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Exodus 18:13–23
“Moses’ father-in-law said to him, ‘What you are doing is not good. You and the people with you will certainly wear yourselves out, for the thing is too heavy for you. You are not able to do it alone’ ” (vv. 17–18).
Six hundred thousand Israelite men on foot, plus their wives and children, plus a multitude of people from other nations, left Egypt under the direction of Moses (Ex. 12:37–38). That made for a total of more than a million people in the company of Israel, and probably upward of two million or so. In a group that large, disputes between people that required adjudication were bound to occur. We learn in today’s passage that this was indeed the case as the Israelites made their way through the wilderness after the exodus.
Early in Israel’s postslavery history, we see in Exodus 18:13, Moses was the sole judge of the nation’s disputes. It was common in the ancient Near East for the political and military leader of a people to serve as its judiciary as well. Moreover, in ancient Egypt, the pharaoh made himself available to adjudicate all legal matters. Any Egyptian, no matter his social status, could present his case to the pharaoh, at least at designated times throughout the year. Moses’ practice of hearing all legal matters was well in keeping with the expectations of the day.
No one person can handle such a large number of cases, so as one might imagine, it was wearing Moses out. Jethro, his father-in-law, noticed this and critiqued Moses for the practice (Ex. 18:14–18). Yet unlike so many people who criticize but have no constructive solution for particular problems, Jethro had wise counsel for Moses to lighten his load so that he would not be exhausted by the demands of Israel’s legal issues and could devote time to other matters. He told Moses to appoint other trustworthy judges who could hear cases and make good decisions, leaving to them all but the most complicated matters. Moses would serve, effectively, as the supreme court in Israel and decide cases that the other judges could not and handle appeals when a party was not satisfied by a lower court’s decision (Ex. 18:19–23). This became the model for Israel’s legal system, with the king serving as the final court of appeal once the monarchy was instituted (see, e.g., 1 Kings 3:16–28).
The ancient Israelite judicial system no longer exists, but the church can learn from today’s passage something about wise polity. A solo pastor, bishop, or other individual is not well equipped to handle all church matters. Administration by several qualified men in dialogue with others is a better system.
Coram Deo Living before the face of God
Connectional systems of governance in which duties are distributed among several leaders and in which people have recourse to make appeals when unsatisfactory decisions have been made are effective means of settling disputes and keeping the peace. We see this in secular government, but it is also true in the church. When individual church leaders go it alone, there is a great risk of burnout and unwise decisions.
For Further Study
- Numbers 11:1–30
- Proverbs 11:14
- Acts 15:1–35
- Titus 1:5–9