The Importance of Righteous Judges - A Biblical Perspective

In the Senate of the United States of America there is a battle raging. The outcome of this conflict will determine the direction of the nation for generations to come. It will affect every area of our lives, from morality to legal questions. The struggle is over who will serve as judges in the federal courts of our land. It seems as if a person's political views are more important than their character; their social views more essential than how they view the Constitution of the United States. It appears that we are in a time of crisis in the judicial branch of our republic. The President has presented nominees to the Senate for confirmation. In most cases these judges are not even getting a hearing before the whole Senate. The season our country entered on September 11, 2001 calls for judges who will be vigilant to guard the Constitution and our security as a nation.

The concept of having judges to oversee the disputes of people is not a contemporary idea. Indeed it goes back for thousands of years in the pursuit of justice for all people. In Exodus 18:13-26 the account is given:

13 It came about the next day that Moses sat to judge the people, and the people stood about Moses from the morning until the evening.
14 Now when Moses' father-in-law saw all that he was doing for the people, he said, "What is this thing that you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge and all the people stand about you from morning until evening?"
15 Moses said to his father-in-law, "Because the people come to me to inquire of God.
16 "When they have a dispute, it comes to me, and I judge between a man and his neighbor and make known the statutes of God and His laws."
17 Moses' father-in-law said to him, "The thing that you are doing is not good.
18 "You will surely wear out, both yourself and these people who are with you, for the task is too heavy for you; you cannot do it alone.
19 "Now listen to me: I will give you counsel, and God be with you. You be the people's representative before God, and you bring the disputes to God,
20 then teach them the statutes and the laws, and make known to them the way in which they are to walk and the work they are to do.
21 "Furthermore, you shall select out of all the people able men who fear God, men of truth, those who hate dishonest gain; and you shall place these over them as leaders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties and of tens.
22 "Let them judge the people at all times; and let it be that every major dispute they will bring to you, but every minor dispute they themselves will judge. So it will be easier for you, and they will bear the burden with you.
23 "If you do this thing and God so commands you, then you will be able to endure, and all these people also will go to their place in peace." (1)

In the early days after the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt, Moses realized that the burden of hearing all the issues himself was simply impossible. His father-in-law made the suggestion that he select men of with certain qualities and place them in charge of various groups determined by size. Some would be over thousands, some over hundreds, some over fifties, and some over tens. This would provide a system for handling the cases based on importance and credence. This is similar to our trial courts, appellate courts and Supreme Court.

In making these appointments there were three basic qualifications that were required: (1) that they fear God, (2) that they are men of truth, and (3) they must hate dishonest gain. These qualifications were simple but they were of utmost importance.

The first, that they fear God, would give them the courage they would need to decide very difficult cases. If their fear was that they would not please man then they would be unable to do the right thing in each case. But to fear God is to know that they are fallible and to focus on doing what is right in the eyes of God and carrying out true justice. In other places in scripture the judges are warned about the danger of distorting justice (Deuteronomy 16:19 - "You shall not distort justice; you shall not be partial . . .). This was not tolerable for the judge because he was to be the personification of justice before the people.

This is not to establish some type of religious test for judges, which is forbidden in Article VI Section 3 of the Constitution of the United States. There should be no consideration as to whether a person is Jewish, Christian, etc. Rather it is simply an acknowledgement of what Solomon said in Proverbs 9:10 - "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom . . ." It is recognizing that there is an authority that is greater than he or she.

It is made clear in Deuteronomy 10:20 that there is to be only one focus for the judge: "Justice, and only justice, you shall pursue." The judge should not push his own political agenda but should interpret the law in a fair way that brings justice to the land and to the people.

The second basic qualification is that they are to be men of truth. Truth, of course, must be the basis for justice. Without it there will be no justice at all. This too was a major concern throughout all of scripture for all people but especially for those who would serve to judge others. In Proverbs 6: 16-19 Solomon mentions character traits that God hates.

16 There are six things which the LORD hates,
Yes, seven which are an abomination to Him:
17 Haughty eyes, a lying tongue,
And hands that shed innocent blood,
18 A heart that devises wicked plans,
Feet that run rapidly to evil,
19 A false witness who utters lies,
And one who spreads strife among brothers.

At the top of the list are pride and a lying tongue. When a man is prideful he makes decisions that are only for his self interest not for the good of those he is to serve. If lies are a part of his character it indicates a flaw that will not give him the title of a "man of truth."

When Isaiah surveyed the condition of Israel in chapter five of his prophetic words he spoke of issues that were "woes" to the nation. Indeed these were the issues that caused them to be weak and susceptible to falling. Several of these "woes" are clearly related to the issue of truthfulness. In verses 18 and 20 Isaiah says "woe to those who drag iniquity with the cords of falsehood . . ." The mental picture that is drawn here is that the people, and ultimately the judges, have sought their own gain by carrying out judgments that are pulled along by that which is false, the direct opposite of the truth.

Isaiah then said, "woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness . . ." The emphasis is on the fact that judges are to "call it as it is" - not as he, or others, would like for it to be. To call evil good and good evil is to totally pervert the nation and the system that has been set up to carry out true justice. Men and women who do not have a basic respect for life and liberty have no business serving in the courts of our land.

The final basic qualification is that "they hate dishonest gain." The judges are to demonstrate integrity in every area of their lives. With this qualification Isaiah clearly puts the emphasis on doing justice. We must have judges whose role focuses on the pursuit of justice for all the people.

It is true that the U.S. Constitution does not give character qualifications as manifestly as the scripture does for those who serve as judges. Perhaps it was simply an accepted fact that honesty was held in such high regard by our founders that they never could conceive of anyone becoming a judge who was not above reproach in every area of his or her life. But there is one phrase in the Constitution that points to the character of the appointed judges. It is found in Article III, Section 1.1 discussing the tenure of a judge. Judges on both the Supreme Court and all lower federal courts are appointed to life terms, but now without qualification. The Constitution says that their tenure will be "during good behavior." Justice Joseph Story, who served on the U.S. Supreme Court from 1811 to 1845, said "This tenure of office seems indispensable to a due degree of independence and firmness on their part in the discharge of the duties of their office; and to a due security to the people for their fidelity and impartiality, in administering private rights and preserving the public liberties." (2) (Emphasis mine) It is obvious that the founders expected that if a judge at any level were to forgo "good behavior" then he or she would no longer be qualified to serve as a judge.

It is in the best interest of our country for the President to nominate, and the Senate to confirm, judges to serve this nation who are qualified and wise in dealing with the issues that will face them. There is no room for partisanship at this time of crisis in our land. We must call on all of our elected officials to act in a manner that is "good for America" putting all personal and political bias aside. We must call on them to confirm judges who understand the rule of law, the Constitution of the U.S., and who have the character that will push them to pursue "justice, and only justice."

Bill Haynes
Senior Policy Analyst for Cultural & Worldview Studies

1. The New American Standard Bible, (La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation) 1996.

2. Joseph Story, A Familiar Exposition of the Constitution of the United States, Regnery Gateway, 1986. Originally published in 1858