I have a question about ayah 26 of Surat al-Noor. One of the interpretations of this ayah is about marriage, that evil women are for evil men, evil men are for evil women, that good women are for good men and good men are for good women. I don't understand this in relation to the fact that it is permissible for Muslim men to marry Jewish and Christian women. If a good Muslim man married such a woman, does it mean she would be good in other ways not having to do with her religion? Or how to understand this correctly? Jazaakum Allahu khairan

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.

The Tafseer scholars held different opinions about the meaning of this verse. Some interpreted it to mean the bad statements and the good statements, and others interpreted it to mean the bad men and the bad women. According to this latter interpretation, it means that one's match is the usual and suitable situation. Thus, evil women usually marry evil men and good women marry good men, but this could change as in some cases a good man could marry an evil woman and vice versa.

There are particular objectives which the Sharee‘ah has considered in the marriage of a Muslim man to a woman from the People of the Book. Although the Sharee‘ah prohibits a Muslim man from marrying non-Muslim women, it made an exception for women belonging to the People of the Book for religious benefits that are expected to be achieved from it. For more benefit in this regard, please refer to Fatwa 84159.

Allaah Knows best.