Pro 18:5 | KingComments | STEP | In a world of which satan is god and ruler, it happens that a wicked person is favored and the right of the righteous is bent in judgment. Partiality may come into play if the wicked person is a rich person, or a family member, or someone influential through prestige. A righteous person may be a person who has pointed out evil, like Elijah and John the baptist. God abhors this course of action. He wants justice to be done fairly ( ; ). It is reprehensible to bend the right of a righteous person, that is, to set aside his right, to deprive him of his right. This is not just about a judicial error, an unjust judgment, reflected in the acquittal of a wicked person who should be condemned. It is not so much about the outcome as the motive. That motive is favoritism, partiality (cf. ). It is a judgment because of prestige. It applies not only to a court of law, but in all cases. James applies it to the dealings of the members of God’s people among themselves ( ). The Lord Jesus warns: “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment” ( ).

‏ Proverbs 18:5

No Partiality in a Court Case

In a world of which satan is god and ruler, it happens that a wicked person is favored and the right of the righteous is bent in judgment. Partiality may come into play if the wicked person is a rich person, or a family member, or someone influential through prestige. A righteous person may be a person who has pointed out evil, like Elijah and John the baptist. God abhors this course of action. He wants justice to be done fairly (2Chr 19:7; Mal 2:9). It is reprehensible to bend the right of a righteous person, that is, to set aside his right, to deprive him of his right.

This is not just about a judicial error, an unjust judgment, reflected in the acquittal of a wicked person who should be condemned. It is not so much about the outcome as the motive. That motive is favoritism, partiality (cf. 1Tim 5:21). It is a judgment because of prestige. It applies not only to a court of law, but in all cases. James applies it to the dealings of the members of God’s people among themselves (Jam 2:1-9). The Lord Jesus warns: “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment” (Jn 7:24).