Justice is a central theme in Scripture; justice for the poor and oppressed a recurring motif. This concern for justice continues into the patristic era, and contemporary theology has continued to explore the meaning of justice and the church’s role in promoting justice. 1. The Biblical Perspectives on Justice 2. Early Church and Patristic Views on Justice and the Poor 3. Classical Greek and Early Christian Approaches to Justice 4. Justice as a Legal Phenomenon 5. Justice and the Church’s Prophetic Role 1. The Biblical Perspectives on Justice The concept of justice in Scripture is a central theme with major importance for all of human life—it runs like a golden cord through all its books. This centrality and the vast richness of the term make it difficult to come up with a simple definition in the biblical context. The word “justice” is used in various ways. It is used to describe the legal codes and ordinances that govern communal life (e.g., Ex 21:1–23:10), and indicates when restitution is due in a context where injury was done to a person or property, or cultic regulations have been violated. The two main Hebrew terms (ṣĕdāqâ and mišpāṭ) are normally translated as “righteousness” and “justice.” Ṣĕdāqâ refers to God’s righteousness that not only brings judgement on particular acts, but, according to William Coats, on the entire shape of this age. Mišpāṭ, on the other hand, refers to particular duties and responsibilities that encompass life in a covenantal context with both God and one another. The biblical idea of justice can best be described as “a fidelity to the demand of a relationship,” with particular reference to the widow, the orphans and the poor. Japie Jimmy La Poorta, “Justice,” ed. William A. Dyrness and Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen, Global Dictionary of Theology: A Resource for the Worldwide Church (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic: An Imprint of InterVarsity Press, 2008), 442.
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