After God shares three questions (rhetorical ones, I suspect) with some representatives from Bethel in Zechariah 7:4-7 (as discussed in the previous article), the next few verses record another message from God to Zechariah: one that seems to be complementary to His preceding words.
And the word of the LORD came again to Zechariah: “This is what the LORD Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other.’
Zechariah 7:8-10 NIV
If the people really wanted to know what God desired from them, here is what was important for them to do (i.e., rather than trying to get out of fasting that wasn’t necessarily being done for God in the first place, as described in Zechariah 7:1-7). See also Micah 6:8.
The fact that God reminded the people of this requirement suggests that at least some of the Jewish people (even those who had gotten to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple) weren’t following God’s instructions. However, we probably can’t judge them if we also forget – whether accidentally or willfully – to do the same things, so let’s take a look at these topics in more detail.
The people were told to administer [NIV] or dispense [NASB] true justice. When people can’t find justice, they get frustrated, beat down, and discouraged.
Think about those who we see on the news whose loved ones have been hurt or killed, but where the assailant hasn’t yet been apprehended. These victims are not only hurting because of the harm done to someone they cared about, but they can’t get closure or a sense of fairness because the person responsible hasn’t been brought to justice.
This isn’t limited to violent crime, either. When someone has been cheated by a scammer, or lost their house to a greedy lender, or been denied a job due to inappropriate discrimination, they deserve justice.
The people are also commanded to show [NIV] or practice [NASB] mercy (or kindness [NASB]) and compassion. Even as we seek justice on behalf of others, there are times when it’s better for us to let things go that were done to us. Even if we technically have the right to exact compensation from someone who has wronged us or hurt us, there are times when we must extend mercy and forgive them, at times even allowing others to go unpunished for what they have done. (If there was no mercy, I think that there would be no long-term friendships, since we all make mistakes.)
This intersection of kindness and compassion also extends to those who haven’t hurt us, but who need our help. Here, I think of a common reaction (at least in my country) to someone asking for help on the street or obviously homeless: This narrative goes something like this: “Are they too lazy to get a job?”, or “They’re probably junkies”, or “If they had just made better decisions, they wouldn’t be there.” Even if specific statements like this are technically true for certain people in these situations, compassion and kindness looks more like giving our fellow human being the benefit of the doubt, and considering what we can to do to help them.
It might be uncomfortable to even engage with someone who is out on the street, in order to understand the rest of their situation and learn what we can do to help. I get it. However, even when we learn of tangible, specific needs among our own church community, do we default to judgment or to compassion?
Let’s pick up on this passage again in the next article…
From Sunday School lesson prepared for August 11, 2024
References:
- The Lookout, August 11, 2024, © 2024 Christian Standard Media.
- Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
- Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Copyright by The Lockman Foundation.
- The College Press NIV Commentary – Minor Prophets Vol. 2 Nahum-Malachi, by Mark Allen Hahlen and Clay Alan Ham. © 2006 College Press Publishing Co.
Those Who Sin Differently 