--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Pay him what was promised\", said the…" description: "\"Pay him what was promised\", said the caliph. \"And put out his eyes.\" — John Brunner" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ae1/john-brunner-10043_caliphs_pay-him-what-was-promised-said-the-calip_2925802.jpg" --- # Pay him what was promised", said the caliph. "And put out… ![“Pay him what was promised", said the caliph. "And put out his eyes.” quote by John Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ae1/john-brunner-10043_caliphs_pay-him-what-was-promised-said-the-calip_2925802.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ae1/john-brunner-10043_caliphs_pay-him-what-was-promised-said-the-calip_2925802.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ae1/john-brunner-10043_caliphs_pay-him-what-was-promised-said-the-calip_2925802.jpg) > “Pay him what was promised", said the caliph. "And put out his eyes.” [John Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-brunner/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A demand for justice paired with a brutal penalty, highlighting the tension between promise and retribution. **In simple terms:** Keep promises, but punish harshly. Key Takeaway Balance promise with proportionate consequence. Themes promise retribution authority Mood tense dramatic Type moral literary When to use this quote - legal enforcement - personal agreements - leadership decisions Key Concepts contractual ethics power dynamics Questions to Reflect On - When is severe punishment justified? - How do promises influence justice? A Different Perspective Harsh punishment may be disproportionate. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Caliphs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/caliphs/) [Cynical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cynical/) [Cynicism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cynicism/) ## Related quotes > [If Abu Bakr is dead and Umar is Caliph, then we hear and obey.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalid-ibn-al-walid/if-abu-bakr-is-dead-and-umar-is-caliph-then-we-hear-and-obey/) [Khalid ibn al-Walid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalid-ibn-al-walid/) > [“Is there any good news?' Tesla said. Who ever promised that? Who ever said there'd be good news?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-barker/is-there-any-good-news-tesla-said-who-ever-promised-that-who-ever/) [Clive Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-barker/) > [“Harry, I promised you something. I said I'd clear it with you before I asked your mom to marry me. I need you to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/harry-i-promised-you-something-i-said-i-d-clear-it-with-you-before-i/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [I know I promised. I said, 'Ask, seek, knock and you will find.' You say, 'But I have found loss. I have found dispossession.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-chironna/i-know-i-promised-i-said-ask-seek-knock-and-you-will-find-you-say-but/) Mark Chironna > [“And only those watching very carefully saw the Caliph of Khorasan lean back against the cushions and toy with the bangles on his wife’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renee-ahdieh/and-only-those-watching-very-carefully-saw-the-caliph-of-khorasan/) [Renee Ahdieh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renee-ahdieh/) > [“By ARTHUR C. BROOKS ABD AL-RAHMAN III was an emir and caliph of Córdoba in 10th-century Spain. He was an absolute ruler who lived…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/by-arthur-c-brooks-abd-al-rahman-iii-was-an-emir-and-caliph-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“In his Epistle on Free Will, the leader of the Qadaris, an ascetic scholar named Hasan al-Basri, openly challenged Umayyad caliph Ibn Marwan.14 One…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mustafa-akyol/in-his-epistle-on-free-will-the-leader-of-the-qadaris-an-ascetic/) [Mustafa Akyol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mustafa-akyol/) > [“The mighty Caliph of Khorasan. The King of Kings. Her beautiful monster.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renee-ahdieh/the-mighty-caliph-of-khorasan-the-king-of-kings-her-beautiful-monster/) [Renee Ahdieh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renee-ahdieh/) > [“She shook her head, though her shoulders trembled and her nails dug into her palms. “You are ridiculous, Khalid Ibn al-Rashid. 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He had always been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bagot-glubb/khalif-caliph-al-ma-mun-s-period-of-rule-813-833-c-e-may-be/) [John Bagot Glubb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bagot-glubb/) > [If you find that somebody is not grateful for all that you have done for him, then do not get disappointed because often you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-ibn-abi-talib/if-you-find-that-somebody-is-not-grateful-for-all-that-you-have-done/) [Ali ibn Abi Talib](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-ibn-abi-talib/) > [The worst of our faults is our interest in other people's faults.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-ibn-abi-talib/the-worst-of-our-faults-is-our-interest-in-other-people-s-faults/) [Ali ibn Abi Talib](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-ibn-abi-talib/) ## More by John Brunner > [For all the claims one hears about the liberating impact of the data-net, the truth is that it's wished on most of us a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-brunner/for-all-the-claims-one-hears-about-the-liberating-impact-of-the-data/) [John Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-brunner/) > [“Take stock, citizen bacillus, Now that there are so many billions of you, Bleeding through your opened veins, Into your bathtub, or into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-brunner/take-stock-citizen-bacillus-now-that-there-are-so-many-billions-of/) [John Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-brunner/) > [“What hurt him most of all, made him feel like a sick child aware of terrible wrongness and yet incapable of explaining it to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-brunner/what-hurt-him-most-of-all-made-him-feel-like-a-sick-child-aware-of/) [John Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-brunner/) > [“He had many names, but one nature, and this unique nature made him subject to certain laws not binding upon ordinary persons. 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And one says, " This is new, and therefore better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-brunner/there-are-two-kinds-of-fools-one-says-this-is-old-and-therefore-good/) [John Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-brunner/) > [“The walls were chipped and needed paint. The windows were mostly okay but one pane was blocked with cardboard. There were fleas the exterminator…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-brunner/the-walls-were-chipped-and-needed-paint-the-windows-were-mostly-okay/) [John Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-brunner/) > [“Right! Right! 'Stead of which, over here, they shit in the water until it's dangerous to drink, then make a fucking fortune out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-brunner/right-right-stead-of-which-over-here-they-shit-in-the-water-until-it/) [John Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-brunner/) > [NEGRO :; Member of a subgroup of the human race who hails, or whose ancestors hailed, from a chunk of land nicknamed not by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-brunner/negro-member-of-a-subgroup-of-the-human-race-who-hails-or-whose/) [John Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-brunner/) > [“She recalled him as a forceful and witty speaker with a ready repartee and a penetrating voice. He had once, for example, put down…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-brunner/she-recalled-him-as-a-forceful-and-witty-speaker-with-a-ready/) [John Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-brunner/) > [It's supposed to be automatic, but actually you have to push this button.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-brunner/it-s-supposed-to-be-automatic-but-actually-you-have-to-push-this/) [John Brunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-brunner/) [Explore all 66 John Brunner quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-brunner/) ## More Caliphs quotes > [The worst of our faults is our interest in other people's faults.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-ibn-abi-talib/the-worst-of-our-faults-is-our-interest-in-other-people-s-faults/) [Ali ibn Abi Talib](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-ibn-abi-talib/) > [...until the Crusades Islam was indistinguishable from Judaism and... only then did it receive its independent character, while Muhammad and the first Caliphs are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikolai-alexandrovich-morozov/until-the-crusades-islam-was-indistinguishable-from-judaism-and-only/) Nikolai Alexandrovich Morozov > [Khalif (Caliph) Al-Ma'mun's period of rule (813 - 833 C.E.) may be considered the 'golden age' of science and learning. He had always been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bagot-glubb/khalif-caliph-al-ma-mun-s-period-of-rule-813-833-c-e-may-be/) [John Bagot Glubb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bagot-glubb/) > [If you find that somebody is not grateful for all that you have done for him, then do not get disappointed because often you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-ibn-abi-talib/if-you-find-that-somebody-is-not-grateful-for-all-that-you-have-done/) [Ali ibn Abi Talib](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-ibn-abi-talib/) > [Blessed is he whose own faults keep him from seeing the faults of others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-ibn-abi-talib/blessed-is-he-whose-own-faults-keep-him-from-seeing-the-faults-of/) [Ali ibn Abi Talib](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-ibn-abi-talib/) > [To be alone means that you avoid bad company. But to have a true friend is better than being alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umar/to-be-alone-means-that-you-avoid-bad-company-but-to-have-a-true/) [Umar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umar/) > [The Taliban has a huge leadership problem at a critical political moment, another caliph has announced himself to the world, and the Taliban has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graeme-smith/the-taliban-has-a-huge-leadership-problem-at-a-critical-political/) [Graeme Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graeme-smith/) > [Fear the sins that you commit in secret, because the Witness of those sins is the Judge Himself!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-ibn-abi-talib/fear-the-sins-that-you-commit-in-secret-because-the-witness-of-those/) [Ali ibn Abi Talib](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-ibn-abi-talib/) > [There were a hundred booksellers in the old round city founded by the eighth-century caliph al-Mansur. The café and wine-drinking culture of Baghdad has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annia-ciezadlo/there-were-a-hundred-booksellers-in-the-old-round-city-founded-by-the/) [Annia Ciezadlo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annia-ciezadlo/) > [How many lessons there are and how little they are taken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-ibn-abi-talib/how-many-lessons-there-are-and-how-little-they-are-taken/) [Ali ibn Abi Talib](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-ibn-abi-talib/) > [Real bibliophiles do not put their books on shelves for people to look at or handle. They have no desire to show off their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/real-bibliophiles-do-not-put-their-books-on-shelves-for-people-to/) [Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/) > [At the time of Caliph Omar's invasion of Egypt, the Arab officer on duty in the destruction of the library of Alexandria used two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nils-kjaer/at-the-time-of-caliph-omar-s-invasion-of-egypt-the-arab-officer-on/) Nils Kjaer > [To fight against one's desires is the greatest of all fights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-ibn-abi-talib/to-fight-against-one-s-desires-is-the-greatest-of-all-fights/) [Ali ibn Abi Talib](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-ibn-abi-talib/) > [Let not your love become attachment, nor your hate become destruction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umar/let-not-your-love-become-attachment-nor-your-hate-become-destruction/) [Umar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umar/) > [If Abu Bakr is dead and Umar is Caliph, then we hear and obey.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalid-ibn-al-walid/if-abu-bakr-is-dead-and-umar-is-caliph-then-we-hear-and-obey/) [Khalid ibn al-Walid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalid-ibn-al-walid/) [Browse all 20 Caliphs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/caliphs/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Pay him what was promised\", said the caliph. \"And put out his eyes.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Brunner" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-brunner/pay-him-what-was-promised-said-the-caliph-and-put-out-his-eyes/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Caliphs" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-brunner/pay-him-what-was-promised-said-the-caliph-and-put-out-his-eyes/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ae1/john-brunner-10043_caliphs_pay-him-what-was-promised-said-the-calip_2925802.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ae1/john-brunner-10043_caliphs_pay-him-what-was-promised-said-the-calip_2925802.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ae1/john-brunner-10043_caliphs_pay-him-what-was-promised-said-the-calip_2925802.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Pay him what was promised\", said the caliph. \"And put out his eyes.” — John Brunner", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "John Brunner", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-brunner/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Pay him what was promised\", said...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-brunner/pay-him-what-was-promised-said-the-caliph-and-put-out-his-eyes/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-brunner/pay-him-what-was-promised-said-the-caliph-and-put-out-his-eyes/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```