“Thus says the Lord God, “Enough, O princes of Israel! Put away violence and oppression and execute justice and righteousness. Cease your evictions of my people,” declares the Lord God.”
– Ezekiel 45:9
Oh, this is God making very clear to the leaders among his people that they have a responsibility to put away violence and oppression and to do, to execute justice and righteousness, to treat people in a way that reflects the justice of God and the righteousness of God, to do that which is just and right and good for all people, according to the word of God, as a reflection of the character of God, and this is obviously not an isolated command in the Bible all throughout the Old Testament and New Testament.
We see God telling his people, Micah 6:8, it’s maybe one of the most well-known places, to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with God. Amos 5, “May justice flow from my people,” God says, “Like an ever-flowing water.” Amos 5, God says, “May justice flow from my people like ever-flowing water,” like over-flowing streams. Like we should not be cautious or tentative about justice. We should be extravagant in doing justice and there’s so many ways this plays out. We could spend hours just talking about justice in the Bible.
But I want to encourage you to think today, just very simply, how can you do justice and righteousness today? How can you work against violence or oppression today? Just using these words straight from Ezekiel 45:9. God, help us to do righteousness and justice. To do that which is just and good and right for all people around us, particularly those who are treated unjustly, those who are oppressed. God, give us eyes to see as you see, to see the vulnerable, the poor, the needy, the oppressed right around us, and to live so that our lives reflect your justice and righteousness and goodness to them.
God, I think about the Tatar people of Russia. Over five million of them, and some of their history has involved being unjustly treated by supposed Christians and when I read about ministry obstacles among the Tatar, says they have not forgotten the history of ill treatment from professing Christians. God, we pray for your mercy on the Tatar, that they would know you are just and good.
God, that they would hear the good news of your justice and righteousness and they would see it on display in Christians around them. I think about how professing Christians throughout history have done unjust and unrighteous things. And God, even for all of us, our own tendency to do unjust and unrighteous things, God help us to be just and righteous in all our ways, and to work, to serve, to give, and to live in ways that reflect your justice and righteousness.
For the sake of the Tatar that they would know you, God, that they would know your love for them, that they would come to know Jesus who is perfect justice and perfect righteousness personified, all the nations would know this, through us as your people doing justice and righteousness according to your word.
And teach us, today, to do justice and righteousness, right where we live and God, in places beyond where we live, that we would humbly and intentionally go into other places and reach out to other people beyond where we live to do justice and do righteousness on behalf of people who may not be in our normal spheres of influence. God, help us to do justice and righteousness in ways that glorify you. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.
David Platt serves as a Lead Pastor for McLean Bible Church. He is also the Founder and Chairman of Radical, an organization that helps people follow Jesus and make him known in their neighborhood and all nations.
David received his B.A. from the University of Georgia and M.Div., Th.M., and Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Some of his published works include Radical, Radical Together, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, and Don’t Hold Back.
He lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area with his wife and children.
