Justice Out of Balance
He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. Psalm 103:10 NASB
According to – Is God just? Frankly, I hope not. Justice means the application of the law without bias. It is personified in the famous blind lady holding the balance scales.
If God blindly measures me against His commandments, the scales will certainly tip the wrong way for me. Oh, just in case you thought that somehow “Jesus” held his finger on the scales so that they appear to be straight, you confirmed the penal theory of atonement (which we looked at some time ago), a theory that was invented by the Reformers whose view of justice was greatly influenced by the Greco-Roman goddess Themis. We need to correct some of this mistaken view.
But first, let’s fix the syntax in this verse. It doesn’t actually read, “He has not dealt with us according to our sins.” Hebrew notes emphasis by arranging the words according to their importance. It literally reads, “Not according to our sins He has dealt with us.” The emphasis is on the fact that God hasn’t used the balance scale. In fact, the very first word is lōʾ. It is the strongest negation, that is, unconditional negation. We might have expected the verse to use ‘al, a conditional negation. Conditional negation would mean that, depending on the circumstances, God might not act in judgment against us. So, maybe Jesus could put his finger on the scales and change the circumstances. But that isn’t what this verse says. It says that God never uses the balance scale! It is just as strong as the lōʾ in the commandment, “You shall have no other gods before Me.”
lōʾ is followed by the most important preposition you’ll ever read, ki ( ךְּ־ ), translated “according to.” What the Psalmist writes is this: God does not operate by comparison to some external standard, even if that standard is His own. He does not treat us as if we are mere records in the divine account. He is not blind to our individual circumstances, history and capacity. Roman justice is not God’s way. That should be enough to convince you that payment for sin isn’t really very biblical. Payment presupposes balance, and this verse tells us straightforwardly that God doesn’t use the Greco-Roman balance. God’s justice is case law. It’s case by case, individual by individual, situation by situation. Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s arbitrary. Father’s don’t treat their children arbitrarily. They do have objectives and hopes and rules, etc., but no two children are really identical and a good father recognizes that in his efforts to steer them in the right way. YHVH is primarily a husband and father. Justice must be tempered by love.
Of course, the real objective is for the child to recognize the patience and love of the father—and as a result, change behavior, not because he or she is compelled to but because he or she desires to (for any number of perfectly good reasons). Arbitrary justice is no better than arbitrary mercy. It is the appropriate blend that makes the best parent. And God is pretty good at it.
Topical Index: justice, balance, arbitrary, Father, law, Psalm 103:10
