Maxim
Do what is just, even when it costs you.
“That which is altogether just shalt thou follow, that thou mayest live, and inherit the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.”
Judaism · Ancient (before 200 BCE)
Translation: King James Version (public domain)
Watch on YouTube: BibleProject: This Justice Is Not Revenge ↗BibleProject on biblical justice
Justice asks us to be fair when fairness is inconvenient: to our rivals, to strangers, and against our own interest. Many traditions hold that it is better to suffer a wrong than to do one, and that a fair heart is worth more than any advantage.
Related expressions
“He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?”
Watch on YouTube: We need to talk about an injustice | Bryan Stevenson ↗Bryan Stevenson discusses this idea“O ye who believe! stand fast to justice, when ye bear witness before God, though it be against yourselves, or your parents, or your kindred, whether the party be rich or poor.”
“I should not like either, but if I must choose between them, I would rather suffer than do.”
“He who acts unjustly acts impiously.”
Score
Moral Rank 65.6 · Evidence E = 14.70
E = ln(1+3.87) + √3.87 + 3·2.21 + 1.5·3 = 14.70