The Social Gospel

They also do no injustice; they walk in His ways. Psalm 119:3  NASB Injustice – Are those who keep God’s torah social justice activists?  Well, that depends on how you translate ʿawlâ. Livingston comments: “ . . . in Hebrew the basic meaning of this root means to deviate from a right standard, to act contrary to…

Homelessness

Woe, who add house to house, who put field together with field till there is no space left and you alone are settled, in the heart of the land.  Isaiah 5:8  Robert Alter You alone – Private property and boundaries are at the heart of Israel’s social system.  Since the day the tribes settled in…

Equality for All

“But all the silver and gold, and articles of bronze and iron are holy to the Lord; they shall go into the treasury of the Lord.”  Joshua 6:19  NASB They shall go – “Social justice may be broadly understood as the fair and compassionate distribution of the fruits of economic growth”  (the United Nations).  “Social justice is…

Failure Rate

Let me not be put to shame, O Lord, for I call upon You; let the wicked be put to shame, let them be silent in Sheol  Psalm 31:17  NASB Shame– We’ve investigated the Hebrew word bôš several times in the past. John Oswalt notes: The primary meaning of this root is “to fall into disgrace, normally through failure, either of self or…

The Fate of the Nation

Thus says the Lord, “Do justice and righteousness, and deliver the one who has been robbed from the power of his oppressor. Also do not mistreat or do violence to the stranger, the orphan, or the widow; and do not shed innocent blood in this place. Jeremiah 22:3 NASB Do – The division of ideology…