it mean that this verse applies in the life of this world, or in the Hereafter? For in this world there are many marriages that do not conform to this rule, and a great number of husbands and wives are wronged in this regard. What, then, should be done?

Answer: The exegetes offer two interpretations of the verse:

First view: “The impure ones” (al-khabīthāt) refers to impure words. Such words are directed at impure men, and impure men in turn use impure words; that is, the wicked speak in language that suits them.

Second view: “The impure ones” here means unchaste women—sinful, immoral fornicators—for the impure men, and the impure men, who themselves are unchaste, are for the impure women, namely the fornicators. This is like the beginning of the sura: “The fornicator shall marry none but a fornicatress or an idolatress, and the fornicatress—none shall marry her except a fornicator or an idolater” (al-Nūr 24:3). Thus an impure woman is not fit to marry a chaste man, nor is an impure man fit to marry a chaste woman. That is the substance of what has been said about the two verses.

In any case, the verse makes clear that the wicked are matched with what resembles them—whether words or people—while the good are for the good: righteous words are attributed to righteous men, and righteous men are associated with righteous words.

Question: What about husbands and wives in our time who may be wronged in this matter?

Answer: The impurity (khubth) intended here is not what the questioner has imagined. Rather, the impurity is either impurity with respect to honor (ʿirḍ)—sexual misconduct—or impurity in speech.