THE GOSPEL OF LUKE: - Vital Christianity

169he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care about men, yetbecause this woman keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets her justice, sothat she won’t eventually wear me out with her coming!’And the Lord said, ‘Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not Godbring about justice for His chosen ones, who cry out to Him day and night?Will He keep putting them off? I tell you, He will see that they get justice,and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?’”(vv. 2-8)The corrupt judge is described as a person “who neither feared God nor cared about men”(v. 2). It is no wonder that our Lord calls this person an “unjust judge” (v. 6). No person isworthy to be put in the sacred office of a judge who does not deeply fear God and respect hisfellow human beings. Because this person did not fear God, he paid no attention to the demandfor justice; and because he did not respect people, he was unmoved by the complaint of thewidow. Even among the heathens this was the character of a man totally abandoned to all evil.Dion Cassius said concerning Vitellius, “He neither regarded gods nor men.” 2Because this man neither feared God nor people, it was therefore unlikely that anyonewould receive any consideration and fairness from him.The person who came to make the plea was the most unlikely prospect to gain favorsfrom anyone in that culture: a widow (a symbol of all who were poor and thus considered utterlyhelpless in the East). It was obvious that she, without resources of any kind, had no hope of everreceiving justice from such a judge. However, this particular widow had a powerful weapon:persistent prayer.Luke, in describing her actions points out that she kept coming. She did not just makeone appearance before the judge but many. And the judge’s attitude is highlighted as Jesus pointsout that “For some time he refused” (v. 4). The woman kept coming and the judge kept refusing.In the end, it was the woman’s dogged persistence that overcame the judge’s reluctance.Determination, and determination only, was the cause of this reversal. Luke points out thejudge’s reason for granting her request: “so that she won’t eventually wear me out with hercoming” (v. 5).