“And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint; saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man: And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him saying, Avenge me of mine adversary.

“And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man; yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.

“And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith. And shall not God avenge His own elect, which cry day and night unto Him, though he bear long with them? I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh shall he find faith on the earth?”-Luke 18:1-8.

Again we have a lesson on prayer, from various standpoints. The disciples needed to learn certain lessons respecting prayers, and the Lord gave the instruction through two interesting parables. The first lesson was respecting persistency: that they should continue to pray and not faint, nor grow disheartened and discouraged because of the delay in the answer. They were to be assured of the real character of our God, of His willingness to hear their petitions and to give them all necessary good things in the proper manner and in the proper time. The delay of the answer was to work out for them a blessing of increasing faith and trust.

The Unjust Judge

The parable illustrating this represents a judge in an oriental country, void of reverence for either God or man-ready to defy divine commands and to violate public opinion in the attainment of his selfish ends. Judges in Christian lands we believe to be honorable and trustworthy: We recognize this as the rule and anything else as the exception; but in oriental lands it is often regarded as a matter of course that officials will indulge in graft of every kind, and that whoever is in office is there for personal benefit and profit. In olden times, indeed until the last century, judges were to a large degree lawmakers as well as executives. Today in civilized lands these functions are separate, the lawmaking or legislative department of the government being entirely separate from the judicial and executive departments, much to the advantage of the public and to the forwarding of the ends of justice.

Before the unrighteous judge of the parable came a widow who was suffering from certain indignities and injustices from which she desired to be relieved by the judge. Since she was not wealthy and could not bribe him, since she had little influence, her demands for redress and justice were ignored. However, she was persistent until finally the judge, admitting to himself that it was not love of justice on his part but merely selfish desire to avoid further trouble, took up her case and granted her the necessary assistance and justice.

God Not Unjust Though He Delav

The parable does not compare this unjust judge with our heavenly Father, and thus imply that the latter is an unjust judge. On the contrary it contrasts the two and gives us the thought, the lesson, that if an unjust judge would finally grant relief simply from selfish motives, surely our heavenly Father, who is neither unjust nor unloving nor careless of the interests of his people, will heed their prayers. If, therefore, a matter be one that in our judgment is very importune, demanding our earnest prayers, and if the answer to those prayers be not quickly forthcoming, we neither conclude that God is an unjust judge who cares not for us because we cannot bribe him nor otherwise advantage him, nor are we to think of him as selfishly careless of our interests except as we would bother him; but we are to think of him as our loving heavenly parent, whose arm is not shortened that he cannot assist us, whose love for us is not deficient but strong, who loveth us as a father pitieth his children, and on the strength of our knowledge of God’s character and trust in his faithfulness, we are to have patience, and to trust the fulfillment of our petitions to His wisdom, love, and power, knowing that all things shall be made to work together for good to them that love God, to the called ones according to His purpose.

Our Lord applying the parable says, “And shall not God avenge His elect which cry to Him day and night?” though He manifest no special haste in the matter. The lesson is that we are to have confidence in God and in His promise that eventually the right shall triumph. This confidence is to amount to an absolute faith which will grasp the promises, never doubting but merely waiting. Those who thus come to God in faith and trust may come repeatedly and be refreshed at every coming, because they come not with a hope of changing the Almighty, altering any of His plans and arrangements, which they recognize as righteous altogether. On the contrary, they come because they believe His promises and because they desire to rest and comfort their hearts by communion with Him, by assuring their hearts in prayer that the Father himself loveth us and that He has a due time for the deliverance of those who are His from the bondage of the adversary, of sin and death. The time may seem long, but if the proper faith be exercised, a blessing will come with every step of the delay that will more than compensate.

Our Lord concludes this parable by saying, “I tell you that he will avenge them speedily.” This may mean that when the Lord’s time shall come for the delivering of his people he will make a short work with the great adversary and all the machinery of unrighteousness which, under the prince of this world, has come to occupy so prominent a place in the affairs of life-in opposing truth, righteousness, etc. Or on the other hand it might be understood to mean that the Lord will really not long delay in bringing in his kingdom of righteousness. From the human standpoint the more than eighteen centuries from the time when our Lord redeemed the world until now, the time for the setting up of his kingdom, seems a long time: How could it be spoken of as “speedily?” We reply that “a day with the Lord is as a thousand years,” hence from this standpoint the whole period would be less than two days. What we need today is to take the Lord’s standpoint in viewing matters. Both views are Scriptural, and therefore we need not dispute as to which one the Lord intended. Possibly he meant that we should take both.

Shall He Find the Faith?

Separate and distinct from the parable the Lord interjects the statement, “Nevertheless, when the Son of man cometh shall he find faith on the earth?” The intimation is that at the second presence of the Lord the true faith would be seriously lacking, almost extinct-just as at the first advent we read, “He came unto his own [people] and his own received him not.” So, in the end of this age, our Lord’s second presence for the establishment of his kingdom will similarly try and test nominal spiritual Israel. Again he will come unto his own and his own will receive him not-he will not find the necessary faith in the earth. However, as respects the first advent we read, “But to as many as received him to them gave he liberty,” etc. So at the second advent, to as many as have faith and receive him, to these also similarly he will grant a special blessing.

Associating these words with the parable foregoing, the implication is that the church, the very elect, the little flock ,throughout the Gospel age will be expected to look to the Lord continually for help and deliverance, but that they will not actually be helped or delivered until the first resurrection, at the Master’s second advent, at the time he will set up his kingdom. It is in line with this that the Apostle exhorts us saying, “Brethren, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.”­ Romans 12:19. Hence we find the Scriptures throughout indicating clearly that the second advent of our Lord will be a time of tribulation to the world in general, a day of vengeance, a day of rectifying the wrongs of the people. Thus through the prophet the Lord declares, “The day of vengeance is in my heart, and the year [‘time] of my redeemed is come,” and again, “It is the day of the Lord’s vengeance, and the year of recompense for the controversy of Zion.”-Isaiah 63:4; 34:8.

Taken as a whole, the lesson to the Lord’s people through this parable is that we are to have patience, not attempting to render vengeance upon our opposers, but to love our enemies and to do good to them that despitefully use us, and to look to the Lord for such relief as he sees proper to send; and though we find the full measure of relief long deferred, we are to have rest and refreshment through faith that the time is coming when all the gracious promises will be abundantly fulfilled, “According to thy faith be it unto thee.”

Those who believe little of the  Lord’s  promises,  who  trust  him  little, will  pray  to  him  little, will exercise  little faith, and will have  little joy and blessing in consequence.  Those  on the contrary who have faith, and who go continually to the throne of grace and appreciate  the Lord  and trust in the glorious outcome of their prayers and  labors,  will have  joy now  and fullness  of joy by and by.

R 3841 (1906)