Merciful Justice (Part 1): The Heart of God

“But let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows Me,
That I am the Lord, exercising faithful love, justice, and righteousness in the earth.
For in these I delight,” says the Lord. ~ Jeremiah 9:24

In our American culture, the term “justice” is commonly associated with punishing the criminal for his offense. After all, we have the “justice system.” And when someone’s been harmed, we want the offender “brought to justice.” The concept of mercy is not typically a part of our American cultural definition of justice.

But in God’s lexicon, justice and mercy are as intimately entwined as heart and hands, attitude and action, motive and service.

In his book, Generous Justice, Timothy Keller writes that the term translated “mercy” in Micah 6:8 is chesedh, the word for God’s unconditional grace and compassion, His heart. The word for justice is mishpat, which emphasizes the active expression of a heart of chesedh. So to humbly walk with God, we practice justice toward others with a heart of mercy.

Mishpat is far more holistic than punishing wrongdoing; it encompasses all the ways in which we fight for people’s rights, for their dignity as image-bearers of God. So “doing justice” will often involve care for and protection of the needy and disadvantaged within our society. To quote Keller:

“We do justice when we give all human beings their due as creations of God. Doing justice includes not only the righting of wrongs, but generosity and social concern, especially toward the poor and vulnerable. This kind of life reflects the character of God.”

As we contemplate God’s character, it shouldn’t surprise us that justice and mercy are flawlessly integrated in His heart. After all, His ways are justice and mercy:

He is the Rock, His work is perfect; For all His ways are justice,
A God of truth and without injustice; Righteous and upright is He (Deuteronomy 32:4).

Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne;
Mercy and truth go before Your face (Psalm 89:14).

He identifies Himself by His loving care for the poor and vulnerable:

For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality nor takes a bribe. He administers justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the stranger, giving him food and clothing (Deuteronomy 10:17-18).

And in Micah 6:8, He calls us to identify ourselves as those who walk in His ways, reflecting His heart of merciful justice.