1-2. How might injustice affect all of us in one way or another?

 JESUS told an illustration about a widow who kept asking a judge to give her justice. No doubt that story resonated with many of Jesus’ disciples because in his day the common people were often victims of injustice. (Luke 18:1-5) The story is also meaningful to us today because we have all experienced injustice at one time or another.

² In the world today, prejudice, inequality, and oppression are common, so we are not surprised when we are treated unfairly. (Eccl. 5:8) What we might not expect, though, is to be misjudged by a brother or a sister; yet, that can happen. Of course, our brothers and sisters are not opposers of the truth. They are simply imperfect. We can learn much from how Jesus reacted to injustices from wicked opposers. If we can be patient with opposers who treat us unjustly, how much more so should we be patient with our fellow believers! How does Jehovah feel when we are treated unjustly either by those outside the congregation or by those inside the congregation? Does he care?

3. Does Jehovah care about our suffering injustice, and why?

³ Jehovah cares deeply about the way we are treated. “Jehovah loves justice.” (Ps. 37:28) Jesus assures us that Jehovah will “cause justice to be done . . . speedily”  when the time is right. (Luke 18:7, 8) And soon he will undo all the harm we have suffered and eliminate all forms of injustice.​—Ps. 72:1, 2.

4. What help does Jehovah provide for us today?

⁴ While we await the time when righteousness will prevail, Jehovah helps us to cope with injustice. (2 Pet. 3:13) He teaches us how to avoid doing something unwise when we are treated unfairly. Through his Son, Jehovah provides us with the perfect example of the way we can deal with injustice. And he gives us practical counsel that we can apply when we are treated unjustly.

BE CAREFUL ABOUT HOW YOU REACT TO INJUSTICE

5. Why should we be careful about the way we react to injustice?

⁵ We may feel deeply hurt and distressed by injustice. (Eccl. 7:7) Faithful servants, such as Job and Habakkuk, felt the same way. (Job 6:2, 3; Hab. 1:1-3) While these feelings are natural, we need to be careful about how we react so that we do not do something foolish.

6. What does the example of Absalom teach us? (See also picture.)

⁶ We could react to an injustice by improperly trying to take matters into our own hands. Responding in that way, however, could make matters much worse. Consider the example of King David’s son Absalom. He was outraged when his sister Tamar was raped by their half brother Amnon. According to the Mosaic Law, Amnon deserved to die for what he had done. (Lev. 20:17) Although Absalom’s anger was certainly understandable, he was not authorized to take matters into his own hands.​—2 Sam. 13:20-23, 28, 29.

7. How did injustice temporarily affect a psalmist?

⁷ When those who act unjustly seem to go unpunished, we might question whether it is worthwhile to do what is right. Consider the psalmist who observed that the wicked seemed to prosper at the expense of the righteous. “These are the wicked, who always have it easy,” he said. (Ps. 73:12) He was also so distraught about the injustice he saw that he almost lost confidence in  the benefits of serving Jehovah, saying: “When I tried to understand it, it was troubling to me.” (Ps. 73:14, 16) In fact, he revealed: “As for me, my feet had almost strayed; my steps had nearly slipped.” (Ps. 73:2) Something similar happened to a brother we will call Alberto.

8. What effect did injustice have on one brother?

⁸ Alberto was wrongly accused of stealing money from the congregation funds. As a result, he lost his privileges and the respect of many in the congregation who learned about the matter. “I felt bitter, angry, and frustrated,” he recalls. He allowed his emotional pain to affect his spirituality, and he even became inactive for five years. This experience illustrates what could happen if we were to become embittered by an injustice.

IMITATE HOW JESUS COPED WITH INJUSTICE

9. What injustices did Jesus endure? (See also picture.)

⁹ Jesus set a perfect example of how to cope with injustice. Consider the unjust treatment he experienced, both  from family and from outsiders. His unbelieving relatives accused him of being out of his mind, the religious leaders accused him of collaborating with the demons, and Roman soldiers mocked him, physically assaulted him, and eventually killed him. (Mark 3:21, 22; 14:55; 15:16-20, 35-37) Yet, Jesus endured all that injustice and more without retaliating. What can we learn from his example?

10. How did Jesus cope with injustice? (1 Peter 2:21-23)

¹⁰ Read 1 Peter 2:21-23. a Jesus left us a perfect model to follow when we are dealing with an injustice. He knew when to remain silent and when to speak. (Matt. 26:62-64) He did not reply to every false statement made about him. (Matt. 11:19) When he did speak, he did not insult his persecutors or threaten them. Jesus exercised self-control because he “entrusted himself to the One who judges righteously.” Jesus knew that it was Jehovah’s view of matters that was most important. He trusted that Jehovah would deal with the injustices at the right time.

11. What are some ways that we can control our speech? (See also pictures.)

¹¹ We can imitate Jesus by controlling what we say when we are treated unjustly. Some injustices are minor, and we can simply overlook them. Or we may remain silent to avoid saying something that could make matters worse. (Eccl. 3:7; Jas. 1:19, 20) At other times,  we may need to speak up when we observe unfair treatment or when we need to defend the truth. (Acts 6:1, 2) If we do speak, we should try our best to do so calmly and respectfully.​—1 Pet. 3:15. b

12. How do we entrust ourselves to “the One who judges righteously”?

¹² We can also imitate Jesus by entrusting ourselves to “the One who judges righteously.” When others misjudge us or mistreat us, we trust that Jehovah knows the truth. That confidence can help us to endure unfair treatment because we know that ultimately Jehovah will correct matters. By leaving things with Jehovah, we prevent anger or resentment from festering in our heart. Those emotions can cause us to overreact, can destroy our joy, and can damage our relationship with Jehovah.​—Ps. 37:8.

13. What can help us to continue putting up with injustice?

¹³ Of course, we will never be able to follow Jesus’ example perfectly. At times, we may do or say things that we later regret. (Jas. 3:2) And some injustices may leave us with emotional and physical scars that can be hard to bear. If that is true of you, be assured that Jehovah knows what you are going through. And Jesus, who also suffered unjustly, can sympathize with your feelings. (Heb. 4:15, 16) In addition to providing us with Jesus’ perfect example, Jehovah gives us practical counsel that helps us to deal with injustice. Let us consider two verses from the book of Romans that can help us.

“YIELD PLACE TO THE WRATH”

14. What does it mean to “yield place to the wrath”? (Romans 12:19)

¹⁴ Read Romans 12:19. When the apostle Paul urged Christians to “yield place to the wrath,” whose wrath was he referring to? According to the context, it is Jehovah’s wrath. We yield place to Jehovah’s wrath by letting him bring about justice in his own time and in his own way. After a brother named John was treated unfairly, he said: “I had to fight the urge to pursue righting the wrong in my own way. Romans 12:19 helped me to wait on Jehovah.”

15. Why is it best to wait on Jehovah to correct a matter?

¹⁵ We benefit when we wait on Jehovah to correct a matter. If we do so, we will be spared the burden and frustration of trying to solve the problem ourselves. Jehovah offers to help us. He says, as it were, ‘Leave the injustice to me; I will take care of things.’ If we accept Jehovah’s promise “I will repay,” we can let the matter go, confident that he will handle it in the best possible way. That is what helped John, mentioned earlier. He said, “If I can just wait on Jehovah, he will handle it far better than I can.”

“KEEP CONQUERING THE EVIL WITH THE GOOD”

16-17. How can prayer help us to “keep conquering the evil with the good”? (Romans 12:21)

¹⁶ Read Romans 12:21. Paul also urged Christians to “keep conquering  the evil with the good.” In Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, he said: “Continue to love your enemies and to pray for those who persecute you.” (Matt. 5:44) That is exactly what he did. We have likely thought about the suffering Jesus endured when he was nailed to the stake by Roman soldiers. We can only begin to imagine the pain he felt as well as the indignity and the injustice that he endured.

¹⁷ Jesus was not conquered by the injustice he suffered. Instead of cursing those soldiers, he prayed: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34) When we pray for those who mistreat us, it can lessen our feelings of resentment and anger and even change the way we view those who offend us.

18. How did prayer help Alberto and John to cope with injustice?

¹⁸ Prayer helped the two brothers mentioned earlier in this article to cope with the injustices they faced. Alberto says: “I prayed for the brothers who treated me unfairly. I asked Jehovah several times to help me put this injustice behind me.” Happily, Alberto is again serving Jehovah faithfully. John says: “Many times, I prayed for the brother who hurt me. Such prayers helped me view him more objectively, without judging him. And those prayers also gave me peace of mind.”

19. What must we do until the end of this system? (1 Peter 3:8, 9)

¹⁹ There is no telling what injustices we may yet face before this system ends. Whatever comes our way, let us never stop praying to Jehovah for help. Also, may we imitate the way Jesus responded to mistreatment and continue to apply Bible principles. If we do, we can be sure of inheriting a blessing from Jehovah.​—Read 1 Peter 3:8, 9.