The Way of Tov: Justice
For Meditation
The name of this new 3-week series is The Way of Tov. “Tov” (pronounced “tove”) is the Hebrew word that means “Good.” It's a word used many times throughout the Old Testament, most famously in Genesis 1 when God pronounces a 7-fold blessing of his creation, declaring everything “Tov.” So it is intriguing that in the book of Micah, God rebukes his people for not living rightly as the people He called them to be. In what is probably the most famous verse in the book of Micah, God declares, "He has shown you, O mortal, what is Tov. And what does the Lord require of you? To do justice, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.” God desires his people to offer a vision of his goodness to the surrounding nations, and he says very simply that they can do that by being people of justice, mercy and humility.
We live in a time when the church is known less for its goodness and more for public revelations of corruption, abuse, mismanagement, or hypocrisy. Many have lost trust in the church as an institution. This is tragic because, as we have learned recently, God calls us to be witnesses to his kindness and grace to the world. What would it take for us to be people who reveal and display the goodness of God to our neighbors, city and world? We’ll spend three weeks looking at the simple three-fold way of Tov that is named in Micah 6:8, exploring how we can embody each of these three behaviors: justice, mercy and humility.
To prepare for worship this week, watch the Bible Project’s summary of the book of Micah, and pray that the Lord would use the simple message of this book to display more of his goodness in and through us.
Micah 6:1–8
1 Listen to what the Lord says:
“Stand up, plead my case before the mountains;
let the hills hear what you have to say.
2 “Hear, you mountains, the Lord’s accusation;
listen, you everlasting foundations of the earth.
For the Lord has a case against his people;
he is lodging a charge against Israel.
3 “My people, what have I done to you?
How have I burdened you? Answer me.
4 I brought you up out of Egypt
and redeemed you from the land of slavery.
I sent Moses to lead you,
also Aaron and Miriam.
5 My people, remember
what Balak king of Moab plotted
and what Balaam son of Beor answered.
Remember your journey from Shittim to Gilgal,
that you may know the righteous acts of the Lord.”
6 With what shall I come before the Lord
and bow down before the exalted God?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?
7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,
with ten thousand rivers of olive oil?
Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God.