Deuteronomy 1:16

16 “At that time I instructed the judges, ‘You must hear the cases of your fellow Israelites and the foreigners living among you. Be perfectly fair in your decisions

Deuteronomy 1:16 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 1:16

And I charged your judges at that time
When they were appointed and constituted, even the heads and rulers before spoken of; this charge is also new, and not recorded before:

saying, hear the causes between your brethren;
hear both sides, and all that each of them have to say; not suffer one to say all he has to say, and oblige the other to cut his words short, as the Targum of Jonathan paraphrases it; but give them leave and time to tell their case, and give the best evidence they can of it:

and judge righteously;
impartially, just as the case really appears to be, and according to the evidence given:

between every man and his brother;
between an Israelite and an Israelite:

and the stranger that is with him;
between an Israelite and proselyte, whether a proselyte of the gate, or of righteousness; the same justice was to be done to them as to an Israelite.

Deuteronomy 1:16 In-Context

14 “Then you responded, ‘Your plan is a good one.’

15 So I took the wise and respected men you had selected from your tribes and appointed them to serve as judges and officials over you. Some were responsible for a thousand people, some for a hundred, some for fifty, and some for ten.

16 “At that time I instructed the judges, ‘You must hear the cases of your fellow Israelites and the foreigners living among you. Be perfectly fair in your decisions

17 and impartial in your judgments. Hear the cases of those who are poor as well as those who are rich. Don’t be afraid of anyone’s anger, for the decision you make is God’s decision. Bring me any cases that are too difficult for you, and I will handle them.’

18 “At that time I gave you instructions about everything you were to do.