And they judged the people at all times; they would bring the difficult cases to Moses, but any minor issue they would judge themselves.
Parallel translations
- WEB They judged the people at all times. They brought the hard causes to Moses, but every small matter they judged themselves.
- KJV And they judged the people at all seasons: the hard causes they brought unto Moses, but every small matter they judged themselves.
- NKJV So they judged the people at all times; the hard cases they brought to Moses, but they judged every small case themselves.
- NASB Then they judged the people at all times; they would bring the difficult matter to Moses, but they would judge every minor matter themselves.
- NLT These men were always available to solve the people’s common disputes. They brought the major cases to Moses, but they took care of the smaller matters themselves.
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
The appointed judges handled ordinary cases while bringing the hardest matters to Moses. A wise system distinguishes routine decisions from those needing higher authority.
Overview
The new arrangement worked: continual justice for the people, with difficult cases escalated to Moses. This balanced load-sharing protected both Moses and the nation from breakdown. It illustrates a biblical principle of orderly, layered authority that serves the whole community rather than centralizing all burdens on one person.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Exod 18:22Have these men judge the people at all times. Then they can bring you any major issue, but all minor cases they can judge on their own, so that your load may be lightened as they share it with you.
- 1 Kgs 10:1Now when the queen of Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to test him with difficult questions.
- Job 29:16I was a father to the needy, and I took up the case of the stranger.
- 1 Kgs 3:16–28At that time two prostitutes came to the king and stood before him.
- Deut 17:8If 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.
- Exod 18:14–15When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he asked, “What is this that you are doing for the people? Why do you sit alone as judge, with all the people standing around you from morning till evening?”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 18:26 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
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.