حَدَّثَنَا أَحْمَدُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ الْمَرْوَزِيُّ، حَدَّثَنِي عَلِيُّ بْنُ حُسَيْنِ بْنِ وَاقِدٍ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، عَنْ يَزِيدَ النَّحْوِيِّ، عَنْ عِكْرِمَةَ، عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ، قَالَ ‏{‏ وَالْمُطَلَّقَاتُ يَتَرَبَّصْنَ بِأَنْفُسِهِنَّ ثَلاَثَةَ قُرُوءٍ وَلاَ يَحِلُّ لَهُنَّ أَنْ يَكْتُمْنَ مَا خَلَقَ اللَّهُ فِي أَرْحَامِهِنَّ ‏}‏ الآيَةَ وَذَلِكَ أَنَّ الرَّجُلَ كَانَ إِذَا طَلَّقَ امْرَأَتَهُ فَهُوَ أَحَقُّ بِرَجْعَتِهَا وَإِنْ طَلَّقَهَا ثَلاَثًا فَنُسِخَ ذَلِكَ وَقَالَ ‏{‏ الطَّلاَقُ مَرَّتَانِ ‏}‏ ‏.‏

Narrated Abdullah ibn Abbas

Divorced women shall wait concerning themselves for three monthly periods. Nor is it lawful for them to hide what Allah hath created in their wombs. This means that if a man divorced his wife he had the right to take her back in marriage though he had divorced her by three pronouncements. This was then repealed (by a Qur'anic verse). Divorce is only permissible twice.