Transliteration:( Wa laqad arsalnaa Rusulam min qablika wa ja'alnaa lahum azwaajanw wa zurriyyah; wa maa kaana lirasoolin ai ya'tiya bi aayatin illaa bi iznil laah; likulli ajalin kitaab )
And We have certainly sent messengers before you [108], and We assigned to them wives and offspring [109]. And it was not for any messenger to bring a sign except by the permission of Allah [110]. For every term is a decree [111]. (Kanzul Imaan Translation)
The disbelievers objected that if the Holy Prophet ﷺ were truly a Messenger, he would not marry, bear children, or lead a family life—rather, he should live in seclusion like a recluse.
In response to this objection, this verse was revealed to affirm that marriage and family life are not contrary to Prophethood.
Only Hazrat Yahya and Hazrat Isa (peace be upon them) lived without marrying. All other Prophets had wives and children, as this is part of the natural way of life.
Even keeping multiple wives is not against the practice of the Prophets.
Hazrat Dawood (عليه السلام) had ninety-nine wives
Hazrat Sulayman (عليه السلام) had one thousand wives
Even in other traditions, figures like Krishna and Raja Jadrat are said to have had many wives, showing that such a lifestyle is not inherently incompatible with leadership or divinely guided missions.
No Prophet can bring forth any sign or miracle of his own will — all such acts occur only by Allah’s command.
Some miracles serve personal needs, such as the beauty of Hazrat Yusuf (عليه السلام).
Some miracles are under the Prophet’s discretion (e.g., Hazrat Musa’s staff turning into a serpent whenever he cast it), but still happen only with divine permission.
Others, like the revelation of the Qur'an, are completely beyond the Prophet’s control and occur purely through Allah’s command.
This addresses the objection raised by disbelievers about abrogation (naskh) in Allah’s verses.
Just as creation follows a fixed schedule (birth, death, etc.), similarly, Divine laws are subject to a fixed decree and appointed term.
When a law has served its time and purpose, it is replaced — this natural process is what we refer to as abrogation.
38. And indeed We sent Messengers before you, and made for them wives and offspring. And it was not for a Messenger to bring a sign except by Allah’s leave. (For) every matter there is a decree (from Allah). 39. Allah blots out what He wills and confirms (what He wills). And with Him is the Mother of the Book.
Allah says, `Just as We have sent you O Muhammad, a Prophet and a human, We sent the Messengers before you from among mankind, that eat food, walk in the markets, and We gave them wives and offspring.’ Allah said to the most honorable and Final Messenger,
(Say: “I am only a man like you. It has been revealed to me.”) ﴿18:110﴾ It is recorded in the Two Sahihs that the Messenger of Allah said,
(As for me, I fast and break the fast, stand in prayer at night and sleep, eat meat and marry women; so whoever turns away from my Sunnah is not of mine.)
Allah said,
(And it was not for a Messenger to bring a sign except by Allah’s leave.) meaning, no Prophet could have brought a miracle to his people except by Allah’s permission and will, for this matter is only decided by Allah the Exalted and Most Honored, not the Prophets; surely Allah does what He wills and decides what He wills.
((For) every matter there is a decree (from Allah).) for every term appointed, there is a record (or decree) that keeps it, and everything has a specific due measure with Allah,
(Know you not that Allah knows all that is in the heaven and on the earth Verily, it is (all) in the Book. Verily, that is easy for Allah.)﴿22:70﴾
Allah said,
(Allah blots out what He wills) of the divinely revealed Books,
(and confirms), until the Qur’an, revealed from Allah to His Messenger peace be upon him, abrogated them all. Mujahid commented;
(Allah blots out what He wills and confirms (what He wills).) “Except life and death, misery and happiness ﴿i.e., faith and disbelief﴾, for they do not change.” Mansur said that he asked Mujahid, “Some of us say in their supplication, `O Allah! If my name is with those who are happy (believers), affirm my name among them, and if my name is among the miserable ones (disbelievers), remove it from among them and place it among the happy ones.” Mujahid said. “This supplication is good.” I met him a year or more later and repeated the same question to him and he recited these Ayat,
(We sent it (this Qur’an) down on a blessed night.) Mujahid commented next, “During Laylatul-Qadr (Night of the Decrees), Allah decides what provisions and disasters will occur in the next year of. He then brings forward or back (or blots out) whatever He wills. As for the Book containing the records of the happy (believers) and the miserable (disbelievers), it does not change.” Al-A`mash narrated that Abu Wa’il, Shaqiq bin Salamah said that he used to recite this supplication often, “O Allah, if You wrote us among the wretched ones, remove this status from us and write us among the blessed ones. If You wrote us among the blessed ones, please let us stay that way, for surely, You blot out and confirm what You will, and with You is the Mother of the Book.” Ibn Jarir At-Tabari collected this. Similar statements were collected from `Umar bin Al-Khattab and `Abdullah bin Mas`ud, indicating that Allah blots out (or abrogates) and affirms what He wills in the Book of Records. What further supports this meaning is that Imam Ahmad recorded that Thawban said that the Messenger of Allah said,
(A man might be deprived of a provision (that was written for him) because of a sin that he commits; only supplication changes Al-Qadar (Predestination); and only Birr (righteousness) can increase the life span.”) An-Nasa’i and Ibn Majah collected this Hadith. There is also a Hadith recorded in the Sahih that affirms that maintaining the ties of the womb increases the life span. Al-`Awfi reported that Ibn `Abbas said about Allah’s statement,
(Allah blots out what He wills and confirms (what He wills). And with Him is the Mother of the Book.) “A man might work in Allah’s obedience for a while but he reverts to the disobedience of Him and then dies while misguided. This is what Allah blots out, while what He confirms is a man who works in His disobedience, but since goodness was destined for him, he dies after reverting to the obedience of Allah. This is what Allah confirms.” It was also reported that Sa`id bin Jubayr said that this Ayah is in the meaning of another Ayah,
(Then He forgives whom He wills and punishes whom He wills. And Allah is able to do all things.) ﴿2:284﴾
(13:38) We indeed sent many Messengers before you and We gave them wives and children;[56] and no Messenger had the power to produce a miraculous sign except by the command of Allah.[57] Every age has its own (revealed) Book.
56. This is the answer to another objection. The disbelievers said that he could not be a Prophet of Allah because he has wives and children, for they argued that Prophets had nothing to do with carnal desires.
57. This is the answer to yet another objection: Had he been a true Prophet, he would have shown a sign like the shining hand and the miraculous staff of Prophet Moses or he would have restored sight to the blind or cured lepers like Prophet Jesus, or brought a sign like the she camel of Prophet Salih. (peace be upon them all). The answer is this: None of the former Messengers had any power to show any sign nor has this Prophet (peace be upon him). Allah showed a sign whenever and through whomsoever He considered it to be necessary and will show any sign whenever He will consider it necessary and that I have not claimed to possess any such power that such a demand might be made from me.
For a faster and smoother experience,
install our mobile app now.
Related Ayat(Verses)/Topics