Moreover, look for able men from all the people, men who fear God, who are trustworthy and hate a bribe, and place such men over the people as chiefs of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens.
Jethro rightly insists that judges must be chosen for virtue alone, not wealth or birth, though I would not make this an absolute rule binding all governments forever. Four qualities matter chiefly: ability to handle business, fear of God, integrity, and contempt of riches. These are not the only virtues needed, but by synecdoche they embrace all that is extraordinary and necessary. Without the fear of God undergirding courage and strength of mind, all else crumbles.
AI summary
Moses was both lawgiver and judge, a type of Christ Himself. He sat composed and weighed each case, explaining God's statutes faithfully to people who came seeking His mind on hard matters. Happy were they to have such a certain oracle; we often wish for the same.
AI summary
Commenting on Exodus 18:13-27
The judges hear all ordinary matters in their districts and decide justly between man and man. They bring only the great and doubtful cases to Moses, those affairs too hard for them to determine. The small matters, clear and easy, they settle themselves. So the burden of rule is shared, and Moses is freed to tend the supreme work that only he can do.
AI summary