The Bible and Politics

The Bible is not silent about political matters. Civil government exists by God's command and not because a group of men got together and created a social contract. In Proverbs 21:1, Solomon says that God can turn a ruler's heart. In Daniel 2:20-21, Daniel declares that God both removes and sets up rulers. Ultimately, God is in charge of the institutions of human government, and He has power over them. Paul writes in Romans 13:1:

"Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God."

In fact, Paul calls civil rulers the "ministers of God," who were to be respected (Rom 13:3). Civil leaders are doing the will of God by maintaining civil order and upholding justice. That's their job.

The Bible constantly treats the position of authority as one that is given by God for His purposes. "For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south. But God is the judge: He putteth down one, and setteth up another" (Psalm 75:6-7). That does not mean that those who became leaders obeyed God or served Him well. There are plenty of kings and rulers in Israel who turned away from God and followed their own desires. Yet, God still gave them the position for His purposes. And while there were many leaders in Israel's history who made evil decisions, there was Esther, who came through for her people after she was made a wife of the king of Persia, "for such a time as this,"(Esther 4:14).