Deuteronomy 1:17

The NET Bible®

They must not discriminate in judgment, but hear the lowly and the great alike. Nor should they be intimidated by human beings, for judgment belongs to God. If the matter being adjudicated is too difficult for them, they should bring it before me for a hearing.

Parallel Translations

Legacy Standard Bible
You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not fear man, for the judgment is God's. The case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.'

New American Standard Bible (1995)
'You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not fear man, for the judgment is God's. The case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.'

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Ye shall haue no respect of any person in iudgement, but you shall heare the small aswell as the great: You shall not feare the face of any man, for the iudgement is Gods. And the cause that is to harde for you, referre it vnto me, and I wyll heare it.

Easy-to-Read Version
You must treat everyone the same when you judge. You must listen carefully to everyone—whether they are important or not. Don't be afraid of anyone, because your decision is from God. But if there is a case too hard for you to judge, bring it to me and I will judge it.'

Revised Standard Version
You shall not be partial in judgment; you shall hear the small and the great alike; you shall not be afraid of the face of man, for the judgment is God's; and the case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.'

World English Bible
You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear the small and the great alike; you shall not be afraid of the face of man; for the judgment is God's: and the cause that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.

King James Version (1611)
Ye shall not respect persons in iudgement, but you shall heare the small aswell as the great: you shall not bee afraid of the face of man, for the iudgment is Gods: and the cause that is too hard for you, bring it vnto me, and I will heare it.

King James Version
Ye shall not respect persons in judgment; but ye shall hear the small as well as the great; ye shall not be afraid of the face of man; for the judgment is God's: and the cause that is too hard for you, bring it unto me, and I will hear it.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Ye shall knowe no personne in iudgment, but shall heare the small as well as the greate, and be afrayed of no man: for the Iudgment is Gods. But yf eny cause be to harde for you, let it be broughte vnto me, yt I maye heare it.

American Standard Version
Ye shall not respect persons in judgment; ye shall hear the small and the great alike; ye shall not be afraid of the face of man; for the judgment is God's: and the cause that is too hard for you ye shall bring unto me, and I will hear it.

Bible in Basic English
In judging, do not let a man's position have any weight with you; give hearing equally to small and great; have no fear of any man, for it is God who is judge: and any cause in which you are not able to give a decision, you are to put before me and I will give it a hearing.

Update Bible Version
You shall not respect persons in judgment; you shall hear the small and the great alike; you shall not be afraid of the face of man; for the judgment is God's: and the cause that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.

Webster's Bible Translation
Ye shall not respect persons in judgment; [but] ye shall hear the small as well as the great; ye shall not be afraid of the face of man; for the judgment [is] God's: and the cause that is too hard for you, bring to me, and I will hear it.

New King James Version
You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear the small as well as the great; you shall not be afraid in any man's presence, for the judgment is God's. The case that is too hard for you, bring to me, and I will hear it.'

Contemporary English Version
And it doesn't matter if one is helpless and the other is powerful. Don't be afraid of anyone! No matter who shows up in your court, God will help you make a fair decision. If any case is too hard for you, bring the people to me, and I will make the decision.

Complete Jewish Bible
You are not to show favoritism when judging, but give equal attention to the small and to the great. No matter how a person presents himself, don't be afraid of him; because the decision is God's. The case that is too hard for you, bring to me and I will hear it.'

Darby Translation
Ye shall not respect persons in judgment: ye shall hear the small as well as the great; ye shall not be afraid of the face of man, for the judgment is God's; and the matter that is too hard for you shall ye bring to me, that I may hear it.

Geneva Bible (1587)
Ye shal haue no respect of person in iudgement, but shall heare the small aswell as the great: yee shall not feare the face of man: for the iudgemet is Gods: and the cause that is too hard for you, bring vnto me, and I will heare it.

George Lamsa Translation
You shall not be partial to persons in judgment; but you shall hear the small as well as the great; you shall not be afraid of the face of man, for the judgment is Gods; and the cause that is too hard for you, bring it to me, and I will hear it.

Good News Translation
Show no partiality in your decisions; judge everyone on the same basis, no matter who they are. Do not be afraid of anyone, for the decisions you make come from God. If any case is too difficult for you, bring it to me, and I will decide it.'

Amplified Bible
'You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear and pay attention to the [cases of the] least [important] as well as the great. You shall not fear man, for the judgment is God's. The case that is too hard for you [to judge], you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.'

Hebrew Names Version
You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear the small and the great alike; you shall not be afraid of the face of man; for the judgment is God's: and the cause that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
Ye shall not respect persons in judgment; ye shall hear the small and the great alike; ye shall not be afraid of the face of any man; for the judgment is God's; and the cause that is too hard for you ye shall bring unto me, and I will hear it.'

New Living Translation
and impartial in your judgments. Hear the cases of those who are poor as well as those who are rich. Don't be afraid of anyone's anger, for the decision you make is God's decision. Bring me any cases that are too difficult for you, and I will handle them.'

New Life Bible
Do not show favor as you judge. Listen to the small and the great alike. Do not be afraid of any man, because you are judging for God. Bring to me any problem that is too hard for you, and I will hear it.'

New Revised Standard
You must not be partial in judging: hear out the small and the great alike; you shall not be intimidated by anyone, for the judgment is God's. Any case that is too hard for you, bring to me, and I will hear it."

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Thou shalt not have respect to persons in judgment, thou shalt judge small and great equally; thou shalt not shrink from before the person of a man, for the judgment is God’s; and whatsoever matter shall be too hard for you, ye shall bring it to me, and I will hear it.

English Revised Version
Ye shall not respect persons in judgment; ye shall hear the small and the great alike; ye shall not be afraid of the face of man; for the judgment is God's: and the cause that is too hard for you ye shall bring unto me, and I will hear it.

Berean Standard Bible
Show no partiality in judging; hear both small and great alike. Do not be intimidated by anyone, for judgment belongs to God. And bring to me any case too difficult for you, and I will hear it."

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Ye shall not take note of faces in judgment - so the small as the great, shall ye hear, ye shall not shrink from the face of any man, for judgment, unto God, belongeth, - but the thing which is too hard for you, shall ye bring near unto me, and I will hear it.

Douay-Rheims Bible
There shall be no difference of persons, you shall hear the little as well as the great: neither shall you respect any man’s person, because it is the judgment of God. And if any thing seem hard to you, refer it to me, and I will hear it.

Lexham English Bible
You must not be partial in your judgment; hear out the small person as also the great person; do not be intimidated by any person, because the judgment is God's; and the case that is too difficult for you, bring it to me, and I will hear it out.'

Literal Translation
You shall not recognize persons in judgment; you shall hear the small as well as the great; you shall not be afraid because of the face of a man, for the judgment is God's; and the thing too hard for you, you shall bring near to me, andI shall hear it.

English Standard Version
You shall not be partial in judgment. You shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not be intimidated by anyone, for the judgment is God's. And the case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.'

New American Standard Bible
'You are not to show partiality in judgment; you shall hear the small and the great alike. You are not to be afraid of any person, for the judgment is God's. The case that is too difficult for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.'

New Century Version
When you judge, be fair to everyone; don't act as if one person is more important than another, and don't be afraid of anyone, because your decision comes from God. Bring the hard cases to me, and I will judge them."

Christian Standard Bible®
Do not show partiality when deciding a case; listen to small and great alike. Do not be intimidated by anyone, for judgment belongs to God. Bring me any case too difficult for you, and I will hear it.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
No difference schal be of persones; ye schulen here so a litil man, `that is, pore, as a greet man, nether ye schulen take the persoone of ony man, for it is the doom of God. That if ony thing semeth hard to you, telle ye to me, and Y schal here.

Young's Literal Translation
ye do not discern faces in judgment; as the little so the great ye do hear; ye are not afraid of the face of any, for the judgment is God's, and the thing which is too hard for you, ye bring near unto me, and I have heard it;

Contextual Overview

⁹ I also said to you at that time, "I am no longer able to sustain you by myself. ¹⁰ The Lord your God has increased your population to the point that you are now as numerous as the very stars of the sky. ¹¹ Indeed, may the Lord , the God of your ancestors, make you a thousand times more numerous than you are now, blessing you just as he said he would! ¹² But how can I alone bear up under the burden of your hardship and strife? ¹³ Select wise and practical men, those known among your tribes, whom I may appoint as your leaders." ¹⁴ You replied to me that what I had said to you was good. ¹⁵ So I chose as your tribal leaders wise and well-known men, placing them over you as administrators of groups of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens, and also as other tribal officials. ¹⁶ I furthermore admonished your judges at that time that they should pay attention to issues among your fellow citizens and judge fairly, whether between one citizen and another or a citizen and a resident foreigner. ¹⁷ They must not discriminate in judgment, but hear the lowly and the great alike. Nor should they be intimidated by human beings, for judgment belongs to God. If the matter being adjudicated is too difficult for them, they should bring it before me for a hearing. ¹⁸ So I instructed you at that time regarding everything you should do.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

shall not: Deuteronomy 10:17, Deuteronomy 16:19, Leviticus 19:15, 1 Samuel 16:7, 2 Samuel 14:14, Proverbs 24:23, Luke 20:21, Acts 10:34, Acts 10:35, Romans 2:11, Ephesians 6:9, Colossians 3:25, James 2:1, James 2:3, James 2:9, 1 Peter 1:17

respect persons: Heb. acknowledge faces, That is, let not the bold, daring countenances of the rich or mighty induce you to give an unrighteous decision; and let not the abject look of the poor man induce you either to favour him in an unrighteous cause, or to give judgment against him at the demand of the oppressor.

ye shall hear: Exodus 23:3, Exodus 23:6, Exodus 23:7, 1 Samuel 12:3, 1 Samuel 12:4, Job 22:6-9, Job 29:11-17, Job 31:13-16, Psalms 82:3, Psalms 82:4, Proverbs 22:22, Proverbs 22:23, Jeremiah 5:28, Jeremiah 5:29, Amos 5:11, Amos 5:12, Micah 2:1-3, Micah 3:1-4, Micah 7:3, Micah 7:4, James 2:2-4, James 2:5

ye shall not: 1 Kings 21:8-14, Job 31:34, Proverbs 29:25, Jeremiah 1:17, Matthew 22:16, Mark 12:14, 1 Thessalonians 2:4

the judgment: 2 Chronicles 19:6

the cause: Deuteronomy 17:8-10, Exodus 18:18, Exodus 18:22, Exodus 18:26

Reciprocal: Exodus 23:2 - to decline 2 Chronicles 18:30 - small or great 2 Chronicles 19:9 - in the fear 2 Chronicles 34:30 - great and small Job 32:21 - accept Psalms 82:2 - accept Proverbs 18:5 - not Ezekiel 18:8 - hath executed Malachi 2:9 - have been partial in John 7:19 - not John 7:24 - General John 7:51 - General

Cross-References

Genesis 9:13
I will place my rainbow in the clouds, and it will become a guarantee of the covenant between me and the earth.

Job 38:12
Have you ever in your life commanded the morning, or made the dawn know its place,

Psalms 8:1

For the music director, according to the gittith style; a psalm of David.

O Lord , our Lord, how magnificent is your reputation throughout the earth! You reveal your majesty in the heavens above!

Psalms 8:3
When I look up at the heavens, which your fingers made, and see the moon and the stars, which you set in place,

Acts 13:47
For this is what the Lord has commanded us: ‘I have appointed you to be a light for the Gentiles, to bring salvation to the ends of the earth.'"

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Ye shall not respect persons in judgment,.... Or pass judgment, and give sentence according to the outward appearances, circumstances, and relations of men; as whether they be friends or foes, rich or poor, old or young, men or women, learned or unlearned; truth and justice should always take place, without any regard to what persons are:

but you shall hear the small as well as the great; persons in low, life, and in mean circumstances, as well as great and noble personages; or little causes and of no great moment, as well as those of the utmost importance; all must be attended to, a cause about a "prutah" or a farthing, as well as one about a hundred pounds, in which Jarchi instances, and if that came first it was not to be postponed:

ye shall not be afraid of the face of man; of the frowns and threatenings of rich men, and of such as are in power and authority; not be awed or intimidated by them from doing justice; see Job 31:34,

for the judgment [is] God's; judges stand in the place of God, are put into their office by him, and act under him, and for him, and are accountable to him; and therefore should be careful what judgment they make, or sentence they pass, lest they bring discredit to him, and destruction on themselves:

and the cause that is too hard for you, bring it unto me, and I will hear it; which is said for their encouragement, as well as was an instruction to them not to undertake a cause too difficult for them; see Exodus 18:22.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Deuteronomy 1:17. Ye shall not respect persons — Heb. faces. Let not the bold, daring countenance of the rich or mighty induce you to give an unrighteous decision; and let not the abject look of the poor man induce you either to favour him in an unrighteous cause, or to give judgment against him at the demand of the oppressor. Be uncorrupt and incorruptible, for the judgment is God's; ye minister in the place of God, act like HIM.