In Medina, people brought their disputes to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ (peace be upon him) to judge: quarrels over land, debts, inheritance. One day two men came arguing over some property, with no witnesses on either side.
Before he ruled, the Prophet said something remarkable about his own judging. “I am only a human being. You bring your disputes to me, and perhaps one of you is more eloquent in arguing his case than the other, so I judge according to what I hear. So if I rule in someone's favour and give him something that is really his brother's right, let him not take it. I would only be cutting off for him a piece of the Fire” (Bukhari 7169).
In some reports, both men burst into tears. Each said to the other: “My right is yours.” The Prophet told them to divide it fairly, draw lots, and each forgive the other.
The man Muslims believe to be God's messenger was saying openly that a human judge, even he, rules on what he can see and hear. The final judgement, on what is really in each heart, belongs to al-Ḥakam alone. Muslim jurists took this hadith as the foundation of their own humility: a court's verdict does not make a wrong thing right in God's eyes.
Judaism
“That be far from Thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked, that so the righteous should be as the wicked; that be far from Thee; shall not the Judge of all the earth do justly?”
Genesis 18:25 · JPS 1917
When God tells Abraham that Sodom will be destroyed, Abraham does something astonishing: he argues. What if there are fifty righteous people there? Forty-five? Ten? His question has echoed through Jewish thought ever since.
Jewish law treats judging as holy work. Judges are commanded to be impartial to rich and poor alike, and the Torah repeats the word for justice twice: “Justice, justice shalt thou follow” (Deuteronomy 16:20).
Jewish life keeps this Name close even in grief. On hearing of a death, Jews say Barukh Dayan ha-Emet, ‘Blessed is the true Judge’. And the Bible remembers a woman judge, the prophet Deborah, who held court under a palm tree for all Israel (Judges 4:4-5).
Christianity
“From now on, there is stored up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give to me on that day”
2 Timothy 4:8 · WEB
Christians believe God is the righteous Judge, and that judgement has been given to Christ. Paul, near the end of his life, wrote that he trusted “the Lord, the righteous judge”.
Jesus also warned his followers against judging others: “Don't judge, so that you won't be judged” (Matthew 7:1). For Christians, God's judgement is a reason for humility, not for condemning neighbours.
In the Apostles' Creed, said at baptisms and at Anglican Morning and Evening Prayer, Christians affirm that Christ “shall come to judge the quick and the dead” (Book of Common Prayer).
Islam
“Lo! those who believe (this revelation), and those who are Jews, and the Sabaeans and the Christians and the Magians and the idolaters - Lo! Allah will decide between them on the Day of Resurrection. Lo! Allah is Witness over all things.”
Qur'an 22:17 · Pickthall (1930)
Al-Ḥakam is found in Qur'anic phrases like “Shall I seek other than Allah for judge, when He it is Who hath revealed unto you (this) Scripture, fully explained? Those unto whom We gave the Scripture (aforetime) know that it is revealed from thy Lord in truth. So be not thou (O Muhammad) of the waverers.” (6:114, Pickthall) and “And if there is a party of you which believeth in that wherewith I have been sent, and there is a party which believeth not, then have patience until Allah judge between us. He is the Best of all who deal in judgment.” (7:87, Pickthall (1930); 95:8). Its root ḥ-k-m also gives ḥikmah, wisdom: a judgement and the wisdom behind it.
The Qur'an names Jews, Christians, Sabians, Magians and others and says: “Lo! those who believe (this revelation), and those who are Jews, and the Sabaeans and the Christians and the Magians and the idolaters - Lo! Allah will decide between them on the Day of Resurrection. Lo! Allah is Witness over all things.” (22:17, Pickthall). Scholars point out that this is about God's judgement, not ours: it leaves the final word on each person's faith to Him.
Same and different
All three faiths call God the Judge of all the earth, and all three tell people to judge fairly and to be slow to judge each other. Judaism has Abraham arguing with God for justice. Christianity believes judgement is given to Christ. Islam names God al-Ḥakam and leaves the final word on every faith to Him (22:17). They disagree about how people will be judged and by what standard. They agree that no human court has the last word.
schools / familiesCucumber and grapeTalk through the capuchin experiment, then try a gentle version: give two volunteers different rewards for the same task and ask the group how it felt to watch. Read Genesis 18:25 and Qur'an 95:8 and ask what perfect fairness would look like.
schools / community groupsVisit a courtMost magistrates' and crown courts in England and Wales have public galleries. Sit in for an hour (check the court's rules first), then talk about what a human judge can and cannot know.
families / schoolsUntil you stand in their placeHillel taught: do not judge your neighbour until you have stood in their place (Pirkei Avot 2:4). Pick someone you find hard to understand, and each write a day in their life from their side. Read them aloud.
families / schoolsSpeck and plankRead Jesus' picture of the person who spots a speck in a friend's eye and misses the plank in their own (Matthew 7:3-5). Draw it, then each name one ‘plank’ you are willing to admit to.
Episode 1
