Biblical Justice

When we hear someone say they think people should be “biblical,” our ears here at Toward the Truth perk up. When we learn that the just appointed interim Attorney General of the United States has said he supports a “biblical view of justice,” and a “New Testament” one at that, our ears are maximally perked.
 
This, we think, an instance where we know what Matthew Whitaker means when he says “biblical,” but we’re not sure Mr Whitaker knows what he means, if what he means to say is that he wants our nation’s justice system to be formed by what the Bible means. (Follow that?)
 
Whatever it is that Mr Whitaker means, if he wants the laws of the US to reflect New Testament justice, we should expect he’ll soon be counseling the president of the United States to:

• Compassionately provide for those who lack what they need
• Welcome immigrant strangers into our country
• Provide for the health of sick people
• Work for the good of those in prison

And all that’s just from one little passage in Matthew 25. What a revolutionary view of a national justice system! As James envisaged it, a “biblical” view of justice is that mercy triumphs over judgment. What a nation that would be!
 
We’ve said before that there is a great deal of confusion about how Christianity intersects with governance of our nation. The framers were quite reflective about such issues; we note the first amendment for Mr Whitaker’s consideration. In the meantime, we’d be thrilled to see the US Justice Department under the purview of Mr Whitaker come closer to a New Testament vision of justice in the days to come.