The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 2) — Page 173
PT. 4 AN-NISA' CH. 4 وَأَتُوا الْيَتَى أَمْوَالَهُمْ وَلَا تَتَبَدَّلُوا And give to the orphans. 3 their property and exchange not الْخَيْثَ بِالطَّيِّبِ وَلَا تَأْكُلُوا أَمْوَالَهُمْ the bad for the good, and إلَى اَمْوَالِكُمْ إِنَّهُ كَانَ حُوبًا كَبِيرًان devour not their property with your own. Surely, it is a great sin. 485 وَإِنْ خِفْتُمْ أَلَّا تُقْسِطُوا فِي الْيَتى And if you fear that you will. 4 not be fair in dealing with the فَانْكِحُوا مَا طَابَ لَكُمْ مِّنَ النِّسَاءِ مَثْنَى orphans, then marry of women وَثُلَثَ وَرُبعَ ، فَإِنْ خِفْتُمْ أَلَّا تَعْدِلُو as may be agreeable to your wo E or three, or four; and if you fear فَوَاحِدَةً أَوْ مَا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَانُكُمْ ذَلِكَ you will not deal justly, then أَدْنَى أَلَّا تَعُولُوان marry only one or what your right hands possess. That is the 4:11, 128; 6:153; 17:35. b4:130. proceeds to emphasize the need of protecting posterity by safeguarding the rights and interests of orphans. of relationship", thus emphasizing the ties of relationship, the Quran importance of good treatment of relatives, on which the Quran lays so much stress. The Holy Prophet used to recite this verse when delivering a marriage sermon in order to remind the parties of their duties to one another. 485. Important Words: (sin) is derived from meaning, he sinned; he did what was unlawful. means: (1) a great sin or simply sin or crime; (2) wrong or injustice; (3) perdition, destruction or death; (4) disease; (5) a trial, trouble or affliction (Lane & Aqrab). Commentary: After mentioning two favours of God in the previous verse, viz. the multiplying of many men and women from a "single soul", and preserving them from destruction by instituting 613 The expression, and exchange not the bad for the good, means that if you do not give the orphans their property, the result will be that your own pure possessions will become impure and you yourselves will suffer in the long run. The words, devour not their property with your own, contain a warning to guardians not to mix up the property of orphans with their own with the intention of misappropriating it. The clause also hints that if the guardian of an orphan possesses sufficient means of subsistence, he should not take anything out of the property of his ward as a compensation for his guardianship.