RaYBaSH’s Ponderings of the Perkei Avot
Chapter 4:8
By: Yehudah ben Shomeyr
4:8. He would also
say: Do not judge on your own, for there is none qualified to judge alone, only
the One.
Exd.
18:13 -23 And it came to
pass on the morrow, that Moses sat to judge the people: and the people stood by
Moses from the morning unto the evening. And when Moses' father
in law saw all that he did to the people, he said, What [is] this thing that
thou doest to the people? why sittest thou thyself alone, and all the people
stand by thee from morning unto even? And Moses said unto his father in law,
Because the people come unto me to enquire of God: 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. And Moses'
father in law said unto him, The thing that thou doest [is] not good. Thou wilt
surely wear away, both thou, and this people that [is] with thee: for this
thing [is] too heavy for thee; thou art not able to perform it thyself alone. Hearken now unto my voice, I will give thee counsel, and God shall
be with thee: Be thou for the people to God-ward, that thou mayest bring the
causes unto God: And thou shalt teach them ordinances and laws,
and shalt shew them the way wherein they must walk, and the work that they must
doMoreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God,
men of truth, hating covetousness; and place [such] over them, [to be] rulers
of thousands, [and] rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of
tensAnd let them judge the people at all seasons: and it shall be, [that] every
great matter they shall bring unto thee, but every small matter they shall
judge: so shall it be easier for thyself, and they shall bear [the burden] with
thee. If thou shalt do this thing, and God command thee [so],
then thou shalt be able to endure, and all this people shall also go to their
place in peace.
Deut.
1:9-18 And I spake unto you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you
myself alone: The LORD your God hath multiplied you, and,
behold, ye [are] this day as the stars of heaven for multitude. (The
LORD God of your fathers make you a thousand times so many more as ye [are],
and bless you, as he hath promised you!) How can I myself alone
bear your cumbrance, and your burden, and your strife? Take you
wise men, and understanding, and known among your tribes, and I will make them
rulers over you. And ye answered me, and said, The thing which thou hast spoken
[is] good [for us] to do. So I took the chief of your tribes,
wise men, and known, and made them heads over you, captains over thousands, and
captains over hundreds, and captains over fifties, and captains over tens, and
officers among your tribes. And I charged your judges at that time, saying,
Hear [the causes] between your brethren, and judge righteously between [every]
man and his brother, and the stranger [that is] with him. Ye shall not respect
persons in judgment; [but] ye shall hear the small as well as the great; ye
shall not be afraid of the face of man; for the judgment [is] God's: and the
cause that is too hard for you, bring [it] unto me, and I will hear it. And I commanded you at that time all the things which ye should do.
Matt. 7:1-2 Judge
not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be
judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
Matt.
16:19 And I will give unto
thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth
shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be
loosed in heaven.
Matt.
18:18 Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound
in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
Yeshua Ha Moshiach
was refereeing to the passages in the Torah quoted above, and he was telling
his Talmidim that they are to rule and make judgments based on the Torah and
that not just one man can make a halakhic (the way one should walk) ruling for
the people but it must be a decision agreed upon by a panel of at least 2 or 3
elders. Halakah is almost like a Church or organizations bylaws. It is to
address tradition or issues not specifically spelled out in the Torah Itself.
This issue of
binding and loosing has been grossly misinterpreted in the Christian realm to
mean loosing and binding things in the spirit, such as binding demons and
loosing angels etc. This is NOT what the passage is referring to, but it is
referring to the elders making halachic rulings for a person and or community
and that their decisions stand as long as they have a solid foundation in Torah.
You need the
perspective and insight of others. This is why in Judaism there is not just one
person on the Beyt Din but many elders.
Shalom,
-- Yehudah ben
Shomeyr
