Our thoughts, our ways

Seek the LORD while he may be found, call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake their way, and the unrighteous their thoughts; let them return to the LORD, that he may have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. 
(Isaiah 55:6-9 NRSV)

When we read about  what the people of Jesus day thought of God's kingdom, we read how the righteous will be in, while the wicked and evil sinners will be out. The people of  God were waiting for a kingdom on earth and many thought they had it all figured out regarding their standing towards God and the law. Many thought that their ways were on par with God's ways.  Jesus was sure to point out their error. Luke 18:9-14 offers a parable about one who thinks himself righteous, compared to one whom is seen as unrighteous.  The parable concludes with which man will enter into the Kingdom. The pharisees and elders found such ideas shocking.  In their minds, their thoughts, and according to their ways, only one as righteous as they would enter. Is this what God was thinking?  Besides the obvious lesson of how we judge others, I believe there is more to this parable, and what the LORD claims in Isaiah 55. 

Not God's Ways

What are the ways of humanity? What is the wickedness and evil that pushes us away from God? I believe that, as both Jesus and Paul summed up for us, all of the law boils down to two principles, love God with all your heart (think about what that even means), and love your neighbor, all of your neighbors. Over and over in the old testament we read of humanity, mainly Israel,  doing the complete opposite. It started with Adam and Eve, and continues right through today.  To love God with all your heart, and to love your neighbor, is justice. 

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. It is these you ought to have practiced without neglecting the others. 
(Matthew 23:23 NRSV)

The pharisees lack the same three things that their ancestors lacked; justice, mercy, and faith. Exactly what is justice? When most people think of justice, they think of the law, they think of retribution, a long prison sentence, or even the death penalty. I think of the old west, justice often meant 'swinging from the end of a rope'. The term 'kangaroo court' comes to mind. Is this how God views justice?  What are God's thoughts and ways concerning justice?

I will offer one example, and then examine a few passages regarding Israel of the old testament and justice. 

Sodom and Gomorrah

The example I will use is of Sodom and Gomorrah. Most of the time when I read what others say about the destruction of these incredible cities , it has to do with sex. Mainly, homosexual.  This seems to be the primary  worry of Lot, and Lot does what seems right to do in Sodom, he offers his virgin daughters to a mob. Rarely do I hear anyone condemn Lot for offering up two innocents, to be raped, in general is that the mob wanted the men, who happened to be messengers, or angels. Certainly there is a complete lack of justice in this scene.  Take care of the aliens in your land,  Exodus 22:21, Exodus 23:9, Leviticus 19:33-34, are just a few examples out of many. Taking advantage of the alien in these cities was common place, possibly even the law.

Josephus, in his Antiquities of the Jews, Book 1, said of Sodom, "they became unjust towards men, and impious towards God: insomuch that they did not call to mind the advantages they received from him: they hated strangers, and abused themselves with Sodomitical practices." Now, a Sodomitical practice is not a reference to what we call sodomy today, Sodomitical simply means what the people of Sodom practiced. They were unjust towards others. They hated strangers, not only that, but they were also unjust towards each other. 

The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God. 
(Leviticus 19:34 NRSV)

So, God expected Israel to take care of the alien in their land, the expectation even covered what laws covered the citizen and the aliens; the law was the same for everyone.  God also expected them to love their neighbor, which includes aliens, as themselves. Did God expect the same from the nations? Yes. God heard the cry of injustice coming from Sodom and Gomorrah,  and the towns that surrounded them.  Have you ever stopped to think who the cry was coming from? It was not from those of the nations such as were among the Canaanites, and others. God was hearing from those that Israel was to claim the promised land from in the future. God cared about all of humanity, God sought justice from them as well. The land Israel was to eventually to settle lacked justice. The lands surrounding Israel lacked justice. Israel would be a beacon of hope, a land of justice, as an example to the world. God would work through Israel to bring justice. 

It is interesting now to read what God said about Sodom in Ezekiel. Anything about homosexuality is absent, though you might be able to put it under the heading of abominable things.  

 This was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy. They were haughty, and did abominable things before me; therefore I removed them when I saw it. 
(Ezekiel 16:49-50 NRSV)

What I read here is injustice against human beings.  I want to include some writing from the book of Jasher. Yes, it is an extra-biblical book however, it may be useful for social and cultural historical understanding.  This book is mentioned in scripture, twice. Whether or not the book of Jasher we have available today is the original is not in question here.  There is truth as to how these people treated others. The following is highlighted to show the injustice done in Sodom and Gomorrah.
Jasher 19
And the cities of Sodom had four judges to four cities, and these were their names, Serak in the city of Sodom, Sharkad in Gomorrah, Zabnac in Admah, and Menon in Zeboyim. And Eliezer Abraham's servant applied to them different names, and he converted Serak to Shakra, Sharkad to Shakrura, Zebnac to Kezobim, and Menon to Matzlodin. And by desire of their four judges the people of Sodom and Gomorrah had beds erected in the streets of the cities, and if a man came to these places they laid hold of him and brought him to one of their beds, and by force made him to lie in them. And as he lay down, three men would stand at his head and three at his feet, and measure him by the length of the bed, and if the man was less than the bed these six men would stretch him at each end, and when he cried out to them they would not answer him. And if he was longer than the bed they would draw together the two sides of the bed at each end, until the man had reached the gates of death. And if he continued to cry out to them, they would answer him, saying, Thus shall it be done to a man that cometh into our land. And when men heard all these things that the people of the cities of Sodom did, they refrained from coming there. And when a poor man came to their land they would give him silver and gold, and cause a proclamation in the whole city not to give him a morsel of bread to eat, and if the stranger should remain there some days, and die from hunger, not having been able to obtain a morsel of bread, then at his death all the people of the city would come and take their silver and gold which they had given to him. And those that could recognize the silver or gold which they had given him took it back, and at his death they also stripped him of his garments, and they would fight about them, and he that prevailed over his neighbor took them. They would after that carry him and bury him under some of the shrubs in the deserts; so they did all the days to any one that came to them and died in their land.

How much does God love justice?

Notice how Israel is the sister, and that Israel has won the illustrious title of 'winner in the category of injustice' over Sodom. All of the commandments can be brought under two, love the Lord God with all your heart, and love your neighbor as yourself.  Why was Israel sent into captivity? Injustice.  See Isaiah 10:1-2 for just one passage, then seek out others throughout the prophets.  In Jeremiah 22  word is brought against Judah, they are implored to help the oppressed, the widows  and orphans, and to not bring violence against the alien.  In Jeremiah 22,  other people who pass the land will wonder why the LORD has punished them; the answer is that they did not worship the LORD or keep his covenant, which included justice towards others (verse 3). 

He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? 
(Micah 6:8 NRSV)

The word of the LORD came to Zechariah, saying: Thus says the LORD of hosts: Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another; do not oppress the widow, the orphan, the alien, or the poor; and do not devise evil in your hearts against one another. But they refused to listen, and turned a stubborn shoulder, and stopped their ears in order not to hear. They made their hearts adamant in order not to hear the law and the words that the LORD of hosts had sent by his spirit through the former prophets. Therefore great wrath came from the LORD of hosts. 
(Zechariah 7:8-12 NRSV)

God's ways and thoughts as given to us in the scriptures are clear. They were clear to Israel. Israel was not a beacon of hope to the world. Israel was worse than the world around it and after many warnings were finally dispersed. In God's kingdom are justice, mercy, and faith. We have the faith, as given to us by Jesus Christ. We are to be merciful as he was merciful to us. We are to seek justice as described by God in the prophets and throughout the Gospels and Paul's writings, loving one another, taking care of the poor, the widows, the orphans, and the alien. This is not a political statement, the politics of the world do not lead to justice, God's people should lead to justice. God's thoughts and ways should be ours. Paul says in Ephesians that we were made for good works. 

See that none of you repays evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to all. 
(1 Thessalonians 5:15 NRSV)

To always seek the good of others is work. It may be easy at times, it may be exhausting .  We may never see the fruits of our labor. But, it is what we are called to do. It is necessary to be prayerfully mindful, continually, of how we are perceived as children of God in the world. The great thing is, when there is less of us and our ways, and more of Christ and God's ways, there will be fruit, you can be a beacon of hope.