²¹ Moreover, look for ^(A)able men from all the people, men who fear God, who are trustworthy and hate a bribe, and place such men over the people as chiefs of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens.

^3 (A)Therefore, brothers,^[a] pick out from among you seven men ^(B)of good repute, ^(C)full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty.

⁵ He appointed ^(A)judges in the land in all ^(B)the fortified cities of Judah, city by city, ⁶ and said to the judges, “Consider what you do, ^(C)for you judge not for man but for the Lord. He is with you in giving judgment. ⁷ Now then, let the fear of the Lord be upon you. Be careful what you do, for ^(D)there is no injustice with the Lord our God, ^(E)or partiality or taking bribes.”

⁸ Moreover, in Jerusalem Jehoshaphat ^(F)appointed certain Levites and priests and heads of families of Israel, ^(G)to give judgment for the Lord and to decide disputed cases. They had their seat at Jerusalem. ⁹ And he charged them: ^(H)“Thus you shall do in the fear of the Lord, in faithfulness, ^(I)and with your whole heart: ^10 (J)whenever a case comes to you from your brothers who live in their cities, concerning bloodshed, law or commandment, statutes or rules, then you shall warn them, that they may not incur guilt before the Lord and ^(K)wrath may not come upon you and your brothers. Thus you shall do, and you will not incur guilt.

^13 (A)Choose for your tribes wise, understanding, and experienced men, and I will appoint them as your heads.’ ¹⁴ And you answered me, ‘The thing that you have spoken is good for us to do.’ ¹⁵ So I took the heads of your tribes, wise and experienced men, ^(B)and set them as heads over you, commanders of thousands, commanders of hundreds, commanders of fifties, commanders of tens, and officers, throughout your tribes. ¹⁶ And I charged your judges at that time, ‘Hear the cases between your brothers, and ^(C)judge righteously between a man and his brother or the alien who is with him. ^17 (D)You shall not be partial in judgment. You shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not be intimidated by anyone, for ^(E)the judgment is God's. And the case that is too hard for you, you shall ^(F)bring to me, and I will hear it.’

Justice

¹⁸ “You shall appoint ^(A)judges and officers in all your towns that the Lord your God is giving you, according to your tribes, and they shall judge the people with righteous judgment. ^19 (B)You shall not pervert justice. ^(C)You shall not show partiality, ^(D)and you shall not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and subverts the cause of the righteous.