Page 4489 - 1970S

much better. This is because it is an
abomination when an innocent per–
son suffers wrongly (Deut. 19:·1O, 13;
Job 4:7).
Consider the rape example again.
There are, in this present evil world,
women who wmfalsely accuse a man
of rape. For this reason, there haveto
be sorne procedures to make sure that
an accuser is telling the truth. The
woman will have to go to court be–
cause aman should have the right to
confront bis accusers. And she ought
to be subject to what could indeed
be the horrible trauma of having to
tell her story over again, because the
painful fact is that human beings are
swayed by Satan the devil and, like
the devil (John 8:44), do not always
tell the truth.
The Proverbs also speak of the
need for such legal procedures as
cross-examination: "He that is first
in bis own cause seemeth jusi: but bis
neighbor cometh and searcheth him"
(Prov. 18:17) .
lt is a cruel fact ofSatan's world that
certain legal rules are necessary to
ensure that innocent people do not
suffer. And even with these rules, the
fact is that innocent people do suffer.
For this reason, we can be thankful
when, under the government of man,
courts properly think before they act,
and when there are numerous legal
procedures to ensure that all sides of
a controversy are heard, and that
there has been opportunity for each
side to be heard. Lawyers call this
"due process," and its roots go direct–
ly back at least to the Magna Carta.
Even today, the most horrendous vio–
lations of fair play take place when
courts do not give al! sides the oppor–
tunity to be heard and make their .
case.
The Bible puts its stamp of ap–
proval on the idea of "due process"
also. That is why God commanded
the ancient Israelites that testimony
in capital crimes could not be entered
unless it was corroborated by at least
two witnesses (Deut. 17:6). Even
though they may cause frustrating
delay, the complicated rules of proce–
dure in modero legal systems prevent
worse injustice: the kind of kangaroo–
court situation where a man or an
institution is condemned without get–
ting the opportunity to be heard,
34
sometimes even without notice that a
trial is going on at all!
It seems that, in Satan's world, we
only have the distasteful choice of
delay and expense or-even worse–
the punishment of the innocent.
The Glorlous World Tomorrow
When God restores His government
to the whole earth, things are going
to change. For once there is going to
be justice, fair play, and equity in the
affairs of men. The blatant, anguish–
ing wrongs of Satan's world will be
forever banned.
In the first place, God will not
allow the kind of evil event to take
place which today cannot be reme–
died. Evil acts which hurt and maim
and wound will simply not happen.
"They shall not hurt nor destroy in
all my holy mountain" (lsa. 11 :9).
People will be instructed in the right,
just way of life before they do any
harm. "And thine ears shall hear a
word behind thee, saying, This is the
way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to
the right hand, and when ye turn to
the left" (Isa. 30:21) .
Moreover, the hurts and wounds of
past wrongs in Satan's world will be
made right. "1 will restore health
unto thee, and 1 will heal thee of thy
wounds, saith the Eterna!" (Jer.
30: 17). "Vengeance belongeth unto
me, 1will recompense, saith the Eter–
na!" (Heb. 10:30).
Unlike puny men, God is omni–
scient and knows the real truth about
any given matter. Many legal mat–
ters rest on someone's intent- what
he actual!y believed in his heart! Fee–
ble man must rely on circumstantial
ev.idence to judge intent. Not so with
God! "[God] knoweth the secrets of
the heart" (Ps. 44:21).
Man is often unable to surmount
his very limited faculties to be able to
know anything. But God reveals
knowledge! God knows all the facts!
Job asked the question, "How doth
God know? Can he judge through
the dark cloud?" (Job 22:13.) The
apostle Paul answered him when he
declared that "God shall judge the
secrets of men" (Rom. 2:16).
God is the perfect J udge. He is "no
respecter of persons" (Acts 10:34).
"With righteousness shall he judge
the poor, and reprove with equity for
the meek of the earth" (Isa. 11:4).
Under God's government , leaders
" shall no more oppress [God's]
people... . [and they will] remove
violence and spoil, and execute judg–
ment and justice" (Ezek. 45:8-9).
God is a "God of truth" (Isa. 65 :16),
and "justice and judgment are the
habitation of [His] throne" (Ps.
89: 14). Indeed, one of the very rea–
sons that Jesus Christ will return to
earth is to estabtish justice: " , .. for
he cometh to judge the earth: he shall
judge the world with righteousness,
and the people with his truth" (Ps.
96:13).
When God Shall Wipe Away
All Tears
God put something into the human
spirit which críes out for justice when
a wrong has been done. This some–
thing is a natural part of the human
mind and is one of the reasons why
we always feel good when we see a
Westero movie and, in the end, the
bad guy gets what he really de–
serves.
Of course, in Satan's world, inno–
cent people suffer and guilty crimi–
nals go free. For this reason, men
have invented the doctrine of purga–
tory-the idea is that everyone has to
pay for al! bis wrongs before he can
be admitted to heaven. And men's
natural need to see justice done is
why sorne people cling to the doctrine
of an ever-burning hell. In their
minds, justice demands that people
like Hitler and Stalin deserve to liter–
ally fry forever in eterna! agony.
The true God, of course, is not so
cruel that He would condemn some–
one to eterna! torture. But He will
not compromise with justice (that is,
His perfect, just and holy law) either.
For that reason God sent His Son
Christ to suffer and die to pay the
penalty for all the hurtful wrongs
which have occurred in this present
evil world. On the "eterna) ledger,"
Christ's life easily makes up for aH
the wrongs which sinful men have
committed since the time of Adam.
When all is said and done, the prob–
lem of eterna) justice will be solved
by the very sacrifice of Jesus Christ.
This same Christ is the One who will
soon return to establish justice on
earth. o
The PLAIN TRUTH May 1979