Seerah of Prophet Muhammad 69 - The Prophet's Marriage to Zaynab - Dr. Yasir Qadhi | 23rd Oct 2013
Seerah of Prophet Muhammad 69 - The Prophet's Marriage to Zaynab - Dr. Yasir Qadhi | 23rd Oct 2013
Brief Background About Zaynab bint Jahsh RA
We will discuss the difficult story of Zaynab bint Jahsh. Who is she? And when did she marry the Prophet PBUH? Zaynab was not born Zaynab, she was born Bara. She is Qureshi but not of the Banu Hashim tribe, she was of the Banu Khuzayma. Her mother was Umayma bint Abdul Muttalib, so she is the sister of Abdullah. So she is a first cousin of the Prophet PBUH. And she was around 15 years younger than the Prophet PBUH. Most likely she was 35 when she married the Prophet PBUH. Now she had been previously married in Makkah but became divorced. And she migrated with her brother to Madinah and the Prophet PBUH sent a proposal on behalf of his 'adopted son' Zayd. He was called 'Zayd ibn Muhammad' until now. And she said, "I am the widow of a Qureshi and you want me to marry Zayd?" She felt from the beginning Zayd isn't of her caliber. And it's human nature a woman wants a man she can look up to and respect. So Zaynab felt Zayd is beneath her and so she kind of said, "It's not appropriate." But the Prophet PBUH insisted, and according to one interpretation Surah al-Ahzab verse 36 was revealed because of this,
وَمَا كَانَ لِمُؤْمِنٍ وَلَا مُؤْمِنَةٍ إِذَا قَضَى اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ أَمْرًا أَن يَكُونَ لَهُمُ الْخِيَرَةُ مِنْ أَمْرِهِمْ ۗ وَمَن يَعْصِ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ فَقَدْ ضَلَّ ضَلَالًا مُّبِينًا
"It is not for a believing man or a believing woman, when Allah and His Messenger have decided a matter, that they should [thereafter] have any choice about their affair. And whoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger has certainly strayed into clear error." [33:36]
In the early seerah books the scholars said this verse was revealed for this issue. So both her and her brother said, "Zayd isn't worthy enough for our family." But when the ayat was revealed both of them agreed.
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Competition Between Aisha RA and Zaynab RA
It's well known Zaynab was the only competition Aisha RA had in terms of the love the Prophet PBUH had for his wives. The wives of the Prophet PBUH were divided into two camps: The camp of Zaynab and the camp of Aisha. And regarding the verse where Allah says, "O Prophet, do not make haram what is halal," the scholars say this was revealed because the Prophet PBUH overstayed in Zaynab's house. So Aisha and Hafsa concocted a plan that, "When he enters in ask him 'what is that bad smell?'" So the both of them said, "There is some bad smell coming from you," so the Prophet PBUH said, "I won't eat from Zaynab again," but then Allah revealed the verse that, "Do not make haram what is halal." The point is Aisha RA said, "Zaynab was the only lady who was a genuine competition for me in status."
Despite this jealousy, Aisha has a lot of praise for Zaynab. And similarly Zaynab said, "I know nothing but good from her," regarding Aisha during the slander incident. Zaynab's own sister spread the rumors out of love for Zaynab, but Zaynab herself did not. Her Islam prevented her from doing it. And Aisha RA herself said, "I have never seen any women more righteous than her; and more fearful of Allah; and more truthful in speech; and more caring with her family; and more generous in charity; and more energizing in her efforts to come closer to Allah, except she had a quick temper that would then go away." This is a beautiful hadith where Aisha RA praises Zaynab. And she was one who regularly fasted and prayed, and she was well known to being the most generous of all the wives of the Prophet PBUH. And she was called the 'mother of the orphans' and 'mother of the poor.' And in the famous hadith when the wives discussed, "Who will be the first wife to pass away after the Prophet PBUH?" The Prophet PBUH said, "The one amongst you with the longest hand will be the first to meet me." So for the next few years they would line up against the wall and measure each others hand lengths. Eventually Zaynab was the first to die and they understood what the Prophet PBUH meant when he said 'longest hand.' It was the one who spends the most for the sake of Allah.
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When Did the Marriage Take Place?
When did he marry Zaynab? Lots of reports but the strongest opinion is that it took place in Dhu al-Qa'dah in the 5th year of the Hijrah. Most importantly because the verses of hijab was revealed on the night of the wedding of the Prophet PBUH and Zaynab. And we know this in other reports so this is the strongest opinion. We also know for a fact the marriage took place before the slander of Aisha RA. Therefore it fits in with the seerah.
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The Walima
We also know that Zaynab's walima was the most luxurious out all of the wives of the Prophet PBUH. The best walima the Prophet PBUH gave to any of his wives was Zaynab's. And what was the walima? Anas RA said, "Meat and bread until all the people were filled." Note the Prophet PBUH never ate rice in his life. The luxury was bread and meat. So he had all the meat and bread which is the walima to this day. For most of the other wives, they did not have the capacity to sacrifice an animal. But for Zaynab the Prophet PBUH invited everyone - he gave a whole long list to Anas ibn Malik RA. And then he said, "Go to the People of the Suffa, go in the hallways, anyone you meet call him." So they all ate from a small dish. And Anas RA said, "I thought it would only feed 2 or 3, but over 70 ate and when they all finished it was still the same amount as it was at the start." And therefore the story of the marriage of Zaynab is well known.
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The Prophet's PBUH Marriage to Zaynab bint Jahsh RA
We will discuss this story in the order as follows:
I. what the Quran says; then
II. what the books of hadith say; then
III. what the books of seerah say; then
IV. what the books of tafsir say.
I. What the Quran Says
As for the Quran, Allah says in al-Ahzab verse 37:
وَإِذْ تَقُولُ لِلَّذِي أَنْعَمَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَأَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيْهِ أَمْسِكْ عَلَيْكَ زَوْجَكَ وَاتَّقِ اللَّهَ وَتُخْفِي فِي نَفْسِكَ مَا اللَّهُ مُبْدِيهِ وَتَخْشَى النَّاسَ وَاللَّهُ أَحَقُّ أَن تَخْشَاهُ ۖ فَلَمَّا قَضَىٰ زَيْدٌ مِّنْهَا وَطَرًا زَوَّجْنَاكَهَا لِكَيْ لَا يَكُونَ عَلَى الْمُؤْمِنِينَ حَرَجٌ فِي أَزْوَاجِ أَدْعِيَائِهِمْ إِذَا قَضَوْا مِنْهُنَّ وَطَرًا ۚ وَكَانَ أَمْرُ اللَّهِ مَفْعُولًا
"And [remember, O Muhammad], when you said to the one on whom Allah bestowed favor and you bestowed favor, "Keep your wife and fear Allah ," while you concealed within yourself that which Allah is to disclose. And you feared the people, while Allah has more right that you fear Him. So when Zayd had no longer any need for her, We married her to you in order that there not be upon the believers any discomfort concerning the wives of their adopted sons when they no longer have need of them. And ever is the command of Allah accomplished." [33:37]
So the Prophet PBUH told Zayd, "Keep your wife, fear Allah and do not divorce her." But as he said this, Allah says there was something in the Prophet's PBUH heart he was hiding. That which he was hiding, Allah would make it known to the people. And Allah says why did the Prophet PBUH hide it? He was fearful of the people - but this is wrong. It's a minor rebuke for the Prophet PBUH, that why was he scared of the people? He should have been afraid of Allah alone. Then Allah mentions Zayd by NAME in the Quran. No other sahaba had this honor. It was the single biggest blessing that Allah has given Zayd ibn Harithah. Allah mentions his by his NAME. Even Abu Bakr RA is only referenced as 'sahib.' And it is narrated when the Prophet PBUH died, one of the sahaba remarked, "Had Zayd been alive we would never have chosen Abu Bakr over him." That Zayd was an obvious choice. So Zayd's maqam and status is so high, but it's unfortunately not known amongst the Muslims. He died in 8 H. Allah continues, "When Zayd finishes off," i.e. divorce takes place, "We married her to you," meaning the Prophet PBUH should marry Zaynab. Why? To prove there is no problem for any believer to marry the wives of their adopted sons. This is one of the wisdoms of the incident. The adopted sons wife is not a mahram for the parents.
Note the next page is full of praise of the Prophet PBUH. That, "Muhammad is not the father of any of your men, rather he is the Seal of the prophets" and Allah only mentions his name four times in the Quran - this is once. And Allah says, "Allah sends his salaam to you (oh Muhammad)." So this entire page and a half is full of praise for the Prophet PBUH. And Allah says, "There is never difficulty for what Allah has decreed for His prophet." So from the Quran we learn the Prophet PBUH told Zayd not to divorce Zaynab but he hid something in his heart which Allah revealed. We also learn Allah married Zaynab to the Prophet PBUH directly. Allah revealed the nikah contract in the Quran!
II. What the Books of Hadith Say
Let us turn to the books of hadith. In Bukhari and Tirmidhi, Anas ibn Malik said Zayd came to the Prophet PBUH complaining about Zaynab, but the Prophet PBUH kept on saying, "Keep your wife don't divorce her." Anas said, "If the Prophet PBUH were to have hidden anything from the wahy, he would have hidden this verse." Notice this version of Bukhari does not give us ANY details. It only says Zayd came to the Prophet PBUH complaining, and the Prophet PBUH said, "Keep your wife." What was Zayd complaining about? What was the Prophet PBUH hiding etc.? It's not mentioned at all. So Bukhari and Muslim don't have anything explicit any details. Other reports mention details that are interesting. In Bukhari, Anas RA said, "The verses of hijab were revealed regarding Zaynab's marriage (i.e. on the night). And Zaynab would boast to the other wives 'Allah has married me from above the seven heavens.'" In another version she would say, "As for you, your fathers and brothers married you off to the Prophet PBUH, as for me, Allah married me to the Prophet PBUH." So it's expected that Zaynab is happy and proud and boasting which is all halal between co wives. In Tirmidhi, Aisha RA says the same thing that, "If the Prophet PBUH were to have hidden any ayat from the Quran he would have hidden this ayat." Which means what? It is painful. And the Prophet PBUH is being criticized in an unprecedented way. But of course he is honest and truthful he revealed everything Allah said.
There is only one hadith that gives us details in Musnad Imam Ahmad. As expected there is conflict as to its authenticity. From Imam Ahmad's teacher Muammal ibn Ismail from Hammad ibn Zayd from Thabit from Anas it's narrated that the Prophet PBUH came to the house of Zayd ibn Harithah. So he saw Zayd's wife Zaynab in the house. Now Muammal says, "I do not know whether Anas said the next statement or whether it was interpolated by my teacher Hammad." And that next statement is: ..." so something entered the heart of the Prophet PBUH. So Zayd came complaining to her about him, but the Prophet PBUH said 'hold onto your wife and fear Allah.'" Note eventually Zayd does end up divorcing Zaynab. The Prophet PBUH never told him to, he does it anyway. And the Prophet PBUH then tells Zayd, "Go to Zaynab and mention my name." In the version of Ibn Sa'd the Prophet PBUH said to Zayd, "I don't trust anyone but you," and again this is before hijab has been revealed. And so Zayd goes to Zaynab and he finds her getting the barley ready, and Zayd says, "When I saw her, I felt shyness that the Prophet PBUH had mentioned her name. So I turned around so I don't see her, and I spoke to her with my back to her." So because the Prophet PBUH wants to marry her, he feels shy. So he says, "O Zaynab the Prophet PBUH has mentioned you and sent to you." So Zaynab said, "I will not respond until I see Allah's assistance (istikhara)."
And at that point in time Allah revealed the verse of Ahzab; the sahaba could physically see him in wahy with his eyes closed. He then recited the verse and sent a message to Zayd regarding it. And Aisha RA says, "When I heard this verse I became struck with jealousy from every angle because of what I knew of her beauty, and worse than this, the manner in which the marriage took place." Subhan'Allah. So the Quran has been revealed after the iddah of Zayd - Zayd went to Zaynab, and before she finishes praying istikhara the Quran comes down as the answer. Therefore the Prophet PBUH entered into the house of Zaynab without any other marriage contract or witness, without any wali being present because Allah was the wali! Without any nikah or witness, it is in the Quran, "We married you to her" so that is enough - end of story.
III. What the Books of Seerah Say
Let's look at the books of seerah. One of the biggest criticisms of Ibn Ishaq is that he for the most part ignored the wives of the Prophet PBUH - he doesn't have a separate section for them. Therefore there isn't anything narrated regarding this incident. Ibn Sa'd is the next authority and he dies 230 H. And he gives us a very detailed version which we will call VERSION A. And this is the problematic version. It is found in a lot of detail in many books. We here it from Ibn Sa'd now - but it's mentioned in several books. Ibn Sa'd says (230 H), "The Prophet PBUH went to visit Zayd but he was not home. And Zaynab came to answer his knock. So she came wearing her regular dress (nothing extra). And said 'he is not here oh messenger of Allah but come on in.' But he turned away and he muttered 'Glory be to Allah the one who changes the hearts.' Zayd comes back and Zaynab tells him the Prophet PBUH visited. He said 'why didn't you invite him in?' She said 'I did.' He said 'what did he say?' She said 'I don't know but all I could hear was 'All Praise to Allah the one who changes the hearts,' so Zayd understood that perhaps the Prophet PBUH was inclined towards her. And he went to the Prophet PBUH and offered to divorce Zaynab but the Prophet PBUH said 'keep your wife and fear Allah' (in the Quran)." But after this incident, all that was remaining in Zayd's heart left. And he kept on insisting he wanted to divorce saying she had a sharp tongue, that she put him down etc. And so Zayd did not want to persist in the marriage but the Prophet PBUH repeated 'keep your wife.' But eventually he divorced and then when the Prophet PBUH was sitting with Aisha RA, the wahy came upon him and he recited the verse in Surah Ahzab. This is Ibn Sa'd's version - VERSION A. It is understood the problem here is the emotions of the Prophet PBUH.
IV. What the Books of Tafsir Say
Let us look to the books of tafsir and they obviously concentrate on this verse because it's directly in the Quran. One of the earliest tafsir is that of Muqatil ibn Sulayman. He died 150 H and it's one of the earliest we have in print today. So Ibn Sulayman is not considered to be academically reliable, he is more so a story teller. We don't turn to his tafsir for reliability, we just look at his tafsir to see what people were saying. His tafsir mentions Version A in vivid detail. If Muqatil was the only person who mentioned this version it would be fine. But he isn't - we just had Ibn Sa'd mentioning it. Now we turn to al-Tabari who died 310 H. He is the most orthodox and authentic tafsir of Sunni Islam. All tafsirs come from al-Tabari. He is the polymath: The historian, the seerah expert, mufassir, etc. al-Tabari mentions Version A as basically the only and standard version. And he mentions reports from Ibn Zayd, Qatada and other authorities. He goes back with his isnads to Qatada, the student of Ibn Abbas. He is the main mufassir of the tabi'un. So Qatada says what the Prophet PBUH hid in his heart was the desire that Zayd divorce Zaynab. And a similar report is mentioned in Ibn Zayd. And this is in al-Tabari, and he is frankly the greatest scholar of tafsir of the early generation. Going next in order, another tafsir written by a Persian Hanafi scholar, al-Samarqandi, who died 375 H, he mentions the same version A. The next tafsir, by al-Tha'labi (died 427 H) writes the same version. The next, non-Sunni, al-Zamakhshari (died 538 H) in Kashshaf, mentions the same version. Fakhr al-Din al-Razi (died 610 H) and he also has version A. So all of the mufassirun mention version A as the standard version.
What is version B? It's not actually a specific incident, it's an interpretation of the verse. This version is mentioned first in al-Bayhaqi's Dala'il al-Nubuwwah (who died in 458 H) - there isn't an earlier printed book that contains this version but it is referenced in earlier books before Bayhaqi (without this explicitness). So version B is the following. Ali Zayn al-Abidin, Husayn's son, asks one of his students, "What does Hasan al-Basri say about this verse?" So this narrator says, "I told him what Hasan says about the verse." And from other reports this narrator tells Ali version A. Ali Zayn al-Abidin says, "No - rather Allah had informed the Prophet PBUH that Zaynab would become his wife." This is version B. This changes the whole dynamics. Version A - what was he hiding in his heart? His inclination to marry Zaynab. He wants Zayd to divorce but he won't say it because the people will say, "Oh he caused Zayd to divorce and then married Zaynab." Version B says the following, that Allah had told the Prophet PBUH Zaynab will become his wife. So Zayd comes to him and says, "I want to marry Zaynab." But the Prophet PBUH knows eventually Zaynab will be his wife. Knowing this he tells Zayd don't divorce her. Why? Because he was scared. What was he scared of? That the people will say, "He married the wife of his adopted son," which is a big Jahiliyyah no-no. Every different phrase has a different linkage. In version A what he 'HID' was his desire and inclination to marry Zaynab. In version B he 'HID' the fact that he knew he would eventually marry Zaynab. In version A he was scared people would spread rumors. In version B he was scared of doing the thing that is considered a big taboo in the jahili society, which is to marry the ex-wife of one's adopted son. These are the versions A's and version B's.
Version B chronologically appears to come after Version A. But interestingly some early tafsirs mention both together. Most notably Ibn Atiyyah al-Andalusi (died 541 H), in his al-Muharrar al-Wajiz, mentions all of version A and follows up by mentioning Version B. Al-Baghawi, a very famous scholar of tafsir who died 516 H, he mentions the same version A in great detail. And he actually quotes Ibn Abbas as saying, "What the Prophet PBUH hid was a love for Zaynab." And he mentions that Qatada says, "What the Prophet PBUH hid was the hope Zayd would divorce her." But then al-Baghawi brings in version B. And he quotes from Ali Zayn al-Abidin, and then says, "And this is more befitting and more appropriate for the maqam of the prophets." So he is the first author to say version A is problematic. All of the other scholars, al-Tabari, Ibn Sa'd etc. all quote version A without mentioning anything. No big deal. Al-Baghawi 516 H says, "Some have said version B is better because it is more appropriate to the status of a prophet." Notice he chose version B simply because in content it makes more sense the Prophet PBUH should do version B and not version A. Then he says, "Even if the first story is correct, the other interpretation which is that he hid for her a love and desire to marry her, is not something that tarnishes the reputation of a prophet." So he is saying version B is better, but even if you insist on version A, it's not something that affects the reputation of a prophet. Why? Because, "A servant is not criticized for a desire that comes to the heart, as long as he does not intend something evil. Indeed love and inclination is not something in the control of men."
So we find a shift that version B is getting traction, and then as we go on and on version B takes more and more role, until version A is eventually ignored, completely set aside and castigated, criticized and many things are said about it.
The next tafsir is Zad al-Masir by Ibn al-Jawzi (died 597 H). And he says, "There are four opinions about what the Prophet PBUH hid:
1) His love for Zaynab (narrated by Ibn Abbas).
2) A promise from Allah he would marry her (as narrated Zayn al-Abidin).
3) A wish that Zayd would divorce her (what Qatada said)
4) The intention that if Zayd divorced her then he would marry her (reported by Ibn Zayd)"
So out of these four opinions: 1, 3 and 4 are version A and only 2 is version B. He then says, "Some scholars have said it is not possible the Prophet PBUH was inclined towards her, and wanted Zayd to divorce her." This is Ibn al-Jawzi speaking, a very famous scholar of tafsir and hadith and fiqh of the Hanbali madhhab. So he continues ..." even though this is what is commonly found in the books of tafsir." So he admits version A is more common in the earlier books. Then he says, "Rather these scholars have said that he was criticized in this incident for concealing the fact that eventually he would become his wife. And he felt out of a concern for her, if Zayd would divorce her, he would marry her to fulfill the ties of kinship since she was his cousin." In other words Ibn al-Jawzi removes the love and inclination factor by saying the Prophet PBUH wanted to marry Zaynab to take care her of her since she was his cousin. But he doesn't quote an authority. Same goes with al-Qurtubi, the famous Andalusian scholar who died 671 H: He mentions version A in detail, but follows it up with version B. And then he says, "Our scholars have said that this is the better interpretation of the verse, and it is this interpretation the critical researchers have approved off."
So we notice here that in the first three/four centuries it is only version A that is predominant. Version B is found; in the 4th/5th century both versions A and B are mentioned but then some scholars begin to conclude version B is better. Then in the 6th/7th/8th centuries, version A is basically never mentioned anymore. The best example for this is Ibn Kathir himself. And after him Ibn Hajar! Ibn Kathir died 774 H, Ibn Hajar died 852 H. So we see now an evolution taking place. And they say regarding this verse, "Some of the earlier books have reports that we would rather not mention." So they literally don't even mention version A. They just cross it out. What happened as a result of this was that, later scholars began to say these other versions are fabrications. And modern scholars went even more bizarre and said version A is a fabrication by evil orientalists that have corrupted our books, and have introduced it to bring doubts about the character of the Prophet PBUH. And frankly this type of theory we have to reject.
Ibn al-Qayyim, in his book al-Da'u wal-Dawa, which is a really interesting book: Someone wrote him a letter, and it's ambiguous that he is suffering from a problem and he doesn't mention what is the problem. So Ibn al-Qayyim wrote the book al-Da'u wal-Dawa, which means, "The disease and the cure" - al-da'u is disease, al-dawa is cure. And the problem is actually ishq (love). So Ibn al-Qayyim writes this beautiful book, and he has entire chapters dedicated to ishq (love), and he has a full chapter regarding the dangers of love. Right at the end of the book, he has the permissibility of certain types of ishq (love). Some ishq is necessary! Ibn al-Qayyim mentions certain types are good, and he mentions stories from the salaf and sahaba of halal ishq. And of what he mentions is this very story. Very interesting. He mentions a sanitized version A. That the Prophet PBUH saw Zaynab, Zayd divorced her and then Allah married Zaynab to the Prophet PBUH. So it is interesting Ibn al-Qayyim seems to find no problem with version A, and the fact that the Prophet PBUH felt ishq (love) for Zaynab.
Summary of the Pros and Cons of Version A & Version B
Let us summarize the pros and cons for version A and version B.
Version A
Pros
In terms of the text of the Quran, in terms of concealment, it makes more logical sense that what the Prophet PBUH is hiding is not a sin but something embarrassing. And notice Allah did not say, "You made a mistake" but the context of the verse suggests it is something embarrassing, but not sinful. Hence the reports from Aisha, and Anas etc. all said, "If the Prophet PBUH were to conceal an ayat, he would have concealed this." So in this regard one can say version A makes sense. In terms of the sheer quantity of early authorities, al-Tabari, Ibn Sa'd, Qatada, Ibn Abbas, it seems to have been the standard understanding of early Islam. Some say that these reports are weak in isnad. This may be true, but the sheer quantity of narrations found in various books make the story basically authentic. Secondly these same isnads that go back to Ibn Abbas, Ibn Zayd etc. These are the same isnads al-Tabari uses throughout his tafsir for many events. So if you want to picky, then you have rejected 80% of al-Tabari. Also, version B says that the Prophet PBUH was hiding the fact that Allah told him he will marry Zaynab. If he knows this, why delay it? It doesn't make sense the Prophet PBUH is just going to say to Zayd, "Keep your wife." So it doesn't make logical sense that the Prophet PBUH delays and delays - to what extent? In fact if we look at the seerah of the Prophet PBUH, he has the courage and bravery to do things immediately i.e. tell the people of Isra wal-Mi'raj. So version A the Prophet PBUH is embarrassed about a human emotion - but version B is as if the Prophet PBUH is denying Allah's qadr. Version A is actually more acceptable; version B you are trying to delay qadr.
Cons
The main con and problem of version A is that it creates a stigma of our Prophet PBUH and his inclinations. Many of us say, and this is what the majority of later scholars felt, that this is a problem. As al-Baghawi said, "It is not appropriate for the standard of prophethood."
Version B
Pros
Those who support version B have solid evidences as well. It's not as if he's never seen Zaynab before. It's not as if the Prophet PBUH is seeing Zaynab for the first time. Thus version A doesn't make sense that instantly inclination begins. Also, the Prophet PBUH in fact proposed to her on behalf of Zayd! If the Prophet PBUH was interested he would have proposed directly from day one. Al-Baghawi further says, "Allah says in the Quran 'you hid in your heart that which Allah would make open.'" He says, "What did Allah make open?" It was, "We married you to her." So version B is supported by the text of the Quran. Allah never said, "You were inclined to her." Rather the very next verse that comes after, "That which Allah makes open" is that the Prophet PBUH has married Zaynab. And so he says, "This shows us version B is more weighty."
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Conclusion
Which version is correct? At the end of the day Allah knows best. But Sheikh Yasir Qadhi agrees with al-Baghawi's final analysis. Even if version A is accepted, there is no sin at all. A man is not accountable for his feelings. The story does not have any sin at all and that is why even in the Quran there is no command to repent or that he did a mistake. Both versions are there - but this claim that version A is a fabrication etc. is honestly wrong. Version A is clearly mentioned by most if not all of the early scholars. Version B is also referenced, and eventually version B becomes the standard. So whoever says version A, let him follow Ibn al-Qayyim and others. That the Prophet PBUH did not do anything sinful. And again is there any problem with viewing the Prophet PBUH as a normal man with normal inclinations? There are plenty of evidences in the seerah which show this. That in the marriage of Juwayriyya, Aisha RA said, "As soon as I saw her, I hated her." Why? Because, "I knew what the Prophet PBUH would see in her what I see and he would think exactly what I am thinking." This is what happened. When Juwayriyya came and said, "I am the daughter of the chieftain of my people etc." And the Prophet PBUH married her and freed all of her people.
And indeed what is wrong with a prophet that has male inclinations but never ever acted upon them? When you make the Prophet PBUH into an angel that has no inclinations, where is the role model? And if you were to say version A, what is there that is problematic? And it so happened Zayd never liked Zaynab in the first place. And it was perfect for Zayd, "Ya Rasulullah let me divorce her let me divorce her." Until finally without the Prophet PBUH knowing Zayd divorces her. And after the iddah period is over, the Prophet PBUH sends over a marriage proposal, and Zaynab prayed istikhara - as she is praying, Allah reveals in the Quran. And Aisha RA, Ibn Abbas, Hasan al-Basri etc. all say, "If the Prophet PBUH would have hidden any verse in the Quran, he would have hid this one." Bottom line: Version A whoever follows it that is fine. And similar version B is fine.
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The Generosity of Zaynab bint Jahsh RA
Zaynab continued to live a life of piety. She was called the mother of the orphans and poor. And she was the first one to die after the Prophet PBUH. Abu Bakr RA would give everyone an equal salary when he was the khalifa in Madinah. When Umar RA was khalifa he said no, and he made a whole list of people. And the highest category were the wives of the Prophet PBUH. And then the earliest converts. And then the middle converts. And so on until the last category was the converts after the conquest of Makkah. So the wives of the Prophet PBUH got the biggest amount. And that was 12,000 dirhams annually. That is a fortune. And Zaynab was given the 12,000 and it was poured in front of her. And she kept on saying, "La hawla wa la quwwata illa biLlah" etc. As the money is in front of her, she gave an amount to her servant to send to the house of someone. And then she gave another and she kept on doing until not a single penny was left. She did not go to sleep until she had nothing left. Umar RA heard of this and said, "What a lady this is." And he said, "I heard what you did with the money, here is another 1000 for you." What did she do with that 1000? She gave it all away. And she made a du'a to Allah, "Let me not see this again for money is a fitna." And indeed it is a fitna. Imagine if someone gave you a million dollars right now, what would you do? We should thank Allah we are not tested with immense wealth.
And subhan'Allah she passed away the next year before the salary came to her, in the 20th year of the Hijrah, the first wife of the Prophet PBUH to pass away. And Umar RA prayed her janazah, and all of the major sahaba walked to Baqi' al-Gharqad. She was known as someone who was very pious. She deserved to be the wife of the Prophet PBUH, and whatever story you follow, both versions are valid.