Tafsir al-Baghawi - Al-Baghawi - (2/181)

Tafsir al-BaghawiAl-Baghawi

“As for those of your women who commit sexual immorality, call upon four witnesses from among you against them. If they testify, then confine them to their houses until death takes them, or Allah ordains for them another way.” (15)

The Most High says, “As for those who commit sexual immorality,” meaning unlawful sexual intercourse, “among your women, call upon four witnesses from among you against them,” meaning from among the Muslims. This is addressed to the rulers; that is, seek four witnesses against them. It also establishes that unlawful sexual intercourse is proven only by the testimony of four witnesses. “If they testify, then confine them”: that is, detain them “in their houses until death takes them, or Allah ordains for them another way.” This was the ruling in the early days of Islam, before the prescribed punishments were revealed: when a woman committed unlawful sexual intercourse, she was confined in the house until she died. This was then abrogated, in the case of the unmarried person, by flogging and banishment, and in the case of the previously married person, by flogging and stoning.

‘Abd al-Wahhab ibn Muhammad al-Khatib informed us; ‘Abd al-‘Aziz ibn Ahmad al-Khallal informed us; Abu al-‘Abbas al-Asamm informed us; al-Rabi‘ informed us; al-Shafi‘i, may Allah have mercy on him, informed us; ‘Abd al-Wahhab informed us, from Yunus, from al-Hasan, from ‘Ubadah ibn al-Samit, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “Take from me, take from me: Allah has ordained for them a way. For the unmarried: one hundred lashes and banishment for one year; and for the previously married: one hundred lashes and stoning.” (1)

Al-Shafi‘i, may Allah have mercy on him, said: “A reliable narrator informed me that al-Hasan used to place Hittan al-Raqashi between himself and ‘Ubadah. I do not know whether ‘Abd al-Wahhab inserted him between them, thus differing from the version in my book, or not.”

Our shaykh, the imam, said: The hadith is authentic. Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj narrated it from Muhammad ibn al-Muthanna, from ‘Abd al-A‘la, from Sa‘id, from Qatadah, from al-Hasan, from Hittan ibn ‘Abd Allah, from ‘Ubadah. (2) Thereafter, flogging in the case of the previously married person was abrogated, while stoning remained, according to the majority of the scholars.

A group of scholars held that the two punishments should be combined. It is reported from ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, that he flogged Shurahah al-Hamdaniyyah on Thursday

(1) Narrated by al-Shafii in al-Musnad, 2:77 (arrangement of al-Musnad). The final wording there reads: “I do not know whether Abd al-Wahhab inserted it between the two passages—so it was omitted from my book when I rearranged it—or whether it was in the original; the original was not with me when I wrote this book.” Also cited by the author in Sharh al-Sunnah, 10:276. (2) Narrated by Muslim in Kitab al-Hudud, chapter: The Prescribed Punishment for Zina (illicit sexual intercourse), no. 1690, 3:1316.

﴿وَاللَّاتِي يَأْتِينَ الْفَاحِشَةَ مِنْ نِسَائِكُمْ فَاسْتَشْهِدُوا عَلَيْهِنَّ أَرْبَعَةً مِنْكُمْ فَإِنْ شَهِدُوا فَأَمْسِكُوهُنَّ فِي الْبُيُوتِ حَتَّى يَتَوَفَّاهُنَّ الْمَوْتُ أَوْ يَجْعَلَ اللَّهُ لَهُنَّ سَبِيلًا (١٥) ﴾ قَوْلُهُ ﷿: ﴿وَاللَّاتِي يَأْتِينَ الْفَاحِشَةَ﴾ يَعْنِي: الزِّنَا، ﴿مِنْ نِسَائِكُمْ فَاسْتَشْهِدُوا عَلَيْهِنَّ أَرْبَعَةً مِنْكُمْ﴾ يَعْنِي: مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ، وَهَذَا خِطَابٌ لِلْحُكَّامِ، أَيْ: فَاطْلُبُوا عَلَيْهِنَّ أَرْبَعَةً مِنَ الشُّهُودِ، وَفِيهِ بَيَانُ أَنَّ الزِّنَا لَا يَثْبُتُ إِلَّا بِأَرْبَعَةٍ مِنَ الشُّهُودِ. ﴿فَإِنْ شَهِدُوا فَأَمْسِكُوهُنَّ﴾ فَاحْبِسُوهُنَّ، ﴿فِي الْبُيُوتِ حَتَّى يَتَوَفَّاهُنَّ الْمَوْتُ أَوْ يَجْعَلَ اللَّهُ لَهُنَّ سَبِيلًا﴾ وَهَذَا كَانَ فِي أَوَّلِ الْإِسْلَامِ قَبْلَ نُزُولِ الْحُدُودِ، كَانَتِ الْمَرْأَةُ إِذَا زَنَتْ حُبِسَتْ فِي الْبَيْتِ حَتَّى تَمُوتَ، ثُمَّ نُسِخَ ذَلِكَ فِي حَقِّ الْبِكْرِ بِالْجَلْدِ وَالتَّغْرِيبِ، وَفِي حَقِّ الثَّيِّبِ بِالْجَلْدِ وَالرَّجْمِ. أَخْبَرَنَا عَبْدُ الْوَهَّابِ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ الْخَطِيبُ، أَخْبَرَنَا عَبْدُ الْعَزِيزِ بْنُ أَحْمَدَ الْخَلَّالُ، أَنَا أَبُو الْعَبَّاسِ الْأَصَمُّ، أَنَا الرَّبِيعُ، أَخْبَرَنَا الشَّافِعِيُّ ﵁ أَخْبَرَنَا عَبْدُ الْوَهَّابِ عَنْ يُونُسَ عَنِ الْحَسَنِ عَنْ عُبَادَةَ بْنِ الصَّامِتِ ﵁ أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ ﷺ قَالَ: "خُذُوا عَنِّي خُذُوا عَنِّي: قَدْ جَعَلَ اللَّهُ لَهُنَّ سَبِيلًا الْبِكْرُ بِالْبِكْرِ جَلْدُ مِائَةٍ وَتَغْرِيبُ عَامٍ، وَالثَّيِّبُ بِالثَّيِّبِ جَلْدُ مِائَةٍ وَالرَّجْمُ" (١) ، قَالَ الشَّافِعِيُّ ﵁: وَقَدْ حَدَّثَنِي الثِّقَةُ أَنَّ الْحَسَنَ كَانَ يُدْخِلُ بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَ عُبَادَةَ حَطَّانَ الرَّقَاشِيَّ، وَلَا أَدْرِي أَدْخَلَهُ عَبْدُ الْوَهَّابِ بَيْنَهُمَا فَنَزَلَ عَنْ كِتَابِي أَمْ لَا. قَالَ شَيْخُنَا الْإِمَامُ: الْحَدِيثُ صَحِيحٌ رَوَاهُ مُسْلِمُ بْنُ الْحَجَّاجِ عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ الْمُثَنَّى عَنْ عَبْدِ الْأَعْلَى عَنْ سَعِيدٍ عَنْ قَتَادَةَ عَنِ الْحَسَنِ عَنْ حِطَّانَ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ عَنْ عُبَادَةَ (٢) ، ثُمَّ نُسِخَ الْجِلْدُ فِي حَقِّ الثَّيِّبِ وَبَقِيَ الرَّجْمُ عِنْدَ أَكْثَرِ أَهْلِ الْعِلْمِ. وَذَهَبَ طَائِفَةٌ إِلَى أَنَّهُ يُجْمَعُ بَيْنَهُمَا. رُوِيَ عَنْ عَلِيٍّ ﵁: أَنَّهُ جَلَدَ شُرَاحَةَ الهَمْدَانِيَّةَ يَوْمَ

(١) أخرجه الشافعي في المسند: ٢ / ٧٧ (ترتيب المسند) وجاءت فيه العبارة الأخيرة هكذا: " ولا أدري أدخله عبد الوهاب بينهما - فترك من كتابي حين حولت - وهو في الأصل أو لا؟ والأصل يوم كتبت هذا الكتاب غائب عني". والمصنف في شرح السنة: ١٠ / ٢٧٦. (٢) أخرجه مسلم في الحدود، باب حد الزنا برقم (١٦٩٠) : ٣ / ١٣١٦.