Trinity Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

Sermons 

This morning’s parable of the widow and the judge appears only in Luke’s Gospel. If someone showed you this parable, and asked you from which Gospel it comes, it would be a no-brainer to say, "Luke." In fact, in so many ways, this is a perfect parable for expressing Luke’s concern with social justice and injustice

The parable proper begins in verse 2 and continues through verse 5. It is introduced by an brief injunction "to pray always and not to lose heart" (vs. 1) and is closed by a series of rhetorical questions about God’s justice coming quickly. We shall return to these bracketing statements later, but for now let’s focus on the parable itself

What we have here this morning is a generic, all-purpose parable. It takes place in a "certain city" where there was "a judge." By rendering anonymous both the place and this character, Jesus is saying, "This could be anyplace, any person – this could be here; this could be you.

What kind judge does Jesus present to us? This is no ordinary judge – respectful of the law, the Lord, and the people. Whatever his competence in the law, this judge does not fear God nor respect the people. Indeed, later in the story, Jesus calls him "the unjust judge.

The character of this "unjust" judge is immediately brought into relief by the introduction of a second character, a widow. By introducing such a character, Jesus gives his listeners a person who represents a well-understood, traditional category within the Jewish community. The disciples who first heard this parable surely would have understood the significance of a widow standing opposite a judge

Widows represented one of the most marginalized categories within their society. Having lost a husband, she had no one to support her. And, given the laws of inheritance of that time and place, she did not receive her husband’s property; instead, following the traditional rules of inheritance, everything went to his sons. Thus, widows – like orphans and sojourners – were at the mercy of others in society. The commandments in the ancient law made clear everyone’s responsibility toward widows. Nothing could be more clear that the commandment in Deuteronomy 27:19: "Cursed be anyone who deprives the alien, the orphan, and the widow of justice." So, even if the judge had no fear of the Lord or respect for the people, his expertise in the law should have forced him to attend to her petition

Thus is set the scene for the confrontation between the widow and the judge. And what a curious confrontation it is! The parable points out that this widow kept coming to the judge and said, "Grant me justice against my opponent." This is typical of Luke’s Gospel. The marginalized person does not come seeking wealth or power, but justic

Do you remember the parable in Luke 11:5-8, a text which we examined at the end of July? In that parable, a person goes to see his neighbor at midnight to borrow three loaves of bread in order to feed a "friend" who had just arrived at his home. Listen again to what the neighbor replied: "Do not bother me, the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything." In this parable of the neighbor and the bread, the one who is not in need reacts to the request of the other by saying, "Do not bother me.

Jesus followed up this parable by saying to his disciples that, even though the neighbor "will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend," . . . "his persistence [will] give him whatever he needs" (11:8). And then Jesus added, "If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" (11:13)

Having established this position, Jesus would not have surprised his listeners by creating a variation on this theme. Instead of asking a neighbor for three loaves of bread for a friend arriving in the middle of the night, the widow in the present parable comes to a judge and seeks justice against someone who was causing her to suffer

And just as the neighbor in the night had turned his back on the petition for bread, so the judge in this parable wants to turn his back on the widow. But the widow does not give up after her first petition, or the second, or even the third. She kept coming to him, even though he refused, and refused, and refused to hear her petition

But she persisted, and eventually he relented and took up her petition. The judge does not pretend that suddenly he has seen the light, and now fears God and has gained respect for the people. Far from it! He maintains his lack of fear of God and his disrespect for others. What changes his mind is no more, and no less, than the widow’s persistence. The judge says to himself, ". . . because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that she may not wear me out by continually coming" (18:5)

It is worth taking a moment to reflect on this verb "to bother." It is rare in the New Revised Standard translation of the New Testament, appearing only twice – once in Luke 11:7 as "bother" and once here in Luke 18:5 as "bothering." The underlying Greek word conveys the sense of "a beating," as in our modern day expression, "Watching infomercials on TV is a beating." Or, "Having the presidential political campaigns go on for almost two years is a real beating." Or, combining the two, "Watching presidential infomercials on TV for almost two years really is a beating.

The widow in this parable is living proof of the power of giving someone else "a beating." Persistence does pay off. But, did you notice? It is her persistence per se that matters. The judge in this case never admits that the widow’s petition has any real merit, or that her opponent ought to lose the case on the merits. No, the judge simply is worn down by the widow’s persistence

Is there something special about her persistence? Yes, there is. Her persistence is the persistence of one who has little to lose yet has everything to lose. She stands as a symbol of all those who are poor, marginalized, and below the radar. Why can’t the judge just ignore her, instead of giving in to her petition for justice? If it is not his sense of justice, respect, and decency, what is it

Let me offer an example of what I think is going on here. A couple of weeks, in the eight inning of the second game of the American League Divisional Series between the New York Yankees and the Cleveland Indians, a swarm of bugs, known as midges, descended upon the field and began to assault players, umpires, and fans alike. The Yankee’s rookie pitcher, Joba Chamberlain, was particularly upset by the midges. He kept swatting at them, but they wouldn’t leave. The Yankees’ trainer came out and sprayed the pitcher (and other players) with bug spray. Nothing helped, and Chamberlain eventually threw a wild pitch that permitted the tying run to score. Meanwhile, the home team Indians seemed less bothered by the bugs. In the end, the hometown Indians emerged with a hard-fought 2-1 victory in 11 innings. It wasn’t so much that the Indians were superior, but that the Yankees couldn’t cope with being bugged

So it was with the judge and the widow. Listeners to this parable never hear what her case involved or what her opponent was saying and doing against her. We never are provided the facts that would permit us to side with her in a spirit of justice. All we know is that, eventually, the judge succumbed to being bothered. The widow bothered the judge so much, for so long, that he finally granted her petition

Having finished the parable, with the widow victorious and the unjust judge overcome, Jesus argues from the lesser to the greater, following the traditional rhetorical strategy, and asks two related questions: "will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them?" (18:7). Jesus provides the obvious answer: "I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them.

This leads to a final question, ". . . when the Son of man comes, will he find faith on earth?" (11:8) Because this question is not answered by Jesus or the disciples, we listeners find ourselves seeking closure by returning to the beginning statement that leads into the parable. In effect, this short parable turns back on itself: The answer to its final question "How should we show our faith?" is answered by the initial proclamation that the disciples should "pray always and not lose heart" (11:1)

So, there it is – a perfect parable from Luke’s Gospel. A marginalized person, played by the widow, takes on the powerful establishment, represented by an unjust judge. She is persistent in seeking for her petition to be heard. In this way, the Jesus of Luke’s Gospel once again subverts the social order, with the poor who seek justice overcoming the unjust rich

In our own time, all of us have had opportunities to go before the bar of justice, to seek justice for ourselves and on behalf of others. The list of injustices is endless. We could be like the widow and focus on a single justice issue close to our heart. Or we could be like the midges on that unexpectedly warm October evening in Cleveland – each of us bugging the opposition just a little, but doing so by the millions. In either case, in dealing with the powers and principalities, "pray always" and remember "not to lose heart.

On the other hand, if we are afraid of making a difference, if we are not interested in standing up to the status quo, if we aren’t impassioned about improving our community, then we can follow a much easier track – the track of the wheel that does not squeak. Throughout our society, and throughout the world, there are powerful, well-connected people who daily urge those of us without power and connections to follow this easier track, or even try to impose it on us by their power. Their message is simple: "First, don’t get involved. Second, don’t worry about the future. And, most important of all, don’t be a bother.

Amen.

©2007 Van Kemper  (email: rkemper@trinitypresdallas.org)