The Ruling of the Shari'ah on Excessive Swearing by Divorce

Question: What is the ruling of the Shari'ah on excessive swearing by divorce? And is it permissible to retract the divorce?

Answer: It is not befitting for a believer to do this excessively; rather, it is disliked for him to do so. He should guard his tongue, for the most hateful of lawful things to Allah is divorce, as stated in the noble hadith from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him).
Therefore, a believer should be deliberate in matters and strive to guard his tongue from everything that is not befitting, including divorce. He should not pronounce divorce except with insight, consideration, and care. If the benefit and advantage of divorce become apparent, he should pronounce it once, with no more; for he may regret it and take his wife back, and praise be to Allah.
The point is that excessive swearing by divorce is dangerous and leads to the occurrence of divorce. One may swear by divorce without intending for the divorce to take place, but it takes place if he does what he swore to leave, or leaves what he swore to do.
As for when he only intends to threaten and frighten, such as saying, "If you talk to so-and-so, you are divorced," or "If you go to so-and-so, you are divorced," by way of threatening and frightening, and his intention is not divorce, then according to the most precise scholars of knowledge, there is an expiation for the oath, and the divorce does not take place. This is the correct position chosen by a group of scholars. He only intended to threaten and frighten, but in any case, he should leave that and beware of it. Making a habit of divorce is not permissible, and it should not be on his tongue; for he may cause it to take place intentionally, and because some scholars hold that it takes place even if he intended to threaten and frighten. He should beware of that and avoid it, as a precaution for his religion and as a precaution for what is obligatory upon him regarding guarding his private parts and staying away from the suspicion of the forbidden.
And when he divorces, he should do so with insight, not in anger and haste. He should be careful and look into it, and if he sees the benefit in divorce—because she is of bad character, bad conduct, and weak in religion—if he sees the benefit in that, he should divorce her once during a period of purity in which he did not have intercourse with her, and not during pregnancy.
This is the Sunnah, which is divorce in two states: one is during pregnancy, and the second is during a period of purity in which he did not have intercourse with her. This is the place for the Shari'ah divorce. As for divorce during menstruation or post-natal bleeding, or during a period of purity in which he had intercourse with her, it is an innovated divorce, contrary to the saying of the Exalted: [Al-Talaq:1].
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) explained in the hadith of Ibn 'Umar that her divorce during the waiting period should be when she is in a state of purity, without intercourse, or pregnant. The people of Islam and every Muslim should be careful about these matters, maintain the Sunnah, and beware of obeying Satan in divorcing in a non-Shari'ah manner. They should also beware of haste in pronouncing the triple divorce. Rather, one must observe what Allah has prescribed and beware of what Allah has forbidden in his divorce and in all his affairs. The believer is a commanded servant, having an Islamic Shari'ah that he must adhere to in everything, be careful about what Allah has forbidden in everything, and beware of what Allah has forbidden for him. He has no right to be lax in everything; rather, he must be cautious, and his actions and words must be bound by the Shari'ah. May Allah grant all of you success and guidance.