This section of the law further adds to our understanding of the pro-life ethic (here and here, for instance) and fleshes out at least three of the ten commandments.
►The 9th commandment immediately comes to mind: “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor” (Ex. 20:16). We’re not to lie about someone, especially in a court of law where the stakes are high. It might be a life and death matter.
►This brings up the 6th commandment: “You shall not murder” (Ex. 20:13). It is a perversion of justice to convict the innocent and let the guilty go free, especially when a court case involves capital crime and human life is at stake.
►The 3rd commandment also comes into play… in our system of justice, and presumably in Mosaic law: “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain” (Ex. 20:7).
In Israel’s history, many oaths were prefaced by the phrase, “As the Lord lives.” It linked God’s existence to whatever was being asserted by an individual. If the statement proved false, God’s very being had been called into question and He wants no part in false testimony (Leviticus 19:12; Isaiah 48:1, Jeremiah 5:2).
Witnesses in our courts are expected to swear or affirm they will tell “the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth,” perhaps with one hand resting on a copy of God’s word and the added phrase, “so help me God.” By doing so, God’s help in telling the truth is invoked. Witnesses may also hope to impress upon hearers that God vouches for the veracity of their statements. He becomes their witness.
According to Federal Rules of Evidence, these little ceremonies are designed to impress the duty of truth-telling on the witness’s conscience. Witnesses are also seated near the judge, under his or her watchful eye. For any legal system to work, it must be founded on the truth.
How justice is perverted
“Malicious witnesses” pervert justice in many ways:
- Exodus 23:1 - Justice is perverted when good people knowingly agree to be a witness on behalf of a guilty person.
- Exodus 23:2 - Justice is perverted when witnesses follow the dictates of the crowd rather than their conscience. Witnesses are warned not to let the mob or populist pressure cause them to lie in court.
- Exodus 23:3 - Justice may be perverted by sympathy for the poor. The poor make up a large segment of the population (see v2), but injustice will not help them in the long run.
- Exodus 23:6 - Many poor folk have little power and few influential friends; they often lack the means to effectively advocate for themselves. Justice is perverted when their rights are overlooked. Foreigners, orphans, and widows are particularly vulnerable to injustice (Deuteronomy 24:17).
This passage, as well as others such as Leviticus 19:15, call for equal treatment under the law: “You shall do no injustice in judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor nor defer to the great, but you are to judge your neighbor fairly.” Partiality usually leans toward the rich and great (as in James 2:1-7), but it’s also possible to be unjustly partial to the poor. Both excesses are wrong.
- Exodus 23:7 - Justice is also perverted when witnesses haven’t kept themselves far from false matters or when they have a guilty mind about other deceits and clandestine actions. Stay away from “small” indiscretions or they’ll ensnare you, and you’ll become implicated in more serious matters.
- Exodus 23:8 - Finally, justice is perverted by bribery. Judges and witnesses should be people of truth who hate dishonest gain (Ex. 18:21). The greedy are prone to accepting bribes, but bribery can also blind the wise and corrupt the righteous. Watch out!
Isaiah 5:20-23 cries out against injustice: “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil… Who justify the wicked for a bribe, and take away the rights of the ones who are in the right!”
Why is justice important to God?
Exodus 23:7 also teaches that wicked people are not justified by God when human beings justify them. They are reserved for judgment (2 Peter 2:9).
Injustice is evil in God’s eyes and He wanted it purged from His land. The way to do that, according to Deuteronomy 19:16-21, was by inflicting malicious witnesses with the punishment their innocent victims would have received, along the lines of the lex talionis (‘eye for an eye’) principle. This would restore justice and teach others not to do the same.
The word 'justice' appears 130+ times in the Bible, depending on version. God is offended by perverted justice because it defies His character:
- Lying tongues, hands shedding innocent blood, and false witnesses are three of the seven things that the Lord hates (Proverbs 6:16-19)
- By contrast, God loves justice (Psalm 11:7, 33:5, 99:4; Is. 61:8; Jer. 9:24).
- God Himself does not show partiality or take a bribe (Dt. 10:17; 2 Chronicles 19:7)
- It is impossible for God to lie (Hebrews 6:18)
- God Himself will testify against false witnesses (Malachi 3:5)
- God wants His people to “Speak the truth to each other, and render true and sound judgment in your courts” (Zechariah 8:16)
- Bottom line, He is a God of justice (Is. 30:18)
Perversion of justice can be a pro-life matter
False witnesses were used to bring about the death of Jesus and His followers (Matthew 26:59-61; Acts 6:11-13). The account of John the Baptist’s death also illustrates our point well; although Herod was sorry to behead the prophet, he had made a rash promise and then weakly caved in to the wishes of Salome and his dinner guests (Mark 6:26).
As we’ve seen, injustice is a serious matter. It can result in the severe punishment or death of the wrong person while the guilty party goes free.
God’s word repeatedly links injustice with the shedding of innocent blood, and we will be going more in-depth on the subject as the blog wears on, but here’s a sampling:
- People accept bribes to strike down innocent people (Dt. 27:25)
- Men of bloodshed employ bribes (Ps. 26:9-10)
- False witnesses breathe out violence (Ps. 27:12)
- Greed goes hand-in-hand with murder and the neglect of widows/orphans (Is. 1:21-23)
- God wants His people to speak up on behalf of those who are unjustly being led to slaughter, otherwise He considers us weak and cowardly (Prov. 24:10-12)
Image credit: Dr Syntax in a Court of Justice, William Combe, 1868.
Oh my goodness!! This is very humbling: God is so very holy and completely just ALL the time and in EVERY place and circumstance; He never sways away from justice: publicly and privately. When we depart from His justice by speaking wrongly in public; or refraining from speaking rightly; or in the way we think in our hearts; or the way we refrain from thinking rightly in our hearts, we are sinning against Him because He is perfect justice. I'm thinking about David and his very public sins and his very private prayer in Psalm 51. Confession of our sin and recognition of God's just judgment brings us back to joy, gladness and rejoicing. God is so amazing and kind to us!!
ReplyDeleteAgainst You, You only, have I sinned,
And done this evil in Your sight--
That You may be found just when You speak,
And blameless when you judge.
Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
And in sin my mother conceived me.
Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts,
And in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom.
Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Make me hear joy and gladness,
That the bones You have broken may rejoice. Psalm 51:4-8
Thanks, Janet! "Let God be true, and every man a liar" (Rom. 3:4). The you-have-heard-it-said-but-I-say statements about the law in Matthew 5 echo this thought. We may think we're okay because we haven't murdered someone, but meanwhile we're guilty of simmering anger or contempt against a brother. That is for a future post!
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