(32–34) “O wives of the Prophet, you are not like any other women, if you fear Allah. So do not speak in an alluringly soft manner, lest one in whose heart is sickness should be moved to desire; rather, speak in an appropriate manner. * Remain in your homes, and do not display yourselves as women did during the former Age of Ignorance. Establish prayer, give zakah, and obey Allah and His Messenger. Allah only intends to remove defilement from you, O People of the House, and to purify you completely. * And remember what is recited in your homes of Allah’s verses and wisdom. Indeed, Allah is Ever Most Subtle, All-Aware.”
Allah says, “O wives of the Prophet”—this is addressed to all of them—“you are not like any other women, if you fear” Allah. By doing so, you surpass all other women, and no woman can equal you. Therefore, perfect your fear of Allah through all its means and aims.
For this reason, He directed them to close off every means leading to what is forbidden, saying, “So do not speak in an alluringly soft manner.” That is, when addressing men or speaking where men can hear you, do not soften your tone and speak delicately in a way that invites and excites the desire of “one in whose heart is sickness”—namely, the sickness of lust for illicit sexual relations. Such a person is primed and alert to the slightest stimulus that might arouse him, because his heart is unsound [for the heart ⦗664⦘ that is sound] (1) has no desire for anything Allah has forbidden. Temptations can scarcely incline or stir it because of its soundness and freedom from sickness.
This is unlike the person with a diseased heart, who cannot withstand what a soundhearted person can withstand or patiently resist what the latter can. Whenever the slightest cause calls him toward what is forbidden, he answers without resistance. This shows that means are subject to the same rulings as the ends to which they lead. Speaking softly and submissively is permissible in principle, but because it can be a means to what is forbidden, it is prohibited. A woman should therefore not soften her speech when addressing men.
Having forbidden them to speak submissively, one might suppose that they were commanded to speak harshly. He dispelled this misconception by saying, “Rather, speak in an appropriate manner”—that is, speech that is neither harsh nor coarse, yet is not alluringly soft and submissive.
Consider how He said, “Do not speak in an alluringly soft manner,” and did not say, “Do not speak gently.” What is forbidden is soft speech that displays a woman’s submissiveness and deference toward a man, for it is the submissive speaker whom he may be moved to desire. This differs from someone who speaks gently without submissiveness; such speech may even convey superiority and subdue an adversary, in which case the adversary is not moved to desire the speaker. Allah therefore praised His Messenger for gentleness, saying, “It was by mercy from Allah that you were gentle with them.” He also said to Moses and Aaron, “Go, both of you, to Pharaoh, for he has transgressed. Speak to him gently, so that perhaps he may take heed or fear.”
The words, “lest one in whose heart is sickness should be moved to desire,” together with His command to preserve chastity, His praise of the men and women who preserve it, and His prohibition against approaching illicit sexual relations, indicate that when a servant notices this condition within himself—when he becomes eager (2) to commit what is forbidden upon seeing someone he desires or hearing that person speak, and finds that the impulses arousing his desire have turned toward what is forbidden—he should recognize that this is a sickness.
He should strive to weaken this sickness, cut off corrupt thoughts, struggle against himself to remain free of this dangerous sickness, and ask Allah for protection from sin and for success. This forms part of the preservation of chastity that has been commanded.
“Remain in your homes”—that is, stay in them, for this is safer and affords you greater protection. “And do not display yourselves as women did during the former Age of Ignorance”—that is, do not frequently go out adorned or perfumed, as was the custom of the people of the former Age of Ignorance, who possessed neither knowledge nor religion. All of this serves to avert evil and its causes.
After commanding them to fear Him in general and specifying particular aspects of that fear [because of] (3) women’s need for them, He likewise commanded them to obey Him, particularly by performing prayer and giving zakah, which everyone needs and cannot do without. These are among the greatest acts of worship and the noblest acts of obedience: prayer embodies sincerity to the One worshipped, while zakah embodies kindness toward His servants.
He then gave them a general command to obey, saying, “And obey Allah and His Messenger.” Everything Allah and His Messenger command, whether as an obligation or a recommendation, falls under obedience to Allah and His Messenger.
“Allah only intends,” by commanding you to do what He has commanded and forbidding you from what (4) He has forbidden, “to remove defilement from you”—that is, harm, evil, and filth—O “People of the House, and to purify you completely,” so that you may be pure and purified.
In other words, praise your Lord and thank Him for these commands and prohibitions, which He has informed you are beneficial and entirely in your own interest. Allah did not intend thereby to impose any constraint or hardship upon you, but rather to purify your souls, refine your character, improve your deeds, and thereby magnify your reward.
Having commanded them to act—action consisting of both doing and refraining—He commanded them to acquire knowledge and showed them its path, saying, “And remember what is recited in your homes of Allah’s verses and wisdom.” Allah’s verses means the Quran, while wisdom means its mysteries and the Sunnah of His Messenger. The command to remember it includes remembering its wording by reciting it; remembering its meaning by contemplating and reflecting upon it and deriving its rulings and wisdom; and remembering it by putting it into practice and bringing it to realization. “Indeed, Allah is Ever Most Subtle, All-Aware.” He comprehends the innermost realities (5) of all affairs, what lies hidden within breasts, the secrets of the heavens and the earth, and deeds performed openly and secretly.
His being Most Subtle and All-Aware is why He urges them to sincerity and to keep their deeds private, and why He recompenses them for those deeds.