On one hand, administering justice includes both punishing the evil and rewarding the good.
The Cross is a beautiful symbol that reveals the God of grace, mercy, compassion, and justice. God offered people grace, mercy, and compassion by offering a payment for sins, yet He still had to carry out justice on His Son.
This is what the Lord Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another.’ (Zechariah 7:9)
All justice must be fair, blind, and applied equally. God demands it: “Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly” (Leviticus 19:15). That means justice cannot favor a race, ethnicity, sex, social-economic status, or any other way the world divides us. It must be fair for all people.
But even then, government must also never forget mercy. Laws must embody both God’s heart for justice and His heart for mercy. Throughout the Scriptures, for example, we see a pattern of extending mercy to the repentant. Not removing all consequences, God nonetheless offers mercy to the humble and broken-hearted. It is the heart of the 2 Chronicles 7:14 message. To those who are willing to repent and return to the ways of the Lord, God was willing to show mercy. David also received mercy after repenting of his sins with Bathsheba. If we are to see true biblical justice today, our laws must reflect God’s heart of mercy for the humble and broken-hearted. Parole is an example: It does not remove consequences but does offer mercy.
We need to recognize, however, that the right weights of justice and mercy are impossible for people to decipher on their own. David was able to administer justice and righteousness for his people only because he had a relationship with God, the source of justice: “I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do” (Acts 13:22).
David was also willing to listen to counsel from the Lord’s shepherds. Though David was not perfect, he ultimately submitted to the counsel of both Samuel and Nathan. If governments are going to reflect this tricky balance, governing authorities must walk with the Lord their God and listen to the timeless voice of the Church: “For lack of guidance a nation falls, but victory is won through many advisers” (Proverbs 11:14).
This incredible balance will also require a great amount of wisdom. When Solomon became king, God told him that he could ask for anything in the world, and God would give it to him. Solomon asked for wisdom: “Give me wisdom and knowledge, that I may lead this people, for who is able to govern this great people of yours?” (2 Chronicles 1:10). Solomon knew if he was going to administer true justice and show mercy, he needed wisdom from above.
He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. (Micah 6:8)