• The second qualifier in the verse—“and the wives of your sons who are from your own loins” (Qur’an 4:23)—excludes the wife of an adopted son, but, according to the majority of scholars, it does not exclude the wife of a foster-son who was nursed by the same woman.

• “And the married women” (4:24) refers to all women who presently have husbands. Any woman who is bound in matrimony, or who is still completing her waiting period after divorce or widowhood, is unlawful to anyone else; for intimate relations are not open to sharing. They are meant to be kept strictly exclusive, which is why the Sharīʿah prescribes waiting periods, clearance of the womb, and similar safeguards.

• Concerning His words, “except those your right hands possess” (4:24): the ownership intended here is ownership through captivity. Should a married woman from the unbelievers be taken as a captive in lawful combat, she becomes lawful to the Muslims—but only after the requisite waiting period to ensure that she is not pregnant. Her belligerent husband who remains in the land of war no longer retains any right or sanctity with respect to her. She thus becomes lawful to the Muslims just as his wealth and blood become lawful, for he enjoys neither treaty nor truce.

• “And all else beyond that has been made lawful for you” (4:24) means everything other than what Allah has explicitly forbidden: seven categories by lineage, seven by nursing, and four by marriage-affinity. Whatever lies outside these is permissible, although Allah has forbidden combining two sisters in one marriage, and the Prophet ﷺ forbade combining a woman with her paternal or maternal aunt. He also forbade free men from marrying slave-women because doing so would enslave their children, debase the family, and harm the offspring through the owners’ disputes and the slaves’ transfers. Yet when the benefit of permitting such a marriage outweighs the harm, Allah allows it provided that three conditions are fulfilled:
– A genuine hardship that necessitates either companionship or domestic service;
– Inability to afford a free woman’s bride-price and maintenance;
– That the slave-girl be a believer and that her owners grant permission.

When all of these conditions are met, it is lawful for a free man to marry a slave-woman.