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The Rule of Law

18 When [the King] takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law, taken from that of the priests, who are Levites. 19 It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere the LORD his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees 20 and not consider himself better than his brothers and turn from the law to the right or to the left. Then he and his descendants will reign a long time over his kingdom in Israel.

Deuteronomy 17:18-20 (NIV)

Baseball plate umpires were prone to drift from “I call them as they are” to “I call them as I see them” to “They are nothing till I call them.” Accordingly, the strike zone shrank to half its regulation size, and baseball authorities recently have reestablished the standard. Civil authorities can presume to take the same path, substituting their preferences for what is on the books and in the Book, and they must be continually watched for deviation.

When an Israelite king was installed or “took the throne,” his first official act was to receive from the Levites a copy of the law of God and to publicly proclaim it aloud to his subjects—the defining moment of his reign. Since so many false notions and unholy motives would compete with truth and righteousness in his life, the ruler was obliged repeatedly to take his bearings, reading the law “all the days of his life” (v. 19). This daily discipline produced humility and steadfast resolve, essential for virtuous rule.

While Deuteronomy 17:18-20 concerns theocratic rule, the general principle applies to society today. In ancient days, God did not turn rulers loose to pontificate and sanction according to whatever notions came into their heads. Nor were they meant to be feathers tossed about by the winds of fashion, personal ambition, or even unbridled compassion. There were standards to which they were accountable. And since these standards were rooted in the nature and will of God, they were non-negotiable.

On this model, law is a check on despotism (including benevolent despotism), and God is a check on law. Just as in Moses’ day, contemporary lawmakers are personally and corporately answerable to God’s directives. In turn, both law enforcers and the citizenry are answerable to those duly enacted laws.

The morning paper and evening news bring horrifying stories of lawlessness around the world. In some locales, looting and unbridled violence are the order of the day. Economies disintegrate in the chaos. Black markets make a mockery of governments, and bribes grease political machines. The people are dying for lack of law and order.

It is easy for more ordered societies to feel smug at this spectacle, but human civilization is a very thin veneer. Pastors can never assume that their own society is immune to tyranny and other lawlessness. They can, however, assume that faithful, biblical preaching will have a salutary effect upon the culture and upon the law makers and law enforcers who emerge from it. If, instead, civic leaders habitually “turn from the law to the right or to the left,” their pastors need to examine their pulpit ministries to ensure they are calling such leaders to account. In civic life, too, the standard needs to be re-established—the standard that God has set for humanity.