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God’s Love and Justice
The love of God is the peculiar benevolence He possesses as the loving God Himself (1 John 4:8). His intra-trinitarian love is the delight that God has toward Himself (cf. John 5:20). This is the basis for the love God expresses toward His creatures, which can be classified as either general or special. The general love of God relates to God’s desire to bless all His creatures (Ps. 145:9), while the special love of God has the elect particularly as its object (John 3:16; Eph. 5:25).
This is God’s special fatherly delight in His elect as He views them through the lens of Christ Himself (John 16:27; Col. 2:10). This love causes the elect to be accepted for the sake of God’s beloved Son (Eph. 1:4–6). Redemption appointed, redemption accomplished, and redemption applied all flow from this steadfast, ceaseless love of the triune God (Lam. 3:22; cf. Rom. 5:8; 1 John 4:10).
The justice or righteousness of God is His continual perfection according to the standard of what is pure and right—which is Himself. Exercised toward His creatures, the justice of God consists in the execution of judgment, either by reward or punishment, according to what is deserved, as determined by the standard of His holy law. All His works are just (Gen. 18:25; Ps. 7:9).
God’s justice is wholly retributive, whether in His rewarding or in His punishing. This is opposed to justice by way of mutual exchange or remunerative justice. Since men’s works are vile and filthy (Isa. 59:2–12; Rom. 3:10–18), there can be no proportionate relationship between man’s work and God’s remuneration. God is never constrained by or indebted to anyone; rather, He executes His justice according to His perfect standard.
Furthermore, because God acts not in response to man but according to His own way, God is just both in damning some (Ps. 51:4; 119:137; Nah. 1:2–3; Rom. 2:5–6) and delivering others (Rom. 3:21–22). “His work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment” (Deut. 32:4).
The love and justice of God are not incompatible; both are natural to Him to the superlative degree. God’s love is always exercised within the bounds of justice, and He always enforces His justice in a loving manner. His love is wholly just, and His justice is entirely loving—this is the nature of God. All God's attributes inhere one another, none being more to be elevated than another. God is His attributes.
This means that, on the one hand, while He is loving God will not suffer men to trample on His holy law. For Him to allow the propagation of sin to continue would not be love. He must and will punish sin to the fullest degree. This should engender fear of sinning against a righteous God who “hatest all workers of iniquity” (Ps. 5:5–6). Noting God’s justice, men must fear and tremble, allowing the terror of the Lord to move them to seek remission for their great sins through the blood of Christ.
On the other hand, this means that God, within His justice, exercises His wondrous love through His Son, Jesus Christ. We see the love of the Father in sending the Son; the love of the Son in bearing His people’s sin; and the love of the Spirit in applying the benefits of salvation. All three Persons exercise the depths of eternal, sovereign, infinite, immutable love. No man, when gazing on this fountain, can help but stand captivated in amazement at the majestic love of the holy God.
The love and justice of God are understood best by observing the contours of the gospel. Therein God displayed publicly His righteousness (Rom. 3:21–26) and demonstrated His love (Rom. 5:8). Calvary’s cross is where God’s love and justice meet (Ps. 85:10). Within Christ, God’s justice is not against but for His people. Christ’s people are so fully united to Him that God’s justice will not permit them to receive anything but that which is Christ’s wage: eternal life in glory. Additionally, within Christ, God’s love is unrestrained in bestowing His gifts (Zeph. 3:17; James 1:17). The exercising of His justice and His love come together in the gospel, both for God’s glory and for His people’s good.
—The above has been adapted from Wilhelmus à Brakel, The Christian’s Reasonable Service, vol. 1, ch. 3, available here.
AMR
The love of God is the peculiar benevolence He possesses as the loving God Himself (1 John 4:8). His intra-trinitarian love is the delight that God has toward Himself (cf. John 5:20). This is the basis for the love God expresses toward His creatures, which can be classified as either general or special. The general love of God relates to God’s desire to bless all His creatures (Ps. 145:9), while the special love of God has the elect particularly as its object (John 3:16; Eph. 5:25).
This is God’s special fatherly delight in His elect as He views them through the lens of Christ Himself (John 16:27; Col. 2:10). This love causes the elect to be accepted for the sake of God’s beloved Son (Eph. 1:4–6). Redemption appointed, redemption accomplished, and redemption applied all flow from this steadfast, ceaseless love of the triune God (Lam. 3:22; cf. Rom. 5:8; 1 John 4:10).
The justice or righteousness of God is His continual perfection according to the standard of what is pure and right—which is Himself. Exercised toward His creatures, the justice of God consists in the execution of judgment, either by reward or punishment, according to what is deserved, as determined by the standard of His holy law. All His works are just (Gen. 18:25; Ps. 7:9).
God’s justice is wholly retributive, whether in His rewarding or in His punishing. This is opposed to justice by way of mutual exchange or remunerative justice. Since men’s works are vile and filthy (Isa. 59:2–12; Rom. 3:10–18), there can be no proportionate relationship between man’s work and God’s remuneration. God is never constrained by or indebted to anyone; rather, He executes His justice according to His perfect standard.
Furthermore, because God acts not in response to man but according to His own way, God is just both in damning some (Ps. 51:4; 119:137; Nah. 1:2–3; Rom. 2:5–6) and delivering others (Rom. 3:21–22). “His work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment” (Deut. 32:4).
The love and justice of God are not incompatible; both are natural to Him to the superlative degree. God’s love is always exercised within the bounds of justice, and He always enforces His justice in a loving manner. His love is wholly just, and His justice is entirely loving—this is the nature of God. All God's attributes inhere one another, none being more to be elevated than another. God is His attributes.
This means that, on the one hand, while He is loving God will not suffer men to trample on His holy law. For Him to allow the propagation of sin to continue would not be love. He must and will punish sin to the fullest degree. This should engender fear of sinning against a righteous God who “hatest all workers of iniquity” (Ps. 5:5–6). Noting God’s justice, men must fear and tremble, allowing the terror of the Lord to move them to seek remission for their great sins through the blood of Christ.
On the other hand, this means that God, within His justice, exercises His wondrous love through His Son, Jesus Christ. We see the love of the Father in sending the Son; the love of the Son in bearing His people’s sin; and the love of the Spirit in applying the benefits of salvation. All three Persons exercise the depths of eternal, sovereign, infinite, immutable love. No man, when gazing on this fountain, can help but stand captivated in amazement at the majestic love of the holy God.
The love and justice of God are understood best by observing the contours of the gospel. Therein God displayed publicly His righteousness (Rom. 3:21–26) and demonstrated His love (Rom. 5:8). Calvary’s cross is where God’s love and justice meet (Ps. 85:10). Within Christ, God’s justice is not against but for His people. Christ’s people are so fully united to Him that God’s justice will not permit them to receive anything but that which is Christ’s wage: eternal life in glory. Additionally, within Christ, God’s love is unrestrained in bestowing His gifts (Zeph. 3:17; James 1:17). The exercising of His justice and His love come together in the gospel, both for God’s glory and for His people’s good.
—The above has been adapted from Wilhelmus à Brakel, The Christian’s Reasonable Service, vol. 1, ch. 3, available here.
AMR