Bible Verses About Government

then have thine elders and thy judges gone out and measured unto the cities which are round about the slain one,

and it hath been, the city which is near unto the slain one, even the elders of that city have taken a heifer of the herd, which hath not been wrought with, which hath not drawn in the yoke,

and the elders of that city have brought down the heifer unto a hard valley, which is not tilled nor sown, and have beheaded there the heifer in the valley.

`And the priests, sons of Levi, have come nigh--for on them hath Jehovah thy God fixed to serve Him, and to bless in the name of Jehovah, and by their mouth is every strife, and every stroke--

and all the elders of that city, who are near unto the slain one, do wash their hands over the heifer which is beheaded in the valley,

and they have answered and said, Our hands have not shed this blood, and our eyes have not seen--

receive atonement for Thy people Israel, whom Thou hast ransomed, O Jehovah, and suffer not innocent blood in the midst of Thy people Israel; and the blood hath been pardoned to them,

`When a man hath a son apostatizing and rebellious--he is not hearkening to the voice of his father, and to the voice of his mother, and they have chastised him, and he doth not hearken unto them--

then laid hold on him have his father and his mother, and they have brought him out unto the elders of his city, and unto the gate of his place,

and have said unto the elders of his city, Our son--this one--is apostatizing and rebellious; he is not hearkening to our voice--a glutton and drunkard;

and all the men of his city have stoned him with stones, and he hath died, and thou hast put away the evil out of thy midst, and all Israel do hear and fear.

`When a man taketh a wife, and hath gone in unto her, and hated her,

and laid against her actions of words, and brought out against her an evil name, and said, This woman I have taken, and I draw near unto her, and I have not found in her tokens of virginity:

`Then hath the father of the damsel--and her mother--taken and brought out the tokens of virginity of the damsel unto the elders of the city in the gate,

and the father of the damsel hath said unto the elders, My daughter I have given to this man for a wife, and he doth hate her;

and lo, he hath laid actions of words, saying, I have not found to thy daughter tokens of virginity--and these are the tokens of the virginity of my daughter! and they have spread out the garment before the elders of the city.

`And the elders of that city have taken the man, and chastise him,

and fined him a hundred silverlings, and given to the father of the damsel, because he hath brought out an evil name on a virgin of Israel, and she is to him for a wife, he is not able to send her away all his days.

`And if this thing hath been truth--tokens of virginity have not been found for the damsel--

then they have brought out the damsel unto the opening of her father's house, and stoned her have the men of her city with stones, and she hath died, for she hath done folly in Israel, to go a-whoring in her father's house; and thou hast put away the evil thing out of thy midst.

`And if the man doth not delight to take his brother's wife, then hath his brother's wife gone up to the gate, unto the elders, and said, My husband's brother is refusing to raise up to his brother a name in Israel; he hath not been willing to perform the duty of my husband's brother;

and the elders of his city have called for him, and spoken unto him, and he hath stood and said, I have no desire to take her;

`Then hath his brother's wife drawn nigh unto him, before the eyes of the elders, and drawn his shoe from off his foot, and spat in his face, and answered and said, Thus it is done to the man who doth not build up the house of his brother;

and captureth a young man of the men of Succoth, and asketh him, and he describeth unto him the heads of Succoth, and its elders--seventy and seven men.

And he cometh in unto the men of Succoth, and saith, `Lo Zebah and Zalmunna, with whom ye reproached me, saying, Is the hand of Zebah and Zalmunna now in thy hand that we give to thy men who are wearied bread?'