When Scripture was written, authors did not have the option of bolding or italicizing for emphasis. Instead, ideas were emphasized through repetition. For example, when the Seraphim cry out “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts” (Isa. 6:3) they are stressing the point that God is really, really, really holy. Consider repetition to be the author’s way of slapping you in the face to say, “Wake up! This is really important!”
There are two areas of injustice that seem to come up again and again in Scripture: widows and orphans. For example, verses like these are found repeatedly throughout the Bible.
“Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” – James 1:27
“Learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause.” – Isaiah 1:17
“Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in His holy habitation.” – Psalm 68:5
If repetition in Scripture does indeed evoke significance, then it would appear that God has a particular care for the orphans and the widows. Those who have been neglected, abandoned, or simply left alone because of a tragic death are under God’s special care. As with all of God’s attributes, this special care is intended to manifest itself most clearly through the Church. God commands us to extend His love towards the orphans and the widows. The question is, why?
Certainly there are a multitude of injustices about which God is concerned. Proverbs tells us that God hates pride, falsehood, murder, a lust for wickedness, and those who stir up unnecessary conflict (Prov 6:16-19). God repeatedly labels sexual immorality as something detestable. Prejudice, whether that be due to race, social standing, or any other external characteristic is not acceptable in the Lord’s Kingdom (James 2:1-26, Acts 10:34-35).
It is clear: God takes the second greatest commandment seriously. We are to love our neighbors as ourselves (Matt. 22:36-40). Anything that breaks this commandment is abominable in the Lord’s eyes. He will not stand for injustice, especially within the Church. Yet still, it seems, there is a particular emphasis on the orphans and widows. There must be a reason for this. That reason is the gospel.
Consider God’s command to Israel concerning the sojourner: “You shall not wrong a sojourner or oppress him, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt” (Ex. 22:21). The reason that Israel was not to be oppressive towards the sojourner was because they themselves were sojourners in the land of Egypt. They experienced oppression as wanderers. They knew what it was like to experience injustice of that nature. Should that not create in them a heart for those in a similar condition?
The command of God to care for the orphans and the widows is similar to His command to Israel to care for the sojourner. We all are orphans and widows, and therefore we should sympathize with those who have also suffered in that way. In fact, these images of the orphan and widow are perhaps the most powerful analogies used in Scripture to describe our status in the gospel.
Fatherless to Children of God
We were orphans. Ephesians 2:3 tells us that we were children of wrath. In the gospel, however, our status takes a dramatic shift. Now, we have become the sons of a good Father. Though we were once born to the devil, we have been born a second time. This time we were born to God. John 1:12-13 assures us that all those who have believed in Christ have been given the right to be called children of God. Because of Christ, we no longer look at God primarily as a judge, but as a Father. The orphans have become sons of the perfect Father. The song “Grace Alone” describes this change beautifully:
I was an orphan lost at the Fall
Running away when I’d hear Your call
But Father, You worked Your will
I had no righteousness of my own
I had no right to draw near Your throne
But Father, You loved me still
And in love before You laid the world’s foundation
You predestined to adopt me as Your own
You have raised me so high up above my station
I’m a child of God by grace and grace alone
Widows to the Bride of Christ
We were the harlot. Just as a prostitute gives her body away, we have given our souls away to idols. In the gospel, however, this status also takes a dramatic turn. Now, through the cross, we have been redeemed. Though we once slaves to an abusive husband, we now look upon the face of a loving Groom. Idols were a faithless lover, even when we were faithful to them. God is a faithful husband, even when we ourselves are utterly unfaithful. The idols broke our hearts. The Lord protects and guides our hearts. The widows have now become the True Bride of Christ.
The Gospel
What is the gospel? It is the story of a Father for the fatherless and a Husband for the widow.
There is a responsibility for Christians to take care of those who cannot take care of themselves. We know what it’s like to be an orphan. So should we not have a heart for those who suffer as orphans? We too know what it’s like to be a widow. So should we not have a heart for those who suffer as widows?
We love those who have been neglected or abandoned because God first loved us when we had been neglected and abandoned.