Justice: Outside of the Church

[Ken]

In the Old Testament there was no secular society, nor was there anything resembling a church with voluntary membership and so forth.

My question is whether perverting justice (as explained in the verses in the OP) is a moral standard for all people of all times, or was it only for the Hebrews/Jews?

Some things may not be considered criminal in a country as you mentioned, but a person will still be judged by God for these things. (Take lying for example.)

I would suggest that standards of justice including not perverting justice through lying or deception are contained within the statutes and legal standards of every nation and developed society and not something at all unique to Mosaic law. I expect they all have their individual quirks but essentially rhyme.

[Josh]

No, they really don’t. Standards for truth are quite different in certain places (which can be a rough thing to learn when dealing with an unfamiliar culture).

The only source and standard of truth is the Bible and Jesus.

[JohnHurt]

Exodus 23:2
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 16:19
You must not pervert justice or show favor. Do not take a bribe, for bribes blind the eyes of the wise and distort the words of the righteous.

Proverbs 17:23
The wicked accepts a bribe in secret to pervert the ways of justice.

In some discussions on MN the last couple years, it has been suggested that civil government and those who are not part of the kingdom of God, do not need to follow the commands of Christ.

A. What about the above verses from the Old Testament? Are these laws for all rulers at all times?
B. Will present day rulers, lawmakers, and judges be judged by God according to these verses, or were these only for the nation of Israel?
C. Does it make a difference if the injustice is committed by a ruler, lawmaker, or judge vs. the average rank-and-file person who supports the injustices?

Here are some ways injustices happen. Perhaps you can think of more...
1. Bribes and favors (monetarily or otherwise)
2. Making a big deal about the crimes of one's "enemies" while looking the other way regarding the crimes of one's friends.
3. Pointing out the inconsistencies/injustices of one's "enemies" while not mentioning one's own inconsistencies/injustices.
4. Disseminating false statements or narratives.
5. Keeping the focus on someone else as a smoke screen to keep people from investigating one's self and one's friends.
6. Concealing information or not talking about one's knowledge of particular crimes.

Please do not turn this into another North American political thread. All such posts are subject to removal.

Yes, God's Laws are for all rulers for all times. King Alfred founded the English Common Law based on the scripture in Exodus, which has been a blessing for all of the English speaking people.

Every government of man needs to follow the righteous Laws of God for the benefit of their own people.

Proverbs 29:(2) When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn.

First, a definition of "righteousness":

Deut 6:(25) And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments before the LORD our God, as he hath commanded us.

Luke 1:(6) And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.

There are 3 righteous laws from God that, if they were applied today, would make "the people rejoice" in their freedom:

1. The Biblical prohibitions against usury and unjust gain, now openly practiced by every bank in the world. Usury banking was forbidden for Christians before 1701 and the founding of the Bank of England. Usury concentrates wealth in the hands of the few, who produce nothing.

2. The Biblical Year of Release. Every 7 years, all debts were made void, which freed people from the sin of the usury banks.

3. The Jubilee. Every 50 years, the land, which was the means of production, was to be divided equally to everyone. Today, the means of production is in factories and various companies owned by wealthy stockholders. If every 50 years, we were to take all of the shares of stock and redistribute them equally to every man, woman, and child in America, there would be no more poverty. The rich would become rich again in a few years, but a poor family would have a start at creating generational wealth.

Otherwise, without God's Laws, we have this today:

Proverbs 22:(7) The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.

You are born poor, or born rich. And that is the result of forsaking God's laws.

[Ernie]

My question is whether perverting justice (as explained in the verses in the OP) is a moral standard for all people of all times, or was it only for the Hebrews/Jews?

[Ken]

My question is whether perverting justice (as explained in the verses in the OP) is a moral standard for all people of all times, or was it only for the Hebrews/Jews?

My opinion is that it is good moral guidance for all time.

And you can find similar teachings in many other cultures. For example there are lots of ancient Chinese teachings in Confucianism that express very similar sentiments about honesty and bribes. Which I think underscores their universality.