judgment

Tehillim Thirty-Five: Judgment

Posted on by Samantha

In this chapter, the psalmist addresses God directly. “Arouse Yourself and awaken to my judgment, my God and my Lord, to my cause (Psalms 35:23).” This verse turns a regular concept on its head. Usually, it’s us who are awaiting God’s judgment and and being called by Him to listen and react. But now, he is calling God to face the judgment of a human being. Many of us deride and judge God internally, and almost without thinking. So what would happen if we owned up to that, and called Him to face us in our anger and pain?

Yechezkel Eighteen: Judgment

Posted on by Samantha

“Therefore, every man according to his ways I will judge you, O house of Israel, says the Lord God: repent and cause others to repent of all your transgressions, and it will not be a stumbling block of iniquity for you (Ezekiel 18:30).” The thing that draws me to this verse is the idea that every individual will be judged according to his own ways, which to me means in accordance with his own needs and circumstances. There’s something to be said for one metric by which to judge everyone, but I also see the definite value in everyone being judged autonomously. My successes or failures should be judged according to my own abilities and circumstances, not those put upon me. This gives every person the chance to advance in God’s eyes merely by doing the best that they can, regardless of how they measure up compared to others.