Tag: justice
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Studying James 2 1-12
James gives a practical example of what it means to “judge not that ye be not judged” …
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On Sending the Rich Away Empty
it might not be as bad as it [might] sound to send the rich away empty
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The Management Supports Labor
Listen! The wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. James 5:4 Image by J. Howard Miller, artist employed by Westinghouse, poster used by the War Production Co-ordinating Committee [Public domain], via…
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Reflecting on Job 8 1-10, 20-22
How much do we agree with Bildad the Shuhite, that God does not pervert justice, nor the Almighty the right? (Job 8:3) How much do we agree that the pattern of sufferings and serenities we see in the human world around us and in our own lives reflects the working-out of divine or cosmic justice?…
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Reflecting on Deuteronomy 24 10-21
Do people who have no fields or olive groves or vineyards – which probably includes most of us – need to pay any attention to the instructions for leaving some of their produce for the stranger and the orphan and the widow? And if so, why? We might ask similar questions about lending money and…
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Studying Deuteronomy 24 10-21
One element of Biblical justice is compassion for the poor and vulnerable, and we will be focusing on that element as we study Deuteronomy 24:10-21, our text for Sunday, January 30. [Some questions on this text are here.] Here are a few notes on that text: BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT: This is our third text from…
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Reflecting on Deuteronomy 16 18-20, 17 8-13
What is entailed, practically, in the pursuit of justice, justice? Especially in our modern context, in which our system of justice is purposely secular, and involves highly trained legal specialists? How are regular people of today supposed to read texts like Deuteronomy 16:18-20 and Deuteronomy 17:8-13, which contain instructions for the ancient Israelites, and their…
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Studying Deuteronomy 16 18-20, 17 8-13
We will be thinking about what it means to provide for the doing of justice in a community, as we study Deuteronomy 16:18-20 and Deuteronomy 17:8-13 for Sunday, January 23. [Some notes on the text are here.] Here are a few notes on these texts: BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT: The book of Deuteronomy presents itself as…
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Reflecting on Exodus 23 1-12
The central question of how the laws, the mishpatim, given in Exodus 23:1-12 apply to us, or might, gets us into such deep water that we seem unlikely swim our way out of it by the end of our study on Sunday, January 16. [Some notes on the text are here.] Probably we can all…
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Studying Exodus 23 1-12
We will be examining some of the demands of Biblical justice as we are studying Exodus 23:1-12 for Sunday, January 16. This is in keeping with our quarter-long focus on “justice, law, and history.” [A few questions on this text are here.] Here are a few notes on this text: BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT: Our text…
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Reflecting on Deuteronomy 5 1-3, 10 12-13, & 27 1-10
How do we relate ourselves to the covenant we read about in Deuteronomy, the one with “statutes and ordinances” and mitzvot? Especially if we are Christian students of scripture? How do think and feel about this covenant, and how do we regard its provisions – what do we think they’re “about,” how do we think…
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Reflecting on Psalm 9 1-12
How does the Psalmist describe justice, and its consequences, in Psalm 9? Do we recognize that description as justice, that is, as what we ourselves mean by “justice” when we use the word? This could be a big question for us as we study this psalm for Sunday, October 10. [Some notes on the text…
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Studying Psalm 9 1-12
For the needy shall not always be forgotten, nor the hope of the poor perish forever. Psalm 9:18 Psalm 9:18 is one of my favorite verses in the Bible. It’s utopian, in the sense that it asserts the possibility of a world that is otherwise than the current one with its “realistic” options. We are…
Matters of Interpretation 