| Date | Version | Reading Plan |
|---|---|---|
| @June 14, 2024 | ESV (2016) | M’Cheyne Plan 2024 |
Deut. 19
Deuteronomy 19:13, 19 (ESV) 13 Your eye shall not pity him, but you shall purge the guilt of innocent blood from Israel, so that it may be well with you. … 19 then you shall do to him as he had meant to do to his brother. So you shall purge the evil from your midst.
Cases in which someone intentionally killed another or bore false witness against another, the people were to take swift, punitive action to purge the guilt and evil from their midst. The murderer, in violation of the sixth commandment, was to be handed over to the avenger of blood so that he may die. The perjurer, in violation of the ninth commandment, was to receive the treatment he had meant to do to his brother. We see in this how the chosen people of a holy and just God are to mete out justice accordingly among themselves. It is an objective, transcendent standard of righteousness given to us by the One who is Himself perfect in righteousness.
Psalm 106
Psalm 106:3 (ESV) 3 Blessed are they who observe justice, who do righteousness at all times!
Echoing the theme of justice from Deut. 19, the psalmist praises the LORD and His goodness and declares that those who observe justice and do righteousness at all times are blessed. He recounts how the people did much to provoke the LORD to anger, but that He remembered His covenant and relented according to the abundance of His steadfast love. We serve a God who is both perfectly just but also gracious and longsuffering, faithful to His promises, extending mercy and compassion to His people. This He did even to the sending and sacrifice of His own Son that we may be given a new heart and new life to praise Him forever.
Isaiah 46
Isaiah 46:12–13 (ESV) 12 “Listen to me, you stubborn of heart, you who are far from righteousness: 13 I bring near my righteousness; it is not far off, and my salvation will not delay; I will put salvation in Zion, for Israel my glory.”
Yet another connection here with the previous two chapters on God’s righteousness. In this, God through Isaiah beckons the stubborn and unrighteous to listen. It is God who brings near His righteousness and His salvation without delay. In this context, the people were doubting God’s salvation, but He refutes their doubts by declaring forthcoming salvation. We see here further bolstering of the relationship between God’s righteousness, faithfulness and salvation. All of these attributes of God are intimately tied, culminating in perfect expression in the person and work of Jesus Christ.
Revelation 16
Revelation 16:5–7 (ESV) 5 And I heard the angel in charge of the waters say, “Just are you, O Holy One, who is and who was, for you brought these judgments. 6 For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink. It is what they deserve!” 7 And I heard the altar saying, “Yes, Lord God the Almighty, true and just are your judgments!”
As a final connection to the previous readings, the angel in charge of the waters (see Rev. 14:18) spoke of God’s justice and judgments, forcing those who delighted in shedding blood to drink the blood they shed as their deserved punishment. God’s judgments are true and just and there is a day coming where all will stand before the Holy One. For the enemies of Christ, justice will pour forth as of condemnation and eternal conscious torment. For the church of Christ, His justice was poured onto His Son in substitutionary atonement, a sacrificial act of redemption and reconciliation of the saints to Himself.