19 Thou dost not turn aside judgment; thou dost not discern faces, nor take a bribe, for the bribe blindeth the eyes of the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.
`Ye do not do perversity in judgment; thou dost not lift up the face of the poor, nor honour the face of the great; in righteousness thou dost judge thy fellow.
`Thou art not after many to evil, nor dost thou testify concerning a strife, to turn aside after many to cause `others' to turn aside;
These also are for the wise: -- To discern faces in judgment is not good.
A bribe from the bosom the wicked taketh, To turn aside the paths of judgment.
`Thou dost not turn aside the judgment of a fatherless sojourner, nor take in pledge the garment of a widow;
for Jehovah your God -- He `is' God of the gods, and Lord of the lords; God, the great, the mighty, and the fearful; who accepteth not persons, nor taketh a bribe;
`Thou dost not turn aside the judgment of thy needy one in his strife; from a false matter thou dost keep far off, and an innocent and righteous man thou dost not slay; for I do not justify a wicked man. `And a bribe thou dost not take; for the bribe bindeth the open-`eyed', and perverteth the words of the righteous.
Her heads in her midst `are' roaring lions, Her judges `are' evening wolves, They have not gnawn the bone in the morning. Her prophets unstable -- men of treachery, Her priests have polluted the sanctuary, They have violated the law. Jehovah `is' righteous in her midst, He doth not do perverseness, Morning by morning His judgment he giveth to the light, It hath not been lacking, And the perverse doth not know shame.
then Paul said unto him, `God is about to smite thee, thou whitewashed wall, and thou -- thou dost sit judging me according to the law, and, violating law, dost order me to be smitten!'
And Peter having opened his mouth, said, `Of a truth, I perceive that God is no respecter of persons,
And I command your judges at that time, saying, Hearkening between your brethren -- then ye have judged righteousness between a man, and his brother, and his sojourner; ye do not discern faces in judgment; as the little so the great ye do hear; ye are not afraid of the face of any, for the judgment is God's, and the thing which is too hard for you, ye bring near unto me, and I have heard it;
On the evil `are' both hands to do `it' well, The prince is asking -- also the judge -- for recompence, And the great -- he is speaking the mischief of his soul, And they wrap it up.
A bribe they have taken in thee to shed blood, Usury and increase thou hast taken, And cuttest off thy neighbour by oppression, And Me thou hast forgotten, An affirmation of the Lord Jehovah!
Whoso is walking righteously, And is speaking uprightly, Kicking against gain of oppressions, Shaking his hands from taking hold on a bribe, Stopping his ear from hearing of blood, And shutting his eyes from looking on evil,
Thy princes `are' apostates, and companions of thieves, Every one loving a bribe, and pursuing rewards, The fatherless they judge not, And the plea of the widow cometh not to them.
Be not a witness for nought against thy neighbour, Or thou hast enticed with thy lips.
If I have waved at the fatherless my hand, When I see in `him' the gate of my court, My shoulder from its blade let fall, And mine arm from the bone be broken.
`Lo, here `am' I; testify against me, over-against Jehovah, and over-against His anointed; whose ox have I taken, and whose ass have I taken, and whom have I oppressed; whom have I bruised, and of whose hand have I taken a ransom, and hide mine eyes with it? -- and I restore to you.'
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Deuteronomy 16
Commentary on Deuteronomy 16 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 16
In this chapter we have,
Deu 16:1-17
Much of the communion between God and his people Israel was kept up, and a face of religion preserved in the nation, by the three yearly feasts, the institution of which, and the laws concerning them, we have several times met with already; and here they are repeated.
Deu 16:18-22
Here is,