What is justice and when will it be dealt to mankind?
Revelation 6:9-11 ESV
When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne. [10] They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” [11] Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been.
Many people are given to the false preconception that God is only love, only full of forgiveness. Thus adding to the problem is the false notion of forgiveness over justice for anything and everything. Also those who look into religion, rightly so, perceive this blind forgiveness with out consequence to be lunacy. If we search the scriptures, when does God himself step in or push those with good conscience to bring judgement? Or even so when does God allow evil wicked men to meet out justice to other wicked men?
First we look at Sodom and Ghamorra. What was the tipping point? After all Abraham pleaded that the city be saved if ten men remained. (Genesis 18:20-33) Then when the Angels came to see Lot and his family, those within the city sought to gang rape the angels. Lot to his own disservice offered his own daughters to the men of the city yet they sought to further defile that which was good. The point of such is that though God is long suffering, he is just and gives out justice on those who are given into their wicked desires. (Genesis 19:1-29) I would point out that in his actions Lot himself was cowardly and corrupted in his faith by the wickedness around him. You see this in that he was willing to give up his daughters, while in the presence of the angels.
Then in Judges 19:22-30, we come to the reason God allowed civil war between the benjaminites and the rest of Israel. A man with his concubine is traveling when he stops for the night in a mans house then as it reads ,worthless men, come demanding to rape the man, then out of fear he throws his concubine out to be raped all through the night until she dies. Thus he sends pieces of her to the rest of the countries tribes causing them to seek the Lord on starting war when the Benjaminites refused justice. (Judges 20). The tribe of Benjamin was almost destroyed, not because of what the men had done, but because of the refusal of justice. Which in itself is what sin does in the lives of people in general. If left unchecked will consume all that which surrounds and corrupt all that refuse to remove it. Eventually the line of Benjamin was brought back to Israel but at what cost? Refusal of justice is as wicked as committing the crime itself when men of power refuse to act.
Now going back to when Jacobs daughter Dinah was raped (Genesis 34). Jacob did not have the will to defend his daughter, yet when the man who raped her had his father ask for her hand in marriage, it was agreed on by her brothers deceitfully. When all the men (who were all less honorable then the rapist) were all sore from having themselves Circumcised, the brothers came in and killed them all, plundering them to which God used to make all the inhabitants fear them (Genesis 35:5).
In all of these three historical accounts, judgement fell on these cities, towns and tribes at the point of rape (of which is by biblical accounts a abomination before God himself if not specifically said but in his actions against those who commit these crimes). Of this I believe there is a reason that God chooses to judge men when others fail to act. He causes circumstance that causes people to act. While I do believe in love your enemy, as was taught, there is a tipping point when God the father can no longer not act and that is when men of good conscience will not act. Salt is good, but when it has lost its flavor it is to be thrown out. One day we all will be judged for the things we have done and what we have allowed. I believe if we acted on justice with in our lives more then on trying to condemn others for sins that condemn oneself, society could be much better off.
All of this of coarse must be balanced with Christ. In my faith I pray not to be awkwardly ignorant of righteousness and yet I pray to be angry and not sin. That tipping point I’ve struggled with towards seeing the effects of rape on those it has effected and those who fail to act even to the point of covering up.
Matthew 5:48 ESV
You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
The Path Less Traveled 