Isaiah 11

Oh, we think we’re so smart. We think we’re so enlightened. We look back at what people did in other times and other places and other cultures, and we judge, judge, judge. We’ve come a long way, baby. We would never act so ignorant and unrefined. We are educated and enlightened and politically correct. We look at the world around us, and we know what’s going on. We’ve got the 411.

We see injustice, and we correct it! We hear abuse, and we stop it! We know what’s right! Or do we?

Isaiah would have us think twice. Of the Lord, he says, “He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears; but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth.” (vs 3-4)

Sometimes, even our eyes and ears aren’t reliable! I have read that up to 50% of all eyewitness identifications are wrong! There are many examples of people who were convicted of crimes based on eyewitness testimony only to later be exonerated by DNA or fingerprint analysis. Sometimes, even our eyes and ears aren’t reliable.

To me, then, it’s comforting to know that the God we serve knows what is right. He knows what is right and just in every situation—whether it looks that way to our eyes or sounds that way to our ears. It was right for Jesus to tell the woman caught in adultery that He didn’t condemn her, and it was right for Him to tell Judas that it would be better for him if he’d never been born. It was right for Jesus to tell the rich, young ruler to give what he had to the poor, and it was right for Him to rebuke the disciples who wanted to sell the expensive perfume and give the money to the poor.

Sometimes, I wish I had that ability—to know what is the right and just and loving thing to do or say in any situation. Alas, for now, we’re stuck with our eyes and ears. Hopefully, the more we get to know God, the less we will have to rely on what we see and hear, for that’s not how He judges. He knows what is right.