As modern-day Christians, we often reflect with thankfulness that we no longer have to keep all the rules and regulations God’s people followed under the Law of Moses. Yet we should remember that we serve the same God as the Old Testament Israelites. When God judged and punished His people, it was not because they failed to observe some fine point of the Law. His wrath came because they neglected and rejected His most basic expectations.
God’s people mistreated one another—especially the weakest among them. The prophet Zechariah, who preached after the Babylonian exile, confronted this failure directly.
Zechariah 7:9–12 (NASB 2020)
“This is what the LORD of armies has said: ‘Dispense true justice and practice kindness and compassion each to his brother; and do not oppress the widow or the orphan, the stranger or the poor; and do not devise evil in your hearts against one another.’ But they refused to pay attention and turned a stubborn shoulder and plugged their ears from hearing. They also made their hearts as hard as a diamond so that they could not hear the Law and the words which the LORD of armies had sent by His Spirit through the former prophets; therefore great wrath came from the LORD of armies.”
What did Zechariah accuse God’s people of?
- Failure to treat one another with justice, kindness, and compassion.
- Oppression of the weakest members of society—the widow, the orphan, the foreigner, and the poor.
- A stubborn refusal to listen to what God had repeatedly declared to be central to His will.
These were not obscure theological errors. They were moral failures. God’s people hardened their hearts against the very things closest to God’s own heart.
When I look at many of the things being done today by the United States of America, I fear we are in danger of committing the same sins. With immense power comes immense responsibility, and too often it seems that power is used harshly simply because it can be. Citizens, neighboring nations, and immigrants alike can be treated without justice or compassion. Might, however, does not make right.
We may be the most powerful nation in human history, but no nation is beyond accountability before God. If we persist in hardening our hearts to justice and mercy, we may be storing up for ourselves the very judgment we assume will never come.
The proper response is repentance. Let us pray—for ourselves, for our leaders, and for one another—that God would show mercy, soften our hearts, and help us see the truth. May we once again align our lives, our priorities, and our nation with what God has always required: true justice, kindness, and compassion.
Discussion Questions
- Why do you think God responds so strongly to the mistreatment of the vulnerable (widows, orphans, foreigners, the poor)?
- How does Zechariah describe the spiritual posture of the people who refused to listen to God? Which images stand out most to you, and why?
- How should Christians think about national power and responsibility in light of biblical teaching?
- Why is repentance the appropriate response rather than blame, fear, or political outrage?
- What might it look like, practically, for individuals or churches to pursue “true justice, kindness, and compassion” in their own communities?
This is a great post with so much food for thought. And, as with any feast, one must decide what to do with each consumed morsel.
Praying for the Lord to move my heart, hands, and feet in response.
Kristy,
Amen! Thank you. We need the Lord’s help and guidance.