Surah An-Nisa 4:15 — translation and meaning

النساء · Verse 15 / 176 · Page 80

ۖ وَاللَّاتِي يَأْتِينَ الْفَاحِشَةَ مِن نِّسَائِكُمْ فَاسْتَشْهِدُوا عَلَيْهِنَّ أَرْبَعَةً مِّنكُمْ فَإِن شَهِدُوا فَأَمْسِكُوهُنَّ فِي الْبُيُوتِ حَتَّى يَتَوَفَّاهُنَّ الْمَوْتُ أَوْ يَجْعَلَ اللَّهُ لَهُنَّ سَبِيلًا

Word by Word

ۖ
وَاللَّاتِي
wa-allati
And those who
يَأْتِينَ
yatina
commit
الْفَاحِشَةَ
al-fahishata
[the] immorality
مِن
min
from
نِّسَائِكُمْ
nisaikum
your women
فَاسْتَشْهِدُوا
fa-is'tashhidu
then call to witness
عَلَيْهِنَّ
alayhinna
against them
أَرْبَعَةً
arba'atan
four
مِّنكُمْ
minkum
among you
فَإِن
fa-in
And if
شَهِدُوا
shahidu
they testify
فَأَمْسِكُوهُنَّ
fa-amsikuhunna
then confine them
فِي
fi
in
الْبُيُوتِ
al-buyuti
their houses
حَتَّى
hatta
until
يَتَوَفَّاهُنَّ
yatawaffahunna
comes to them
الْمَوْتُ
al-mawtu
[the] death
أَوْ
aw
or
يَجْعَلَ
yaj'ala
makes
اللَّهُ
al-lahu
Allah
لَهُنَّ
lahunna
for them
سَبِيلًا
sabilan
a way

Transliteration

Wallaatee yaateenal faahishata min nisaaa'ikum fastashhidoo 'alaihinna arba'atam minkum fa in shahidoo fa amsikoohunna fil buyooti hatta yatawaffaa hunnal mawtu aw yaj'alal laahu lahunna sabeelaa

Translation

Those who commit unlawful sexual intercourse of your women - bring against them four [witnesses] from among you. And if they testify, confine the guilty women to houses until death takes them or Allah ordains for them [another] way.

Verse interpretation (Tafsir)

For those of your women who commit sexual offences – whether they are married or unmarried – call four trustworthy Muslim men witnesses. If they bear witness against them, then confine them to their homes as a punishment, until the end of their lives, or until Allah makes a way for them other than being confined. The ruling of this verse was replaced with the ruling that unmarried women who have illicit sexual relations should be whipped a hundred times and banished for a year, and married women who have illicit sexual relations should be stoned.

Source: Al-Mukhtasar Tafsir — Tafsir Center for Quranic Studies.

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