“Thus says the Lord of Hosts, Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another, do not oppress the widow, the fatherless, the sojourner, or the poor, and let none of you devise evil against another in your heart.”
- Zechariah 7:9-10
God hates injustice and evil in all its forms. Personally, I dislike that some have drawn some kind of line between Biblical Justice and Social Justice and Courtroom Justice. Sure, there might be discrepancies and nuances and application differences. As it pertains to God though, Justice is Justice. Mercy is Mercy. Oppression is Oppression. Some well-meaning Christians have opposed Social Justice to levels that would contrast the word of the Lord in these verses.
Zechariah 7 places us in an interesting context because it's addressing their present exile generation, but also references their pre-exile ancestors. In essence, the command given to the pre-exile generation is the same command being given to the exile generation:
“Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another, do not oppress the widow, the fatherless, the sojourner, or the poor, and let none of you devise evil against another in your heart.”
Just as much as God is concerned about our salvation and pure worship of Him, He is concerned about our pureness of relations to one another. He is concerned about Justice on a cosmic and human level. He is concerned about Mercy on a cosmic and human level. He is concerned about Oppression on a cosmic and human level. This is out of reach of our political climate but is solely in the hands of those who follow Christ and answered God’s call to His Kingdom. It’s a party that has no name and transcends every political spectrum out there. This stand on Justice, Mercy, and Oppression is firmly in God’s Kingdom, a clear alternative that takes on the world’s view.
Justice:
Justice, or Rendering True Judgements, is firmly based on the righteousness of God. Sure, we can have our ideas of what is “right” in a given situation, but only God’s righteousness is the true standard against which everything is weighed. And only God can see every situation clearly from every angle and know every heart. This makes it incredibly hard for us to be judges then, for the only fair trial is before God. Yet, the command remains, Render True Judgements.
Since our judgments are perverted, the best we can do is try 1) ensure injustice and offense are not multiplied and 2) seek righteousness. Discipline is good, but vengeance is only the Lord’s. Thus we must seek the fairest and righteous decision both in the court, in society, and our personal lives. This takes seeking God first, but further a Sherlock level of investigation that examines scenarios to render truth. Justice is great, difficult to achieve, and cannot be truly had without Mercy.
Mercy:
As much as we need to uncover and examine the truth, we much also ensure goodness is reaped. For in the Kingdom of God, the same Mercy God gave to us is the same Mercy we extend to others. This looks like love, kindness, and compassion. Here’s an interesting thought when you look at the Hebrew word for Mercy used in the verse.
The word is raḥam which is mostly translated as mercy but can also refer to the womb. Not sure why, I haven’t dug that deep, but it gave me this image, of a mother’s compassion and care for her baby. We are born wretched, though intended for good, we enter the world from the womb as sinners. Though born a sinner, we receive our mother’s love and care, for we are truly helpless in every way. As for God, though we behave like wretched toddlers who provoke injustice and evil, His Son, Jesus extended to us undeserved Mercy, that we might not be wretched any longer.
Find Justice, yes, but for the movement toward repentance that then extends Mercy.
Oppression:
The command is also given to NOT to oppress. The list goes from widows and the fatherless to the sojourner and the poor. The widow is commonly used across translation, and we see frequently where God looks out for the widows. Both Elijah and Elisha have their encounters and ministries with widows as part of their story. The fatherless could also be translated as orphans. In either, we see a God who cares deeply throughout scripture for children in unideal family scenarios. The church is to step into this as well, hence churches throughout history have run orphanages and lead in adoptions. Sojourner, foreigners, travelers, or even the homeless are all possible ways of understanding the next group. This is why hospitality is so important in the ancient nomadic culture. Or why churches should look out for refugees and immigrants. Yet, it is not only the cultural outsiders to care for but also our culture's own poor and downtrodden. To do anything but extend mercy to these groups of people would be an injustice in God’s eyes.
Scheming:
We are further commanded to not be schemers of evil. This one should be self-explaining but each year we hear about churches and organizations that have covered up their leader's sins and abuses of power. To cover up means it could have been addressed but instead was deliberately looked over, plotted, and allowed to keep going. We must be watching how evil makes its way into our churches.
Final Blessing:
The commands for the pre-exilic generation were the same commands to the exilic generation, and are now the same for the church. To do anything else is to say we have faith and never show it with love and righteousness. The church needs to be the pinnacle of Justice and Mercy in the world, for our God is the God of Justice and Mercy.
Now may the Lord of Life and Redemption be with you in every step, every breath, and every heartbeat of your journey.
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