IS ALL INEQUITY BAD?
STRIVING FOR A TRUE BIBLICAL VISION OF JUSTICE (PART II)
Key Facts
On November 1, Kamala Harris posted a video on Twitter discussing the differences between “equality” and “equity.” Harris promotes the idea of equitable treatment rather than equal treatment. Harris seems to define equitable treatment as equality of outcome, saying “Equitable treatment means we all end up at the same place.” [1]
The United States has roughly 30% of global wealth, but only 4.25% of the total world population, whereas China has 17.7% of global wealth but 18.5% of global population. [2]
32% of Americans are satisfied with the distribution of income and wealth. [3]
According to Pew Research, “Republicans are more likely than Democrats to point to personal factors as major contributors to inequality.” [4]
Key Scriptures
Psalms 99:4 “The King in his might loves justice. You have established equity; you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob.”
Proverbs 10:4 “A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.”
Proverbs 2:9-10 “Then you will understand righteousness and justice and equity, every good path; for wisdom will come into your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul.”
Ecclesiastes 9:11-12 “Again I saw that under the sun the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to those with knowledge, but time and chance happen to them all. For man does not know his time. Like fish that are taken in an evil net, and like birds that are caught in a snare, so the children of man are snared at an evil time, when it suddenly falls upon them.”
Psalm 107:17 “Some were fools through their sinful ways, and because of their iniquities suffered affliction.”
Proverbs 1:32 “For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them.”
1 Corinthians 12:4-7 “Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.”
Matthew 20:16 “So the last will be first, and the first last.”
Matthew 25:29 “For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”
1 Corinthians 3:10-15 “According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw—each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.”
Also see: Matthew 20:1-16, 25:14-30; Luke 19:11-27; 1 Corinthians 12
Want to Know More?
Center for Biblical Unity - Equality vs Equity
Carneades.org - Equity vs Equality (Philosophical Distinction)
Initiative on Faith and Public Life - The Bible and Economics: Will There Be Inequality in Heaven?
Reformation 21 - Identical Equity?
Medium - Social Justice: Equity or Equality
Randy Alcorn - Will All People Be Equal in Heaven?
For a different perspective: Christian Community Health Fellowship - A Christian Critique of Equity
Markkula Center for Applied Ethics - Justice and Fairness
Application
Prior to the election, Kamala Harris released a video on her Twitter account discussing the differences between equity and equality. The video states,
“So there’s a big difference between equality and equity. Equality suggests, ‘Oh, everyone should get the same amount.’ The problem with that is that not everybody’s starting out from the same place. So if we’re all getting the same amount, but you started out back there and I started out over here, we could get the same amount, but you’re still going to be that far back behind me. It’s about giving people the resources and the support they need, so that everyone can be on equal footing and then compete on equal footing. Equitable treatment means we all end up at the same place.”
An underlying assumption of Harris’s video is that inequity (differences in outcome) are bad. These inequities are the result of injustices (unequal treatment) past and present. Thus, we should strive towards equity and equality of outcome so that we “all end up at the same place.”
In the previous article, we discussed the Bible’s definition of equity and equality, how it fits into God’s definition of justice, and how it differs from modern uses. In this article, we will look at the topic of inequity more closely. Is all inequity bad? To what extent are differences in outcome the result of injustice? The final article will address the topic of how we should address inequity and whether we should strive for equality of outcome.
Origins of Inequity
One of the unspoken assumptions of many who promote equality of outcome is the belief that all differences in outcome are the result of injustice and unequal treatment. But is this true? Without question, unequal treatment of the past has led to inequity today. But can all inequity be accounted for this way? In other words, if there had never been any unequal treatment in the past, would there be no inequity today? Would everyone (including all people in all places) have equal amounts of everything?
From a biblical perspective, in order for this to be true, then all inequity would have to be the result of injustice, and thus, sin. However, this is an overly simplistic picture. The Bible does not support the idea that all differences in outcome are the result of injustice and sin.
The simple reason is this: not all inequity is created equal. While much of the inequity we see today is the result of sin, some isn’t. Even if sin had never entered into the world, our created differences and desires would still lead to different outcomes. In order for total uniformity of results to be achieved, there would have to be a uniformity of our characteristics and desires. In other words, true equality of outcome could only result if there were no meaningful differences among human beings or the choices we would make, which seems to go completely contrary to the diversity which God intended in creation. Clearly, on some level, God created us with these diverse characteristics and desires expecting different outcomes.
However, we can also see that sin leads to inequities. If someone is lazy whereas another person is hard-working, this will lead to unequal outcomes. Likewise, if someone steals from another person, this will lead to unequal outcomes. Or, if a law discriminates against a group of people, that would lead to inequities in that group. Therefore, it is necessary to look at these various sources of inequity in order to know how each should be addressed.
Sinful Sources of Inequity
I have broadly categorized both sinful and non-sinful sources of inequity into individual, cultural, and creational sources of inequity. These will need to be addressed in turn.
Individual
Among sinful sources on inequity, we will first look at inequity which results from other individuals. We can see this in the story of Jacob, who showed partiality towards his wife Rachel over Leah (Genesis 29:30), and then showed favor to Rachel’s son Joseph over his other brothers (Genesis 37:3). This led to inequities of treatment among Jacob’s wives and children and to much family jealousy and strife. This is an example of injustice resulting from the individual sin of another person. One other common example would be someone who cheats their neighbor out of money. This could lead to that person losing their home or other valuable goods. Depending on the situation and the amount stolen, this effect could carry on to subsequent generations if this injustice is left unaddressed.
Among individual sources of inequity, there is also inequity which results from our own sin. Proverbs 6:9-11 tells how laziness and sluggishness can result in poverty. “How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man.” Other Scriptures speak to how our foolishness leads to our destruction and affliction (Psalm 107:17, Proverbs 1:32). Even those who are companions of fools suffer harm (Proverbs 13:20). Conversely, there are inequities which result from people making wiser decisions than others. Proverbs 10:4 says, “A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.”
Cultural
Next, let’s look at cultural sources of sinful inequity. This includes injustices which are systemic in nature. Because of the pervasiveness of sin, we should expect that when sinful individuals create and inhabit earthly systems and cultures, this can lead to systemic injustices. We see an example of this in Acts 6:1-7. It was brought to the disciples’ attention that in the Jerusalem church, Greek widows were being neglected in the daily distribution while Hebrew ones were not. This may not have even been done maliciously, but it resulted in unfair treatment of the Greek widows. As a result, they appointed trustworthy men to oversee the distribution and the injustice was corrected. There are other examples in the Old Testament where Israel is collectively condemned for a pattern of injustices (Amos 2:4-8, Isaiah 5:8-25). These patterns of injustices would also lead to inequities.
Creational
Lastly, there are creational sources of sinful inequity. By this, I mean the effects of sin on nature (Genesis 3:14-19, Romans 8:20-22). Tornadoes, earthquakes, hurricanes, volcanos, floods, etc. can suddenly wipe out the home of one family or village but not another. In this category are also things like genetic defects, diseases, and numerous other health-related issues outside our control. Some people are born with debilitating genetic illnesses while many others are healthy. Because of the effect of the fall on creation, this will lead to disparities and inequities.
Non-Sinful Sources of Inequity
We now turn to sources of inequity which are not the result of sin, and in some cases are ordained by God himself.
Individual
Again, let us first address individual inequities which do not result from sin. There are inequities which result from our individual strengths and interests. Some people are smarter than others; some are stronger; some are taller; some want to be doctors and lawyers while others thrive in doing manual labor or manufacturing. Our many unique traits are not the result of sin. To the contrary, it is our individual uniqueness that displays God’s glory in creation (Psalm 139:13-16). No person is completely alike. Yet, these differences will lead to some having advantages that others don’t, which will inevitably result in some kind of inequity.
Cultural
There are also cultural sources of inequity which are not sinful. Just like individuals, different cultures have different values. The way some cultures view time as a commodity (like the United States & Germany) will lead them to utilize their resources in such a way for maximum efficiency. This inevitably will lead to global inequities of wealth. Yet, those other cultures, while they might not be as rich monetarily, would likely argue that they are richer in other ways.
Creational
Lastly, there are creational sources of inequity which aren’t the result of sin. This can involve disparities based on what seems like happenstance, such as one’s place of birth, family, country, etc. Economist Thomas Sowell argues that geography has historically been one of the greatest contributors to global inequality. If a tribe lives in an isolated region of an Amazon jungle, high in the mountains, or in the middle of a desert, the chances are much greater that they will have a lower standard of living than people who live on the coast or in a Mediterranean climate.
Spiritual
In addition to these, in Scripture, we can also recognize that there are spiritual inequities which are God-ordained! For example, God distributes the Holy Spirit to all believers (1 Corinthians 12:11), but does not give everyone the same giftings (1 Corinthians 12:28-30), even calling some giftings greater and higher than others (1 Corinthians 12:31, 14:5). While we are told to seek the higher gifts, we are by no means guaranteed an equal distribution of giftings. We also see that in the final judgment, while all Christians will obtain salvation, we will also be rewarded differently according to our faithfulness (1 Corinthians 3:10-15, Matthew 25:14-30).
Conclusion
While a great deal of inequity does result from sin, not all differences in outcome are the result of sin or are necessarily bad. A good portion does result from the sin of others (both individual and systemic, past and present). Some inequities result from our own sin. Others are the result of God’s sovereignty displayed in our individual created abilities and circumstances and are even approved of by God! We cannot reshape the earth nor remake every human to be exactly alike so that no inequity would ever exist, nor should we wish to do so. God often uses our various strengths, weaknesses, and natural resources to be a means of blessing others, as a way to foster growth in our own lives, and in order to display his glory. To try and eliminate all these inequities is, in essence, trying to play God. For those inequities which do result from injustices, Christians should debate how best to address them and this is the topic we will turn to in our final article.