In last week’s article, I described the background to a court case that recently opened in Stockholm against the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer of Sweden’s largest oil company, Lundin Petroleum/Oil (hereafter Lundin), who are being tried in Stockholm for complicity in war crimes that were perpetrated during 1997-2003 in their oil concession in the conflict zone of the civil war in Sudan.
This unique court case, the first of its kind anywhere in the world since the trial of Nazi industrialists at the Nuremberg Military Tribunal in 1947-48, raises the question of why such actions are so rare, and why so few Christians and believing Jews are raising a prophetic voice to intervene on behalf of the poor and downtrodden.
Speaking on behalf of God & others
Such actions would certainly be prophetic, for the word ‘prophet’ is derived from the Greek noun 'prophates' that means ‘someone who speaks on behalf of another.’ Although the biblical context implies that that person speaks on behalf of God, the Lord requires His people to speak on behalf of the oppressed (usually represented as widows and orphans). Through Isaiah (58:6), God informs His people:
Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?
The prophets Moses (Ex 3:7-10 & 5:1), Nathan (2 Sam 12:1-13), Ahijah (1 Kings 14:7-9), and Elijah (1 Kings 21; 2 Chron 21:12-15) denounced the evil and oppressive actions of their kings (i.e. leaders) towards their subjects, while Amos (2:6-8 & 4:1), Jonah (3:8), Oded – with certain chiefs of the Ephraimites (2 Chron 28:8-15) – and Micah (6:8 & 10-12; 7:2-6) denounced the sins of ordinary people who also abused the weak. They spoke on behalf of God, and on behalf of the downtrodden.
the Lord requires His people to speak on behalf of the oppressed (usually represented as widows and orphans).
The Old Testament prophets also pronounced imminent divine judgement on nations for the evil they had done to others (e.g. Jon 3:4, Amos 1 & 2, Isa 13-23, Obad 1, Nah 1-3, and Ezek 25-26 & 29). Such prophecies, and their fulfilment through the downfall of those nations, would have reminded people of the coming divine judgment they would individually face after they died. The same prophets, together with others, also spoke out against apostasy, idolatry, false prophets, religiousness, personal sin, and corrupt priests — and warned of divine judgment for all of these sins.
Human & divine justice
It is important to note the distinction between human and divine justice. Human justice — assuming it takes place — happens quite soon after a crime is committed, but is imperfect because it is executed by imperfect and sinful humans. Many people who have been involved in court cases have experienced some form of miscarriage of justice, whether it be overlooked or missing evidence, lawyers who manipulate procedural irregularities, biased judges etc.
Divine judgment is different, as Psalm 9 explains: 'The LORD reigns forever; he has established his throne for judgment. He rules the world in righteousness and judges the people with equity (7-8).
By comparison, there are only a few verses in which God demands the application of human justice, which infers an active prosecution of perpetrators on behalf of victims.
Divine justice happens after we die, with Jesus and God being the judges (Matt 25:31-46; John 5:22, 27 & 12:47-50; Acts 10:42 & 17:31; Rom 14:10-12; 2 Tim 4:1; 1 Pet 1:17, Rev 20:11-15 & 22:12). That judgment leads to eternal punishment for those who have not repented for their sins and accepted Christ’s atoning sacrifice on the cross (Rev 20:7-10 & 12-15).
Application of human justice
There are many passages in the Bible where God castigates His people for corrupt legal practices. By comparison, there are only a few verses (such as Isaiah 1:17) in which God demands the application of human justice, which implies an active prosecution of perpetrators on behalf of victims. This infrequent mention may be to ensure that human justice is not considered a complete solution to injustice, because a fallible human court case can never establish true justice.
The coming trial of Lundin illustrates this. How can adequate punishment be meted out to the two accused should they be found guilty of causing and contributing to the destitution of 160,000 people, and the deaths of some 12,000 others? Furthermore, depending on your viewpoint, their expected conviction could be deemed unfair because other Lundin board members and employees were also involved in the same crimes, but are not being tried as it is too difficult for the Swedish State Prosecutor to amass enough evidence that would stand a reasonable chance to lead to a conviction.
How can adequate punishment be meted out to the two accused should they be found guilty of causing and contributing to the destitution of 160,000 people, and the deaths of some 12,000 others?
In addition, the Sudanese government officials, soldiers, and militia who ordered or committed the actual killing and forced displacement in Lundin’s oilfield are not being prosecuted in Stockholm because Swedish law has no jurisdiction over them.
The Lord’s compassion
Why then does God ask us to prosecute criminals in imperfect human courts when they will receive perfect divine judgment at the end time? I believe the answer lies in the Lord’s compassion for the victims who call out to Him (Ex 2:23-25; Ps 145:18-19; Isa 19:20-21), and the benefits that human justice can achieve for them.
This used to focus on inflicting severe punishments on offenders to avenge the wrong they had done to their victims, i.e. through torture, maiming, and/or painful execution (like Jesus wrongly suffered on Calvary). But prison reforms by Quakers and evangelicals during the late 18th and 19th centuries have shifted the focus of human justice from retribution to rehabilitation . This reflects Paul’s instruction in Romans 12:
'Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the LORD' (v.19).
Prophetic acts that secure such outcomes are an expression of our sibling phileo love for the oppressed, reflecting God’s love for the marginalised.
Divine justice
Human justice nonetheless incorporates a measure of deprivation in order to prevent offenders perpetrating further crimes, i.e. incapacitating their ability to cause harm by isolating them from society in prison, and fining them to remove their ill-gotten gains. Imprisonment and fines not only stop the convicted offender from committing more crimes, but also deter other potential criminals from doing so. These measures thus protect future potential victims from harm and could be seen to fulfil God’s command to loose the chains of oppression (Isa 58:6).
Oppressors should therefore be prosecuted without the intent to achieve vengeance or punishment, but instead to compensate victims and protect potential future victims. Christians and believing Jews have a prophetic responsibility to speak out on behalf of the downtrodden to encourage state institutions to apply adequate human justice that will protect existing and potential future victims from harm, assist in healing the victims of crime through the public acknowledgement of what they have suffered, and restore as far as possible what they have lost. Prophetic acts that secure such outcomes are an expression of our sibling phileo love for the oppressed, reflecting God’s love for the marginalised.
Lundin’s two top executives will soon confront in great detail the consequences of their greed during 210 excruciating days in court.
An act of love
But the prophetic denunciation of oppression can also be an act of love towards the oppressors. Public disclosure of their crimes forces them to reflect on what they have done. Lundin’s two top executives will soon confront in great detail the consequences of their greed during 210 excruciating days in court.
And regardless of whether or not they are found guilty by a human jury, they will certainly face God’s wrath and judgment at the end time unless they repent of their sins while they are still alive. Someone needs to say this to them before it is too late.
In the third of this five-part series, I will investigate why so little human justice takes place, even though God demands us to implement it.
Phil Clarke is a former aid worker and executive director of the Danish branch of Medecins Sans Frontieres, and is currently the director of the independent war crimes investigation agency Bloodhound that he co-founded in 2006. He has been closely involved with efforts to bring Lundin to justice since 2001, and produced the report Justifying Blood Money in 2013 to expose Lundin’s lies to shareholders while it explored for oil in Sudan. His debut novel Falling Night was published in 2023, based on the experiences that led him from humanitarian aid to documenting war crimes.