Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2 He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. 3 And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’ 4 “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’” 6 And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”
All of us can sympathize with the disciples here, who seem to doubt when their prayers do not receive an immediate answer. Jesus’ response may seem to us inadequate: he simply tells them to keep praying even though they may be tempted to give up and then illustrates his comment with a rather funny story. We have all prayed for something and not received it which can make us discouraged or even, in some cases, cause us to despair. The example Jesus gives is a woman whose persistence is so bold that it defies gender stereotypes of the time. Women were not supposed to speak in public and certainly not allowed to pester an official. Yet she does so. Undeniably, widows were extremely vulnerable and she probably is desperate but note how she refuses to be a passive victim. She insists on justice and, after much effort on her part, receives it.
The Torah states clearly that widows must receive just treatment, but she has before her a corrupt judge who “neither feared God nor cared what people thought”. But even he gives in to her persistence, if only because he doesn’t want her bothering him. The story is so exaggerated that Jesus is clearly being humorous. The Greek word in verse five, translated here as “attack me”, literally means “give me a black eye” and it’s in the subjunctive which suggests repetition. So, Jesus pictures for us a corrupt judge given a black eye by a (possibly) elderly widow.
The extremeness and the humor of this example tells us that this judge does not represent God, who cares deeply about each of us. However, when we face injustice and cry for help that we do not receive, we may view God as like this unjust judge. So, at the same time, Jesus insists that if we persist our prayers will be answered while admitting that sometimes it may not seem that way. Our prayers are powerful and can transform the world. We just need to refuse the temptation to despair and continue.
St. Joseph's Paris: Bible Study Website 