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The Law of God and Public Policy
In the divine economy justice begins in local communities.
“You shall appoint judges and officers in all your towns that the LORD your God is giving you, according to your tribes, and they shall judge the people with righteous judgment.” Deuteronomy 16:18
In the divine economy, the economics of justice and love outlined in God’s Law, effective government begins at the local level. The outgrowth of home and the guardian of property and neighborly relationships, local government in the divine economy has priority of place in ensuring the workings of the divine economy by exemplifying, encouraging, and, when necessary, enforcing individual responsibility for the requirements of just.
The Law of God does not envision a large national government which has as its primary purpose regulating the affairs of the nation to maximize material prosperity for all. That some kind of national government would be required in Israel is anticipated by the authorization to select a king, given in Deuteronomy 17. But we note there the strict constraints placed on that central authority. The primary function of the king seems to have been to protect and oversee the affairs of the nation and to ensure that the divine economy is in good working order throughout the communities of the land. That scarcely a single king in Israel’s history managed consistently to fulfill this role bears witness both to the sinfulness of men and limitations of national governments.
In the Law of God, primary authority was invested in local governments, in the form of elected judges and officials, for ensuring that justice prevailed in all the towns and villages of Israel.
T. M. Moore
Visit our website, www.ailbe.org, and sign up to receive our thrice-weekly devotional, Crosfigell, featuring writers from the period of the Celtic Revival and T. M.’s reflections on Scripture and the Celtic Christian tradition. Does the Law of God still apply today? Order a copy of T. M.’s book, The Ground for Christian Ethics, and study the question for yourself.