Deuteronomy 19:14-21 comments: false witnesses

 

Deuteronomy 19:14 ¶  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 the matter be established. 16  If a false witness rise up against any man to testify against him that which is wrong; 17  Then both the men, between whom the controversy is, shall stand before the LORD, before the priests and the judges, which shall be in those days; 18  And the judges shall make diligent inquisition: 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 thought to have done unto his brother: so shalt thou put the evil away from among you. 20  And those which remain shall hear, and fear, and shall henceforth commit no more any such evil among you. 21  And thine eye shall not pity; but life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

 

Here we have civil law outlined in that for there to be an inheritance of land, as is the case with all cultures that value private property, there must be sure boundaries. This was the way the Israelite could make sure that his inheritance in land was clear and secure. This will be stated again later by way of a summary.

 

Deuteronomy 27:17  Cursed be he that removeth his neighbour’s landmark. And all the people shall say, Amen.

 

Next, apparently God would not have accepted our concept of one criminal “turning state’s evidence” against a comrade in crime. One witness was not enough to accuse a person of wrongdoing.

 

Deuteronomy 17:6  At the mouth of two witnesses, or three witnesses, shall he that is worthy of death be put to death; but at the mouth of one witness he shall not be put to death.

 

Numbers 35:30  Whoso killeth any person, the murderer shall be put to death by the mouth of witnesses: but one witness shall not testify against any person to cause him to die.

 

What follows is a rule I wish were applied to prosecutors today who withhold evidence or get someone convicted they know is innocent or have no proof is guilty. If you are a false witness than what you thought to have done to the person you lied about should be done to you. That would straighten out some of our current criminal “injustice” system for sure.