Exodus 23:7 Keep thee far from a false matter; and the innocent and righteous slay thou not: for I will not justify the wicked.
God Will Not Justify the Wicked
No matter who you are, all of us make judgments, and sometimes these judgments affect other people. Exodus 23:7 says, “Keep thee far from a false matter; and the innocent and righteous slay thou not: for I will not justify the wicked.” This verse expands upon Exodus 20:6 where it says, “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.”
It’s amazing how many times justice is perverted because we justify the wicked. That is something God will not do. God will not justify the wicked in any situation and neither should we regardless of several factors that oftentimes tend to have more of a bearing on how we judge than the truth does.
The first factor is majority pressure. In verse 2 God says, “Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil.” It’s amazing how many times we feel okay in justifying something that is wrong simply because everyone else does. We think, “It is safer to go with the majority than to stand alone.” You never stand alone when you stand for the truth because when you stand with the truth you stand with God. God is truth.
Secondly, social considerations should not allow us to justify the wicked. Verse 3 says, “Neither shalt thou countenance a poor man in his cause.” I am not to give false testimony simply because someone is poor. On the other hand, verse 6 says, “Thou shalt not wrest the judgment of thy poor in his cause.” Regardless of a person’s social standing, we are not to justify the wicked or condemn the innocent.
Thirdly, personal animosity should not cloud our discernment. Verse 4 says, “If thou meet thine enemy’s ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again.” My judgment of people should be based on God’s truth and not my feelings. That is liberating and authoritative.
Fourthly, I should not justify the wicked because of personal gain. Verse 8 warns against bribery when it says, “And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.”
Fifthly, I should do what is right regardless of ethnic background. Verse 9 says, “Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger: for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.” So many times, on one end or the other of the pendulum swing justice is perverted because we make judgments based upon feelings, background, or circumstances. Instead, we should make moral judgments according to the God Who made this world.
God will not justify the wicked, neither should we, regardless of a number of social pressures that may come to bear. It is always right to be light, and may God help us to follow God’s lead on this matter.