Quran 4:1

[Star]

Salam everyone,

I had a question about verse 4:1. Most of the translations for this verse have lots of brackets in which extra words are added. These words are not part of the original Quranic text. If I took all the brackets out of the translations and presented the un-edited Quranic text, it wouldn't seem to make much sense. I feel like parts of this verse are practically unintelligible without the brackets.

Par example:

O mankind! Be dutiful to your Lord, Who created you from a single person (Adam), and from him (Adam) He created his wife [Hawwa (Eve)], and from them both He created many men and women and fear Allah through Whom you demand your mutual (rights), and (do not cut the relations of) the wombs (kinship). Surely, Allah is Ever an All ­Watcher over you.

Versus:

O mankind! Be dutiful to your Lord, Who created you from a single person, and from him He created its mate, and from them both He created many men and women and fear Allah through Whom you demand of it, and  the wombs. Surely, Allah is Ever an All­ Watcher over you.

The second version of the verse is truer to the original Arabic, without any reference to gender in the first part of the verse, and it has no added words. However, the last part makes no sense--"Fear Allah through whom ye demand of it, and the wombs"? I can sort of figure out what this means, but it's not really clear.

Does anyone know why this sentence in particular is written so confusingly?

[zara]

Hi Mia,
Here is a translation that seems clearer,hope it helps.

People, be mindful of your Lord, who created you from a single soul, and from it created its mate, and from the pair of them spread countless men and women far and wide; be mindful of God, in whose name you make requests of one another. Beware of severing the ties of kinship: God is always watching over you.

[Star]

Salam sister Zara

Thank you for the alternate translation. It's a very good translation of the verse but I'm not sure if it's true to the original Arabic.

I was wondering why the original Arabic used in this verse is so vague. It seems kind of incoherent. Was this done on purpose, so that the verse could have multiple meanings?