God
and Justice
“They scattered My people among the nations and divided up My
land. They cast lots for My people and
traded boys for prostitutes; they sold girls for wine that they might
drink.” Joel 3:3
Our God has a position on justice
and injustice, expressed throughout the Scriptures. He is not silent, quiet, indifferent, or
slack concerning His promises on this subject.
To begin our examination of Scripture on this topic, we go back to the
source words found in the Greek and Hebrew.
The Greek word for “just” is
dikaios. Dikaios means: equitable; just;
right. According to Strong’s
Concordance, it refers to one who acts alike to all and is impartial, as well
as describing a person’s character and conduct as upright, virtuous,
ethical.
The Hebrew word for justice is
“tsadaq” and is a legal term meaning: to be right; cleanse; to be put right; be
innocent. Justice and righteousness are
synonymous. If we look a little closer
at the root word, we find tsadaq means one who walks in a straight path. We can surmise from these definitions that
justice involves the fair treatment of others and right choices and behavior in
our own lives – to do what is right. We
are to follow Biblical standards for what is fair and just.
In the Book of Exodus, God gives
the law to His chosen people, Israel.
The next Book is Leviticus, which present the system of sacrifices to be
presented to God. It is this combination
of the law and sacrifices that composed God’s justice system in the Old
Testament – called “mishpat.” The law
consisted of three components - ceremonial, moral, and civil. The ceremonial laws had to do with proper
worship and it included the sacrifices, priestly system, issues relating to
clean and unclean, and food restrictions.
The civil laws guided the affairs if Israel as a nation, including
government and judicial systems. The
moral laws were found primarily in the Ten Commandments, and further expounded
upon in the Torah with rules about the treatment of others, especially the
poor, the stranger, the widow, the fatherless, the afflicted.
This mishpat was fulfilled by and
in Jesus Christ, the Messiah. He came to
usher in the law of the spirit, laws written on the hearts of believers to
enable them to worship in spirit and in truth, to offer spiritual sacrifices,
to submit to authority (God is the highest authority), and to love God, love
our neighbor, and love ourselves. As we
shall clearly see from God’s word, loving God and loving others is a priority
in the Kingdom. Caring for the poor, the
sick, the needy are vital for Kingdom life to flow into dark, hidden
places. We need faith and works and to
demonstrate “pure religion.” Where we
find injustice, we are to stand for God’s justice.
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