Equal Justice for All
God commanded Moses to set up a system of justice for His people, Israel. God put a premium on having justice for all in every matter. I believe He would have us to pattern our laws today after His principles seen in this system. In many cases we have done this in America. However, there are factors which interfere with true and equal justice. We should be against all of them. In the case of manslaughter or unintentional murder, God set up 6 cities to which the killer could flee and be safe from any avenger from the family of the victim. (Joshua 20:9) These cities were easily accessible for the people in all areas. The person who fled there would be safe until his or her case could be heard by the elders and people of the city. This way, if it was really a murder, he or she could be executed, but if it was manslaughter, they could live there until the high priest died, and then, return home. Sounds very fair to me. What can we learn from this?
Vengeance is a natural desire when we have something terrible happen to us. Of course, God tells us that we must leave vengeance to Him, not taking it into our own hands now. However, individuals and groups can be stirred with vengeance in mind and take innocent lives. That is a terrible sin, which we should never allow in America. Also, sometimes people are denied a fair trial by a jury of their peers. It doesn't matter the reason for this failure. It always thwarts equal justice, and we should stand against it. Anyone charged with a crime, especially murder or manslaughter, should be kept safe until this fair trial is held. Then, we should have a fair system of punishment for each crime, not giving preference to certain people or groups. Once a person has paid his or her penalty, they should be free to return to their lives, as before. I pray that we as Christians will stand up for equal justice in any way we can, because someday, they may come after us, and we will want a fair system of justice then.
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Tomorrow, I intend to read Joshua 21-24.