The state then, according to scripture, was made the ministry of justice. But wherever Christ ceases to be man's savior, there liberty perishes as the state again asserts its messianic claims
Justice in the Bible means restitution to a very great degree. Restitution and restoration are the essence of justice. The prison system as an answer to the problem of crime is a modern and anti-biblical scheme: it does nothing to further either restitution or restoration and accomplishes little other than removing the criminal from society temporarily. It does not remedy crime nor does it remedy the criminal, as it purports to do.