not accept from them testimony ever after. And those are the defiantly disobedient,
Transliteration
Wa-alladhina yarmuun al-muhsanati thumma lam ya'tu bi-arba'ati shuhadaa fa-jliduhum thamanina jaldatan wa-la taqbalu lahum shahadatan abadan wa-ulaa'ika humu al-fasiqun
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah prescribes the punishment for those who falsely accuse chaste women of adultery without producing four reliable witnesses—they receive eighty lashes and their testimony becomes inadmissible forever. Classical scholars like Al-Qurtubi and Ibn Kathir emphasize that this severe penalty protects the honor and reputation of women and maintains the integrity of Islamic judicial testimony, as the accusation of sexual misconduct is among the gravest charges in Islamic law. The verse underscores that accusers must meet an exceptionally high evidentiary standard, and failure to do so results in legal disqualification and severe punishment.
Revelation Context
This ayah was revealed in the context of the incident involving Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), the wife of the Prophet Muhammad, when she was falsely accused during the Battle of Bani al-Mustaliq. The revelation of these verses (24:11-26) established strict legal protections against defamation and slander, particularly regarding accusations of sexual misconduct. The surah as a whole addresses matters of modesty, family honor, and the rights of the accused.
Related Hadiths
Narrated by Abu Hurairah in Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'Avoid the seven destructive sins,' and among them is 'accusing a chaste woman of fornication.' Additionally, in Sunan Ibn Majah, the hadith about the testimony requirement emphasizes that a single false accusation without sufficient witnesses constitutes qadh (slander) and subjects the accuser to the prescribed punishment.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches us that protecting the reputation and dignity of others, especially women, is a divine mandate with serious legal consequences for violations. In our modern context, it reminds us to be cautious about spreading accusations or rumors without verified evidence, and to recognize that baseless allegations cause irreparable harm and invite divine punishment.
Related Ayahs
سُورَةٌ أَنزَلْنَـٰهَا وَفَرَضْنَـٰهَا وَأَنزَلْنَا فِيهَآ ءَايَـٰتٍۭ بَيِّنَـٰتٍ لَّعَلَّكُمْ تَذَكَّرُونَ
[This is] a sūrah which We have sent down and made [that within it] obligatory and revealed therein verses of clear evidence that you might remember.
لَّقَدْ أَنزَلْنَآ ءَايَـٰتٍ مُّبَيِّنَـٰتٍ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ يَهْدِى مَن يَشَآءُ إِلَىٰ صِرَٰطٍ مُّسْتَقِيمٍ
We have certainly sent down distinct verses. And Allāh guides whom He wills to a straight path.
وَقُل لِّلْمُؤْمِنَـٰتِ يَغْضُضْنَ مِنْ أَبْصَـٰرِهِنَّ وَيَحْفَظْنَ فُرُوجَهُنَّ وَلَا يُبْدِينَ زِينَتَهُنَّ إِلَّا مَا ظَهَرَ مِنْهَا ۖ وَلْيَضْرِبْنَ بِخُمُرِهِنَّ عَلَىٰ جُيُوبِهِنَّ ۖ وَلَا يُبْدِينَ زِينَتَهُنَّ إِلَّا لِبُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوْ ءَابَآئِهِنَّ أَوْ ءَابَآءِ بُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوْ أَبْنَآئِهِنَّ أَوْ أَبْنَآءِ بُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوْ إِخْوَٰنِهِنَّ أَوْ بَنِىٓ إِخْوَٰنِهِنَّ أَوْ بَنِىٓ أَخَوَٰتِهِنَّ أَوْ نِسَآئِهِنَّ أَوْ مَا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَـٰنُهُنَّ أَوِ ٱلتَّـٰبِعِينَ غَيْرِ أُو۟لِى ٱلْإِرْبَةِ مِنَ ٱلرِّجَالِ أَوِ ٱلطِّفْلِ ٱلَّذِينَ لَمْ يَظْهَرُوا۟ عَلَىٰ عَوْرَٰتِ ٱلنِّسَآءِ ۖ وَلَا يَضْرِبْنَ بِأَرْجُلِهِنَّ لِيُعْلَمَ مَا يُخْفِينَ مِن زِينَتِهِنَّ ۚ وَتُوبُوٓا۟ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ جَمِيعًا أَيُّهَ ٱلْمُؤْمِنُونَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ
And tell the believing women to reduce [some] of their vision and guard their private parts and not expose their adornment except that which [necessarily] appears thereof and to wrap [a portion of] their headcovers over their chests and not expose their adornment [i.e., beauty] except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands' fathers, their sons, their husbands' sons, their brothers, their brothers' sons, their sisters' sons, their women, that which their right hands possess [i.e., slaves], or those male attendants having no physical desire, or children who are not yet aware of the private aspects of women. And let them not stamp their feet to make known what they conceal of their adornment. And turn to Allāh in repentance, all of you, O believers, that you might succeed.
رِجَالٌ لَّا تُلْهِيهِمْ تِجَـٰرَةٌ وَلَا بَيْعٌ عَن ذِكْرِ ٱللَّهِ وَإِقَامِ ٱلصَّلَوٰةِ وَإِيتَآءِ ٱلزَّكَوٰةِ ۙ يَخَافُونَ يَوْمًا تَتَقَلَّبُ فِيهِ ٱلْقُلُوبُ وَٱلْأَبْصَـٰرُ
[Are] men whom neither commerce nor sale distracts from the remembrance of Allāh and performance of prayer and giving of zakāh. They fear a Day in which the hearts and eyes will [fearfully] turn about -