Mishpat. Your Bible probably calls it judgment, and that translation isn't wrong; it's just incomplete. In Hebrew, mishpat comes from the root shafat, meaning "to judge, to govern, to set right." It appears over 400 times in the Old Testament, and throughout Torah and the Prophets, the verdict it describes lands in favor of the vulnerable, the widow, the orphan, the immigrant, the one with no leverage to make their case heard.

This week, we look at what gets lost when judgment drowns out justice: why even our language for vulnerable people comes loaded with suspicion, how "hate the sin, love the sinner" borrows the form of judgment while skipping everything mishpat actually demands, and what it looks like when the church hands down verdicts on LGBTQ people and women preachers while insisting it isn't judging anyone. That's mishpat running backward, and we can do better.

Key references: Exodus 21:1 - 24:18, Exodus 23:6, Deuteronomy 24:17, Isaiah 1:17, Psalm 82:3, Amos 5:24, Matthew 23:23, Micah 6:8,

Episodes related to this episode:

• S1 E3: Church, Race, and Justice: 3 Words Nobody Wants in the Same Sentence
• S2 E20: Weapons Down: What God Requires for a Faith at War with Itself
• S3 E8: Starting in the Rubble: Reconciliation That Holds
• S3 E10: Back Porch Mercy: What Faithful Looks Like on a Tuesday

Theology Unleashed is a summer series of short Greek and Hebrew word studies from Jesus, Justice + Mercy. Justice-rooted, seminary-informed, and considerably less scripted than usual. Dogs present.

See the full series at kristenabrock.com/theology-unleashed

For women who stayed small and called it faithfulness : a reading list to start finding your way back. Get it here!

If this episode was meaningful for you, the best way to help others find the show is to:

• Text this episode to a friend who might need it
• Leave a 5-star rating and review
• Subscribe so you don’t miss future episodes
• Wrestling with faith and justice and not sure where to start?
• Grab my free theological reading list, Beyond Faith as Usual, HERE!

Here’s to a faith that tells the truth, refuses silence in the face of harm, and follows Jesus all the way into healing and justice.

RESOURCES:

www.kristenabrock.com

Holy Disruption: Reclaiming a Justice-Rooted Faith course info and interest list

Justice Coaching options!

"Find your justice mindset" quiz!

Your Bible has been quietly mistranslating a word that shows up over 150 times, and the gap has shaped centuries of Christian formation. This week: tzedakah. Usually translated as "righteousness." Almost always meant something closer to justice.

We trace it from the Hebrew prophets through to the Greek New Testament, where tzedakah becomes dikaiosynē, the same word your English Bible renders "righteousness" 92 times. Same gap, just one language removed. Along the way: Micah 6:8, Amos 5:24, MLK's "I Have a Dream," and why "blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness" means something different than you were taught.

Theology Unleashed is a summer series of short Greek and Hebrew word studies from Jesus, Justice + Mercy. Justice-rooted, seminary-informed, and considerably less scripted than usual. Dogs present.

See the full series at kristenabrock.com/theology-unleashed

For women who stayed small and called it faithfulness : a reading list to start finding your way back. Get it here!

If this episode was meaningful for you, the best way to help others find the show is to:

• Text this episode to a friend who might need it
• Leave a 5-star rating and review
• Subscribe so you don’t miss future episodes
• Wrestling with faith and justice and not sure where to start?
• Grab my free theological reading list, Beyond Faith as Usual, HERE!

Here’s to a faith that tells the truth, refuses silence in the face of harm, and follows Jesus all the way into healing and justice.

RESOURCES:

www.kristenabrock.com

Holy Disruption: Reclaiming a Justice-Rooted Faith course info and interest list

Justice Coaching options!

"Find your justice mindset" quiz!

I missed last week. Here's why. We lost one of our cats, and grief doesn't keep a production schedule. But there's more. After two years of this work, I find myself worn out, and I've been sitting with that honestly.

So today I'm giving you a word: Shabbat. Not as a self-care buzzword but as a theological practice, commanded, ancient, and countercultural. And its companion, nuakh, the Hebrew word for dwelling, settling, being present. Together, they're my invitation for this season.

I'll be back with Theology Unleashed, a new series of short Greek and Hebrew word studies starting with tzedakah. And despite what the men of the SBC would prefer, I may not be as quiet this summer as I planned. This is not the time for women with voices to go silent.

69 episodes in the archive. Start at Season 1 if you're new. Jesus. Justice. No apologies.

Want to see what's coming this fall?

Check out www.kristenabrock.com/theology-unleashed

Episode mentioned: Pulpit Fiction: The Women They Renamed, Silenced, and Forgot

For women who stayed small and called it faithfulness : a reading list to start finding your way back. Get it here!

If this episode was meaningful for you, the best way to help others find the show is to:

• Text this episode to a friend who might need it
• Leave a 5-star rating and review
• Subscribe so you don’t miss future episodes
• Wrestling with faith and justice and not sure where to start?
• Grab my free theological reading list, Beyond Faith as Usual, HERE!

Here’s to a faith that tells the truth, refuses silence in the face of harm, and follows Jesus all the way into healing and justice.

RESOURCES:

www.kristenabrock.com

Holy Disruption: Reclaiming a Justice-Rooted Faith course info and interest list

Justice Coaching options!

"Find your justice mindset" quiz!