A Closed Universe (2)
Evil men do not understand justice, but those who seek the LORD understand all things. Proverbs 28:5
Not Understand – Why don’t evil men understand justice? Can you answer that question – biblically? Oh, we are quick to give a lot of reasons. They are self-possessed. They are morally blind. They lack real compassion. They are “bad” people. All of these may be true, but when we realize that the term “evil men” applies to everyone who is not in alignment with the Lord, then our usual explanations begin to falter. Don’t use the worst examples of human depravity in your thinking. Use the best! Take a look at those paradigms of human goodness, those people known for altruism and self-sacrifice, and apply this verse. The biblical view of evil extends to everyone on the other side of the fence, regardless of their morality. Jesus demands radical allegiance. “If you are not for me, you are against me.” There is no neutral ground to plead the cause of the “good” people.
The implications of o-ya vinu (the verb is biyn – to understand), tell the story. The primary meaning is to give heed, to discern, to distinguish. But the biblical use is never concerned with intellectual knowledge alone. Biyn is connected with hearing and obeying. In the Bible, understanding without application is pointless. Worse than that, from the biblical perspective, I do not understand until and unless I am obedient to what I receive. We think understanding is the collection of correct information regardless of its application. I can claim to understand justice, but I mean only that I know all the rules and the case law. The Bible never allows such foolishness. Understanding is personal application of revealed and accepted truth. I don’t understand until I put it in action.
But there’s a catch. No man has the ultimate perspective needed to be able to perfectly discern right from wrong. The world is simply too complicated. Therefore, the kind of discernment essential for justice can come from only one source – God Himself. Unless God gives me correct understanding, all of my knowledge will be incomplete and flawed. Jeremiah makes it clear (Jeremiah 9:11). If you aren’t listening to God, and being obedient to what you hear, real justice alludes you.
Will you throw up your hands in despair? Do you feel as though it’s hopeless since you can never know exactly what’s right? You missed the point. God has already revealed what constitutes justice. Only God can do such a thing. All you have to do is understand what He has already said by doing it!
The Bible is the source book for God’s perspective on life. If your idea of justice is not in alignment with the Book, then your god is not the God of Scripture. But the Bible is not a rule book. It is a cook book.. So, start baking. No one eats the recipe. Good food is the result of putting the recipe into action.
