The Prescribed Punishment for slandering Chaste Women
Ayahs Covered
Common Words
Related Hadiths
The Qur’anic verse goes: “If any of your woman are guilty of lewdness, take the evidence of four (reliable) witnesses from amongst you against them, and if they testify, Confine them to houses until d...
A man of Bakr ibn Layth came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and made confession four times that he had committed fornication with a woman, so he had a hundred lashes administered to him. The man had not been marr...
Receive my teachings, receive my teachings. Allah has appointed a way for those women. If the parties have been married, they shall receive a hundred lashes and stoned to death. If the parties are unm...
Take from me. Verily Allah has ordained a way for them (the women who commit fornication),: (When) a married man (commits adultery) with a married woman, and an unmarried male with an unmarried woman,...
“Learn from me. Allah (SWT) has ordained for them (women) another way. (If) a virgin (commits illegal sexual intercourse) with a virgin, (the punishment is) one hundred lashes and exile for one year....
The testimony of a treacherous man is not acceptable nor a treacherous woman nor a man lashed for the Hadd nor a woman lashed nor one possessing malice of enmity nor a rehearsed witness nor the Qani o...
Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying: Receive (teaching) from me, receive (teaching) from me. Allah has ordained a way for those (women). When an unmarried male commits adultery with an unmarried female (t...
“There was a man living among our dwellings who had a physical defect, and to our astonishment he was seen with one of the slave women of the dwellings, committing illegal sex with her. Sa'd bin 'Ubad...
Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) ordered that an unmarried man who committed illegal sexual intercourse be scourged one hundred lashes and sent into exile for one year.
"The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'Take from me. For Allah has a way made for them : For the married person who commits adultery with a married person is one hundred lashes, then stoning. And for the ...
Related Tafsir
The Prescribed Punishment for slandering Chaste Women
This Ayah states the prescribed punishment for making false accusations against chaste women, i.e., those who are free, adult and chaste. If the person who is falsely accused is a man, the same punishment of flogging also applies. If the accuser produces evidence that what he is saying is true, then the punishment does not apply. Allah said:
ثُمَّ لَمْ يَأْتُواْ بِأَرْبَعَةِ شُهَدَآءَ فَاجْلِدُوهُمْ ثَمَانِينَ جَلْدَةً وَلاَ تَقْبَلُواْ لَهُمْ شَهَادَةً أَبَداً وَأُوْلَـئِكَ هُمُ الْفَـسِقُونَ
(and produce not four witnesses, flog them with eighty stripes, and reject their testimony forever. They indeed are the rebellious.) If the accuser cannot prove that what he is saying is true, then three rulings apply to him: (firstly) that he should be flogged with eighty stripes, (secondly) that his testimony should be rejected forever, and (thirdly) that he should be labelled as a rebellious who is not of good character, whether in the sight of Allah or of mankind.
Explaining the Repentance of the One Who makes a False Accusation
Then Allah says:
إِلاَّ الَّذِينَ تَابُواْ مِن بَعْدِ ذَلِكَ وَأَصْلَحُواْ فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
(Except those who repent thereafter and do righteous deeds; (for such) verily, Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.) This exception refers to the second and third rulings mentioned above. The flogging has been carried out regardless of whether he repents or persists, and after that there is no further punishment, as is agreed among the scholars. If he repents, then his testimony may be accepted, and he is no longer to be regarded as a rebellious. This was the view of Sa`id bin Al-Musayyib -- the leader of the Tabi`in -- and also a group among the Salaf. Ash-Sha`bi and Ad-Dahhak said, "His testimony cannot be accepted even if he does repent, unless he himself admits that he said something false, in which case his testimony may be accepted." And Allah knows best.