221 Does A God Of Justice Punish?

Traditionally Christians have held that the "Justice of God" means punishment. This thought brings some people satisfaction to know that one day there will be a reckoning for the wicked who seem to get by so easily. We will explore the idea of punitive or retributive justice that is dependent on violence for its implementation. It is common to believe that the ultimate form of retributive punishment ever invented is an ever-burning hell for the rejecters of God's lifestyle. The second meaning of justice is restorative justice which will be considered in part 2.

CLICK THE LINK BELOW FOR THE PDF

SHOW NOTES

11. Does the God of Justice Punish?

Traditionally Christians have held that the "justice of God" means punishment for

wrongdoing. We make this conclusion because God’s justice is often mentioned as a

corrective or balance when God’s love, mercy and compassion are being presented.

Children have an acute sense of justice or fairness. It seems this is part of the image of

God. Sheila told me she became interested in God because she heard that he was going to have a judgment in which all the mean and evil people would be punished, and this was music to her ears. This form of justice is desirable to many religious people since they think they will come off innocent.

Justice, Mercy and Grace.

Humanly speaking justice means to be treated as one deserves. Mercy, on the other

hand, is to be treated as one does not deserve and grace means to be treated far better

than one deserves. While justice may have diCerent meanings, in its primary meaning it

has to do with being fair and impartial, treating all situations in a consistent way. This would mean that all sinners should be punished in a manner proportional to their crime or sin. How is it then possible for God to grant mercy or grace to some sinners and not to others? This question will be answered later.

There are two distinct forms or ideas of justice, the punitive and the restorative process. We will consider punitive justice first and then restorative justice.

Punitive or Retributive Justice

Punitive justice (PJ), also known as retributive justice, is a system of justice focused

on punishing oCenders to atone for their crimes. Its core principles include ensuring

punishment is proportionate to the crime, that oCenders take responsibility through

punishment, and that pain serves as a deterrent to future criminal behavior. This

approach often involves removing oCenders from society through

incarceration. (Google AI overview)

This form of justice is commonly used in most societies and people’s groups today. It was

formalized by Moses in the Old Testament as “an eye for an eye.” This was an improvement in blood feuds where retribution was unrestrained or unregulated. The Israelites operated under this form of justice and viewed it as God’s will for them.

Deuteronomy 32:39-43 NLT

39 Look now; I myself am he!

There is no other god but me!I am the one who kills and gives life;

I am the one who wounds and heals;

no one can be rescued from my powerful hand!

40 Now I raise my hand to heaven

and declare, “As surely as I live,

41 when I sharpen my flashing sword

and begin to carry out justice,

I will take revenge on my enemies

and repay those who reject me.

42 I will make my arrows drunk with blood,

and my sword will devour flesh—

the blood of the slaughtered and the captives,

and the heads of the enemy leaders.”’

43 “Rejoice with him, you heavens,

and let all of God’s angels worship him.

Rejoice with his people, you Gentiles,

and let all the angels be strengthened in him.

For he will avenge the blood of his children;

he will take revenge against his enemies.

He will repay those who hate him

and cleanse his people’s land.”

This system is dependent on violence for its implementation. Police or military are used to enforce retribution and regulations. The enforcing can take the form of financial penalties and or incarceration. This process or institution does not seem to reduce crime but rather encourage recidivism.

The ultimate form of retributive punishment ever invented is an ever-burning hell for

rejectors of God’s lifestyle. This creation was a result of the Platonic idea of the immortal

soul (Greek) which had to be punished as viewed from a legal basis (Roman law).

Attributing punitive justice to God means that he punishes sinners, they get what they

deserve. For instance, the Psalms are full of requests for redress considering the unfair-

ness or injustice on the planet.

Psalm 58:6-11 NIV

Break the teeth in their mouths (wicked), O God;

Lord, tear out the fangs of those lions!7 Let them vanish like water that flows away;

when they draw the bow, let their arrows fall short.

8 May they be like a slug that melts away as it moves along,

like a stillborn child that never sees the sun.

9 Before your pots can feel the heat of the thorns—

whether they be green or dry—the wicked will be swept away.[a]

10 The righteous will be glad when they are avenged,

when they dip their feet in the blood of the wicked.

11 Then people will say,

“Surely the righteous still are rewarded;

surely there is a God who judges the earth.”

Punishment must also be proportional to the crime, in this line of thinking. So, in this

paradigm some suCer more than other in Hell. If this is the justice of God it means the

persecutors become the persecuted. Hell is thus revenge and retribution on a grand scale. Is this what God's justice is about? Does God's justice parallel traditional human justice, which is often a euphemism for revenge. This does give some power to the abused of earth who often are not treated fairly.

The best-known Christian atonement model in the western world is Penal, Substitutionary theory of Atonement (PSA). This theory is premised on the legal basis that God cannot forgive sin without sinners being punished for their wrongdoing. It also holds that God punished Jesus in the sinners' place and thus the saints escape their due punishment. In this model it appears that God acts justly to sinners, they get what they deserve but acts rather unjustly to saints because they get what they did not earn or deserve.

This model fails to consider that Jesus died in place of all men and women. This is clear

from many Scriptural passages.

While we were still sinners, Christ died for us! (Romans 5:8)

The argument is strengthened in Romans 5:18-19 where Paul is emphatic: just as sin came upon all men through one man, Adam, just so righteousness has come to all men through one man, Jesus Christ. Take, for instance, verse 18:

Consequently, just as the result of one man's trespass (Adam's sin) was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness (cross) was justification that brings life for all men.

So, if Paul is right, and we have every reason to believe that he is, God will not punish a

sinner for that which Jesus has already made atonement. This is a conundrum we need to consider.

We consider the second meaning of justice, restorative justice on the next episode.