Did Islam Allow Muslim Men to Marry Prostitutes for Money?
The deception here is simple: a pre-Islamic practice is being presented as if Islam approved it. The reports being cited actually prove the opposite. They show that some men, influenced by Jahiliyyah customs, wanted to marry known prostitute women for financial benefit, and Allah forbade the believers from doing that.
The Report from Mujahid
“There were prostitute women, and among them was a woman called Umm Muhazzam. A man would marry one of them so that she would spend on him from her earnings, but God Almighty forbade them from that, that any of the Muslims should marry them.”
In the note attached to the report, “prostitutes” is explained as the plural of baghi, meaning the adulteress who openly commits adultery and earns money from it.
Source: http://islamport.com/d/1/ajz/1/220/725.html?zoom_highlightsub=%22%E1%CA%E4%DD%DE+%DA% E1%ED%E5%22
The report is not proof that Islam allowed this. It is proof that Allah prohibited Muslims from entering into this kind of marriage.
The Report from Al-Hakim
“There were prostitute women in Medina, and the Muslim man would marry one of them to spend on him, so they were forbidden from doing so.”
Al-Hakim said: “This is an authentic hadith according to the conditions of the two Shaykhs, but they did not include it.”
Source: http://islamport.com/d/1/mtn/1/21/419.html?zoom_highlightsub=%22%E1%CA%E4%DD%DE+%DA% E1%ED%E5%22
Again, the ending destroys the objection: “so they were forbidden from doing so.” The text is not legitimizing the practice; it is explaining the reason for the prohibition.
Response to the Deception
The accusation claims that because some men wanted to marry known prostitute women for financial support, Islam must have approved this behavior or treated it as normal.
Second: Islam did not command men to marry such women. Rather, the Prophet ﷺ taught that a woman may be sought for marriage for several reasons, but the believer is commanded to choose religion.
Third: These incidents occurred when Allah forbade Muslims from marrying adulteresses who openly bragged about adultery and fornication.
Fourth: If some Muslims disobeyed the commands of Allah and the teachings of the Prophet ﷺ, that does not mean Islam commands their behavior. It means the person is not committed to Islam.
Fifth: If one person from every nation made a mistake and we generalized from that, we would have to say that the nation that produced Judas are traitors, and the nation that produced Hitler are murderers. But an incident cannot be generalized unless it is approved by the society in which it occurred or by the religion they follow.
Islam Commands Choosing the Religious Woman
The Prophet ﷺ taught us that men seek women in marriage for several reasons. Some marry women for their wealth, some for their lineage, some for their beauty, and some for their religion. Then he commanded us to choose the religious woman.
“A woman is married for four reasons: her wealth, her lineage, her beauty, and her religion. So marry the one who is religious, may your hands be blessed.”
Grade: Sahih
This is the legislation that Allah was pleased with and that the Prophet ﷺ commanded us to follow. So if some men proposed to a woman for money or some worldly benefit while being Muslims in belief, this does not mean Islam commands it or calls to it.
The Verse That Forbade This Practice
The adulterer marries not except an adulteress or a polytheist, and the adulteress — none marries her except an adulterer or a polytheist. And that has been forbidden to the believers.
These incidents occurred when Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, forbade Muslims from marrying adulteresses who openly committed fornication. This matter is well-known and famous among most nations, ancient and contemporary. When some people converted to Islam while still influenced by the pre-Islamic era, with its cuckoldry and lack of jealousy, Allah taught them that a Muslim marrying an adulteress is impermissible. This was the legislation of Islam.
The Story of Marthad and Anaq
We will cite some of the reasons for mentioning this incident.
Abd bin Hamid, Abu Dawud, Al-Tirmidhi who authenticated it, Al-Nasa’i, Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir, Ibn Abi Hatim, Al-Hakim who authenticated it, Ibn Mardawayh, and Al-Bayhaqi narrated from the hadith of Amr bin Shu’ayb, from his father, from his grandfather:
He mentioned a story in which he said: “So I came to the Messenger of God ﷺ and said: ‘O Messenger of God, should I marry Anaq?’”
He did not respond to me until the verse was revealed:
“The adulterer marries not except an adulteress…”
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “O Marthad, ‘The adulterer marries not except an adulteress or a polytheist. And the adulteress, none marries her except an adulterer or a polytheist. And that has been forbidden to the believers.’ So do not marry her.”
Grade: Authenticated by Al-Tirmidhi
This report is decisive. Marthad asked whether he could marry Anaq, and the Prophet ﷺ told him: “So do not marry her.” That is the Islamic ruling being established, not the opposite.
Reports from the Early Tafsir Authorities
Ibn Jarir narrated from Abdullah bin Amr regarding the verse:
They were well-known women, and a man from the poor Muslims would marry a woman from them so that she would spend on him, but Allah forbade them from that.
Abu Dawud narrated in his Naskh, and Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir, and Al-Bayhaqi narrated from Ibn Abbas:
It was revealed about openly prostitutes who were in the pre-Islamic era and were polytheistic adulteresses, so God forbade the believers from marrying them.
The repeated point is obvious: the practice existed from Jahiliyyah influence, then Islam came and forbade it. Trying to use this against Islam is backwards.
The reports do not say, “Islam allowed Muslim men to marry prostitutes for money.” They say the opposite: some men wanted to do this, and Allah forbade the believers from doing it.
Conclusion
The accusation collapses because it takes a forbidden practice and presents it as if it were Islamic legislation. The reports about prostitute women in Medina and Mecca are not proof of Islamic approval; they are the background for the prohibition in Surah An-Nur 24:3. Islam directed men to seek religious women for marriage and forbade believers from marrying openly immoral adulteresses.