Seder 147: Deuteronomy 16:18-17:13---Appointing Judges, Avoiding Paganism

 Deuteronomy 16:18-20 describes the key qualities that Israel's judges and officials were to possess.  They were to be impartial, not corrupt, and righteous in judgment.  Moses urged the Israelites to pursue justice so "that you may live and inherit the land that the Lord your God is giving you" (v 20).  

This phrase from Deut 16:20 is similar to one in Deuteronomy 5:16, where God taught that parents should be honored "that your days may be long, and that it may go well with you in the land that the Lord your God is giving you." The instructions in Dt 16:18-18:22 about priests, kings, judges, and prophets can be associated with the commandment to honor parents, since these institutions of society are, in a sense, extensions of the family.  

There is also material in this section that seems, at least at first, to be unrelated to its main thrust.  In Dt 16:21-22, we read,  "You shall not plant any tree as an Asherah beside the altar of the Lord your God that you shall make.  And you shall not set up a pillar, which the Lord your God hates."

These are instructions more related to the commandment against worshiping other gods.  An Asherah was a sacred pole dedicated to the goddess Asherah, and pillars were associated with the Canaanite god Ba'al (see 2 Ki 3:2; 10:26-27).  Ba'al and Asherah were a "couple" in the Canaanite pantheon (1 Ki 18:19; 2 Ki 23:4).  

We see elsewhere in the Bible that the use of poles and pillars was not wrong in and of itself.  The patriarchs sometimes used these symbols in worship or in making covenants (Gen 21:33; 28:18-22; 31:43-54; 35:14).  But in Canaan, these symbols were part of the worship of Ba'al and Asherah and were therefore to be avoided.  

An important underlying principle here is that the appropriateness of a particular symbol in worship depends upon the context.  In particular, it depends upon the intent of the worshipers.  For the patriarchs a pole or pillar  symbolized the presence of God; but for later Israelites, these were part of syncretistic worship that brought in Canaanite deities (2 Ki 21:1-9). 

Today there are some who condemn the use of Christmas trees, worrying about a possible connection with Nordic paganism.  But the important factor in evaluating this practice is the intent of the worshipers.  Are they trying to worship pagan deities?  If the answer is no, then they are not doing anything wrong.  

Deuteronomy 16:21-17:1 are about honoring God's altar.  People stand before God when they worship, just as judges do when they make rulings.  This may be the connection between Dt 16:18-20 and 16:21-17:1. 

One kind of case that an Israelite judge might have to consider involved someone accused of engaging in and/or promoting idolatry. In such a case, 

• the defendant might be a person of either sex; the law applied equally to all (17:2);
• charges were to be made publicly (v 4);.
• a full investigation was to be carried out and clear proof obtained (v 4);
• there would be a public trial (v 5);
• multiple witnesses were required (v 6);
• those who bring the charges were to take the lead in carrying out the execution (v 7).

For difficult cases there would be a higher court, whose judgments were to be followed carefully (vv 8-13).  

In a sermon at Church of the Messiah on June 10, 2023, Kyle Kettering explored what it means to "judge righteous judgment" while avoiding the problem of being judgmental or condemning of others.