Taking an oath of divorce that his wife will immediately recite from the Qur'an

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Q 7: Once I said to my wife while the Mus-haf (copy of the Qur'an) was opened in front of her, "By Allah you will be divorced if you do not recite from the Qur'an now.'' I do not know whether she recited or not. After a while when I asked her about it, she said she had recited Surah Al-Fatihah inaudibly. I do not know if she was honest or was just lying lest I should divorce her. Is she still lawful for me or she is divorced?

A: If the reality is as you mentioned, then your wife is not divorced, unless she turns out to be lying concerning her reciting from the Qur'an and you had the prior intention of divorcing her if she did not. However, if you only meant to urge her to recite and you did not mean to divorce her, (Part No. 20; Page No. 187) you should make Kaffarah (expiation) for an oath if you are sure that she did not recite. May Allah grant us success. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.