Devotions: The God of Justice

 

O Lord, You have heard the desire of the humble;
You will strengthen their heart, You will incline Your ear

To vindicate the orphan and the oppressed,
So that man who is of the earth will no longer cause terror.

Psalm 10:17-18 New American Standard Bible 1995

 

This is a psalm of David pleading for God to take action and apply justice. The word translated humble here can also mean afflicted. What is the desire of the afflicted? I believe those oppressed understandably want justice and support. They need the strength to get through their difficulty, but they also want justice and vindication, someone to fight for those who can’t fight for themselves. God knows this. The Bible is clear that He hears their prayers and is close to them. I know often it seems like God doesn’t see or hear, that He doesn’t act or bring justice, but God sees and knows so much more than we do, and He often is working in ways that we cannot see. In this world right now especially it seems as if evil is winning, but that is only what we can see. God always wins. Justice is always done in the end. It may not be in our way or timing, but justice will be served. God is just, He cannot be otherwise, nor can He allow injustice to win. Just because He does not rescue the afflicted immediately does not mean that He is blind, careless or inactive. He will strengthen their hearts and hear their prayers. The word “strengthen” here literally means to be erect. He will set them up straight, and give them what they need to stand. He will prepare and establish them, faithfully supporting them and giving them a firm foundation upon which to stand. He is the great Judge of the all creation. He will make all things right, whether now or at the end of time. He will judge evil and put it in its place. He will avenge wrongs suffered. Notice that the oppressor is a mere man of the earth. He is no match for the God of the universe. While he may cause problems here, God has him on a short leash, and one day his sins will be paid for. Even satan, the father of sin and evil, will one day pay for the evil he has caused and his trouble will come to an end. God is just, a God of vengeance, He will punish evil. We can be sure of that. As David is pleading his case in this psalm, he openly brings his problems to God, a model that we should all follow. God knows what is going on, but it benefits our relationship with and trust in Him to bring our concerns to Him. However, in the midst of David’s problems, for God had not rescued him yet, David ended with full confidence in his Father. He knew God’s character, that He would bring justice and rescue the afflicted. He fully trusted God to do what was right, so he brought his petition to God and rested in full assurance that God would take care of it.

Are you afflicted or brought low? Do you need strength and vindication? Take your requests to God; let Him know what you are going through and how you feel. Then trust Him to make things right and give you what you need to withstand it.

 

 

 

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Translations of Greek and Hebrew words taken from blueletterbible.org