Is God fair?

"There is no respect of persons with God." (v. 11). In some countries today respect of persons provides the undoubted criminal with an avenue of escape. Favouritism does its work, or other influences behind the scenes, or even bribery is set in motion, and the offender escapes the penalty he deserves. It will never be thus with God.

"He is the Rock" — not merely a rock. There is, there can be no other Rock but Himself. Eternal and universal homage to His glorious Name! — "His work is perfect;" — not a single flaw in anything that comes from His blessed hand, all bears the stamp of absolute perfection. This will be made manifest to all created intelligences by-and-by. It is manifest to faith now, and is a spring of divine consolation to all true believers. The very thought of it distils as the dew upon the thirsty soul. "For all his ways are judgement; a God of truth, and without iniquity, just and right is he." Infidels may cavil and sneer; they may, in their fancied wisdom, try to pick holes in the divine actings; but their folly shall be manifest to all. "Let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged." God must have the upper hand, in the end. Let men beware how they presume to call in question the sayings and doings of the only true, the only wise and the almighty God.

(1) The real theme is in the first four verses: it is God Himself, the unchangeable One, faithful, just, and right. Well may the heavens hear, and the earth, the blessed words which drop as the rain, and distill as the dew of night, refreshing grass and herb. It is Jehovah's name they publish, that sweet and wonderful name which expresses truly what He is, and which man, dropped out of that knowledge, needs so much to learn. To Him they ascribe greatness; yes, to Him, O man, out of the clay, who hast ruined thyself by thy pretension to it. He is the Rock — the "dwelling-place in all generations," says our Moses elsewhere (Ps. 90:1,) — safe as shelter, strong against storm, clear-shadowy in the noon-tide heat of a desert land. "His work is perfect" — though men and devils have combined in their own persons to dishonor it. "All His ways are judgment" — not wrath, but far-seeing, well-discerning righteousness. "A God of faithfulness without deceit, just and right is He."

This was an absolute necessity if any man was to receive blessing, for all were in the same case before God — “all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Despite the reality and depth of God's grace, and His longing desire to forgive — forgiveness is impossible apart from righteousness. God must do right: it is His essential character. He cannot ignore sin. His justice demands satisfaction concerning sin, and cannot be treated with impunity. “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” were the words of Abraham — more as an assertion than a question. And the Psalmist declares, “Righteousness and judgment are the foundation of thy throne” (Ps. 89:14 JND).

Rom. 9:14-18. Man, stumbled by the doctrine of election, objects and says that it involves unrighteousness with God. Far be the thought, says the apostle; for if God deals in the way of righteousness, man, being sinful, falls under judgement, and all are lost. But it is not so. God acts as He will; He shows mercy or judgement, as it pleases Him; and so it should be and is best, for His will is the highest wisdom and goodness. Nor has a single soul right to complain, for those on whom this sovereign will is exercised are all covered with sin. Two examples are therein given in illustration; one of mercy towards the people when guilty and deserving death, the other of judgement on their enemy.

“For there is no respect of persons with God.” How worthy indeed this truth of our deep earnest consideration! Who shall influence God on his behalf? Who shall plead his personal prominence, importance, earthly position or advantage before the only true God? Whatsoever they are is no matter to Him: “God accepteth no man's person.” Personalities may mean a great deal in the proud, vain estimate of man; but let no man think to pass God's scrutiny wearing such a cloak: let him rather look well to his credentials, that they are in order — in such order as to meet the demands of perfect righteousness and truth. But neither the Jew's boast in the law, nor the Gentile's confidence in his learning and cultivation will avail at such a time. “For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law: and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law.” Sin cannot escape the judgment of God, no matter where it is, whether in circumstances of greatest austerity and dignity, or whether in the lowest, most ignorant classes of humanity. No excuses, no exemptions will have the least shadow of consideration. This is justice, pure and perfect; this is righteous, holy judgment — which things we are told “are the habitation of God's throne” (Psalm 89:14). Verses 13 to 15, it will be noted, form a parenthesis, while verse 16 in few words tells us the time, the discernment, the measure, and the executor of God's judgment. The parenthesis meets the natural selfish protests both of the learned and unlearned. Learning does not justify (v. 13); and lack of education does not excuse (vv. 14 & 15). For in the latter case the Gentiles (“who have not the law” — a demarcation ever distinctly drawn in Scripture) manifest in their very nature a recognition of right and wrong such as the law declares. Not that they are by this means correct in every detail: such is not the point. But they naturally conceive some standard of moral regulations, so that “these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves.”

They pleaded the fact that Job was disgraced as evidence of guilt on his part, so that they felt themselves secure in taking an exalted position over him (v.5). But he insists that God has wronged him and virtually bound him in a net (v.6). This is strong language against God, but he felt that his troubles were not deserved, and since he had the same misconception as his friends that God meted out suffering according to man's measure of guilt, he concluded that in his case God had been unfair

Job takes other cases to illustrate the same heartlessness. The wicked tear the fatherless from the breast; they defraud the poor. Why do his friends insinuate that he was guilty of such conduct, when glaring cases were manifest to them? The poor are robbed of their very garments; they toil hungering among the sheaves; at the oil press, and in the vintage they are repressed from partaking; there is groaning of the oppressed in the city — and God takes no heed to it! It is an awful picture of facts only too well-known to them — and to us. How can Eliphaz make such facts fit in with his theory that evil is always punished in this life? But, oh, how can God close His eyes to these things, and afflict a faithful man instead of these wrong doers? This is Job's great trouble, and for this he has found no solution.

The Righteousness of God. — God's righteousness we read is revealed from faith to faith. It is important to be clear as to the meaning of this statement. God's righteousness means His consistency with that which He is, for He must always act in accordance with the characteristics of His nature. He is righteous, so He cannot think lightly of sin. He can make no compromise with iniquity. Punishment therefore must overtake those finally impenitent. Reason teaches this. Government and order, it is plain, would collapse if wickedness was never to be dealt with. Sacred history speaks on this matter in no uncertain strain. The fallen angels, as Peter reminds us, yet awaiting their doom, the flood, and the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrha, are all witnesses that God must and does deal with evil. And no one, surely, would arraign the Almighty for injustice in these cases. His righteousness has been, and will again be, manifested in punishing sinners. But the Gospel of God sets forth His righteousness in quite another way, viz., in justifying ungodly people. And it furnishes an opportunity for the full unfolding of this important subject. For this, however, a revelation was requisite, and, blessed be His name, God has given it. For who could otherwise have conceived, that He who is righteous in punishing the guilty, could also be righteous in justifying those who are ungodly? The statements would naturally have been held to be contradictory, and the one destructive of the other.

No doubt the rejection of the gospel leaves people on the ground of judgment, just as the true belief of the gospel takes people off that ground. But the judgment will be, in every case, according to a man's works. Are we to suppose that the poor ignorant savage, who has lived and died amid the gloomy shades of heathen darkness, will be found in the same "book," or punished with the same severity as a man who has lived and died in the total rejection of the full blaze of gospel light and privilege? Not for a moment, so long as the words "more tolerable" stand on the page of inspiration. The savage will be judged according to his works, and the baptised sinner will be judged according to his works, but assuredly it will be more tolerable for the former than the latter. God knows how to deal with people. He can discriminate, and He declares that He will give to each according to his works.