Psalm 7:12-13 (ESV)
If a man does not repent, God will whet his sword; he has bent and readied his bow; he has prepared for him his deadly weapons, making his arrows fiery shafts.
Imagine being in front of a firing squad. Eight trained soldiers have their weapons leveled at your heart, waiting for the commander to give the order: “Fire!” In a split second your life is over. Such is the scene for every single person that has ever lived…but in this case, God is the only member of the firing squad. His weapons of war have been sharpened to perfection. His arrow is aflame and pulled back on the bow and leveled at the heart of sinful man. His shot will not miss. He is ready to judge.
Most of us desire justice and hate injustice. We are angered by abuse…oppression…corruption…and the taking of innocent life. Like the psalmist we cry, “How long, Lord?” (Ps. 13:1). The world is a deeply broken mess…a crime scene of epic proportions…and it is easy to lose hope as injustice seems to rule the day. Murder. Abortion. Sex Trafficking. Child Abuse. Slavery. Where is God in all of this? Why doesn’t He do something? Rest assured, Christian. Like the old saying goes, “It will all come out in the wash.”
The Apostle Paul wrote, “But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed” (Rom. 2:5). On the Last Day when God’s judgment and wrath will be released from the bent bow, every single account will be settled. Every injustice will be made right. Every crime will be punished…and far more severely than any earthly system or rule can exact. But don’t assume that there is no justice in the meantime.
One of the reasons God instituted government was to exact vengeance on evildoers…and sometimes they do. Additionally, none of us are privy to the torment that exists for unrepentant sinners at the hands of evil spiritual forces. We don’t know what kinds of thoughts or memories haunt them or what kinds of dreams and visions they endure. We aren’t aware of the rod of correction that an all-knowing, all-powerful, and merciful God may employ in order to draw evildoers to repentance…or he may just turn them over completely to themselves and their evil desires. While we may be frustrated by the apparent lack of justice on a heavenly level today, we should find solace that in the last days, “every knee will bow” and “every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord” (Phil. 2:10-11). Every single injustice will be paid for…either by Jesus Christ – if the sinner repents – or by the sinner himself for ever and ever in hell.
