I noticed in this article in the SMH that Michelle Leslie, an Australian woman facing charges relating to the possession of ecstacy in Indonesia, made a court appearance today where she said:
“I’d like to ask for mercy and justice from the court”

I would have thought that one could expect justive but hope for mercy, but how do you ask for both? If she is not guilty, then for justice to be done she will be acquitted and has no need for mercy. If she is guilty, then if justice is to be done – she would be punished; but if mercy were to be shown, she would be let go or given a reduced punishment.

Naturally, I thought of the life of a Christian – we trust that God is just and he punishes evil, which really means that everyone in this world deserves a strong punishment. However, we can throw ourselves on the mercy of the court, as it were, and ask for God’s forgiveness – and he is merciful and gives us a way out. See Ephesians 2:4-10