أُحِلَّ لَكُمْ لَيْلَةَ ٱلصِّيَامِ ٱلرَّفَثُ إِلَىٰ نِسَآئِكُمْ ۚ هُنَّ لِبَاسٌ لَّكُمْ وَأَنتُمْ لِبَاسٌ لَّهُنَّ ۗ عَلِمَ ٱللَّهُ أَنَّكُمْ كُنتُمْ تَخْتَانُونَ أَنفُسَكُمْ فَتَابَ عَلَيْكُمْ وَعَفَا عَنكُمْ ۖ فَٱلْـَٔـٰنَ بَـٰشِرُوهُنَّ وَٱبْتَغُوا۟ مَا كَتَبَ ٱللَّهُ لَكُمْ ۚ وَكُلُوا۟ وَٱشْرَبُوا۟ حَتَّىٰ يَتَبَيَّنَ لَكُمُ ٱلْخَيْطُ ٱلْأَبْيَضُ مِنَ ٱلْخَيْطِ ٱلْأَسْوَدِ مِنَ ٱلْفَجْرِ ۖ ثُمَّ أَتِمُّوا۟ ٱلصِّيَامَ إِلَى ٱلَّيْلِ ۚ وَلَا تُبَـٰشِرُوهُنَّ وَأَنتُمْ عَـٰكِفُونَ فِى ٱلْمَسَـٰجِدِ ۗ تِلْكَ حُدُودُ ٱللَّهِ فَلَا تَقْرَبُوهَا ۗ كَذَٰلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ ٱللَّهُ ءَايَـٰتِهِۦ لِلنَّاسِ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَّقُونَ
Uhilla lakum laylatas Siyaamir rafasu ilaa nisaaa'ikum; hunna libaasullakum wa antum libaasullahunn; 'alimal laahu annakum kuntum takhtaanoona anfusakum fataaba 'alaikum wa 'afaa 'ankum fal'aana baashiroo hunna wabtaghoo maa katabal laahoo lakum; wa kuloo washraboo hattaa yatabaiyana lakumul khaitul abyadu minal khaitil aswadi minal fajri summa atimmus Siyaama ilal layl; wa laa tubaashiroo hunna wa antum 'aakifoona fil masaajid; tilka hudoodul laahi falaa taqraboohaa; kazaalika yubaiyinul laahu aayaatihee linnaasi la'allahum yattaqoon
It is made lawful for you, on the night of the fast, to be intimate with your wives. They are a garment for you, and you are a garment for them. God knew that you were betraying yourselves, so he turned to you in mercy and pardoned you. Now lie with them and seek what God has ordained for you. Eat and drink until the white thread of dawn becomes distinct to you from the black thread; then complete the fast until nightfall. Do not be intimate with them while you are in devotional retreat in the mosques. These are the limits set by God, so do not go near them. In this way God makes his signs clear to people, that they may be mindful.
The garment image runs in both directions with the same word, libās, so neither spouse is cast as the covering and the other as the covered. Libās is whatever sits closest to the body, hiding it, sheltering it and keeping it warm, and commentators have read each of those into the phrase. The reports behind the verse describe an earlier and stricter practice that people had been failing to keep, and the verse names that failure before it lifts the burden.