The calls for social justice are all around us, especially in the year 2020. But as this year fades into the past, the remnants of social justice have become stronger. How are we, as Christians, to deal with society’s demands for equity, fairness, and opportunity? While dealing with social justice issues, we simply turn to the word of God, the Bible.
Here is a list of some of the verses in the Scriptures that speak about social justice issues.
Isaiah 1:17, “Learn to do good. Seek justice. Reprove the ruthless. Defend the orphan. Plead for the widow.”
- Bribes, don’t take
- Exodus 23:8, “You shall not take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the clear-sighted and subverts the cause of the just.”
- God is the standard of justice
- Deuteronomy 10:18, “He executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and shows His love for the alien by giving him food and clothing.”
- Deuteronomy 32:4, “The Rock! His work is perfect, for all His ways are just. A God of faithfulness and without injustice, righteous and upright is He.”
- Psalm 33:5, “He loves righteousness and justice; The earth is full of the lovingkindness of the LORD.”
- Lev. 11:44, “For I am the LORD your God. Consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. And you shall not make yourselves unclean with any of the swarming things that swarm on the earth.”
- Falleness, the cause of injustice
- Genesis 3:19, “By the sweat of your face You will eat bread, Till you return to the ground because from it you were taken; For you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”
- Genesis 6:11, “Now the earth was corrupt in the sight of God, and the earth was filled with violence.”
- Favoritism, don’t show to either the rich or poor
- James 2:2–4, “For if a man comes into your assembly with a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in dirty clothes, 3 and you pay special attention to the one who is wearing the fine clothes, and say, “You sit here in a good place,” and you say to the poor man, “You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool,” 4 have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives?”
- Exodus 23:3, “nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his dispute.”
- Lev. 19:15, “You shall do no injustice in judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor nor defer to the great, but you are to judge your neighbor fairly.”
- Hatred, have none in your heart towards others
- Leviticus 19:17, “You shall not hate your fellow countryman in your heart; you may surely reprove your neighbor, but shall not incur sin because of him.”
- 1 John 2:9, “The one who says he is in the Light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until now.”
- 1 John 4:19, “We love, because He first loved us.”
- Helpless, aid to the
- Proverbs 31:9, “Open your mouth, judge righteously, and defend the rights of the afflicted and needy.”
- Isaiah 1:17, “Learn to do good; Seek justice, Reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, Plead for the widow.”
- Psalm 82:3–4, “Vindicate the weak and fatherless; Do justice to the afflicted and destitute. “4 Rescue the weak and needy; Deliver them out of the hand of the wicked.”
- Luke 10:30–36, “Jesus replied and said, ‘A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, and they stripped him and beat him, and went away leaving him half dead. “31 “And by chance a priest was going down on that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. “32 “Likewise a Levite also, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. “33 “But a Samaritan, who was on a journey, came upon him; and when he saw him, he felt compassion, “34 and came to him and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them; and he put him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn and took care of him. “35 “On the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper and said, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I return I will repay you.’ “36 “Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the robbers’ hands?'”
- Life, don’t threaten another’s life
- Leviticus 19:16, “You shall not go about as a slanderer among your people, and you are not to act against the life of your neighbor; I am the LORD.”
- Love Others
- Leviticus 19:18, “You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the sons of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself; I am the LORD.”
- 1 John 4:19, “We love because He first loved us.”
- John 13:34, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.”
- Oppression, do not practice
- Deuteronomy 15:7, “If there is a poor man with you, one of your brothers, in any of your towns in your land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart, nor close your hand from your poor brother;”
- Isaiah 1:17, “Learn to do good; Seek justice, Reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, Plead for the widow.”
- Psalm 82:3, “Vindicate the weak and fatherless; Do justice to the afflicted and destitute.”
- Proverbs 31:8–9, “Open your mouth for the mute, For the rights of all the unfortunate. 9 Open your mouth, judge righteously, And defend the rights of the afflicted and needy.”.”
- Lev. 19:13, “You shall not oppress your neighbor, nor rob him. The wages of a hired man are not to remain with you all night until morning.”
- Leviticus 19:15, “You shall do no injustice in judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor nor defer to the great, but you are to judge your neighbor fairly.”
- Poor, the
- Leviticus 19:15, “You shall do no injustice in judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor nor defer to the great, but you are to judge your neighbor fairly.”
- Deuteronomy 15:7, “If there is a poor man with you, one of your brothers, in any of your towns in your land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart, nor close your hand from your poor brother;”
- Deuteronomy 24:14, “You shall not oppress a hired servant who is poor and needy, whether he is one of your countrymen or one of your aliens who is in your land in your towns.”
- Proverbs 29:7, “The righteous is concerned for the rights of the poor. The wicked does not understand such concern.”
- Restoration
- Lev. 6:2-5, “When a person sins and acts unfaithfully against the LORD, and deceives his companion in regard to a deposit or a security entrusted to him, or through robbery, or if he has extorted from his companion, 3 or has found what was lost and lied about it and sworn falsely, so that he sins in regard to any one of the things a man may do; 4 then it shall be, when he sins and becomes guilty, that he shall restore what he took by robbery or what he got by extortion, or the deposit which was entrusted to him or the lost thing which he found or anything about which he swore falsely; he shall make restitution for it in full and add to it one-fifth more. He shall give it to the one to whom it belongs on the day he presents his guilt offering.”
- Theft, no
- Do not steal
- Lev. 19:11, “You shall not steal, nor deal falsely, nor lie to one another.”
- Restore what was stolen
- Lev. 6:2-3, “When a person sins and acts unfaithfully against the LORD, and deceives his companion in regard to a deposit or a security entrusted to him, or through robbery, or if he has extorted from his companion, 3 or has found what was lost and lied about it and sworn falsely, so that he sins in regard to any one of the things a man may do; 4 then it shall be, when he sins and becomes guilty, that he shall restore what he took by robbery or what he got by extortion, or the deposit which was entrusted to him or the lost thing which he found.”
- Do not steal
- Truthful, legal testimony is obligatory
- Lev. 5:1, “Now if a person sins after he hears a public adjuration to testify when he is a witness, whether he has seen or otherwise known, if he does not tell it, then he will bear his guilt.”
- Exodus 20:16, “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”
- Exodus 23:1, “You shall not bear a false report; do not join your hand with a wicked man to be a malicious witness.”
