The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 3) — Page 568
PT. 15 CH. 17 33. "And BANI ISRĀ'ĪL come not near unto adultery; surely, it is a foul وَلَا تَقْرَبُوا الزِّنَى إِنَّهُ كَانَ فَاحِشَةً وَسَاءَ سَبِيلان thing and an evil 1962 way. 1 وَلَا تَقْتُلُوا النَّفْسَ الَّتِي حَرَّمَ اللهُ إِلَّا And kill not the soul which. 34 Allah has forbidden save for بِالْحَقِّ وَمَنْ قُتِلَ مَظْلُومًا فَقَدْ جَعَلْنَا just cause. And whoso is killed "25:69. 6:152; 25:69. intentional, while the latter may both be intentional or unintentional (Aqrab). The Quran has used the former word to bring home the fact that the killing of children is a crime at which human nature recoils and only a person devoid of all human feelings is capable of committing it. The expression also indicates that it is not killing by a lethal weapon or by poisoning or other similar means that is meant here. This latter kind of killing has been clearly mentioned in v. 34. 1962. Commentary: ان قتلهم كان خطأ كبيرا The commandment forbidding “the killing of children" is followed by another equally weighty injunction about adultery, because adultery also causes the death of innumerable children, for to prevent pregnancy contraceptives are used and if despite precaution pregnancy does take place, abortion is resorted to. All these are different forms of infanticide. Moreover, the proper bringing up of children born of such immoral unions is neglected, thus causing their moral death. Unlike the Biblical commandment, "Thou shalt not commit adultery", the Quran says, "Come not near unto adultery", which is clearly a more comprehensive and more effective commandment. The Quran not only prohibits and condemns the actual act of adultery but seeks to close and shut all those avenues that lead to it, such as free and promiscuous intermingling of the sexes. Purdah, which forbids women to display the beauty of their person or dress to men not their near relatives, and sundry other preventive measures prescribed by Islam effectively check this fell moral disease from spreading. Compared with the Quranic injunctions the teaching of the Bible is altogether ineffective and cannot, and has actually failed to, check the spread of this most heinous of all social crimes in the West. The Quranic injunction that even the occasions and places which are calculated ultimately to lead to the commission of sin must be avoided, applies as much to persons of very strong as to those of weak moral calibre. Whereas the latter class of people are bidden to avoid going near the places of sin lest they actually fall into it, those who can withstand temptations commanded to avoid them in order that many others morally not so 1776 are