The Nugget:
Exo 22:22 Do not mistreat widows or orphans.
Exo 22:23 If you do, they will beg for my help, and I will come to their rescue.
Exo 22:24 In fact, I will get so angry that I will kill your men and make widows of their wives and orphans of their children.
I have used the God’s Word (GW) translation to help modern-day readers understand what is being said more clearly.
My Comment:
I might just as well have titled this Bible study “Do you know what the Bible says about politics?”
For you to get an accurate understanding of what the Bible has to say, you MUST become aware of how the Bible uses figures of speech. When the Bible makes reference to “widows and orphans” (which it does very frequently), it is NOT referring only to widows and orphans or the fatherless. Widows and orphans (by the figure of speech called Synecdoche of the Species) are put for every kind of afflicted, namely, all who suffer injustice or wrongdoing at the hands of anyone else. “Anyone else” includes criminals, bullies, unjust judges, the government, media, and politicians.
The Bible is the most relevant and up-to-date Book on the planet. When what is said is stated in modern English its relevance is not only very clear, but most shocking.
But to begin to understand and appreciate what the Bible has to say you MUST study it, not just read it! One most essential way to study the Bible is by using what are called cross references. Cross references are verses found elsewhere in the Bible that shed light on or clarify or say something more about the subjects found in the verse you are studying. When you read cross references you will gain insight beyond what you ever had before, and gain it from the Bible itself.
The point of the “Daily Nugget” passage given above (Exodus 22:22, 23, 24) is that if someone is wronged, and they cry out to the Lord in prayer, God promises to hear that prayer and render justice in that case Himself. As the Bible elsewhere says, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews 10:31).
If you should ever be the object of injustice, unfair dealing, even oppression or the denial of your rights, it is obvious what you should do first. Let God hear your complaint. Leave it to Him to take action on your behalf. Ask for His assistance and guidance in determining what to do. One thing you must never do: do not take vengeance upon anyone or anything yourself. God clearly tells us to stand to the side to make room for Him to wreak the vengeance as required (Romans 12:19).
Rom 12:19 Dear friends, don’t try to get even. Let God take revenge. In the Scriptures the Lord says, “I am the one to take revenge and pay them back.” (CEV)
Rom 12:19 Don’t take revenge, dear friends. Instead, let God’s anger take care of it. After all, Scripture says, “I alone have the right to take revenge. I will pay back, says the Lord.” (GW)
If you have suffered injustice, the first thing is to pray to God and let Him know. Of course He already knows everything, but if you want an answer to prayer, you must actually pray (James 4:2, “Ye have not because ye ask not”). Then do not neglect the normal avenues of recourse available to you. If these normal avenues do not succeed, continue praying to God about the matter until you see His answer.
What has any of this to do with politics? I noticed today while studying the cross references I have gathered in The Ultimate Cross Reference Treasury or The Cross Reference Guide to the Bible that they led to many other passages, and several passages got my attention:
Jer 22:13 “How horrible it will be for the person who builds his house dishonestly and his upper rooms through injustice. He makes his neighbors work for nothing and doesn’t pay them for their work.” (GW)
Isa 10:1 How horrible it will be for those who make unjust laws and who make oppressive regulations.
Isa 10:2 They deprive the poor of justice. They take away the rights of the needy among my people. They prey on widows and rob orphans.
Isa 10:3 What will you do on the day you are called to account for these things, when the disaster comes from far away? Where will you run for help? Where will you leave your wealth?
Our economy is stifled because of unjust laws and oppressive regulations. What good laws we have are not properly enforced. If the laws were enforced as written, the cost of everything related to medical care would be reduced by as much as 80%. If that were the case, you could pay the full cost of medical care and medicine out of pocket for what the deductible or required copayment costs now. And you would not have to buy insurance, or you could purchase it for much less. Monopolies are structured such that the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. And why are things kept this way? Follow the money. Politicians are being bribed to pass health care legislation to benefit the monopoly interests that in turn pay for the cost of election campaigns of the politician.
Psa 94:20 But you are opposed to dishonest lawmakers (CEV)
I read on Facebook the other day where one of the moderators of a closed group stated that the Bible and Christianity have nothing to do with politics. In context, the issue was that the moderators did not want anyone to post comments about political issues. That is the group administrators’ prerogative. But you can see that the general assertion that Christians should have nothing to do with politics because the Bible does not address those issues is clearly mistaken. The Bible addresses far more than I have been able to present here.