Contemplative Bible Reading

Deuteronomy 1:16-17  (New Living Translation)

16 “At that time I instructed the judges, ‘You must hear the cases of your fellow Israelites and the foreigners living among you. Be perfectly fair in your decisions 17 and impartial in your judgments. Hear the cases of those who are poor as well as those who are rich. Don’t be afraid of anyone’s anger, for the decision you make is God’s decision. Bring me any cases that are too difficult for you, and I will handle them.’

Moses is charging the judges he has appointed. He reminds them that God is making the decision through them. Hence, they should not fear those who become angry when they pronounce a judgement.

Easy advice for Moses to give. I mean, he won’t be the guy standing in the local town square when the majority of the town starts literally gathering stones to express their displeasure with God’s decision delivered by the local judge. And the local judge might be hurriedly hopping on a donkey to leave town.

Who wants that job? You deliver what is often bad news to locals with a lot of local power?

Still, this is what Moses asks; this is the duty of a judge. The judge delivered God’s decision and faced the short-term, short-distance ire of his neighbors. In time and space, those who rebelled would be punished. The local judge might be dead when punishment was delivered, but the local judge was righteous.

As a Christian, I have a sense of the long-term justice of God. And I also have a sense of the short-term injustice of my fellow man. God asks me to do what Moses asked the Old Testament judges to do. Follow God, be righteous, love my fellow man, and endure without fear the hatred of some people.

This isn’t an easy job, but God provides, and He asked His son to do so much more.