Prohibition against remarrying one’s divorced wife

“… The Lord hath prohibited, in a Tablet inscribed by the Pen of His command, the practice to which ye formerly had recourse when thrice ye had divorced a woman. This He hath done as a favor on His part, that ye may be accounted among the thankful. He who hath divorced his wife may choose, upon the passing of each month, to remarry her when there is mutual affection and consent, so long as she hath not taken another husband. Should she have wed again, then, by this other union, the separation is confirmed and the matter is concluded unless, clearly, her circumstances change. Thus hath the decree been inscribed with majesty in this glorious Tablet by Him Who is the Dawning-place of Beauty.” ¹

Question: Concerning the sacred verse: “The Lord hath prohibited … the practice to which ye formerly had recourse when thrice ye had divorced a woman.”
Answer: The reference is to the law which previously made it necessary for another man to marry such a woman before she could again be wedded to her former husband; this practice hath been prohibited in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas. ²

“The Lord hath prohibited … the practice to which ye formerly had recourse when thrice ye had divorced a woman.  This relates to a law of Islám set out in the Qur’an which decreed that under certain conditions a man could not remarry his divorced wife unless she had married and been divorced by another man. Baha’u’llah affirms that this is the practice which has been prohibited in the Kitab-i-Aqdas (Q&A 31).” ³

“He who hath divorced his wife may choose, upon the passing of each month, to remarry her when there is mutual affection and consent, so long as she hath not taken another husband … unless, clearly, her circumstances change.
Shoghi Effendi states, in a letter written on his behalf, that the intention of “the passing of each month” is not to impose a limitation, and that it is possible for a divorced couple to remarry at any time after their divorce, so long as neither party is currently married to another person.” ⁴

Babi Dispensation

See the Persian Bayan, Wáhid VI, Chapter 12

Islamic Dispensation

“Divorce is twice. Then, either keep [her] in an acceptable manner or release [her] with good treatment. And it is not lawful for you to take anything of what you have given them unless both fear that they will not be able to keep [within] the limits of Allah . But if you fear that they will not keep [within] the limits of Allah , then there is no blame upon either of them concerning that by which she ransoms herself. These are the limits of Allah, so do not transgress them. And whoever transgresses the limits of Allah - it is those who are the wrongdoers. And if he has divorced her [for the third time], then she is not lawful to him afterward until [after] she marries a husband other than him. And if the latter husband divorces her [or dies], there is no blame upon the woman and her former husband for returning to each other if they think that they can keep [within] the limits of Allah . These are the limits of Allah , which He makes clear to a people who know.” ⁵