Bribes

Bribery

Deuteronomy 16:19 (KJV) 19  Thou shalt not wrest judgment; thou shalt not respect persons, neither take a gift: for a gift doth blind the eyes of the wise, and pervert the words of the righteous.

Exodus 23:8 (KJV) 8  And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous. Proverbs 15:27 (KJV) 27  He that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house; but he that hateth gifts shall live.

Isaiah 33:15-16 (NLT) 15  Those who are honest and fair, who refuse to profit by fraud, who stay far away from bribes, who refuse to listen to those who plot murder, who shut their eyes to all enticement to do wrong— 16  these are the ones who will dwell on high. The rocks of the mountains will be their fortress. Food will be supplied to them, and they will have water in abundance.

Exodus 23:8 (ESV) 8  And you shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds the clear-sighted and subverts the cause of those who are in the right.

Exodus 23:8 (KJV) 8  And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.

Adam Clarke's Commentary - Ex 23:8

Exodus 23:8

Thou shalt take no gift—A strong ordinance against selling justice, which has been the disgrace and ruin of every state where it has been practiced. In the excellent charter of British liberties called Magna Charta, there is one article expressly on this head: Nulli vendemus, nulli negabimus aut differemus, rectum aut justitiam—Art. xxxiii. "To none will we sell, to none will we deny or defer, right or justice." This was the more necessary in those early and corrupt times, as he who had most money, and gave the largest presents (called then oblata) to the king or queen, was sure to gain his cause in the king's court; whether he had right and justice on his side or not.

HCSB Study Bible - Ex 23:8

Exodus 23

EX 23:1-9 These verses touch on every economic status or personal feeling that might tempt someone to treat another unjustly. Favoritism either to the poor or to the rich is ruled out (Lv 19:15). Even in private matters involving the need of an enemy, an Israelite must not only return straying livestock but also render aid on the spot (Lv 19:15; Mt 5:43-48; Rm 12:17-21).

Ex 23:6-9 As in EX 22:21-26, the Israelites must remember who they were and what it was like as foreigners, and they must consider who the Lord is in His support of justice. The warning in 23:7 not to execute an innocent person comes with a reason: because I will not justify the guilty. This may refer to God ultimately bringing to justice a guilty person who may slip through the court when judges take care not to execute an innocent person. Or it may refer to God bringing to justice any witness or judge who contributes to the execution of an innocent person. Either way, the Lord declared His concern for maintaining justice (Dt 10:17; 16:18-20; 2Ch 19:6-7; Jer 22:3; 1Pe 1:15-17). With these things in mind, the Israelites must support justice equally for the poor, the rich, and foreigners.

Thompson Chain - Marginal Notes - Ex 23:8

Exodus 23

2548     Bribery (1), Psalm 26:10