该章针对可能加入穆斯林社群的信女颁布了一项裁定：
The surah issues a ruling concerning women believers who might join the Muslim community:
信士们啊！当信道的妇女来投奔你们作移民时，你们应当考验她们。
Believers! When believing women come to you as migrants, test them.
真主最知晓他们的信仰。如果你们确认她们是信士，就不要把她们送还给不信道者。她们对于不信道者已不合法，那些不信道者对于她们也已不合法。
God knows best their faith. If you ascertain that they are believers, do not send them back to the unbelievers. They are no longer lawful [as wives]for the unbelievers, and these are no longer lawful to them.
尽管如此，你们应当把他们（指不信道的妻子）已付的聘礼归还他们。你们若给了她们聘礼而娶她们，这对你们并无罪过。你们不要继续维系与不信道的女人的婚姻关系。
None the less, hand back to the unbelievers the dowries they have paid them. It is no offence for you to marry them after giving them their dowries. Do not hold on to marriage ties with unbelieving women.
要求退还你们已经支付的聘礼，正如他们也有权要求退还他们的聘礼一样。这是真主的判决。
Ask for repayment of the dowries you have paid, just as they have the right to ask for repayment of their dowries. Such is God's judgement.
他将在你们之间公正地裁决。真主是全知的，是至睿的。如果你们的妻子中有人叛教投奔不信道者，而你们随后获得了战利品，那么就把与那些妻子离去的人所付出的聘礼等额的财物，付给她们的丈夫。你们应当敬畏你们所信仰的真主。（第10-11节）
He judges between you in equity. God is all-knowing, wise. Should any of your wives go over to the unbelievers and you subsequently acquire gains from them, then pay those whose wives have gone away the equivalent of whatever dowry they had paid. Fear God, in whom you believe. (Verses 10-11)
先知与古莱氏人在麦加缔结了侯代比亚和约，和约中规定：凡投奔穆斯林的人，即便是穆斯林，先知和穆斯林团体也须将其送还给古莱氏人。据记载，先知即将离开侯代比亚时，有几位妇女前来投奔他，希望加入麦地那的穆斯林团体。
The Prophet concluded the al-Hudaybiyah Treaty with the Quraysh in Makkah and this specified a condition whereby the Prophet and the Muslim community would return to them anyone who went over to the Muslims, even though that person might be a Muslim. Reports mention that when the Prophet was about to leave al-Hudaybiyah, a few women came over to him seeking to join the Muslim community in Madinah.
古莱什人依据条约条款要求引渡他们。看来这些条款在涉及妇女的情况下并不具有决定性。这两节经文的降示，是为了阻止将信道的妇女送还给不信者，因为担心她们会因信仰而遭受迫害。"这是一种需要国际法规则来处理的情况。此处所述的规则，以绝对的公正为基础来规范此类案件，不允许对方的行为——无论其多么不公——影响伊斯兰的立场。此外，伊斯兰的立场是确保其在对内和对外的一切往来中都实现公正。
The Quraysh asked for their extradition in accordance with the terms of the treaty. It appears that those terms were not conclusive in the case of women. These two verses were revealed to block returning women believers to the unbelievers, for fear that they would be persecuted on account of their faith.’ This was a situation requiring rules of international law. These rules outlined here regulate such cases on the basis of absolute fairness, without allowing the behaviour of the other party, unfair as it may be, to influence the Islamic stand. Furthermore, Islams stance is that it ensures justice in all internal and external dealings.
规定的第一步，是对前来迁徙的妇女进行考察，以确定她们迁徙的原因。换言之，她们不能是为了逃离一段失败的婚姻，或追求某种物质利益，或希望嫁给穆斯林群体中她们所爱慕的男子。伊本·阿拔斯传述，先知ﷺ会对每一位这样的妇女进行考察，问她：“以真主发誓，你是因为憎恨你的丈夫而逃到我们这里来的吗？以真主发誓，你来到我们这里仅仅是为了迁居到一片新的土地吗？以真主发誓，你来到我们这里是为了追求某种物质利益吗？以真主发誓，你来到我们这里只是因为你爱真主和祂的使者吗？”，依ikrima解释，这种考察是一种询问方式，目的在于弄清这位妇女迁徙是否只是因为爱真主和祂的使者，还是出于其他目的。这种考察也是为了确定她是否爱慕穆斯林群体中的某位男子，以及她是否是在逃离自己的丈夫。
The first step required by these rules was to test migrating women in order to determine their reasons for migration. In other words, they must not be trying to escape from a marriage that had gone wrong, or be pursuing some other material benefit, or hoping to marry men they were in love with in the Muslim community. Ibn 'Abbas reports that the Prophet tested any such woman, asking her: “By God, have you fled to us because you hate your husband? By God, have you come to us merely to migrate to a new land? By God, are you coming to us in pursuit of some material gain? By God, have you come to us only because you love God and His Messenger?” Tkrimah explains that the test was a form of questioning so as to establish whether the woman was migrating only because she loved God and His Messenger or for some other purpose. The test was also to establish whether or not she was in love with a man from the Muslim community, and whether or not she was fleeing from her husband.
这样的考验就是如此。它依赖于宣誓作出的陈述。
Such, then, was the test. It relied on statements made under oath.
那样的女子是否另有动机,唯有真主知道。人们根本无法凭任何程度的确定性来断定这一点:“真主最知道他们的信仰”(第10节)。当她们已经宣誓作证、确认自己是信士之后,穆斯林群体就不能“把她们送回不信道者那里。她们对于不信道者不再合法(作妻子),这些人对于她们也不再合法。”(第10节)当信仰这一最重要的纽带已被割断,任何东西都无法修复这段关系。婚姻是一种旨在长久安定的结合,当信仰这一首要纽带缺失时,婚姻就无法得到妥善的建立。信仰是使心灵保持活力的基本而至关重要的情感,无法被任何其他东西取代。信士的心不会对缺乏信仰的人产生温情。当两颗心中只有一颗有信仰时,两者之间就不可能有真正的相互倾慕和安全感。婚姻依靠相互的爱情、怜悯、倾慕和安全感而存续。
Whether such a woman had any different motive, God only knew. People simply cannot establish this with any measure of certainty: “ God knows best their faith” (Verse 10) When they have made their statements under oath, confirming that they are believers, then the Muslim community cannot “send them back to the unbelievers. They are no longer lawful [as wives]for the unbelievers, and these are no longer lawful to them.” (Verse 10) When the most important bond of faith has been severed, nothing can repair the relationship. Marriage is a union of permanent setdement and it cannot be properly established when the primary bond of faith is absent. Faith is the basic and vital emotion that keeps a heart alive; it cannot be replaced by any other. A believers heart cannot warm to another that is devoid of faith. There can be no true feeling of mutual inclination or security between two hearts when only one of them has faith. Marriage survives on mutual affection, compassion, inclination and security.
在先知迁徙到麦地那之后，这一问题仍悬而未决，《古兰经》中并未就此作出明确规定。因此，即使夫妻中只有一方皈依伊斯兰教，另一方尚未皈依，也没有任何夫妻因此被分开。
After the Prophets migration to Madinah this issue had been left open, with no rule stated about it in the Qur’an. Therefore, no couple were separated even if only one accepted Islam while the other did not.
这是因为当时穆斯林社会尚未扎下坚实的根基。当侯代比叶和约缔结时,正是需要作出这种区分的时候。穆斯林无论男女,都应当明白,凌驾于一切其他纽带之上的是信仰这一纽带,并应当将这一准则付诸实践。
This was due to the fact that the Muslim society had not yet by then established firm roots. When al-Hudaybiyah Treaty was concluded, it was time that such a separation be made. Muslims, men and women, should understand that the bond that overrides all other bonds is faith, and they should put this rule into practice.
与这种分离夫妻的规定相伴的，还有一项补偿规定。因此，若一名非信徒的丈夫，因妻子皈依伊斯兰而离开他，他有权取回自己在婚礼时为妻子所付的全部聘礼。反过来，若丈夫是信徒而妻子不是，也同样适用。
The provision for separating such couples was accompanied by a provision for compensation. Thus, an unbeliever whose wife left him because she was Muslim was entitled to receive back whatever he had paid to her in dowry at the time of their marriage. The same applied in reverse, should the man be a believer and his wife not.
当此事完成之后,穆斯林便可以迎娶这些迁徙来的女子,只要他们支付了聘礼。学者们对于这些女子是否应当遵守等待期(即"待婚期"),以及等待期的长度,存在分歧。有些学者认为,其等待期与离婚妇女所遵守的相同,即须经历三次月经周期;另一些学者则主张,只需经历一次月经周期即可,以确认她并未怀孕。大家一致认为,如果这些女子怀有身孕,其等待期则持续至分娩为止。
When this had been done, the Muslims could marry such migrant women, provided that they paid them dowries. Scholars differ as to whether such women should observe a waiting period; as also over the length of the waiting period. Some scholars say that it is the same as that observed by a divorced woman, i.e. until she has gone through three menstrual periods, while others maintain that it lasts only until she has completed one period, to make sure that she is not pregnant. It is agreed that if any such woman is pregnant, her waiting period lasts until she has given birth.
“尽管如此,你们要把他们所付出的聘礼归还那些不信道的人。你们与她们结婚并给了她们聘礼,这并无过失。你们不要继续与不信道的女人维持婚姻关系。你们要索回你们所付的聘礼,正如他们也有权索回他们所付的聘礼一样。”(第10节)
所有这些规定,都与信士所拥有的最有力的保障相连,那就是时刻知觉真主、敬畏真主:“这是真主的判决。他在你们之间公正地裁决。真主是全知的,是至睿的。”(第10节)
的确,这是唯一不可侵犯的保障。真主的判决,出自那位知晓人心所藏的、全能的主,他对一切受造物都拥有权能。
“None the less, hand back to the unbelievers the dowries they have paid them. It is no offence for you to marry them after giving them their dowries. Do not hold on to marriage ties with unbelieving women. Ask for repayment of the dowries you have paid, just as they have the right to ask for repayment of their dowries” (verse. 10) All these rules are then tied to the strongest guarantee a believer has, which is that of watching God and fearing Him: “Such is God's judgement. He judges between you in equity. God is all-knowing, wise” (Verse 10) Indeed, this is the only inviolable guarantee. Gods judgement is that of the One who knows what is in peoples hearts, the Almighty who has power over all creatures.
对穆斯林而言，只要他明白这一律例的来源，便足以全面地执行它，因为他知道自己终将归回真主。
It is enough that a Muslim should realize the source of this judgement in order to implement it fully, because he knows that he will ultimately return to God.
如果信士因其异教徒的妻子或其家人拒绝退还嫁妆而蒙受损失（这种情况确有发生），那么穆斯林统治者会为他作出补偿。补偿的来源是：从应付给那些妻子已归附穆斯林社会的异教徒的款项中支付，或从穆斯林社会在战争中获得的战利品中支付。经文说："如果你们的妻子有人投奔了不信道者，而你们后来获得了战利品，那么就把相当于其丈夫所付聘礼的数额，交给那些妻子离去的人。"（第11节）这一规定同样依托于保障伊斯兰一切律例得以执行的那一保证："你们应敬畏你们所信仰的真主。"（第11节）这是给信士的一则深刻而动人的训示。
Should a believer lose what he had paid in dowry, because his unbeliever wife or her family refuses to refund her Muslim husband, as happened in some cases, the Muslim ruler would compensate him for this, taking this from any money due to the unbelievers whose Muslim wives had migrated to join the Muslim community, or from any war gains made by the Muslim community: “Should any of your wives go over to the unbelievers and you subsequently acquire gains from them, then pay those whose wives have gone away the equivalent of whatever dowry they had paid.” (Verse 11) Again this ruling is tied to the same guarantee that ensures the implementation of every Islamic rule: “Fear God, in whom you believe.” (Verse 11) This is a profound and touching instruction for believers.
我们可以看到,这些关于夫妻分离的裁决,体现了伊斯兰关于生活价值与纽带的理念在实践中的落实。它们彰显了穆斯林社会的统一,以及它有别于其他任何社会的特质。这是一个一切生活都建立在信仰之上的社会,在其中,种族、肤色、语言、家庭与土地的一切区分都变得微不足道。能够区分人们的标志只有一个,那就是他们所属阵营的标志。阵营只有两个:真主的阵营与撒旦的阵营。
We see how these rulings concerning the separation of married couples provide an example of the practical implementation of the Islamic concept of life values and ties. They reflect the unity of the Muslim community and its being distinct from any other. It is a community where all life is based on faith, where all distinctions of race, colour, language, family and land are insignificant. There is only one sign that distinguishes between people - the sign of the party to which they belong. There are only two parties: the party of God and the party of Satan.