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When an airplane is about to land, the steward tells passengers to fasten their seatbelts, bring their seats to upright and locked positions, and turn off all electronic equipment. They assure us this is for everyone’s safety. After God gave ancient Israel the Ten Commandments, He told Moses to teach the people how to apply them in various situations. Here are some of the practical applications of the moral laws, found in Exodus 23. God says, “You must not pass along false rumors. You must not cooperate with evil people by lying on the witness stand. You must not follow the crowd in doing wrong. When you are called to testify in a dispute, do not be swayed by the crowd to twist justice. And do not slant your testimony in favor of a person just because that person is poor. In a lawsuit, you must not deny justice to the poor. Be sure never to overcharge anyone falsely with evil. Never sentence an innocent or blameless person to death, for I never declare a guilty person to be innocent. Take no bribes, for a bribe makes you ignore something that you clearly see. A bribe makes even a righteous person twist the truth. You must not oppress foreigners, for you yourselves were once foreigners in the land of Egypt.” The instructions God gave ancient Israel can foster justice in our world today.
