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yā-ʾayyuhā lladhīna ʾāmanū kūnū qawwāmīna li-llāhi shuhadāʾa bi-l-qisṭi wa-lā yajrimannakum shanaʾānu qawmin ʿalā ʾallā taʿdilū ʿdilū huwa ʾaqrabu li-t-taqwā wa-ttaqū llāha ʾinna llāha khabīrun bi-mā taʿmalūna
O you who have faith! Be maintainers, as witnesses for the sake of Allah, of justice, and ill feeling for a people should never lead you to be unfair. Be fair; that is nearer to Godwariness, and be wary of Allah. Allah is indeed well aware of what you do.
— Ali Quli Qarai
Surah Al-Ma'idah, Verse 8
An Earnest Invitation unto Justice
This verse invites to establishment of justice. At first, it addresses the believers and says:
After that, the verse points to one of the factors of deviation from justice, and warns Muslims as such that tribal hatreds and hostilities, or personal accounts, should not stand as a barrier in the way of the execution of justice and should not cause transgression over the rights of others, because justice is something beyond all of them. It says:
For the importance of the matter, it emphasizes on the subject of justice once more and says:
And, since justice is the most important element of piety and righteousness, for the third time, it adds as an emphasis that: