Al Qur'an mentions many a important prophets from the history that left behind valuable imprints for the mankind. In Surah 38. Saad (The Arabic letter Saad), we come across mention of Prophets Prophet David (Dāwūd AS) and his son Prophet Solomon (Sulaiman AS). Both father and son had exceptional leadership qualities and ensured justice in their times.
Herein under we share the 26th verse from Surah Saad, in which Prophet Dāwūd AS has been asked Divinely to ensure justice. In fact this verse was revealed to him when he faultered to make a decision. Herein under we share the verse and its context which gives out the Divine guidelines for ensuring justice.
Verse: Surah Ṣād (38:26)
يَـٰدَاوُۥدُ إِنَّا جَعَلْنَـٰكَ خَلِيفَةًۭ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ فَٱحْكُم بَيْنَ ٱلنَّاسِ بِٱلْحَقِّ وَلَا تَتَّبِعِ ٱلْهَوَىٰ فَيُضِلَّكَ عَن سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ ۚ إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ يَضِلُّونَ عَن سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ لَهُمْ عَذَابٌۭ شَدِيدٌۢ بِمَا نَسُوا۟ يَوْمَ ٱلْحِسَابِ
“O Dāwūd (David)! Indeed, We have made you a خليفة (vicegerent/authority) on the earth, so judge between people in truth and do not follow desire, lest it lead you astray from the path of Allah. Indeed, those who stray from the path of Allah will have a severe punishment for forgetting the Day of Account.”
Plain Explanation
The Qur’ānic comments given after the story explain the nature of the test and specify the line God wants His servant to whom He assigned judgement between people to take. It is then a case of David being given the position of vicegerent on earth, one whereby he is required to judge between people in all fairness. He is told not to follow vain desires, which means in the case of a prophet, not to be hasty in one’s first reaction. For this can easily lead to going astray from God’s path. Rather, he must make sure of all the facts before passing judgement. The concluding sentence in the verse gives a general rule that applies to all cases of going astray from God’s path. It exposes the person concerned to severe punishment on the Day of Reckoning.
One aspect of the care God took of His servant David is that He drew his attention at the first hurdle, and put him back on the right track at the first rash move, warning him of the ultimate result, when he had not even made one step towards it. Such is God’s favour that He bestows on His chosen servants. Since they are human, they may slip when they travel an uneven patch of the road, but God takes them by the hand putting them back on course and teaching them how to repent. Then He forgives them and bestows even greater favours on them.
Context of the Verse
This verse comes after the well-known incident of Prophet Dāwūd (AS) when Two disputants came to him. One complained of injustice (the “99 sheep” case) and Prophet Dāwūd (AS) gave a quick judgment.
He then realized that he should have listened more carefully - in fact it was a test from Allah. Immediately after (38:24), he sought forgiveness and repented sincerely.
It was then the above quoted verse (38:26) was revealed. While Allah forgave him, he was given the guidance for leadership and judgment. This by itself shows that the error that he had committed contained an clement of the desires of the flesh; it also pertained to the abuse of power and authority; and it was an act which was unworthy of a just and fair-minded ruler.
Apparent (Ẓāhir) Meaning
The verse contains four major commands:
- “We made you a khalīfah”
- That is he was made a person of Authority, Responsibility, and Leadership
- But Not just a king—but a representative of justice
- “Judge between people with truth” Allah commanded him to be fair, just and balanced when taking a decision.
- “Do not follow desire (hawā)” - The verse warns rulers and judges against allowing personal desires or worldly inclinations to corrupt their decisions, as this causes misguidance.
- Reminder of accountability Those who deviate in fact forget the Day of Judgment when the scales of true and absolute neutral justice will be erected and none will be wronged on that day.
Deeper Meaning (Wisdom)
- Leadership is a trust (amānah):
- Power is not privilege - It is Responsibility before Allah
- This verse serves as a crucial guideline for leadership, emphasizing that true authority is a trust that must be handled with fairness and fear of God.
- Justice requires discipline Even a prophet, when faultered in his justice, he was corrected. Which clearly exhibits that No one is above accountability.
- The danger of “hawā” (desires)
- Desire includes Bias, Emotions, Personal interest, and Pressure.
- These distort the Truth and become hurdle in the way of Fair judgment.
- Forgetting آخِرَة leads to injustice When people at the helm of the affairs (specially of justice) forget accountability, they abuse power by Justify ظلم the tyranny.
Scholarly Insight
- Ibn Kathir emphasizes that this is a universal principle for rulers and judges. He explains this highlights the heavy responsibility of leaders to judge by truth and remember the Day of Reckoning to avoid severe punishment.
- Al-Qurtubi notes that “Hawā” is the root cause of injustice
Similar Verses from Al Qur'an
- Surah An-Nisa (4:135): “Stand firmly for justice… even against yourselves…”
- Surah Al-Ma'idah (5:8): “Do not let hatred cause you to be unjust…”
Relevance Today
This verse is extremely relevant today where judges give biased decisions, saving and protecting the powerful elite, the affluent and the wealth - and giving false verdicts against the escape goats, normally the poor and the weak. Thus this verse is applicable to:
- Leadership & authority:
- Applies to (1) Governments, and the officials, (2) Judges, (3) Managers, and even Parents - or for that matter Anyone with influence.
- Everyday decisions: Even in daily life conflicts, in arguments and family disputes, we are required to be fair and impartial.
- Bias in modern world Today’s “hawā” includes Tri, Tribalism, Politics, Personal benefit, and Social pressure. This leads to Distorted truth and injustice.
- Forgetting accountability
- Today most of the people specially on those sitting on seats of justice act as if there will be no consequences of their injustice and that they will not be held accountable for the acts.
- That is why al Qur’an reminds time and again that every decision will be judged
Core Lessons
- Justice must override emotion - so Control your desires.
- Bias is dangerous -so Be just.
- Accountability is inevitable - Remember accountability: be in this world or the Hereafter.
This is advice from Allah, may He be exalted, to those who are in positions of authority. They should rule according to the truth and justice revealed from Him, they should not turn away from it and be led astray from the path of Allah. Allah has issued a stern warning of a severe punishment to those who go astray from His path and forget the Day of Resurrection.
That is the path of true leadership in Islam
Final Reflection: This verse asks When you have power—even small—do you follow truth or your desires? Unfortunately judges today give verdicts as fed to them or give verdicts in favour of those who influence them with bribes and power of their authority. Even governments today, in the name of their national interests, harm the interests of other nations and wage war to subdue the weak nations to dominate the world. Perhaps we are not afraid of accountability specially on the Day of Judgement. Are you?
May Allāh (سبحانه و تعالى) help us understand Qur'ān and follow the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, which is embodiment of commandments of Allah contained in the Qur'ān. May Allah help us to be like the ones He loves and let our lives be lived helping others and not making others' lives miserable or unlivable. May all our wrong doings, whether intentional or unintentional, be forgiven before the angel of death knocks on our door.
وَمَا عَلَيۡنَاۤ اِلَّا الۡبَلٰغُ الۡمُبِيۡنُ
(36:17) and our duty is no more than to clearly convey the Message.”
That is Our duty is only to convey to you the message that Allah has entrusted us with. Then it is for you to accept it or reject it. We have not been made responsible for making you accept it forcibly, and if you do not accept it, we shall not be seized in consequence of your disbelief, you will yourselves be answerable for your actions on Day of Resurrection.
May Allah forgive me if my posts ever imply a piety far greater than I possess. I am most in need of guidance.
Reading the Qur'ān should be a daily obligation of a Muslim - Reading it with translation will make it meaningful. But reading its Exegesis / Tafsir will make you understand it fully. It will also help the Muslims to have grasp over social issues and their answers discussed in the Qur'an and other matter related to inter faith so that they are able to discuss issues with non-Muslims with authority based on refences from Qur'an.
Note: When we mention God in our posts, we mean One True God, we call Allah in Islam, with no associates. Allah is the Sole Creator of all things, and that Allah is all-powerful and all-knowing. Allah has no offspring, no race, no gender, no body, and is unaffected by the characteristics of human life.
You may refer to more Selected Verses from Sürah 38 Ṣād - the letter ص already published. You may also refer to our exclusive reference page: Selected verses from selected Surahs of Al-Qurʾān for compiled verses from other surahs.
For verses on Selected Subjects, please refer to our reference page: Selected Verses from Al Qur'an about a Specific Subject (Reference Page) to know more about what Qur'an says about specific subjects and our reference page: Selected Verses from the Qur'an.
An effort has been made to gather explanation / exegesis of the surahs and selected verses of Al-Qurʾān from authentic sources and then present a least possible condensed explanation of the surah. In that the exegesis of the chapters of the Quran is mainly based on the "Tafhim al-Qur'an - The Meaning of the Qur'an" by one of the most enlightened scholars of the Muslim World Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi.
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