Zayd had resolved to divorce his wife, yet this did not end their marriage. She remained his wife until he divorced her, and the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said to him:

“Fear Allah and keep your wife.”

It has been said that Allah had informed the Prophet that he would marry her, but he concealed this information from the people. Allah reproached him for concealing it, saying:

“And you concealed within yourself what Allah was to disclose”—

namely, what Allah had told him concerning this. Another explanation is that what he concealed was his intention to marry her if Zayd divorced her. In either case, Zayd’s resolve to divorce her did not impair the continuation of their marriage. We know of no disagreement on this point.

If, then, it is established by scriptural evidence and consensus that resolving to divorce her has no immediate effect, this refutes those who say that divorce takes effect merely through intending it in one’s heart. Zayd’s heart had turned away from her, yet she remained his wife until he pronounced her divorce. The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

“Allah has pardoned my community for what occurs within their minds, so long as they neither speak nor act upon it.”

This is the position of the majority, including Abū Hanīfa, al-Shāfiʿī and Ahmad, and it is one of the two positions reported from Mālik.

It does not follow that, because stipulating a fixed term invalidates a marriage, intending to divorce later also invalidates it. An intention invalidates a contract when it contradicts the contract’s purpose. Divorce after a period of time is permissible and does not contradict the purpose of the marriage contract up until the divorce. This differs from the case of a man who marries a woman to make her lawful again for her former husband: he has no desire whatsoever to be married to her, but only for her to become the first husband’s wife. If that could be achieved without such an intervening marriage, this man would not have married her to make her lawful for him.

If his aim is payment, he would not marry her if he could obtain it without doing so. If, in this case, his aim is to have intercourse with her that day, then this falls into the category of