وَإِذَا طَلَّقْتُمُ ٱلنِّسَآءَ فَبَلَغْنَ أَجَلَهُنَّ فَلَا تَعْضُلُوهُنَّ أَن يَنكِحْنَ أَزْوَٰجَهُنَّ إِذَا تَرَٰضَوْا۟ بَيْنَهُم بِٱلْمَعْرُوفِ ذَٰلِكَ يُوعَظُ بِهِۦ مَن كَانَ مِنكُمْ يُؤْمِنُ بِٱللَّهِ وَٱلْيَوْمِ ٱلْـَٔاخِرِ ذَٰلِكُمْ أَزْكَىٰ لَكُمْ وَأَطْهَرُ وَٱللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ وَأَنتُمْ لَا تَعْلَمُونَ
“And when ye have divorced women and they reach their term, place not difficulties in the way of their marrying their husbands if it is agreed between them in kindness. This is an admonition for him among you who believeth in Allah and the Last Day. That is more virtuous for you, and cleaner. Allah knoweth; ye know not.” — M. M. Pickthall
Taberî9-10. c.✓ Citation verified
Taberî reports that this verse was revealed concerning a person (particularly Ma'kal b. Yesâr) who prevented his sister-in-law from remarrying her ex-husband; he states that the address 'do not prevent them' in the verse is directed at guardians. He also conveys various views found in some reports that the verse was revealed in the context of different persons and events such as Câbir b. Abdullah or Fâtima/Cemîl binti Yesâr.
ذكر أن هذه الآية نزلت في رجل كانت له أخت كان زوجها من ابن عم لها، فطلقها وتركها فلم يراجعها حتى انقضت عدتها، ثم خطبها منه، فأبى أن يزوجها إياه ومنعها منه وهي فيه راغبة
Fahreddin er-Râzî12-13. c.✓ Citation verified
In the discussion of who the address in this verse is directed toward, Râzî prefers the view that the verse addresses husbands, contrary to the majority opinion that it is addressed to guardians. He bases this preference on the textual coherence in the conditional-consequential structure of the verse, the fact that previous verses also address husbands, and the consistency of flow. However, he conveys that the guardians' view is also based on reports and that al-Shâfî'î cited this verse as evidence that marriage without a guardian is not permissible.
ولا شك أن الشرط وهو قوله : خطابا معهم أيضا ، إذ لو لم يكن كذلك لصار تقدير الآية : إذا طلقتم النساء أيها الأزواج فلا تعضلوهن أيها الأولياء وحيئنذ لا يكون بين الشرط وبين الجزاء مناسبة أصلا وذلك يوجب تفكك نظم الكلام وتنزيه كلام الله عن مثله واجب
Kurtubî13. c.✓ Citation verified
According to Kurtubî, this verse was revealed when Ma'kal b. Yesâr prevented his sister from marrying her ex-husband, and the address in the verse is directed at guardians. Accordingly, there is an indication that marriage of a woman without a guardian is not permissible, for if Ma'kal's sister, being divorced (sayyiba), had the authority to marry herself, she would not have needed a guardian. The Hanafî school, based on the verb being attributed to the woman in the verse, argued that a woman can marry herself; however, Kurtubî, relying on the reason for revelation, found the first view more correct.
ففي الآية دليل على أنه لا يجوز النكاح بغير ولي لأن أخت معقل كانت ثيبا ولو كان الأمر إليها دون وليها لزوجت نفسها ولم تحتج إلى وليها معقل
İbn Kesîr14. c.✓ Citation verified
Ibn Kesîr, relating the hadith of Ma'kil b. Yesâr, states that the verse was revealed addressing Ma'kil, who wanted to prevent his sister from returning to her ex-husband after he divorced her. The prohibition in the verse is directed at guardians preventing women from returning to their ex-husbands; it is stated that conforming to Allah's law and abandoning such tribalism (asabiyya) is purer and better for the hearts.
فعلم الله حاجته إليها وحاجتها إلى بعلها فأنزل الله أي هذا الذي نهيناكم عنه من منع الولايا أن يتزوجن أزواجهن إذا تراضوا بينهم بالمعروف
Beydâvî13. c.✓ Citation verified
According to Beydâwî, the address 'do not prevent them from marrying' is directed at guardians; the verse was revealed regarding Ma'kal b. Yesar preventing his sister from returning to her ex-husband, and this is evidence that a woman cannot marry herself, meaning she requires a guardian's permission. Furthermore, the views that this address could be directed at husbands who prevent women after divorce during their waiting period, or at both guardians and husbands, or even at all people, are also conveyed.
فلا تعضلوهن أن ينكحن أزواجهن المخاطب به الأولياء
Comparison
Common ground
Taberî, Kurtubî, Ibn Kesîr, and Beydâwî all report that the verse was revealed concerning the incident of Ma'kal b. Yesâr preventing his sister from marrying her ex-husband, and most of them indicate that the address is directed at guardians, stating that this is evidence that a woman's marriage requires a guardian's permission.
Differences
Taberî merely conveys different reports (Câbir b. Abdullah, Fâtima/Cemîl binti Yesâr) as narrations without expressing a preference. Kurtubî, basing himself on the reason for revelation, finds the Hanafî's counter-view based on linguistic analysis weak. Beydâwî also lists the possibilities that the address could be directed at guardians, husbands, or people in general. Râzî, on the other hand, takes a different path and prefers that the address is directed at husbands based on textual coherence and consistency with previous verses; this divergence stems from the methodological difference between report-centered and language/rhetoric-centered readings.
Historical context
While the early exegete Taberî simply conveys reports in a pluralistic manner, later exegetes (Kurtubî, Beydâwî, Ibn Kesîr) bind the report more tightly to juridical conclusions (the matter of guardianship); Râzî follows a different methodological line by placing linguistic analysis before reports. This shows that exegetical methodology developed and diversified over time in the balance between report, language, and jurisprudence, and no single reading was ever absolutely dominant in any period.
Modern connection
This verse and the discussions surrounding it can remind us that individual anger or pride (asabiyya) in family decisions should not be an obstacle to lasting solutions; as Ibn Kesîr emphasized, the idea that abandoning such emotional attitudes is better for spiritual purity is thought-provoking even in today's family relations. Moreover, the fact that exegetes approach the same verse through different methods (reports, linguistic analysis, juridical deduction) can be seen as an example of a versatile and constructive reading effort in the scholarly tradition.
AI analysis — not a fatwa or ruling, not yet reviewed by a scholar