a community that, in its rulings, does not place the strong and the weak on an equal footing.

– al-ummah: the Prophet’s followers; its plural is umam, just as ghurfah (room) becomes ghuraf (rooms).
– “their strong” (shadīdahum): their powerful and wealthy.

Lessons drawn from the hadith

1 – Allah the Exalted says: “O you who believe! Stand firmly for justice, as witnesses for Allah, even if it be against yourselves, your parents, or your close relatives. Whether the person is rich or poor, Allah is best to ensure their interests. So do not follow your desires, lest you deviate. If you distort the testimony or turn away, Allah is indeed All-Aware of what you do.” (4:135) [al-Nisāʾ]
Some exegetes state that this verse yields several legal rulings, among them:
a) Justice is obligatory upon judges and governors; they must not depart from equity for anything toward which souls incline or hearts desire—wealth, poverty, or kinship. To them the lowly and the noble, the near and the distant, are all the same.
b) Whoever owes a right must acknowledge it; it is unlawful for him to conceal it, in light of the phrase, “even if it be against yourselves.”

2 – Muḥammad Rashīd Riḍā said: Those who “stand firmly for justice” are the people who establish justice in the most perfect, complete, and enduring manner; for qiyām with a matter means to carry it out evenly and flawlessly, without deficiency or crookedness. This wording is as emphatic as possible in underscoring the gravity and care due to justice.

3 – The hadith under discussion declares it inconceivable that a community could be purified of sins while its weak do not receive redress from its strong for what is rightfully theirs. The weak must be supported until they obtain their due from the strong.
Al-Bukhārī narrates (2444): “Support your brother, whether he is an oppressor or oppressed.” Supporting the oppressor means restraining him and preventing him from wronging others.