Iyar 10
Bribe
“Her heads judge for a bribe …” (Mic 3:11 ISR)
We clarified several
days ago that “heads” referred to those that were the individual leaders, or
chiefs, of their tribe or clan. These men
were acting in the capacity of a law-giver, judging and executing judgement in
circumstances and situations that were brought before them for
arbitration. However, what sentence and
punishment that was being given out was not
righteous, nor was it according to Torah, as we find from the instructions in
Deu 16:18-19:
“Appoint judges and
officers within all your gates, which יהוה your Elohim is giving you, according to your tribes. And they
shall judge the people WITH RIGHTEOUS RIGHT-RULING. Do not distort right-ruling. Do not show
partiality, NOR TAKE A BRIBE, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and
twists the words of the righteous.”
Noah Webster has a very complete definition of the
word “bribe”, and it is ugly. “1. A price, reward, gift or favor bestowed or
promised with a view to pervert the
judgment, or corrupt the conduct of a judge, witness or other person. A
bribe is a consideration given or promised to a person, to induce him to decide
a cause, give testimony, or perform some act contrary to what he knows to be truth, justice or rectitude. It is
not used in a good sense, unless in familiar language. 2. That which seduces.”[1]
There is a personal
application to be examined through our opening Scripture. No, not all of us are in a position of
leadership or authority. And no, most of
us would not accept any sort of monetary compensation for declaring something
right that should be wrong, or visa versa.
However, bribery comes in many different forms. What of the husband who knows the truth of the Saturday Sabbath, yet never says a word when
his wife decides to hit all of the garage sales on Saturday morning, because
she always brings something home for him?
What of that friend that offers to bring you lunch, showing up with a
BLT, all the while assuming you will
be grateful because, after all, you didn’t have to pay for it? And what of the grandchildren who show up at
your house on Christmas Day, bearing gifts for you and your spouse, all the
while expecting you to celebrate the
day with them?
Anything that “seduces”
us to compromise our Torah observance is a bribe. YHWH our Elohim commands, and demands, that we be kadosh – set apart – in every
area of our lives, with no excuse (see Lev 19:2; 2Pet 1:16). When we begin to allow any form of bribery to
affect our judgement, especially when
it concerns our own lifestyle, we
have strayed from the path of righteousness (see Deu 13:5; Pro 19:27).
“Blessed is the man who shall not walk in the
counsel of the wrong, And shall not stand in the path of sinners, And shall not
sit in the seat of scoffers, But his delight is in the Torah of יהוה, And he meditates in His Torah day and night.” (Ps 1:1-2 ISR)
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