Muhammad's Multiplicity of Marriages

A Theological and Ethical Critique

One of the most striking examples of special privilege and inconsistency in the life of Muhammad is his deviation from the Qur’anic regulation on the number of wives a Muslim man may lawfully marry. The Qur’an clearly limits this number to four:

"If ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal justly with the orphans, marry women of your choice, two or three or four; but if ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal justly (with them), then only one…" (Qur’an 4:3)

This verse provides the normative framework for Muslim marriage: up to four wives, provided justice can be maintained among them. If not, the text mandates monogamy. Yet, historical records and hadith literature confirm that Muhammad had far more than four wives at the same time.

Enforcing the Limit on Others

Muhammad himself enforced this restriction upon others. Several hadiths illustrate that he instructed newly converted Muslim men to divorce wives exceeding the four-wife limit:

"Ghaylan ibn Salamah ath-Thaqafi accepted Islam and had ten wives... the Prophet told him to keep four and separate from the rest." (Al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 945)

"I embraced Islam while I had eight wives... The Prophet said: Select four of them." (Sunan Abu Dawud, Book 12, Number 2233)

In these cases, Muhammad rigidly applied the Qur’anic limit. However, when it came to his own marital life, a very different standard emerged.

Muhammad’s Exceptional Marital Privileges

The Qur’an itself grants Muhammad a special dispensation:

"O Prophet! We have made lawful to thee thy wives... and any believing woman who gives herself to the Prophet... This only for thee, and not for the Believers (at large)..." (Qur’an 33:50)

"It is not lawful for thee to marry more women after this, nor to change them... except any thy right hand should possess..." (Qur’an 33:52)

This exemption, uniquely tailored for Muhammad, allowed him to exceed the four-wife limit imposed on other Muslims. It even permitted him to take any believing woman who offered herself to him — a practice viewed with skepticism, even mockery, by his wife Aisha:

"I used to look down upon those ladies who had given themselves to Allah’s Apostle... I said (to the Prophet), 'I feel that your Lord hastens in fulfilling your wishes and desires.'" (Sahih al-Bukhari, Vol. 6, Book 60, Hadith 311)

A Tally of Wives and Concubines

According to Islamic sources, Muhammad was married to thirteen women, and consummated marriages with eleven of them. Nine survived him. These included Khadijah, Aisha, Hafsah, Zaynab bint Jahsh, Umm Salama, and others. He also had concubines, most notably Mariyah the Copt, who bore him a son, and Rayhana, a Jewish captive. Some sources suggest he had as many as four concubines.

Hadith literature confirms the extent of Muhammad’s marital life:

"The Prophet used to visit all his wives in a round, during the day and night and they were eleven in number." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Vol. 1, Book 5, Hadith 268)

"The Prophet had nine wives and he used to observe the night turns with eight of them." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Vol. 7, Book 62, Hadith 5)

"The Prophet used to pass by (have sexual relations with) all his wives in one night, and at that time he had nine wives." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Vol. 7, Book 62, Hadith 142)

Contradictions and Confusion in Qur’anic Chronology

Muslim apologists argue that verse 33:52 ended Muhammad’s ability to marry more women. Yet, renowned scholars such as Ibn Kathir and Al-Suyuti maintain that this verse was abrogated by 33:50 — which would be a reversal of the standard principle that later revelations abrogate earlier ones. This interpretive chaos adds further doubt to the internal coherence of the Qur’anic text.

Even the Sealed Nectar biography of Muhammad, a widely respected source in the Muslim world, admits that Muhammad’s marriage to Zaynab bint Jahsh — the divorced wife of his adopted son — stirred controversy due to both the relationship and the violation of the four-wife limit:

"Hypocrites aroused a lot of suspicions... that Zainab was the fifth wife — and the Noble Qur’ân limited the number up to four only..."

It then justifies the exception by claiming that Allah granted Muhammad marital privileges for "noble and honourable purposes." Such reasoning is unconvincing, especially when applied to a man who claimed universal prophetic authority.

A Matter of Integrity

Ultimately, the disparity between the Qur’an’s stated limit on marriage and Muhammad’s actual practice undermines the consistency and ethical credibility of his prophetic example. If Muhammad was truly the model for all believers, why then were rules made that only he could break?

Moreover, the fact that Muhammad used supposed divine revelation to justify personal desires — even to the point that his own wife sarcastically commented on it — reveals an astonishing conflict of interest at the heart of Islam’s founding prophet.

Conclusion

Muhammad's multiplicity of marriages stands as a glaring theological and moral inconsistency. The Qur’an's standard for the faithful was not the standard Muhammad followed. He imposed limitations on others, then exempted himself by means of convenient revelations. This pattern raises serious questions about the authenticity of his prophethood and the ethical framework of Islam itself.

For the Christian, this serves as a profound contrast to the life of Jesus — who had no wives, sought no political power, and called His followers to serve rather than to be served. Muhammad’s marital conduct is not merely a historical detail; it is a theological fault line.