Marriage is a God-ordained covenant established between a man and a woman. This lifelong, sexually exclusive relationship brings children into the world and thus sustains the stewardship of the earth. Therefore by definition, marriage must be exclusive and be with the intent of both parties to be in this covenant for their entire lives.
The predominant word used in the Quran for marriage is “nikah” ( نِكَاح). This word comes from the root ( ن ك ح), which in addition to marriage, also means a contract, the age of sexual maturity, the age one can sign a contract independently, to tie a knot, as well as cement. While the other meanings may be more expected, the significance for the connection between marriage and cement is that when cement dries, the expectation is that the bond is permanent; similarly, when two individuals are married, the couple’s intention should be to want to stay permanently together.
So if the marriage is conducted with the pretense that it is only temporary, it cannot be considered marriage. This would be a redefinition of marriage not much different than individuals who have attempted to redefine marriage to include same-sex couples.
In addition to nikah ( نِكَاح), the Quran uses some words for marriage as well. One of these words is the word صِهْرًا (ṣih’ran) found in the following verse.
He is the One who created from water a human being, then made him reproduce through marriage and mating. Your Lord is Omnipotent.
The word “ṣih’ran” ( صِهْرًا) comes from the root ( ص ه ر), which has the derivative meaning to melt, liquefy, or fuse together, as seen in the following verse, showing again that the expectation for a couple marrying is not meant to be reversible once it is complete.
22:20 It will cause their insides to melt, as well as their skins.
يُصْهَرُ بِهِۦ مَا فِى بُطُونِهِمْ وَٱلْجُلُودُ
Moreover, when a person marries, they are to make a solemn pledge to their spouse. The Quran calls out this pledge in the following verse.
4:21 How could you take it back, after you have been intimate with each other, and they had taken from you a solemn pledge?
It is worth noting that the term translated as a pledge in the above verse is mīthāqan ( مِّيثَـٰقًا). This word in the Quran is for oaths where both sides have a responsibility, and in the case of marriage, it is to be with the intent of a lifelong sexually exclusive relationship between the parties involved.
We see this same expression used in the following verse regarding the Children of Israel and their covenant with God. This shows the seriousness of this covenant.
4:154 And we raised Mount Sinai above them, as we took their covenant. And we said to them, “Enter the gate humbly.” And we said to them, “Do not desecrate the Sabbath.” Indeed, we took from them a solemn covenant.
The fact that marriage is a covenant also explains why divorce is frowned upon since divorce requires the breaking of an oath. When a couple divorces, they are breaking their commitment to each other that they made God a guarantor over and vowed to fulfill.
16:91 You shall fulfill your covenant with GOD when you make such a covenant. You shall not violate the oaths after swearing (by God) to carry them out, for you have made GOD a guarantor for you. GOD knows everything you do.
The Quran not only discourages divorce, as mentioned by the reasons above, it has specific steps that one must take even if one wants to carry through with a divorce, including a four-month cooling off period (2:226), as well as waiting for three menstruations before remarrying (2:228), but the Quran always pushes for the couple to reconcile (4:35, 4:128). This again shows that the intention of marriage must not be temporary.
The term for temporary marriages in Arabic is Nikah-al-Mut’a ( نكاح المتعة), which literally translates to “pleasure marriage.” It is a contractual marriage with a fixed duration agreed upon by the parties involved. While it is openly accepted by Shia Muslims, even Sunni Muslims who claim to disavow it have a reputation for seeking such an egregious vice.
Such corruption of marriage is absolutely sacrilegious and a disgrace to the establishment of marriage put forth by God. If the intent of the parties involved is to only be in a marriage covenant temporarily, then this is just fornication, and if a payment is made, then it would constitute prostitution. Individuals who uphold such things and participate in such acts think that they are deceiving God as if they found a loophole in God’s system, but they are only deceiving themselves without perceiving.
2:8 Then there are those who say, “We believe in GOD and the Last Day,” while they are not believers.
2:9 In trying to deceive GOD and those who believe, they only deceive themselves without perceiving.
2:10 In their minds there is a disease. Consequently, GOD augments their disease. They have incurred a painful retribution for their lying.
2:11 When they are told, “Do not commit evil,” they say, “But we are righteous!”
2:12 In fact, they are evildoers, but they do not perceive.
2:13 When they are told, “Believe like the people who believed,” they say, “Shall we believe like the fools who believed?” In fact, it is they who are fools, but they do not know.
Just like homosexuality did not exist before the People of Lot, this concept of temporary marriage is not found practiced by any followers of the Abrahamic faith.
7:80 Lot said to his people, “You commit such an abomination; no one in the world has done it before!
Nowhere in the Bible does it describe temporary marriage or any form of contractual marriage with a fixed duration. The concept of temporary marriage does not exist in either Judaism or Christianity. The Bible teaches that marriage is a lifelong covenant between a man and a woman, and it emphasizes the importance of commitment and faithfulness in marriage.
Jewish law emphasizes the importance of commitment and fidelity in marriage and considers marriage a lifelong covenant between a man and a woman. In Jewish law, sexual relations outside of marriage are prohibited, and the idea of a temporary or contractual marriage with a fixed duration is not recognized or accepted. In Matthew 19:4-6, Jesus said, “At the beginning, the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason, a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ So, they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”
It was not until the proliferation of fabricated Hadith concocted by perverted agents of the devil that attributed such practices to the prophet and his companions.
6:112 We have permitted the enemies of every prophet—human and jinn devils—to inspire in each other fancy words, in order to deceive. Had your Lord willed, they would not have done it. You shall disregard them and their fabrications.
6:113 This is to let the minds of those who do not believe in the Hereafter listen to such fabrications, and accept them, and thus expose their real convictions.
To think that the prophet not only participated in such acts but openly promoted them to his followers goes against any basic understanding of the role of the prophet, the purpose of his mission, and the words of God in the Quran.
69:44 Had he uttered any other teachings.
69:45 We would have punished him.
69:46 We would have stopped the revelations to him.
69:47 None of you could have helped him.