Isaiah 61:10-11

As the earth sends up its shoots and a garden lets its seeds sprout, so God will cause justice and praise to spring up.

Written by the prophet near the time of liberation from Babylon, when the Persians conquered the city in 538 BCE, this passage affirms that the Judeans taken from Jerusalem will be restored to their home. This will be God's justice for the people who were exiled in Babylon. Their return, the prophet proclaims, is as certain as the rising of shoots from the earth in the spring.

Each spring seeds sprout but justice is deferred.  It should not be surprising that most contemporary Christians look for a reckoning at the end of time, as the book of Revelation seems to suggest.  But perhaps the story of Christ means we should not look to God for justice, but only for hope that death is not all there is.  As Paul writes, "Nothing can separate us from the love of God...." (Rom. 8:38)

Grace and peace...Bob