The Exegesis of the Saying of Allah the Exalted: "And marry the unmarried among you and the righteous among your male slaves and female slaves. If they should be poor, Allah will enrich them from His bounty. And Allah is [all] Knowing and Aware."

Then Allah the Exalted said: In this verse, the males are given precedence over the females. Why did the author mention this phrase, even though this is common in the Qur'an? Because the address in this entire verse is directed to the women. If the address had originally been directed to the males, there would have been no need for this phrase that the author mentioned. But since the address in the noble verse is directed to the women, He said:

And turn to Allah in repentance, all of you, O believers

توبوا إلى الله جميعا أيه المؤمنون

[An-Nur 24:31]

He did not say, "Repent to Allah, all you believing women." We say this for the sake of giving precedence. And in this, may Allah know best, is an indication that the address is directed to the males, just as it includes the females without doubt. In this is an indication of the man's care for the woman, and that he must himself repent and reform his household. And Allah the Exalted said:

Men are in charge of women by [right of] what Allah has given one over the other and what they spend [for maintenance] from their wealth.

الرجال قوامون على النساء بما فضل الله به بعضهم على بعض وبما أنفقوا من أموالهم

[An-Nisa 4:34]

So we say that in this, the address is directed to the males, even though the entire verse is an address to the women. In this is an indication of the man's guardianship over the woman, and that the woman does not stand firm except with the firmness of the man. Reality bears witness to this. Now, what are the causes of the negligence of the women among us? Of course... The direct cause of this matter here is the lack of care by the men for them and the lack of concern by the men for them. This is what necessitated for them this expansion that the Shari'ah does not approve of. Therefore, if every person had dedicated himself to protecting his wife, this evil would not have occurred. And it is strange that you find a person among us who dedicates himself to protecting his wealth. The box... has two keys, and the keys are always with him. If he has one thousand [currency units], out of fear for this wealth, he says, "Put it in the banks to protect it." Yes, and he restricts it and looks at it: did it decrease today? Did it increase? The family, who are in reality the most important thing he cares about... his sons are traveling and his daughters are traveling, and everything, and he does not look at it. If we had cared for our families half as much as we care for our wealth, much good would have happened. Knowing that we care for our wealth for ourselves or for others? For others. Meaning, this accumulated wealth does not follow you... it returns. But your family, if Allah reforms them through your hand, you have in reality reformed them for yourself. Because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) says:

When a man dies, his deeds come to an end except for three things

إذا مات ابن آدم انقطع عمله إلا من ثلاث

Riyad as-Salihin 1383

And he mentioned among them the righteous child who prays for him.
Then Allah the Exalted said:

And marry the unmarried among you and the righteous among your male slaves and female slaves

و أنكحوا الأيامى منكم والصالحين من عبادكم وإمائكم

[An-Nur 24:32]

"Ankahu" (marry). If one reads "Wa ankahu" (and he married), the meaning differs greatly. Therefore, if someone makes a mistake in this verse and says "Wa ankahu," it is obligatory to correct him, because this is a grammatical error that changes the meaning. "Ankahu" means "marry off" (as a guardian), but "Wa ankahu" means "he married" (as a husband). There is a great difference between them. "Ankahu" means "marry off" the unmarried among you. The address is to the free people, as indicated by His saying:

the righteous among your male slaves and female slaves

والصالحين من عبادكم وإمائكم

[An-Nur 24:32]

His saying "al-ayama" (the unmarried). The author says: " Al-ayama is the plural of 'aym, which is one who has no spouse, whether a virgin or a widow, and one who has no spouse. And this is for the free men and free women." Okay. Al-ayama is the plural of 'aym, which is one who has no spouse, whether a widow whose husband died or was divorced, or a virgin. She is called 'aym. And Allah the Exalted commanded their marriage, which is evidence that a woman does not marry herself. "Ankahu" means "marry off." So if a woman married herself, there would be no need for Him to say to another, "Marry her off," meaning she herself marries. And this is one of the proofs. And His saying: In any case, this is not the place to elaborate on the issue of the guardian (wali) and the absence of a guardian. Rather, in this address is a directive for the guardians of women to marry them off. "Marry the unmarried among you." And Allah the Exalted did not specify who marries, or who we are to marry off. We are commanded to marry them off, but who we marry off is clarified by the Sunnah. And what is it? So we marry off the one with religion and good character. Wealth is not the intended purpose in the Shari'ah, meaning it is intended in a real, practical sense. And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) clarified that a woman is married for her wealth, and a man is also married for his wealth. But the original principle is religion and character. And His saying "the unmarried among you" means the unmarried women and the unmarried men. How do we marry them off? Does it mean if someone proposes to me, I marry him off, or does it mean I help them in marriage, or both? Both. Because al-ayama applies to men and women who are not married. For the females, it is clear that we are commanded to marry them off if a suitable suitor proposes. But also, for the males, we are commanded to marry them off, meaning if an unmarried man proposes to us, we marry him off...
The student: ...

The Shaykh : ...we marry him off. But this is more of a concern. Meaning, if two men propose to me, one has a wife and the other does not, and both are equal in religion and character, whom do we prioritize? The one without a wife, because he is more in need and it protects his chastity. The other has already protected his chastity before. So, "the unmarried among you" regarding the men: if he has a wife, we are commanded to marry him off, but we specifically mentioned the unmarried because he is more in need. Also included in this is helping the unmarried in marriage. If a person helps them, this is among the deeds for which a person is rewarded. Because marriage is intended in the Shari'ah. And of course, if a person marries, he has done what Allah commanded and has also attained what his soul desires. And with that, if we help them in this matter, we are obeying His saying: Yes, because in reality, we married him off. Our help to him in marriage is marrying him off. Yes.
The student: If the righteous husband refuses...

The Shaykh : If she refuses the righteous husband and wants a husband who is not righteous, it is not accepted from her, and he does not give her permission. But if she requests a suitable suitor, but he himself, the guardian, sees that this one is better, but she is the one who requested, and there is no defect in his religion, he must follow what she wants...