The Bedrock of Justice: Truth, Courage, and Impartiality Text: Exodus 23:1-3
Introduction: The War for Reality
We live in an age that has declared war on reality. It is an age of narrative, spin, and the curated self. Truth is no longer considered a mountain to be scaled, but rather a lump of clay to be molded to whatever shape our passions or our political tribe might require. We are told there is "your truth" and "my truth," but never simply "the truth." And when a society abandons the truth, it necessarily abandons justice along with it, because justice is nothing more than the public application of the truth.
The laws we have before us in Exodus are not dusty legalisms from a bygone era. They are not primitive suggestions for a nomadic tribe. They are the very architecture of a sane and stable society because they are rooted in the character of God Himself. God is not a liar. God is not a respecter of persons. God is not swayed by the mob. Therefore, a society that would reflect His goodness and enjoy His blessing must be built on the same principles: truth, courage, and impartiality. These are not optional extras for the particularly devout; they are the non-negotiable foundation for any community that does not wish to collapse into a heap of rubble.
Our current cultural moment is a grand experiment in what happens when you try to build a civilization on the opposite principles. We are awash in false reports, what we now call "misinformation" or "disinformation," which usually just means "information we don't like." We see malicious witnesses celebrated as brave truth-tellers, provided they are attacking the right people. We see the howling of the digital mob dictate policy, destroy reputations, and demand ritual sacrifice. And we see a new form of justice being peddled, one that is explicitly partial, that weighs the value of testimony based on the group identity of the speaker. This is not progress; it is a regression to the most primitive forms of tribal paganism. It is an attempt to build a world on lies, cowardice, and envy. And God's Word here in Exodus cuts right through that entire project like a hot knife through butter.
As Christians, we must be a people who stand for the truth, even when it is unpopular, especially when it is unpopular. We must be the people who refuse to join hands with the wicked, who will not be cowed by the crowd, and who insist on a justice that is blind to station, whether high or low. This is not just about courtroom ethics; it is about the fundamental integrity of our witness in the world.
The Text
"You shall not bear a false report; do not join your hand with a wicked man to be a malicious witness. You shall not follow the masses in doing evil, nor shall you testify in a case so as to turn aside after the masses in order to cause justice to be turned aside; nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his case."
(Exodus 23:1-3 LSB)
The Sanctity of Truth (v. 1)
We begin with the foundational command concerning truth.
"You shall not bear a false report; do not join your hand with a wicked man to be a malicious witness." (Exodus 23:1 LSB)
This is a direct application of the ninth commandment, "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor." But notice the scope. It begins with "you shall not bear a false report." This is broader than just formal court testimony. This strikes at the root of all gossip, slander, rumor-mongering, and in our day, the thoughtless sharing of unverified headlines on social media. A false report is a lie set in motion. It is a virus that infects the mind of a community. To start one or to pass one along is to participate in a form of verbal vandalism. You are breaking things in your neighbor's life with your tongue.
The reason this is so serious is that God is the God of truth. Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth. Therefore, to be a liar, to be a purveyor of falsehoods, is to be satanic. Jesus told the Pharisees that their father was the devil, because "he was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it" (John 8:44). Every lie, every false report, is a little homage paid to the devil.
The verse then gets more specific: "do not join your hand with a wicked man to be a malicious witness." This is about collusion. This is about conspiracy to commit perjury. The "hand" here is a symbol of partnership and agreement. You are not to link arms with a scoundrel to destroy an innocent man through false testimony. A malicious witness is not someone who is merely mistaken; he is someone who weaponizes lies with the intent to harm. This is what was done to Naboth, when Jezebel hired "scoundrels" to bear false witness against him so Ahab could have his vineyard (1 Kings 21). This is what was done to Stephen (Acts 6:11-13). And supremely, this is what was done to the Lord Jesus Christ, when the chief priests sought false testimony to put Him to death (Matthew 26:59).
In our day, this happens constantly. People join hands with the wicked online to form digital mobs, becoming malicious witnesses against those they have never met, all to destroy their reputation or livelihood. Christians must have nothing to do with this. We must be the people whose word is their bond, who would rather suffer loss than to advance our cause with a lie.
The Courage of Conviction (v. 2)
Next, the law addresses the immense pressure of the crowd.
"You shall not follow the masses in doing evil, nor shall you testify in a case so as to turn aside after the masses in order to cause justice to be turned aside;" (Exodus 23:2 LSB)
Here is God's prohibition against moral cowardice. The desire to fit in, to go with the flow, to not make waves, is one of the most powerful forces in human nature. But God commands His people to have a backbone of steel. "You shall not follow the masses in doing evil." The majority is not the standard of righteousness. Popular opinion is not the voice of God. In fact, Scripture warns us that the broad road, the popular road, is the one that leads to destruction (Matthew 7:13).
This principle is then applied directly to the courtroom. You must not allow a popular verdict to sway your testimony. You are not to "turn aside after the masses in order to cause justice to be turned aside." Imagine a trial where public opinion has already condemned the accused. The pressure on a witness to conform his story to the popular narrative would be immense. But the witness for God is to stand on the truth, even if he has to stand alone. He is to fear God more than he fears the angry mob. This is what Aaron failed to do at the foot of Sinai when the people demanded a golden calf. He buckled under the pressure of the masses. This is what Pontius Pilate did when he handed Jesus over to be crucified, knowing He was innocent, because he wanted to "satisfy the crowd" (Mark 15:15).
Our generation is a generation of cowards. We are terrified of being on the wrong side of public opinion, terrified of being cancelled, terrified of being called a bigot or a hater. And so, many Christians are silent when they should speak, and many more simply parrot the talking points of the culture, following the masses in doing evil. God calls us to a higher standard. He calls us to be rocks, not reeds. We are to be immovable in our convictions, because our convictions are grounded in the unchanging Word of God, not the shifting sands of popular approval.
The Impartiality of Justice (v. 3)
Finally, we come to a command that is perhaps the most counter-cultural of all in our current environment.
"nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his case." (Exodus 23:3 LSB)
Now, the Bible is filled with commands to care for the poor, to defend the cause of the needy, and to be generous to those in want. God has a special concern for the vulnerable. But that concern for the poor never translates into partiality in justice. This is a crucial distinction that our generation has completely lost.
The Bible commands us to be impartial. Leviticus 19:15 says it plainly: "You shall do no injustice in court. You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor." Justice must be blind. She holds a scale, and she is to weigh the facts of the case, not the bank accounts or social status of the litigants. To favor the rich man because he is rich is a sin. And to favor the poor man because he is poor is also a sin. Both are a perversion of justice.
This cuts directly against the modern idol of "social justice." So-called social justice is not about impartiality at all; it is a system of calculated partiality. It divides the world into oppressor and oppressed groups and demands that justice be tilted in favor of the designated victim group. This is not biblical justice; it is Marxist envy dressed up in religious language. It is a system that judges people based on their group identity, not their individual actions. It is, in short, institutionalized partiality.
God's law forbids this. Why? Because true justice reflects the character of God, and God "shows no partiality" (Romans 2:11). To rig the system in favor of the poor man out of a sense of pity is to condescend to him. It treats him as a perpetual victim who cannot be held to the same standard of truth and responsibility as everyone else. True compassion for the poor is to give them what God demands for everyone: a fair hearing and a just verdict based on the truth. We help the poor through charity, through opportunity, through the ministry of the diaconate, not by corrupting the standards of justice. When the standard of justice is corrupted for anyone, it is ultimately corrupted for everyone.
Conclusion: A Just Witness
These three verses lay out the pillars of a just society: a commitment to truth, the courage to stand for that truth against the crowd, and an unwavering impartiality in the application of that truth. These are not merely external rules for judges. They are principles that must be written on our hearts.
As Christians, our ultimate witness is to the truth of the gospel. But that witness is either supported or undermined by our commitment to truth in all the small things. If the world sees us as people who play fast and loose with the facts, who spread rumors, who are swayed by every cultural fad, and who apply different standards to different people based on our political allegiances, why should they ever believe us when we speak of sin, righteousness, and judgment?
The world is starving for men and women of integrity. It is desperate for people who cannot be bought, who will not be bullied, and who will call a thing what it is. We are called to be those people. We can only do this by the grace of God, through the one who is the ultimate True and Faithful Witness, the Lord Jesus Christ. He stood alone before a corrupt court. He was slandered by malicious witnesses. He was condemned by a cowardly ruler who bowed to the mob. And He did it all so that we, who are liars and cowards by nature, could be forgiven and transformed.
Therefore, let us live as children of the truth. Let us refuse to bear false reports. Let us stand firm against the evil of the masses. And let us champion a true and impartial justice for all, to the glory of God the Father.