Judges and courtrooms are serious business, not to be taken lightly. When looking at the history of the use of the gavel by a judge, the beginnings are murky. It is suggested that the word "gavel" comes from the old English word, gafol, meaning the demand by the lord of the land for the rent due, or the tribute owed by the tenant for the use of his land. The law makes a demand, and the demand must be satisfied.
It used to be that if a debt was owed and not paid, the debtor would be placed in the debtor's prison until someone was willing to come forward to pay the debt for him, or until he or she earned enough while living in the prison to pay the debt themselves-an almost impossible task. Some debtors spent the rest of their lives in debtor's prison. Charles Dickens wrote a novel about such a situation called, "Little Dorrit". The story is about a little girl, born and raised in a debtor's prison, where her family had been sentenced. Charles Dickens' own father was sentenced to debtor's prison, and he wrote the story to bring attention to the injustice of the system.
Some who owed a debt became indentured servants to the one who held the debt. The one who held the debt could "sell" the debt of the indentured servant to a third party, and then the indentured servant would have to work for the new debt holder until the debt was paid. The system was called debt bondage. This debt bondage system was banned by the United Nations in 1948 in its Universal Declaration of Human Rights, but that declaration is not legally binding, of course. Some countries have included the principles of the Declaration in their treaties and trade agreements with other nations, but it is not compulsory.
Even though we have been trying for thousands of years, with input from the greatest legal minds past and present, our system of justice is still far from perfect today, perhaps because man is imperfect.
All of these facts are mentioned to illustrate the point that judgment, while meant to establish justice, is always joined to consequence or punishment. For every guilty verdict, the judge must also impose a sentence. Sometimes a judge has leeway in what kind of sentence is imposed, but he or she is bound by law to sentence the guilty according to the parameters dictated by the law.
When the judges are corrupt, so are their judgments, and then also the resulting punishments. For the judges must not forget that they are subject to the same law by which they judge others.
Scripture brings us deeper into the subject of judging and judgments. The godly king Jehoshaphat ("Jehovah has judged"), one of the most pious and prosperous kings of Judah, appointed judges to all the cities of Judah. When he appointed them, the king instructed them:
"Take heed to what you are doing, for you do not judge (shaphat-judge, govern, vindicate, punish, execute judgment, condemning and punishing, plead, defend, deliver) for man but for the LORD, who is with you in the judgment. Now therefore, let the fear of the LORD be upon you; take care and do it, for there is no iniquity with the LORD our God, no partiality, no taking of bribes." 2 Chron. 19:6-7
The responsibility of the judge is very great. As good king Jehoshaphat decreed, whatever judgment the one who judges makes, the LORD is in the judgment. How the matter is judged brings either execution of punishment, and/or achieves vindication, defense, and deliverance. Remember, a person judged guilty of the law, must suffer the penalty of the law, also, because the law is a covenant that has an "if/then" foundation. The judge, himself, must be without iniquity (injustice, unrighteousness, violent deeds of injustice, injustice of speech, deal unjustly), because iniquity will corrupt judgment. Those judging must treat self, friends, enemies, strangers, family members, rich, or poor the same under the law. Judges cannot be influenced by benevolent and advantageous acts towards himself by the one being judged.
Good king Jehoshaphat's father, Asa, was also a good king of Judah. Because the LORD had delivered him and his army from the hands of an overwhelming enemy (2 Chron. 14:8-13), he and his people entered into a covenant promise. They took an oath that they would seek the LORD God of their fathers with all their heart and with all their soul (2 Chron. 15:12). That sounds awesome! However, they also vowed that whoever would not seek the LORD God of Israel was to be put to death, whether small or great, whether man or woman. Here is where King Asa goes wrong. His own mother, Maachah (oppression, emasculation, castration), the dowager queen, established a particularly obscene image (NKJV) of a blood-thirsty goddess (Asherah/grove). While the king destroyed the idol, he did not kill his mother in accordance with the oath sworn, but deposed her from her position (v. 16). He showed partiality. I'm sure he was partial because she was his mother, but also because she was royal, and that was hitting too close to home!
Asa did not hold himself to the oath either, relying on foreign alliances rather than the LORD, for his security. As a result of not seeking the LORD, his kingdom would suffer wars. Asa oppressed the prophet who brought him this sentence of the LORD, putting the prophet in prison. Out of this anger, Asa also began oppressing some of the people (2 Chron. 16:7-10). By this behavior, he was acting in the definition of iniquity. Asa also did not seek the LORD when he became dangerously ill, but relied upon men, instead. Therefore, this illness resulted in his death (v. 12-13). The judge is also subject to the law by which he judges others.
Asa's name means "healer, physician", but it can also mean "injurious, harming". How he established law, and carried out the consequences that were to follow the law, made all the difference as to whether he would be a healer, or harming. I can see why his son, Jehoshaphat, made it a point to establish righteous judges. Judging can be a v-e-r-y tricky business.
We can easily fall into the same trap. We can be very quick to judge others, but when doing so, we may just as easily fall into the mouth of judgment ourselves.
Jesus, as usual, had very deep wisdom and advice concerning judging. In light of some of the above information, that advice sounds even wiser than ever:
"Judge (to esteem, approve, prefer, deem, think, determine, resolve, decree, pronounce, opinion regarding right or wrong, pronounce judgment, to subject to censure, condemn, punish, avenge, conclude, damn, decree, ordain, sentence to) not that you be not judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you...Condemn (to give judgment against, to pronounce guilty, sentence of condemnation) not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you...A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher. And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not perceive the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, "Brother, let me remove the speck that is in your eye", when you yourself do not see the plank that is in your own eye? First, remove the plank from your own eye...For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. For every tree is known by its own fruit...A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good, and an evil man out of the treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks." Mt. 7:1-2, Lk. 6:37-45 (excerpt)
Do these words of Christ's mean that we are not to teach, or stand for righteousness? I don't think it means that. Jesus brought the truth about the kingdom of God and His righteousness (Mt. 6:33). Jesus corrected His own disciples when they were in error, so His statements were not about correcting error. Paul taught about the connection between the kingdom of God and righteousness (Rom. 14:17). The righteousness we stand for is the gift of righteousness to us through Christ, and not of our own making. Scripture says that if we will confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 Jn. 1:9). As Jesus said, however, that conviction and confession of sin begins with ourselves. To do otherwise, I am thinking, causes us to be partial in judging like King Asa, and like him, doing harm instead of producing healing (2 Chron. 7:14).
Our Father is a King Who is looking for just judges.
Panel entitled "The Just Judges", part of the group of panels called, "Adoration of the Mystical Lamb" by Jan van Eyck, painted 1430-32. "The Just Judges" panel was stolen in 1934, and has never been recovered, even though the thief was known. In 1945, a copy was commissioned to fill the empty space.
Jacob was in a tight spot. His brother, Esau, was angry with him, even threatening to kill him, because Jacob, pretending to be his older brother Esau, had tricked the blessing from their blind father, Isaac (Gen. 27:1-29). Their mother, Rebekah, overhearing Esau's murderous threats, told Jacob to go to her family in the east, to the house of his uncle, Laban in Haran:
"Surely your brother Esau, comforts himself concerning you by intending to kill you."
Gen. 27:42 (Ps. 64:5)
Jacob was running for his life, because if there was one thing Esau knew how to do, it was how to hunt and kill. His mother assured Jacob that his exile would only be for a few days, until Esau's anger had cooled, however, Jacob would not return for twenty years. Their father, Isaac, was told that Jacob was going back to the old country to find a wife from their own people, and he gave Jacob another blessing:
"May God Almighty bless you...and give you the blessing of Abraham." Gen. 28:3-4
After Jacob began his journey, he slept and dreamed. In his dream, God appeared to him. The LORD identified Himself as the God of Abraham, and the God of Jacob's father, Isaac. God promised that He would give the land, and many descendants to Jacob. It was very similar to the promise that God had given to Abraham, like the blessing that Isaac had prayed over Jacob. God concluded by promising:
"Behold, I am with you, and will keep you (shamar, root word of "Samaria", meaning to keep, watch, protect, to keep covenant and Sabbath, be a watchman) wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you." Gen. 28:15
Jacob was in awe, and called this place Bethel, meaning "House of God (El-root:the ram of sacrifice)". Jacob vowed that if God did as He promised, then He would be Jacob's God, and Jacob would give the LORD a tenth of all that he would possess (Gen. 28:20-22). Jacob only knew God as the God of Abraham, and the God of his father, Isaac. Jacob did not know the LORD as God for himself at this point in his life and journey, but God was not done with Jacob yet.
As Jacob came to the place of his mother's family at Haran, he immediately saw and fell in love with Rachel, when she came to the well. He even kissed her right there, and wept (Gen. 29:11). She had come to the well with her family's sheep at the beginning of the day, well before the accustomed time for bringing the flocks (v. 7-8). Jacob discovered that this beautiful girl was the daughter of his mother's brother, Laban.
Because of the trickery of his uncle, Rachel's father, Laban, Jacob ended up agreeing to work for his uncle for fourteen years, in order to receive Rachel as his wife. After the seven years of the previous agreement, Laban had deceived Jacob and substituted his older daughter, Leah (weary, impatient, grieved, offended, faint, tired, disgusted), to be Jacob's wife instead. Though angry, Jacob agreed to work an additional seven years, if he could have Rachel as well (Gen. 29:27). Jacob must have wondered "When will I finish working this off, and when will I be able to finally return home? How much longer?" As it happened, Jacob also worked an additional six years for Laban to receive his own flocks and herds. Along the way, Laban continued to trick and deceive Jacob to try to get the better of their bargain. Jacob had indeed met his match with his father-in-law, as far as trickery was concerned. However, at each instance of deception, Jacob was still able to prosper out of the situation. He prospered in children, and in flocks and herds, so much so, that Laban became fed up, and, after twenty years, the LORD told Jacob that it was time to take his household and go back to the land of his fathers (Gen. 31:1-7). The LORD again promised to be with Jacob. Although Jacob admitted that it was only because of the LORD that he was able to prosper so under a very crafty Laban, Jacob still referred to God as "the God of my father".
After some contention during Jacob's departure, he and Laban eventually made a covenant of a kind of peace treaty, designated by a heap of stones. Jacob even received a blessing from Laban:
"May the LORD watch between you and me when we are absent one from another."
Gen. 31:49
Now Jacob, arriving back in his homeland, would once again have to face his brother, Esau. How would Esau receive him? He found out that Esau had heard of his coming, and was coming out to meet him with four hundred men. Accompanied with so many men, it was doubtful that Esau had forgotten any of his anger against Jacob. Jacob had three separate gifts of flocks and herds sent to Esau ahead of his own arrival. These flocks and herds cost him six years of his life, now to be given to appease his maniacal brother. Would the gifts turn away Esau's anger, and his plan to go to war with Jacob? Jacob considered the loss well worth the benefit of safety. Esau's name means "hairy", but the hairiness refers to the shaggy hair of the he-goat (see Gen. 27:16). The he-goat has been an age-old symbol for Satan, as the Concordance mentions.
That night, Jacob had another awesome encounter with the LORD. Jacob wrestled with a Man until daybreak, and demanded a blessing from Him. The only way the Man could break Jacob's hold was to dislocate Jacob's hip. The blessing the Man gave to Jacob was to change his name to "Israel" (God Prevails: contend, have power (as a prince), persist, exert oneself, persevere, contend with), "for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed." (Gen. 32:24-28). King James Version says, "...for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed." Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, "I have seen God face to face. Many say and believe that Jacob wrestled with an angel, but it was not an angel in scripture- it was a Man, the God-as-Man, Jesus.
Esau, like Satan, turned his back on his Godly purpose and future because he coveted the satisfying of his hunger and desires of the now. Jacob instead coveted the blessing at every opportunity. It is the blessing that fills both the now, and the tomorrow, into eternity. The blessing is truly the gift that keeps on giving.
As Jacob then prepared to meet Esau face to face, he placed both wives, two concubines, and all of his many children ahead of himself, and the remainder of his flocks. In the face of the previous gifts, and with the sight of all of the children, including eleven sons at the time, and the repeated prostration of Jacob, Esau met Jacob with a hug, and kisses, asking, "Who are these with you?" Though the initial meeting went well, Jacob had to use the excuse of the slower pace of the suckling animals in his remaining flock and herd, and the slow travel needed for the women and children, in order to avoid travelling with a still volatile Esau and his men.
While Jacob must have asked himself many times, "When?", all of the 20 years spent laboring for his crafty, deceitful father-in-law were needed to produce the fruitfulness that saved his life, and secured his future.
Most of us in our walk with Christ have asked the same question, "When, God?", as we seem to have to wait through fear, discomfort, contention, injustice and trial for the promise of God to manifest. However, even as God kept His promise that He would be with Jacob, and would not leave him until He had done all that He had promised, so He is with us until He has kept all that He has promised us. And, as with Jacob, all that we go through on the journey, even if meant by others for evil, God produces from those very things abundant fruitfulness in our lives. We trust in that. It is the strength of our faith.
Upon his arrival at Shalem (peace, covenant of peace, whole, perfect, safe, to be requited), Jacob built an altar in this place of his purchase in Shechem (back or shoulders, place of burden), and called the altar, "El Elohe Israel", meaning God, the God of Israel (Gen. 33:18-20). Jacob no longer knew God only as the God of Abraham, and his father, Isaac, but Jacob now knew God as the God of Israel, himself (and his posterity).
As a final thought, let me tell you what the name Laban means. It means "white". Looking deeper to the roots, it means, "to make white, become white, purify, to purge, to cleanse from the filthiness of sins", and finally, "to make bricks". Through the "Laban experience", while we are asking, "When God, how long?", God is doing a cleansing, purging and purifying work in us, building something with us as living bricks or stones. He reveals who He is to us, personally, through this journey. And as promised, He is with us to the end.
Our Father is with us, and keeps us until He accomplishes all that He has said.
