神的公平  The Justice of God

作者: 史鮑爾 (R.C. Sproul) 譯者: 姚錦榮

摘自《神學入門》《Essential Truths of the Christian Faith》P46 ,更新傳道會出版

公平是一個人們耳熟能詳的字眼。我們在人際關系中，在社交的談論中，常會就著制定的法律和法庭的判決，論及公平一事。盡管此詞已成家喻戶曉，但是哲學家要為公平一詞下嚴格定義時，卻很苦惱。

有時候，我們把公平等同於應得的報應或報酬，或將之與報應或報酬相提並論，我們會按某人有沒有得到應得的獎賞或懲罰，來判斷他是否得到公正的待遇。但是，獎賞並不一定是根據功德而來。舉例說，選美比賽把獎項頒給被認為最美的佳麗。但這並不是因為生得美麗有何功勞，而是只要最美麗的參賽者得了獎，就算是一個公平的裁決。如果裁判選出的，不是被認為最美麗的佳麗（或為政治原因，或因收受賄賂之故），裁決便不算公平。

基於以上種種原因，亞裏士多德對公平下了這樣的定義：即「給某人當得的。」所謂當得，可以是基於倫理上的責任，或是出於事前的協議。如果某人的刑罰過於所應得的，審判便不算公平；如果某人得到的獎賞少於所應得的，獎賞便不算公平。

憐憫與公平又有什麼關系呢？憐憫和公平顯然是兩件事，但常被人混淆。當犯錯者受較輕的刑罰，或者得到額外的獎賞，就是蒙了憐憫。

神將祂的公平和憐憫調和；衪的恩典實質上就是一種憐憫。當神不使該有的刑罰臨到我們，又如我們本當順服祂，而沒有理由要因此得獎賞時，祂卻仍因我們的順服而獎賞我們（那原是我們所不配得的），祂便是在向我們施恩典。神總是自願地施恩，而絕不會是被迫這麼做；祂保留了這個權利來按自己的美意施行恩典。祂對摩西說：「我要憐憫誰，就憐憫誰；要恩待誰，就恩待誰。」（羅9:15）

人常常埋怨說，因為神沒有把祂的恩典和憐憫平等地分配給每一個人，所以神是不公平的。我們總認為，如果神寬恕了某人，祂就應該寬恕每一個人。但從聖經中我們可清楚地看見，神不是同等地對待每一個人，祂將自己啟示給亞伯拉罕，卻沒有啟示給上古其他的異教徒。祂滿有恩慈地向保羅顯現，卻沒有向加略人猶大顯現。

保羅從神得恩典，而加略人猶大從神得公平的審判；憐憫和恩典是屬於與公平無關的作為，但絕不是不公平的作為。如果猶大的刑罰重過他應得的，他便可以有所埋怨。雖然保羅得到恩典，但這並不表示猶大也一定可以得到恩典——如果恩典是神所必須給的，如果神有責任賜下恩典，那麼我們所談的便不是恩典，而是公平。

聖經將公平（justice）的定義建基在公義（righteousness）上，如果神是公平的，祂便會行對的事。亞伯拉罕曾向神發出一個修辭問句：「審判全地的主，豈不行公義麼？」（創18:25）使徒保羅也提出過一個類似的修辭問句：「這樣，我們可說什麼呢？難道神有什麼不公平嗎？斷乎沒有！」（羅9:14）他們的答案都是極其顯而易見的，因為神是公平的主。

總結：

1.公平就是給予所當得的。

2.聖經所謂的公平與公義有關，即是行對的事。

3.不公平事在公平的範疇之外，也就是指違背公平。憐憫也在公平的範疇之外，但憐憫並不違背公平。

思考經文：

創18：25；出34：6-7；尼9：32-33；詩145：17；羅9：14-33

The Justice of God

Justice is a word we hear every day. We use it in personal relationships, in social conventions, with respect to legislation, and to the verdicts rendered in court. As commonplace as the word is, it has perplexed philosophers who seek an adequate definition of it.

Sometimes we link or equate justice with what is earned or deserved. We speak of people getting their just deserts in terms of rewards or punishments. But rewards are not always based upon merit. Suppose we hold a beauty contest and declare that a prize will be awarded to the person deemed most beautiful. If the "beauty" wins the prize, it is not because there is something meritorious in being beautiful. Rather, justice is served when the most beautiful contestant is rightfully awarded the prize. If the judges vote for someone they do not deem the most beautiful (for political reasons or because they are bribed) then the outcome of the contest will be unjust.

For reasons such as the above, Aristotle defined justice as "giving a person what is his or her due." What is "due" may be determined by ethical obligation or by some prior agreement. If a person is punished more severely than his crime deserves, the punishment is unjust. If a person receives a lesser reward than she has earned, then the reward is not just.

How then does mercy relate to justice? Mercy and justice are obviously different things, though they are sometimes confused. Mercy occurs when wrongdoers are given less punishment than deserved or greater rewards than they earned.

God tempers His justice with mercy. His grace is essentially a kind of mercy. God is gracious to us when He withholds the punishment we deserve and when He rewards our obedience despite the fact that we owe obedience to Him, and so we do not merit any reward. Mercy is always voluntary with God. He is never obligated to be merciful. He reserves the right to exercise His grace according to the good pleasure of His will. For He says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion" (Romans 9:15).

People often complain that because God does not distribute His grace or mercy equally on all people, He is therefore not fair. We complain that if God pardons one person He is therefore obligated to pardon everybody.

Yet, we see clearly in Scripture that God does not treat everyone equally. He revealed Himself to Abraham in a way He did not to other pagans in the ancient world. He graciously appeared to Paul in a way He did not appear to Judas Iscariot.

Paul received grace from God; Judas Iscariot received justice. Mercy and grace are forms of nonjustice, but they are not acts of injustice. If Judas's punishment was more severe than he deserved, then he would have something about which to complain. Paul received grace, but this does not require that Judas also receive grace. If grace is required from God, if God is obligated to be gracious, then we are no longer speaking of grace, but of justice.

Biblically, justice is defined in terms of righteousness. When God is just, He is doing what is right. Abraham asked God a rhetorical question that can only have one obvious answer: "Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?" (Genesis 18:25). Likewise, the apostle Paul raised a similar rhetorical question: "What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? Certainly not!" (Romans 9:14).

1.         Justice is giving what is due.

2.         Biblical justice is linked to righteousness, to doing what is right.

3.         Injustice is outside the category of justice and is a violation of justice. Mercy is also outside the category of justice but is not a violation of justice.