—that is, they meant that they had still not satisfied themselves—had not yet found relief—from what the swords of their masters of Quraysh had done to them, for those masters had once tortured and abused them for the sake of Allah’s religion. Abū Bakr, then, reproached them for their words and said, “Do you address the chief of Quraysh with such speech?”

Afterward Abū Bakr informed the Prophet ﷺ of what had occurred. The Prophet said to him, “If you have angered them, you have certainly angered your Lord.” In other words, if you have angered this small group—even though they are freedmen with no standing among society’s notables—then you have angered your Lord. So Abū Bakr went back to them and asked, “Have I offended you?” They replied, “No.” Again he said, “My brothers, have I offended you?” They answered, “No. May Allah forgive you, Abū Bakr.”

This indicates that a person must never look down on the poor, the destitute, or those who carry little weight in society, for a human being’s true worth lies with Allah alone. As He, Most High, says: “Indeed, the most honored of you in the sight of Allah is the most God-fearing of you” (Quran 49:13). One should therefore lower his wing to the believers, even if they possess no worldly status, for this is what Allah commanded His Prophet ﷺ: “And lower your wing to the believers” (Quran 15:88).

The episode also demonstrates the scrupulous piety of Abū Bakr—may Allah be pleased with him—and his eagerness to absolve himself of any liability. A person ought—indeed is obliged—to seek pardon in this world if he has wronged another by word, deed, confiscation of wealth, insult, or abuse, before that person takes his due in the Hereafter. If the aggrieved party receives nothing in this life, he will take it on the Day of Resurrection from what is dearest and most precious to the wrongdoer: his good deeds.