Deuteronomy 1:17

Historical Prologue

¹⁶ “Then I commanded your judges at that time, saying, ‘Hear the matters between your brothers [your fellow countrymen], and judge righteously and fairly between a man and his brother, or the stranger (resident alien, foreigner) who is with him. ¹⁷ You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear and pay attention to the [cases of the] least [important] as well as the great. You shall not fear man, for the judgment is God’s. The case that is too hard for you [to judge], you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.’ ¹⁸ I commanded you at that time [regarding] all the things that you should do.

Show Partiality

Small and Great

Be Partial

O God

No

Exodus 18:26

And they judged the people at all times; they would bring the difficult cases to Moses, but every minor dispute they judged and decided themselves.

Leviticus 19:15

‘You shall not do injustice in judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor nor show a preference for the great, but judge your neighbor fairly.

Deuteronomy 16:19

You shall not distort justice; you shall not be partial, and you shall not take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and perverts the words of the righteous.

2 Chronicles 19:6

and he said to the judges, “Be careful what you do, for you do not judge for man, but for the Lord who is with you in the matter of judgment.

Proverbs 24:23

These also are sayings of the wise:
To show partiality in judgment is not good.

Exodus 18:22

They shall judge the people at all times; have them bring every major dispute to you, but let them judge every minor dispute themselves. So it will be easier for you, and they will bear the burden with you.

James 2:9

But if you show partiality [prejudice, favoritism], you are committing sin and are convicted by the Law as offenders.

Exodus 23:6-7

“You shall not pervert (bend) the justice due to your poor in his dispute.

Deuteronomy 10:17

For the Lord your God is the God of gods and the Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, the awesome God who does not show partiality nor take a bribe.

Proverbs 29:25

The fear of man brings a snare,
But whoever trusts in and puts his confidence in the Lord will be exalted and safe.

Exodus 18:18

You will certainly wear out both yourself and these people who are with you, because the task is too heavy for you [to bear]; you cannot do it alone.

Exodus 23:2-3

You shall not follow a crowd to do [something] evil, nor shall you testify at a trial or in a dispute so as to side with a crowd in order to pervert justice;

Deuteronomy 17:8-10

“If any case is too difficult for you to judge—between one kind of homicide and another, between one kind of lawsuit and another, between one kind of assault and another, being controversial issues in your courts—then you shall arise and go to the place which the Lord your God chooses.

Deuteronomy 24:17

“You shall not pervert the justice due a stranger or an orphan, nor seize (impound) a widow’s garment as security [for a loan].

1 Samuel 12:3-4

Here I am; testify against me before the Lord and [Saul] His anointed [if I have done someone wrong]. Whose ox have I taken, or whose donkey have I taken, or whom have I exploited? Whom have I oppressed or from whose hand have I taken a bribe to blind my eyes [to the truth]? [Tell me and] I will restore it to you.”

1 Samuel 16:7

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

2 Samuel 14:14

For we will certainly die and are like water that is spilled on the ground and cannot be gathered up again. Yet God does not [simply] take away life, but devises plans so that the one who is banished is not driven away from Him.

1 Kings 21:8-14

So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name and sealed them with his seal, and sent them to the elders and nobles who lived with Naboth in his city.

Job 22:6-9

“For you have taken pledges of your brothers without cause,
And stripped men naked.

Job 29:11-17

“For when an ear heard [my name mentioned], it called me happy and fortunate;
And when an eye saw [me], it testified for me [approvingly],

Job 31:13-16

“If I have despised and rejected the claim of my male or female servants
When they filed a complaint against me,

Job 31:34

Because I feared the great multitude,
And the contempt of families terrified me,
So that I kept silence and did not acknowledge my sin and did not go out of the door?

Psalm 82:3-4

Vindicate the weak and fatherless;
Do justice and maintain the rights of the afflicted and destitute.

Proverbs 22:22-23

Do not rob the poor because he is poor [and defenseless],
Nor crush the afflicted [by legal proceedings] at the gate [where the city court is held],

Jeremiah 1:17

But you [Jeremiah], gird up your loins [in preparation]! Get up and tell them all which I command you. Do not be distraught and break down at the sight of their [hostile] faces, or I will bewilder you before them and allow you to be overcome.

Jeremiah 5:28-29

‘They are fat and they are sleek (prosperous),
They excel in acts of wickedness;
They do not plead the cause,
The cause of the orphan, so that they [the wicked] may prosper,
And they do not defend the rights of the poor.

Amos 5:11-12

Therefore, because you impose heavy rent on the poor
And demand a tribute (food-tax) of grain from them,
Though you have built [luxurious] houses of square stone,
You will not live in them;
You have planted beautiful vineyards, but you will not drink their wine.

Micah 2:1-3

Woe (judgment is coming) to those who devise wickedness
And plot evil on their beds!
When morning comes, they practice evil
Because it is in the power of their hands.

Micah 3:1-4

And I said,

“Hear now, heads of Jacob
And rulers of the house of Israel.
Is it not for you to know and administer justice?

Micah 7:3-4

Concerning evil, both of their hands pursue it and do it diligently and thoroughly;
The prince asks, also the judge, for a bribe,
And a great man speaks the [evil] desire of his soul.
So they twist the course of justice between them.

Matthew 22:16

They sent their disciples to Him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that You are sincere and that You teach the way of God truthfully, without concerning Yourself about [what] anyone [thinks or says of Your teachings]; for You are impartial and do not seek anyone’s favor [and You treat all people alike, regardless of status].

Mark 12:14

They came and said to Him, “Teacher, we know that You are truthful and have no personal bias toward anyone; for You are not influenced by outward appearances or social status, but in truth You teach the way of God. Is it lawful [according to Jewish law and tradition] to pay the poll-tax to [Tiberius] Caesar, or not?

Luke 20:21

They asked Him, “Teacher, we know that You speak and teach correctly, and that You show no partiality to anyone, but teach the way of God truthfully.

Acts 10:34-35

Opening his mouth, Peter said:

“Most certainly I understand now that God is not one to show partiality [to people as though Gentiles were excluded from God’s blessing],

Romans 2:11

For God shows no partiality [no arbitrary favoritism; with Him one person is not more important than another].

Ephesians 6:9

You masters, do the same [showing goodwill] toward them, and give up threatening and abusive words, knowing that [He who is] both their true Master and yours is in heaven, and that there is no partiality with Him [regardless of one’s earthly status].

Colossians 3:25

For he who does wrong will be punished for his wrongdoing, and [with God] there is no partiality [no special treatment based on a person’s position in life].

1 Thessalonians 2:4

But just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel [that tells the good news of salvation through faith in Christ], so we speak, not as [if we were trying] to please people [to gain power and popularity], but to please God who examines our hearts [expecting our best].

James 2:1-5

My fellow believers, do not practice your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of partiality [toward people—show no favoritism, no prejudice, no snobbery].

1 Peter 1:17

If you address as Father, the One who impartially judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves in [reverent] fear [of Him] and with profound respect for Him throughout the time of your stay on earth.