“Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me to judge between one man and another, and I make known to them the statutes and laws of God.”
Parallel translations
- WEB When they have a matter, they come to me, and I judge between a man and his neighbor, and I make them know the statutes of God, and his laws.”
- KJV When they have a matter, they come unto me; and I judge between one and another, and I do make them know the statutes of God, and his laws.
- NKJV When they have a difficulty, they come to me, and I judge between one and another; and I make known the statutes of God and His laws.”
- NASB When they have a dispute, it comes to me, and I judge between someone and his neighbor and make known the statutes of God and His laws.”
- NLT When a dispute arises, they come to me, and I am the one who settles the case between the quarreling parties. I inform the people of God’s decrees and give them his instructions.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Moses settled disputes between people and taught them God's statutes and laws. He both judged and instructed Israel in God's ways.
Overview
Moses combined the roles of judge and teacher, applying God's law to the people's conflicts and making his statutes known. This twofold task underscores how central God's revealed will was to Israel's communal life. The work was vital but too much for one man, prompting the need for shared responsibility.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 18
- Exod 24:14And he said to the elders, “Wait here for us until we return to you. Aaron and Hur are here with you. Whoever has a dispute can go to them.”
- 2 Sam 15:3Absalom would say, “Look, your claims are good and right, but the king has no deputy to hear you.”
- Deut 4:5See, I have taught you statutes and ordinances just as the LORD my God has commanded me, so that you may follow them in the land that you are about to enter and possess.
- 1 Cor 6:1If any of you has a grievance against another, how dare he go to law before the unrighteous instead of before the saints!
- Deut 5:1Then Moses summoned all Israel and said to them: Hear, O Israel, the statutes and ordinances that I declare in your hearing this day. Learn them and observe them carefully.
- Num 27:6–11and the LORD answered him,
- Exod 2:13The next day Moses went out and saw two Hebrews fighting. He asked the one in the wrong, “Why are you attacking your companion?”
- Matt 28:20and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
- Exod 23:7Stay far away from a false accusation. Do not kill the innocent or the just, for I will not acquit the guilty.
- Lev 24:15And you are to tell the Israelites, ‘If anyone curses his God, he shall bear the consequences of his sin.
- Num 36:6–9This is what the LORD has commanded concerning the daughters of Zelophehad: They may marry anyone they please, provided they marry within a clan of the tribe of their father.
- Acts 18:14–15But just as Paul was about to speak, Gallio told the Jews, “If this matter involved a wrongdoing or vicious crime, O Jews, it would be reasonable for me to hear your complaint.
- Num 15:35And the LORD said to Moses, “The man must surely be put to death. The whole congregation is to stone him outside the camp.”
- 1 Sam 12:23As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by ceasing to pray for you. And I will continue to teach you the good and right way.
- Job 31:13If I have rejected the cause of my manservant or maidservant when they made a complaint against me,
- 1 Th 4:1–2Finally, brothers, we ask and encourage you in the Lord Jesus to live in a way that is pleasing to God, just as you have received from us. This is how you already live, so you should do so all the more.
- Deut 17:8–12If a case is too difficult for you to judge, whether the controversy within your gates is regarding bloodshed, lawsuits, or assaults, you must go up to the place the LORD your God will choose.
- Deut 6:1These are the commandments and statutes and ordinances that the LORD your God has instructed me to teach you to follow in the land that you are about to enter and possess,
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Christ at the center
The Passover lamb whose blood turns away death, the exodus through the sea, the manna, the rock, and the tabernacle where God dwells with his people all foreshadow Jesus — our Passover, our redemption, the bread from heaven, and God-with-us in the flesh.
How Exodus 18:16 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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