Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; uphold the rights of the afflicted and oppressed.
Parallel translations
- WEB “Defend the weak, the poor, and the fatherless. Maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed.
- KJV Defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy.
- NKJV Defend the poor and fatherless; Do justice to the afflicted and needy.
- NASB Vindicate the weak and fatherless; Do justice to the afflicted and destitute.
- NLT “Give justice to the poor and the orphan; uphold the rights of the oppressed and the destitute.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God commands rulers to defend the weak, poor, and fatherless and uphold their rights. Caring for the vulnerable is central to godly justice.
Overview
God charges judges with their true calling, to protect those least able to protect themselves. This reflects His own heart for the poor and oppressed throughout Scripture (cf. Deut. 10:18). Such concern foreshadows the ministry of Christ, who came to bring good news to the poor and lift up the lowly.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Jas 1:27Pure and undefiled religion before our God and Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
- Ps 10:18to vindicate the fatherless and oppressed, that the men of the earth may strike terror no more.
- Jer 22:3This is what the LORD says: Administer justice and righteousness. Rescue the victim of robbery from the hand of his oppressor. Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless, or the widow. Do not shed innocent blood in this place.
- Deut 10:18He executes justice for the fatherless and widow, and He loves the foreigner, giving him food and clothing.
- Deut 24:17Do not deny justice to the foreigner or the fatherless, and do not take a widow’s cloak as security.
- Jer 5:28They have grown fat and sleek, and have excelled in the deeds of the wicked. They have not taken up the cause of the fatherless, that they might prosper; nor have they defended the rights of the needy.
- Jer 22:16He took up the cause of the poor and needy, and so it went well with him. Is this not what it means to know Me?” declares the LORD.
- Isa 1:17Learn to do right; seek justice and correct the oppressor. Defend the fatherless and plead the case of the widow.”
- Isa 1:23Your rulers are rebels, friends of thieves. They all love bribes and chasing after rewards. They do not defend the fatherless, and the plea of the widow never comes before them.
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Christ at the center
The Psalms are Christ's own prayer book and a gallery of his portraits — the suffering one of Psalm 22, the risen Lord of Psalm 16, the priest-king of Psalm 110, the Son to whom the nations are given.
How Psalms 82:3 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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