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- Oct 26, 2007
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How long will you judge unjustly, And show partiality to the wicked? Selah Defend the poor and fatherless; Do justice to the afflicted and needy. Deliver the poor and needy; Free [them] from the hand of the wicked. Psalm 82:2-4 NKJV
Psalm 82 is different from most of the other 149 psalms in that the psalmist, Asaph, has written the form of a prophecy—specifically one against powerful, influential leaders who failed to act justly toward the most vulnerable in Israel at the time. Instead of defending the weak and the fatherless, the poor and the oppressed, they showed favoritism to those in power.
If we’re not careful, we can find ourselves doing the very same thing. But God calls each of us to avoid being “respecters of persons” and understand that we are to love and care for all people, including those Jesus called “the least of these.”
God loves the poor, disadvantaged, and the vulnerable—and He wants to love them through us. What can you do today to show God’s love to someone who desperately needs to see it in action?
Prayer: God of justice, so many people in today’s world are forgotten, exploited, and mistreated that it drains my emotions just thinking about them. I know You want me to make a difference, if only in my own sphere of influence. Remind me to pray and to speak up or take action when I see wrong being done to others.
Psalm 82 is different from most of the other 149 psalms in that the psalmist, Asaph, has written the form of a prophecy—specifically one against powerful, influential leaders who failed to act justly toward the most vulnerable in Israel at the time. Instead of defending the weak and the fatherless, the poor and the oppressed, they showed favoritism to those in power.
If we’re not careful, we can find ourselves doing the very same thing. But God calls each of us to avoid being “respecters of persons” and understand that we are to love and care for all people, including those Jesus called “the least of these.”
God loves the poor, disadvantaged, and the vulnerable—and He wants to love them through us. What can you do today to show God’s love to someone who desperately needs to see it in action?
Prayer: God of justice, so many people in today’s world are forgotten, exploited, and mistreated that it drains my emotions just thinking about them. I know You want me to make a difference, if only in my own sphere of influence. Remind me to pray and to speak up or take action when I see wrong being done to others.