When injustice gets out of hand

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Does this sound familiar? One of your colleagues messes up an assignment, and your boss blames you by giving you a bad performance review in a private conversation, thus preventing your promotion? Or, even though you put in a lot of effort on a group project at your vocational school, your classmates' poor behavior and lack of motivation contribute to a bad grade, diminishing your job prospects? Or have you even experienced something like this: your teacher had it in for you and treated you unfairly because, as a Christian, you dared to publicly disagree with him, as he presented a scientific view that contradicted the Bible?

We young people probably associate the concept of "suffering unjustly" with something different today than many of our ancestors did. In the early 19th and 20th centuries, they suffered public mistreatment, discrimination, and ridicule. Nevertheless, we still experience much injustice today, even if it isn't always related to being Christian. Be that as it may, suffering unjustly for something, regardless of the background or motives, is truly painful. The Bible says that we are increasingly growing into a time when love in many people grows cold because injustice will prevail (cf. Matthew 24:12). In other words, people will practice hatred and revenge instead of forgiveness and reconciliation because they feel unjustly treated. A reaction is, so to speak, immediately followed by a reaction. This is the kind of environment in which we as Christians live.

How do we deal with this? Has this problem existed before? How did other people deal with it? This is a particularly interesting question for young people who haven't yet gained much experience in their faith. In this article, we want to explore this question and first take a closer look at a person who wasn't much older than us young people: namely, Daniel, the Jew deported to Babylon.

Daniel 6:26-29: “Then King Darius wrote to all the peoples, tribes, and languages living throughout the land, saying, ‘Peace be with you! I have issued a decree that throughout my kingdom people must fear and stand in awe of the God of Daniel, for he is the living God who endures forever. His kingdom will never be destroyed, nor will his dominion end. He delivers and rescues; he performs signs and wonders in the heavens and on the earth. He rescued Daniel from the power of the lions.’ And from then on, Daniel prospered under the reign of Darius and under the reign of Cyrus the Persian.”

This summary reads so simply at first. It's the end of a story with a "happy ending." But this story didn't begin so beautifully. It's about the rescue from the lions' den. At that point, Daniel was already nearing the end of his life. He was well over 80 years old. He had spent most of his life abroad, far from his beloved Jerusalem. Unwillingly, of course, but not without God's protection.

Unfortunately, in some situations the enemy manages to make us focus only on ourselves. Daniel placed all his hope in God and did not throw away his trust.

But let's go way back to the beginning of the story. Daniel's story began when he was about 15 years old. He experienced the nightmare of national proportions, long foretold to the Jews by the prophets: the Babylonian invasion of Judah and the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem around 586 BC. He was one of those who, at the tender age of about 15, were separated from his noble family in Judah and taken to Babylon in chains. The Bible describes him as a descendant of royal lineage (a prince's son) with an upright and handsome physique. He was a young man of sensible, wise, and discerning birth (see Daniel 1:3-4). In other words, a young, capable, and intelligent man.

Daniel was probably already giving a lot of thought to his future. Perhaps he wanted to pursue a prestigious profession or serve in some capacity at the temple. We can't say for sure, but the idea is certainly plausible, isn't it? It's understandable that a young person has goals and dreams. And then—right in the middle of his coming of age and the consolidation of his goals—the calamity of the Visitation, long foretold by the prophets, struck. A total of four deportations of the Jews to Babylon took place. Daniel was among the first. Not only was he robbed of his family and unable to see the beautiful temple again, but he also had to put his plans and goals on hold, at least for the time being. So, for now, anything but a rosy future lay before him, didn't it? And here is a crucial point I want to draw our attention to.

Even at this early stage, Daniel could have, under many circumstances, deeply struggled with his situation, heaping accusations on God and blaming Him for destroying Daniel's bright future. He could have accused God of making him suffer for the injustices and failings of previous generations, for which he bore no responsibility. Why him? Why at his time? He could have asked himself many such questions. It can also be assumed that he knew his captivity would last 70 years (cf. Jeremiah 29:10). If he ever expected to see Jerusalem again, it would only be in his old age. This thought filled him with profound melancholy after he had recounted all the events. The Bible does not describe all of this young man's thoughts and feelings. He certainly pondered many things.

However, we can see from the subsequent development of the story that Daniel was familiar with the law and the nature of God. Despite these completely new circumstances, separated from God's law, the holy temple, and his family, Daniel decided quite early in his captivity to remain faithful to God. Even there in Babylon, he was aware of God's presence. He also knew that God's laws were valid there as well. Thus, he resolved in his heart not to defile himself with the king's food, which was forbidden according to Jewish dietary laws. The All-Seeing One rewarded this faithfulness by bestowing upon him the favor of his overseer.

Our Lord Jesus Christ also suffered, completely innocently and from a human point of view entirely unjustly.

But this is not the only story marked by suffering in Daniel's life. Many years later—Daniel having by then been elevated to the position of high statesman and survived the royally ordered judgment in the fiery furnace—Daniel, at almost 80 years old, experienced another severe trial. This time, it was not God who tested him, but he witnessed trusted figures from his inner circle betray him out of envy. From Daniel 6:2-4, we learn that Daniel, because of his great wisdom bestowed by God, was appointed by the new ruler Darius as one of the chief princes in the kingdom of the Medes and Persians.

The Bible doesn't hide the fact that Daniel surpassed both the princes, meaning his fellow officials, and the governors appointed under them. This realization so irked his colleagues that they decided to overthrow Daniel by "legal means." No fault could be found in his public appearances, before the king, or in his conduct according to the law. So something else was needed. They quickly introduced a law to the king stipulating that no one could ask any person or god for help except the king himself. With this law, they could find something to accuse Daniel of!

This law made it easy to pin the blame on him, as they say. And indeed, because he remained faithful to God, Daniel became the victim of a cleverly planned plot to overthrow him. A persecution for his faith, then. Daniel experienced an envious and treacherous betrayal by people before whom he lived a good and exemplary life according to the Holy Scriptures.

At this point, one might already ask: Did Daniel "deserve" this? Why did this exemplary man suffer unjustly? Although rightfully found guilty before the law, Daniel acted entirely correctly from God's perspective. The consequence of his obedience to God was that he should suffer, even die. His sentence was sealed: He was thrown to the lions. In a unique way, the Bible tells us many centuries later what God did with this situation: God gave Daniel such tremendous faith that it shut the mouths of the hungry lions!

Through Daniel's faith, God sent angels to protect him and take away his fear (see Daniel 6:23 and Hebrews 11:33). Isn't that powerful and a model for us? Doesn't this situation also remind us of Jesus Christ, who, completely innocent and, from a human perspective, entirely unjustly lost his life because of our sins? Can you see the parallel between Jesus and this man in this moment? So, to answer our initial question, we must acknowledge: Yes, even back then there was this injustice, and people who suffered terribly because of it!

Sometimes in life, we think that suffering only affects us personally. Unfortunately, in some situations, the enemy manages to make us focus solely on ourselves. Then we only see our own problems, worries, and suffering. It seems as if everything is going smoothly for everyone else. While they talk about special blessings in their immediate circle, things aren't going so well for you. While they speak enthusiastically about their good relationship with their superiors, you are currently experiencing unfair treatment. While they go from one blessing to the next, your professional future looks bleak and not at all promising. And you wonder how that can be? You think, why are you the only one experiencing this injustice?

These moments require special vigilance. For the enemy is trying to take us on a train that is heading into a completely dark tunnel! He wants us to see our situation as if there were no tunnel end or no light at the end. But the truth is that in every railway system, there are branches to the right and left. This means that our fellow Christians are also experiencing injustice. That you are not the only one going through such things. Everyone knows that every tunnel system also has an exit where daylight shines again. The Bible teaches that we should truly focus our attention in our lives on what is essential and entrust ourselves to the wisdom of the One who is behind this suffering and is in control of everything.

The psalmist Asaph observed a similar situation in his life and also had to revise his perspective. In Psalm 73, he describes comparing his life to that of the wicked. He records the result of his observations in verses 3-5 as follows: “For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. For they suffer no pain until their death, and their bodies are well nourished. They do not live in the distress of the living, nor are they troubled like other people.” In verse 2, Asaph describes how, in this brooding and comparison, he almost lost his faith in God and stumbled! His perspective on the difficulties and suffering changed after he entered God's sanctuary and presented his questions to God. God opened his eyes and reoriented his viewpoint (see verses 16-17). Suddenly, he no longer saw the temporal but began to see the end of these people. It is similar with us. When we suffer unjustly and focus only on the suffering.

We should focus on the goal and on the One behind it – Jesus Christ. Often, Christians have borne injustice with patience, and in the end, they have received a great blessing and have been a blessing to others. God rewarded them by exalting them.

God rewarded Joseph's unwavering loyalty by exalting him to the highest place.

This was also the case with Joseph, another biblical figure we want to examine more closely. In Joseph's life, God's providence was revealed, leading him from the deepest humiliation to the very top. Behind this lay God's plan. He preserved Israel in the seclusion of Goshen in Egypt, far from all the temptations of Canaan, and there he made them into a great nation. Do you think that at the beginning of his story, Joseph already suspected what God would one day make of the suffering in his life (mostly unjustly experienced)? That through Joseph's suffering an entire people would be blessed and preserved from death? He certainly didn't know.

As a 17-year-old, Joseph became embroiled in a conflict with his half-brothers that escalated into a life-threatening situation. Genesis 37:2 recounts how Joseph told his father about the nasty things people were saying about his brothers. His brothers hated Joseph because he was born to his father at an advanced age. Furthermore, he alone received a colorful tunic. This was not an ordinary garment, but a luxurious one. As theologians explain, receiving this tunic meant Joseph was appointed his father's right-hand man, thus overturning the brothers' established age hierarchy. His brothers would not tolerate this.

Another motif was Joseph's dreams. Both the sheaves of grain bowing down before Joseph's head and the celestial bodies bowing down before him fueled an ever-deepening hatred. What no one knew was that these dreams later came true in exactly this way! Finally, the hatred culminated in the brothers selling Joseph to slave traders from Egypt. Even if opinions may differ on Joseph's actions regarding his reports to his father and the dreams, every reader will agree that the brothers' cruelty in selling Joseph was inexcusable.

Try to put yourself in Joseph's shoes: sold by his own brothers, far from home – without even saying goodbye. Now, completely alone abroad, surrounded by people with a totally different culture and pagan and occult religious practices! Isn't that an unimaginably difficult situation? There's no denying it: Joseph suffered a profound injustice. Later in the story, a high-ranking Egyptian official named Potiphar bought Joseph. The Bible tells us that things went well for him at first. Everything he did was successful. God blessed him so much that Potiphar appointed him as his steward, overseeing all his possessions. Right in the middle of this cloud of blessing, a great temptation awaited him (see Genesis 39:7). His master's wife tried to seduce him. Joseph refused to do this great wrong and firmly rejected the temptation. But Potiphar's wife persisted. Day after day, she lay in wait for him. Yet Joseph knew his God.

In times of suffering, we should focus our gaze on the goal and our savior.

Even here abroad, true fear of God and knowledge of God were the reasons he did not give in to sin. He could not sin against his God. He acted as Paul wrote many centuries later in 2 Timothy 2:22: He turned his back on sin and fled! Because of his decision to be faithful to God, he had to go to prison. Once again, Joseph experienced what it meant to suffer unjustly. From Joseph's perspective, many questions could have been asked at this point: Why, O Lord, from such blessing to such deep misery? Why someone like me, who only wanted to be faithful to Your commandment? Is this the price of faithfulness?

Even though the Bible doesn't specify, Joseph faced years of hard prison labor and deprivation. During this time, Joseph did not forget God. Just as God knows the way of the eagle in the air and cares for the lilies of the field, so too did God care for the situation of this faithful man—there, in the darkness of prison. Remarkably, we read nothing of Joseph complaining or murmuring. He placed all his hope in God and did not abandon his faith, not even in the midst of this seemingly hopeless situation. And God remembered him. Two of his fellow prisoners, both disgraced servants of Pharaoh, turned to Joseph to interpret their dreams. One was hanged, the other was pardoned.

The pardoned man promised Joseph he would work to secure his release. But Joseph spent two more years in prison, facing uncertainty. Only then did he become the most powerful man in Egypt. As with Daniel, God rewarded his unwavering faithfulness by exalting him. Are these not great examples of faith from which we can learn? We can learn from them how to cope with unjust suffering.

Don't we have an even greater example from New Testament times in Jesus? He suffered contempt, mockery, and scorn completely unjustly because of my sin and yours. He, who dedicated every moment of His life to others and did no evil! He, who did not threaten or hate, did not cry out for retribution and revenge—but, dying on the cross, asked forgiveness for His tormentors (cf. 1 Peter 2:19-23).

Oh, what great power of love! Did He not Himself say that a follower cannot be greater than His Lord and that everyone who wants to follow Him must suffer persecution and injustice? Have you already armed yourself with the spirit of Jesus' suffering (cf. 1 Peter 4:1)? When we look into the Word of God, we recognize that times of suffering also await us, the younger generation. Help us, God, in His grace, that we may be ready for them. Amen.

“Up to this hour we suffer hunger, thirst, and nakedness; we are beaten and homeless, and we labor with our own hands. When we are insulted, we bless; when we are persecuted, we persevere; when we are blasphemed, we comfort” (1 Corinthians 4:11-13).

Roman Rose
Municipality of Speyer