No Justice, No Peace

(27) And God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them.

(14) Thou shalt not curse the deaf, nor put a stumbling-block before the blind, but thou shalt fear thy God: I am the LORD. (15) Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment; thou shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor favour the person of the mighty; but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbour. (16) Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer among thy people; neither shalt thou stand idly by the blood of thy neighbour: I am the LORD.

(1) When the LORD thy God shall cut off the nations, whose land the LORD thy God giveth thee, and thou dost succeed them, and dwell in their cities, and in their houses; (2) thou shalt separate three cities for thee in the midst of thy land, which the LORD thy GOD giveth thee to possess it. (3) Thou shalt prepare thee the way, and divide the borders of thy land, which the LORD thy God causeth thee to inherit, into three parts, that every manslayer may flee thither. (4) And this is the case of the manslayer, that shall flee thither and live: whoso killeth his neighbour unawares, and hated him not in time past; (5) as when a man goeth into the forest with his neighbour to hew wood, and his hand fetcheth a stroke with the axe to cut down the tree, and the head slippeth from the helve, and lighteth upon his neighbour, that he die; he shall flee unto one of these cities and live; (6) lest the avenger of blood pursue the manslayer, while his heart is hot, and overtake him, because the way is long, and smite him mortally; whereas he was not deserving of death, inasmuch as he hated him not in time past. (7) Wherefore I command thee, saying: ‘Thou shalt separate three cities for thee.’ (8) And if the LORD thy God enlarge thy border, as He hath sworn unto thy fathers, and give thee all the land which He promised to give unto thy fathers— (9) if thou shalt keep all this commandment to do it, which I command thee this day, to love the LORD thy God, and to walk ever in His ways—then shalt thou add three cities more for thee, beside these three; (10) that innocent blood be not shed in the midst of thy land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and so blood be upon thee. (11) But if any man hate his neighbour, and lie in wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him mortally that he die; and he flee into one of these cities; (12) then the elders of his city shall send and fetch him thence, and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, that he may die. (13) Thine eye shall not pity him, but thou shalt put away the blood of the innocent from Israel, that it may go well with thee. (14) Thou shalt not remove thy neighbour’s landmark, which they of old time have set, in thine inheritance which thou shalt inherit, in the land that the LORD thy God giveth thee to possess it. (15) One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth; at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall a matter be establishment (16) If an unrighteous witness rise up against any man to bear perverted witness against him; (17) then both the men, between whom the controversy is, shall stand before the LORD, before the priests and the judges that shall be in those days. (18) And the judges shall inquire diligently; and, behold, if the witness be a false witness, and hath testified falsely against his brother; (19) then shall ye do unto him, as he had purposed to do unto his brother; so shalt thou put away the evil from the midst of thee. (20) And those that remain shall hear, and fear, and shall henceforth commit no more any such evil in the midst of thee. (21) And thine eye shall not pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

(1) If one be found slain in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee to possess it, lying in the field, and it be not known who hath smitten him; (2) then thy elders and thy judges shall come forth, and they shall measure unto the cities which are round about him that is slain. (3) And it shall be, that the city which is nearest unto the slain man, even the elders of that city shall take a heifer of the herd, which hath not been wrought with, and which hath not drawn in the yoke. (4) And the elders of that city shall bring down the heifer unto a rough valley, which may neither be plowed nor sown, and shall break the heifer’s neck there in the valley. (5) And the priests the sons of Levi shall come near—for them the LORD thy God hath chosen to minister unto Him, and to bless in the name of the LORD; and according to their word shall every controversy and every stroke be. (6) And all the elders of that city, who are nearest unto the slain man, shall wash their hands over the heifer whose neck was broken in the valley. (7) And they shall speak and say: ‘Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it. (8) Forgive, O LORD, Thy people Israel, whom Thou hast redeemed, and suffer not innocent blood to remain in the midst of Thy people Israel.’ And the blood shall be forgiven them.

A Sanhedrin that would execute somebody once every seven years would be considered a violent Beit Din. Rabbi Elazar Ben Azariah says: "Once every 70 years." Rabbi Tarfon and Rabbi 'Akiva said: "If we were on the Sanhedrin we would never have killed anyone!" Rabban Shim'on Ben Gamliel said: "They would have increased violence in Israel."

(5) If they found him innocent, they dismiss him. If not, they move his judgment to the next day. They would go together, pair by pair; and they would decrease [the amount of] food [they would eat]; and they would drink no wine all day; and they would deliberate all night; and on the morrow, early, they would rise and come to the court. The [judge arguing] to acquit says, "I [argued to] acquit and my [opinion remains] in place"; and the [judge arguing] to convict says, "I [argued to] convict and my [opinion remains] in place." One who has offered an argument to convict may [subsequently] offer an argument to acquit, but one who has offered an argument to acquit may not retract [and subsequently] offer an argument to convict. If they had erred, the two judicial scribes remind them. If they found him innocent, they dismiss him. If not, they stand to vote. [If] twelve acquit and eleven convict, he is acquitted. If twelve convict and eleven acquit; and even if eleven acquit, eleven convict, and one says, "I do not know"; or even if twenty-two acquit or convict and one says "I do not know," they add [more] judges. How many do they add? [They add judges] two at a time until there are seventy-one. [If] thirty-six acquit and thirty-five convict, he is acquitted. [If] thirty-six convict and thirty-five acquit, the judges argue one against another until one [judge] from those who voted to convict is convinced by the words of those who voted to acquit.

One who sheds blood is regarded as though he had diminished the image of God...[why in the image of God] Because [man is created] in the image of God.

(5) How do we press the witnesses in a capital case?...But in capital cases, the blood of (the victim) and all his future offspring hang upon you until the end of time. For thus we find in regard to Cain, who killed his brother, "The bloods of your brother scream out!" (Genesis 4:10) - the verse does not say blood of your brother, but bloods of your brother, because it was his blood and also the blood of his future offspring (screaming out)! [Another explanation of the verse: for his blood was splattered over the trees and rocks (i.e. there was more than one pool of blood).] (The judges' speech continues:) "It was for this reason that man was first created as one person (viz. Adam), to teach you that anyone who destroys a life (some editions: from Israel) is considered by Scripture to have destroyed an entire world; any any who saves a life (some editions: from Israel) is as if he saved an entire world."

We provide sustenance and clothing for the poor of the gentiles together with the poor of the Jewish people as an expression of the ways of peace.

When a poor person begs from door to door, we do not give him a large gift. Instead, we give him a small gift. It is forbidden to turn away a poor person who asks [for charity] empty-handed. Even giving him one fig [is sufficient], as [Psalms 74:21]: "Let not the dejected turn away in shame."

We must provide help for the non-Jewish poor as well as for the Jewish poor; we must visit non-Jews when they are sick as well as our fellow Jews when they are sick; and we must attend to the burial of their dead as well as the burial of our own dead; for these are the ways of peace.