“nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his dispute.” Exodus 23:3
After God has given Moses the Ten Commandments, He now begins to unfold how these will apply in the everyday lives of the Children of Israel. From here on out, as we read through Exodus and on to the end of Deuteronomy, “The Law”, will develop into 3 distinct Arenas for the Jews: Moral, Civil, and Ceremonial. As Christians, we must see this or we will flounder in our understanding of It! So, as God begins to provide this to Moses, He touches on an aspect that would be part of their Civil Code; how a Judge would hear and consider a Case. When he heard both sides of an argument, what constraints would govern his Decision Making? No Bias. He had to be completely Objective! In Today’s Reading, we are told of the danger of a “malicious witness”, “following a crowd to do evil”, as well as the danger of siding with a crowd “to pervert justice”; then Today’s Verse warning them about being “partial to the poor”. As you can see, God condemns this! Partiality had no place in the Jewish Legal World. So how can we utilize this in our lives today? How is this Applicable to the Christian?
All of us love to root for the Underdog. Whether it be a sports team, an unknown politician, or a character in a movie; it’s who we side with and pull for. It’s the American Way! But then it spills over into times of judgement that has ramifications. It isn’t just our opinion anymore; it’s our involvement in a decision or a legal ruling that will impact others. God was quite specific about this, as we can see. We are to be totally unbiased and objective. Poverty is to have no more sway than Wealth! But this is the opposite of what we see in today’s World. Today we see our fellow man rallying behind the Underdog; the Down and Outer; those languishing in their Poverty. Is it because the Word of God is not read or believed anymore? I believe it is. This is Why it is Crucial for Today’s Christian to understand what the Bible teaches; the Whole Bible, not just the Gospels or the New Testament. This is one of the reasons I write these Posts and encourage others to do what Augustine was initially told, “Tolle Lege”; Take Up and Read!