Manchester bombing: Will we see justice?

Written By Jasmine Koh, Singapore

It should have been an exciting close to a concert by Ariana Grande, with thousands of concert-goers gathering to hear the latest hits of the 23-year-old American pop singer. But it ended in horror when a bomb went off in the foyer of Manchester Arena, killing 22 people and injuring 59, leaving behind a scene of shrapnel, bodies and bloodstains.

The May 22 blast was the deadliest attack in Britain since July 2005, when four suicide bombers attacked London’s transport network, killing 52 people.

Even as news reports continue to stream in with the latest updates on the arrests of the suspected bomber and his accomplices and their links to a terrorist network, questions are already being asked: Why another attack? Who will account for the senseless loss of lives? Who will speak up for eight-year-old Saffie Rose Roussos, or for 42-year-old Marcin Klis? Who will help their families cope with their loss?

In their deaths, many of us will feel great sadness—and anger. We will want to seek justice. Yet, in this battle against terror, it seems there is little we can do to fight the ugliness of mankind. How can we ever ensure that justice is done? Why do we appear so powerless against terrorist attacks?

Perhaps justice can only come from someone above, from someone who is beyond death and life: God, who is in control over all things.

Only God can ensure that good will ultimately triumph over the evil. Only God can deliver judgment—an eternal judgment that will speak for innocent lives and punish the wrongdoings of evil men.

Ecclesiastes 3:17 says: “I said in my heart, God shall judge the righteous and the wicked: for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work.” When the time comes for God’s justice to be restored, we can trust that He will judge the wicked in His own time.

Indeed, amid today’s hopelessness and darkness, we can already see glimpses of good and of hope. We catch sight of loving hearts and heroic actions, like those of Chris Parker and Steve Jones, the two homeless men who rushed onto the chaotic scene right after the blast to help rescue an old woman and a little girl. Their actions give us hope in a world gripped by fear.

The Manchester bombing may describe the corruptness of human hearts, as does the suicide bombing at the Jakarta bus terminal that took place two days later. But we can continue looking to God. May we learn to see Him in the chaos, and to be assured that His judgment will come to pass in His time.

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