Divine Justice

Isaiah 42:1
"Here is my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen one in whom I delight;
I will put my Spirit on him
and he will bring justice to the nations.

I wonder what Israel had in mind as they first heard this prophesy? When we think of justice we often think of the bad guys getting what's coming to them and the good guys finally getting what's been kept from them. I imagine the thought of the Messiah bringing justice put a smile on their face of Israel as they imagined something similar.
So that Israel fully understands God's vision of justice, Isaiah continues with this theme of divine justice throughout this chapter.

Isaiah 42:3-4
A bruised reed He will not break,
and a smoldering wick He will not snuff out.
In faithfulness He will bring forth justice;

He will not falter or be discouraged
till He establishes justice on earth.
In His law the islands will put their hope."

Throughout Scripture, God contrasts Israel as the land and the gentiles as the sea. The Philistines lived by the way of the sea and were enemies of God and His people. Israel was defined by waters on each side, the Mediterranean on the West and the Jordan river on the East. In Revelation, the angel of chapter 7 is commanded, "Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God (3)."

I wonder how Israel's view of Messiah's justice changed when they heard that the Islands would put their hope in Him? What could these islands be but gentiles who would come to believe in Jehovah and come to submit to His law? How was this possible? How is this just?

Isaiah 42:6-7 continues this thought...

"I, the LORD, have called You in righteousness;
I will take hold of Your hand.
I will keep You and will make You
to be a covenant for the people
and a light for the Gentiles,

to open eyes that are blind,
to free captives from prison
and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness."

These verses are not about Israel but about the Messiah. He will be called in righteousness. There is no righteousness to be found in Israel but the Messiah would be without sin and be found worthy to take the hand of God on behalf of Israel. He would not simply be the bearer or author of a new covenant, He would be a new covenant. This new covenant would not be for Israel alone but for the gentiles as well. While the imagery of blind captives trapped in dungeons of darkness must have conjured up thoughts of captivity for the Jews, it was really God's promise to the gentiles. This must have sent Israel scratching their heads at best and perhaps even angry.

So Isaiah continues to make sure that Israel understands the full extent of divine justice.

(16) "I will lead the blind by ways they have not known,
along unfamiliar paths I will guide them;
I will turn the darkness into light before them
and make the rough places smooth.
These are the things I will do;
I will not forsake them."

As His creation, formed in His image and reflecting His glory, God promises not to forsake the gentiles. This is an extension of His theme of justice, yet not the justice that Israel imagined. They (Israel) were not God's special object of mercy and grace. They were not His only subject of patience and deliverance. Israel was simply God's chosen tool to demonstrate and deliver justice to the nations. Jesus would be "the atoning sacrifice for our (Israel's) sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2)." It is only right and just that God extend salvation to all of His creation. In other words, divine justice is far more about the giver of justice than the subject of this justice.

So what is my image of justice? Is it wrapped up in my identity, my experience and my prejudice or is it wholly about God, His character and His standard? Does my vision of justice indistinguishably mix with mercy and grace regardless of the subject? Do I seek to exercise this version of justice?

Lord, take away my prejudice. Make me an agent of Your justice. May I too be a light to blind eyes. May I too deliver a message of deliverance for those trapped in darkness. May I too be filled with compassion and passion for those who are lost. May I know divine justice and make it known. Amen.