Revelation Day 21 - The Cry for Justice

DAY 21
The Cry for Justice
Revelation 8:1-5
 
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” These famous words of Jesus in Matthew 5:6 might actually be translated as “justice” instead of “righteousness.” Christianity is often caricatured as being judgmental while the world around is becomes more focused on justice. But judgment and justice are tied together as Revelation reminds us.

Revelation 8 and 9 continue John’s vision of Jesus opening a scroll. It’s a vision of judgment, using symbolic, over-the-top pictures. We often think of judgment as “the final judgment,” but the Bible more often talks about judgment as correction.

We’ve reached the last, the seventh, seal. Soon all kinds of chaos will erupt on earth, symbolized with seven trumpet blasts. But first, there’s a dramatic pause. “When he opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour” (Rev 8:1, NIV). Then an angel transforms all our prayers into action, thrown back to earth as judgment.
 
John keeps mentioning the Church’s prayers to assure us that God absolutely hears and answers our prayers. He’s also showing us that our prayers are a powerful ingredient in God’s work. But he’s also telling us that WHAT we yearn for, what we pray for, matters.
 
These are prayers for justice. Back in Rev 6, the martyred Christians prayed, “How long, God, until you give us justice?” Everyone, religious and non-religious, believes in right and wrong. They may not agree on what’s right and wrong, but we instinctively reference some standard outside ourselves that we expect others to know something about. When we’re not treated fairly, we want those wrongs made right. We want justice, we want correction, which means we want judgment.

When we pray for justice, our hearts mingle with God’s heart for justice. God here affirms the cry for justice with a sobering reminder that justice cannot be done without judgment.

REFLECT
What thoughts or feelings come to mind when you think about judgment? Or justice?

PRAY
Our Father, make me hungry for justice. Make me hungry for righteousness. Make me just. Amen.