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Read beginning in verse 1. And 
Jethro the priest of Midian, Moses' father-in-law, heard of 
all that God had done for Moses and for Israel, his people, that 
the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt. Then Jethro, Moses' 
father-in-law, took Zipporah, Moses' wife, after he had sent 
her back, with her two sons, of whom the name of one was Gershom. For he said, I have been a stranger 
in a foreign land, and the name of the other was Eleazar. For 
he said, the God of my father was my help, and delivered me 
from the sword of Pharaoh. And Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, 
came with his sons and his wife to Moses in the wilderness, where 
he was encamped at the mountain of God. Now he had said to Moses, 
I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you with your wife 
and her two sons with her. So Moses went out to meet his 
father-in-law, bowed down and kissed him. And they asked each 
other about their well-being, and they went into the tent. 
And Moses told his father-in-law all that the Lord had done to 
Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel's sake, all the hardship 
that had come upon them on the way, and how the Lord had delivered 
them. Then Jethro rejoiced for all 
the good which the Lord had done for Israel, whom he had delivered 
out of the hand of the Egyptians. And Jethro said, Blessed be the 
Lord, who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians 
and out of the hand of the Pharaoh, and who has delivered the people 
from under the hand of the Egyptians. Now I know that the Lord is greater 
than all the gods, for in the very thing in which they behaved 
proudly, He was above them. Then Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, 
took a burnt offering and other sacrifices to offer to God. And 
Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Moses' 
father-in-law before God. And so it was on the next day 
that Moses sat to judge the people, and the people stood before Moses 
from morning until evening. So when Moses' father-in-law 
saw all that he did for the people, he said, What is this thing that 
you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit, and all 
the people stand before you from morning until evening? And Moses 
said to his father-in-law, because the people come to me to inquire 
of God. When they have a difficulty, 
they come to me, and I judge between one and another, and 
I make known the statutes of God and His laws. So Moses' father-in-law 
said to him, the thing that you do is not good. Both you and 
these people who are with you will surely wear yourselves out. 
For this thing is too much for you. You are not able to perform 
it by yourself. Listen now to my voice. I will 
give you counsel, and God will be with you. Stand before God 
for the people so that you may bring the difficulties to God. 
And you shall teach them the statutes and the laws, and show 
them the way in which they must walk and the work they must do. 
Moreover, you shall select from all the people able men, such 
as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness, and place such 
over them to be rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of 
fifties, and rulers of tens, and let them judge the people 
at all times. then it will be that every great 
matter they shall bring to you, but every small matter they themselves 
shall judge. So it will be easier for you, 
for they will bear the burden with you. If you do this thing, 
and God so commands you, then you will be able to endure, and 
all this people will also go to their place in peace. So Moses 
heeded the voice of his father-in-law and did all that he had said. 
And Moses chose able men out of all Israel and made them heads 
over the people, rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of 
fifties and rulers of tens. So they judged the people at 
all times. The hard cases they brought to Moses, but they judged 
every small case themselves. Then Moses let his father-in-law 
depart and he went his way to his own land. Amen. Well, if 
you notice specifically at verse 4, they have arrived at Mount 
Sinai. That will be developed further 
in chapter 19, as there is preparation for the giving of the law in 
chapter 20. So they've been wandering now for about three months. They 
left Egypt, and now they've arrived at their destination at Sinai, 
where God had told them he would bring them in chapter 3 at verse 
12. But prior to the giving of the 
law, we see this emphasis on the delegation of judicial authority 
by Moses to men that would be able to assist him in the government 
of the children of Israel. Some have placed this later or 
say that this occurred later after the giving of the law because 
Moses here is mediating the laws and the statutes of God. I don't 
think we need to read it that way. I think that God had already 
been communicating through Moses to the children of Israel certain 
statutes, commandments, and laws, but it's codified or given at 
the Decalogue in chapter 20, and then it's developed in terms 
of its application to Israel for their life in the land in 
chapters 21 to 23. So when we look at this particular 
chapter, there's two broad strokes we need to observe. In the first 
place, the conversion of Jethro in verses 1 to 12, and then secondly, 
the counsel of Jethro in verses 13 to 27. There's probably a 
lot of ways that people read chapter 18 in terms of Jethro, 
who was identified here as a priest of Midian. Did he already know 
Yahweh before? Was he a priest to Yahweh of 
Midian? I don't think so. I think this 
is the time when he comes to embrace the living and the true 
God as a result of the testimony of Moses, his son-in-law, having 
been given to him. So let's look first at the conversion 
of Jethro, verses 1 to 12. There's two things here, the 
reunion with Jethro in verses 1 to 7, and then the conversion 
of Jethro in verses 8 to 12. But notice with reference to 
the reunion in verses 1 to 7, There is a marked contrast between 
chapter 17 and chapter 18. This is just one of those sort 
of interesting places where we see the literary genius of the 
Bible. So you have this victory over 
the Amalekites in chapter 17 at verses 8 to 16, and then here 
in chapter 18 you have a contrast. So the encounter with the Amalekites 
is focused on war. You see that in 17.8 and 17.16. 
And the encounter with Jethro is about peace, the well-being 
of Jethro and Moses in verse 7, and then the well-being of 
all Israel in verse 23. In chapter 17, Moses has Joshua 
choose men for war against the Amalekites in 17.9. And here Moses selects men to 
function in the judiciary. In chapter 17, Moses sits on 
a stone during the battle, and here in chapter 18, he sits in 
judgment. In chapter 17, his hands are 
weary with reference to the battle, and here he is weary while he's 
engaged in judicial matters. So again, the literary genius 
of the Bible, seeing these contrasts, seeing these overlaps, seeing 
thematic reference throughout as we move through scripture. 
Now in terms of the background with reference to Jethro the 
priest of Midian, we first meet him back in chapter 2. In chapter 
2 verses 16 to 22, remember Moses is kind to Jethro's daughters 
and then they bring him back to this man Jethro. And so, of 
course, when you look at verse 18 in chapter 2, Ruel refers 
to Jethro as well. Most likely it's a clan name. 
It's not that he's Jethro Ruel or Ruel Jethro. He's probably 
Jethro of the clan of Ruel. So we meet Jethro back then in 
conjunction with Zipporah. Now when we come back to chapter 
18, we see that Jethro is bringing Zipporah and the two sons back 
to Moses. So why were they not present 
with him? Why did Moses leave Zipporah 
and his two sons with Jethro? Well, Gil says the plain case 
seems to be, and again, there's a lot of ink spill. Some suggest 
that Moses and Zipporah divorced and there's just a whole lot 
of things concerning this. But I think Gil nails it. He 
says the plain case seems to be that Moses finding his family 
would be exposed to danger or would be too great an encumbrance 
upon him in the discharge of his great work which he had to 
do in Egypt, sent them back to his father-in-law until a fit 
opportunity should offer of their coming to him as now dead. I think that makes good sense. 
Calvin seems to disregard that interpretation because there 
was a lot of other wives that were with their husbands in the 
midst of the exodus. But I would argue they weren't 
doing what Moses was doing. Moses was going face to face 
with Pharaoh. So I don't think it would have 
been unwise for him to leave his wife and his two sons with 
Jethro for that time being. Now, with reference to the reunion 
proper, notice in verse one, we see that Jethro had heard 
what God had done for Moses and for Israel, his people, that 
the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt. So again, I'm going 
to argue that he's converted in this because he's heard the 
testimony, he's seen the power, he has witnessed that God of 
Israel is in fact the true and living God, so he comes out of 
darkness into marvelous light. It's similar to Rahab. Rahab 
the harlot confesses the same sorts of things with reference 
to the spies from Israel. She knew and had heard what God 
had done. and understanding this great 
power of the living and true God, essentially in that paganistic, 
sort of polytheistic land, when you saw this supreme God best 
all of the other would-be gods, it would definitely testify concerning 
His power and His glory. As well, he sends back Zipporah 
and Moses' two sons. The text rehearses what the names 
are. Gershom, for he said, I have 
been a stranger in a foreign land. Verse four, the name of 
the other was Eliezer, for he said, the God of my father was 
my help and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh. So not 
only does Jethro send them back to Moses, and again, Jethro knows 
the mountain of God, he knows this land of Sinai, we already 
see him there in chapter three, and there it's announced that 
God would bring his children to this place of Sinai. So he 
meets back with him, and then in verse six, I don't think this 
is the formal meeting, that's in verse seven, but he probably 
sends word ahead to mention to Moses that he's en route. So 
verse 5 tells us he was encamped at the mountain of God. Again, 
that's Sinai, also referred to as Horeb. When you see Horeb, 
that's another name for Sinai. Now verse 6 says he had said 
to Moses, I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you with 
your wife and her two sons with her." Again, it was probably 
by a runner, by a messenger, to alert Moses to the fact that 
his wife and his sons were coming. Now the formal greeting comes 
in verse 7, the meeting between Jethro and Moses. Notice, Moses 
went out to meet his father-in-law, bowed down, kissed him, and they 
asked each other about their well-being. excuse me, and they 
went into the tent. Now notice the testimony of Moses 
that he gives to Jethro and then Jethro's response to that testimony. Moses told of what God had done 
to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians. Notice in verse 8a, and Moses 
told his father-in-law all that the Lord, that's Yahweh, it's 
the God of Israel, and Moses told his father-in-law all that 
the Lord had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel's 
sake. That probably meant he rehearsed 
the 10 plagues, culminating, or the 9 plagues, culminating 
in the 10th plague, where God had killed the firstborn throughout 
Egypt. And then how Pharaoh and his 
armies gave chase, and then God brought his children through 
the Red Sea, the division of the waters, and then brought 
those waters to bear upon Pharaoh's army. So he rehearsed the powerful 
works of God. 8a underscores one of the grand 
themes throughout the book of Exodus. God announces to Moses 
at several places, Paul picks this up in Romans chapter 9, 
that the purpose for which God raised up Pharaoh was that God 
was able to display his glory and his power throughout the 
earth. That everybody would know that 
there was in fact a God in Israel. But intriguingly, notice what 
else Moses goes on with in his testimony. Moses would not have 
truck with the health, wealth, and prosperity gospel. Notice 
what he says at 8B. He says, all the hardship that 
had come upon them on the way and how the Lord had delivered 
them. I never quite understood this approach to preaching the 
gospel by telling people that not only are your sins forgiven, 
but your cupboards will always be stocked, your closets will 
always be loaded down, and your bank account will never be wanting. 
Why would we do that? First of all, it's a lie. Second 
of all, one of the blessings of the service of God Most High 
is the reality that though we still face affliction and hardship 
and difficulty, he nevertheless sees us through it. So as Moses 
testifies, he doesn't gloss over the hard parts of the journey 
of the children of Israel. He doesn't say, yes, once we 
left Egypt, they loaded us with all this money, we stepped foot 
into the promised land, and there we enjoyed the milk and the honey. 
No, we stopped at places where there was no food. We stopped 
at places where there was no water. We stopped at places where 
there were angry Amalekites. We stopped at places where there 
were persons that wanted to decimate us and destroy us, but the Lord 
delivered us out of all of the hardships. David sees this as 
well in his own life. Two places he bookends this particular 
statement. In 2 Samuel 4 at verse 9, David 
says, as the Lord lives who has redeemed my life from all adversity. And then in 1 Kings at the end 
of his life, even after the Uriah incident, even after the Bathsheba 
incident, David is able to say at the end of his life, in 1 
Kings 1 29, that as the Lord lives, who has redeemed my life 
from every distress. And certainly the New Testament 
is replete with this emphasis. All who desire to live godly 
in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. but God delivers them from it 
all. John 16, 33, Jesus said, in this world you will have tribulation, 
but be of good cheer, for I have overcome the world. The very 
book of Revelation starts off with the churches in Asia Minor 
in chapters two and three, underscoring the great suffering and affliction 
that the people of God face on the earth. And then the scene 
shifts to the throne room of heaven in chapters four and five 
to see Yahweh's response to the mutiny of man on the face of 
the earth. So this idea that we only ever 
portray God as rosy and as a Disney movie is simply not accurate. Moses doesn't shrink back from 
declaring the whole counsel of God, including not only the good 
times, God's deliverance of us from the land of Egypt, but also 
the hardships that we face, the Lord delivered us from them all. 
Now notice how Jethro responds. He first responds with joy over 
God's deliverance. Again, all these things are characteristic 
of somebody who's come out of darkness into marvelous light. 
There is that joy inexpressible and full of glory. Verse 9, then 
Jethro rejoiced for all the good which the Lord had done for Israel, 
whom he had delivered out of the hand of the Egyptians. There 
was that understanding, that recognition of the power of God, 
not only in the devastation of the enemies of God, but in the 
preservation of his people through their hardship and affliction. 
Notice in verse 10, he gives praise to God for his deliverance. Verse 10, and Jethro said, blessed 
be, again, Yahweh. This man was most likely polytheistic. This man was most likely a man 
who subscribed to a plurality of gods. Now he comes to bless, 
to speak well, to praise the name of the living and the true 
God. Blessed be Yahweh who has delivered you out of the hand 
of the Egyptians and out of the hand of Pharaoh and who has delivered 
the people from under the hand of the Egyptians. Again, This 
is typical of those who come out of darkness into marvelous 
light. Notice thirdly, he confesses the supremacy of God Most High. Again, he's not confessing the 
way that somebody would in our baptistry, but he is confessing 
consistent with the light that was available to him at that 
particular time. Notice in verse 11, now I know 
that Yahweh is greater than all the gods. For in the very thing 
in which they behaved proudly, He was above them. And the pride, 
obviously, was in the fact that they cast the firstborn children 
into the Nile River in order to drown them. Well, how did 
they meet their end? How did they meet their device? 
under the power of Yahweh. It was through death by drowning. 
So it was an application of the lex talionis, an eye for an eye, 
a tooth for a tooth, a life for a life, in the same manner in 
which they had persecuted the children of God. So he confesses 
the supremacy of Yahweh, and then what does he do in verse 
12? He worships. So everything consistent with 
a new covenant conversion. There's joy in the hearts of 
God's people. There's praise expressed to God 
himself. There is a confession of his 
supremacy. And then there is worship of 
God in verse 12. Notice, then Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, 
took a burnt offering and other sacrifices to offer to God. And 
Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Moses' 
father-in-law before God. Now, the actual giving of the 
sacrificial system comes later in redemptive history. We know 
that. We're reading the book of Leviticus, and I'm trying 
to explain how the book of Leviticus solves the tension created at 
the end of chapter 40 in the book of Exodus. But why does 
he do what he does? Because this was already present 
in redemptive history. God killed animals and clothed 
Adam and Eve in Genesis chapter 3 at verse 21. In Genesis chapter 
4 verses 3 to 5, at the end of the days, we see Cain and Abel 
go to offer sacrifice to the Lord. Of course, Abel brings 
blood atonement. Genesis chapter 22, we have Abraham 
called by God to go to Mount Moriah with Isaac and to offer 
up his son, his only son, the son whom he loves. And he's supposed 
to do that by blood atonement. Now, of course, the angel of 
Yahweh stops his hand. He doesn't do it, but there is 
this ram caught in the thicket so that they would learn that 
we get forgiveness or remission or atonement by the death of 
another. In fact, Stuart makes this observation. They all knew something about 
sacrificing as the heart of obedient worship. since that concept had 
trickled down into the consciousness of peoples all over the earth 
from the days of the first family who understood the basic concept 
of sacrifice. Something else must die so that 
I may live. Don't underestimate that. Genesis 
321 was a powerful moment in redemptive history. On the heels 
of the first messianic promise in Genesis 315, then comes blood 
atonement by God himself to provide a covering for Adam and Eve. 
And then again, Abel brings those first fruits of the animals to 
sacrifice before Yahweh, and then that incident with reference 
to Abraham. So we see Jethro converted by 
God's grace. He goes from a priest of Midian, 
hopefully to a priest of Yahweh back in Midian, but he becomes 
one who testifies concerning the grace of God Most High. Now 
it doesn't stop there because Jethro has some good counsel 
or some good advice from Moses. And Moses is the man that is 
described to us in the Pentateuch. He was a humble man. While he 
had the highest particular office in Israel at the time, he was 
not against listening to the counsel of wise people. And that's precisely what we 
have in the later half of the chapter. So there's two things 
to observe here. First, the judicial function 
of Moses in verses 13 to 16, and then the recommendation of 
Jethro in verses 19 to 27. Now when you move on in the Pentateuch, 
there is detailed legislation given with reference to the law 
courts. You've got the information in 
Deuteronomy 16 in terms of lower courts or judges and officers 
at the local level. And then later in chapter 17, 
you have instructions for a high court, for something that could 
not be adjudicated in a lower court, then there was a higher 
court that was in Israel that would hear those particular cases. 
As well in both Deuteronomy 17 and then in 19, you have laws 
concerning witnesses. In other words, there is an emphasis 
in a civilized society governed by God's law on due process. And that ought to be one of the 
things that most concerns us in North America presently, is 
to see the erosion of due process, to see what appears to be two 
tiers with reference to civil justice. where some people are 
penalized because of political unorthodoxy in the eyes of others, 
and others seem to skate unscathed based on their politics. Well, 
in a civil society, with a judiciary, it's supposed to function in 
a properly and orderly way, and that's what we have in the Pentateuch. 
Now, notice the practice of Moses in verse 13. And so it was on 
the next day that Moses sat to judge the people, and the people 
stood before Moses from morning until evening. What's the presupposition 
here? The presupposition is total depravity. The presupposition is sin. The presupposition is that there 
will be interpersonal, that means among people, whether they're 
God's people or they're pagans, whether it's a mix of God's people 
and pagans, whether it's all believers or all unbelievers 
or an admixture of both. There will always be interpersonal 
friction, tension, disputes, or problems due to the doctrine 
of total depravity. That is inescapable. It is unavoidable. Notice as well the presence of 
such tension, dispute, problem, and difficulty even when the 
corporate body has the common goal in mind. In other words, 
they were on mission. We like to say that in the church 
today. We're on mission. Well, they 
were on mission. They left the land of Egypt, 
they were delivered by the power of Yahweh, and they were heading 
to the promised land. If you would think there was 
ever a time when a people could get along and not need to bother 
Moses with their disputes and issues, that would have been 
it. But no, Moses needed to adjudicate because of total depravity and 
because of the tension that obtains between men in sin. And the reality or the presence 
of sin demands a mechanism to redress that problem. And again, 
we see the wisdom of God at this early juncture to provide that 
mechanism. So it's not the case that we'll 
ever have a situation where there's no sin or no crime. What is necessary 
is that we have a mechanism that is founded upon God's law that 
is able to deal with that and to redress the issues that are 
faced by men in sin. So this is the presupposition 
in the section. Notice though, with reference 
to verse 13, how grand a task it was. And so it was on the 
next day that Moses sat to judge the people, and the people stood 
before Moses, notice, from morning until evening. So when you have 
a lot of people, you have even more friction. When you have 
a lot of people, you have even more dispute. When you have a 
lot of people, you have even more tension. And so this is 
what Moses has given himself to at this particular juncture. So notice, if that's what Moses 
is occupied with from morning until evening, guess what Moses 
isn't occupied with? Other issues concerning administration, 
other issues concerning leadership, other issues concerning getting 
this people from point A to point B in one, you know, intact. Now notice in verse 14, Moses 
continues, or rather Jethro now asks a question. Verse 14, so 
when Moses' father-in-law saw all that he did for the people, 
he said, what is this thing that you are doing for the people? 
Why do you alone sit and all the people stand before you from 
morning until evening? Now, his concern is not that 
Moses was doing it. His concern is that Moses alone 
was doing it. It was too much. Even a man of 
the caliber of Moses is a man at best. It's been well said, 
the best of men are men at best, and the best of men have their 
limitations. They have their inabilities, 
they have their weariness, and that's what's in sharp relief 
in this particular section, and Jethro gives him good counsel. Now notice Moses' response in 
verses 15 and 16. He says that the people come 
to Moses to inquire of God. So verse 15, Moses said to his 
father-in-law, because the people come to me to inquire of God. Stewart explains, the legal process 
involved the revelatory process in this case. In other words, 
they're coming to hear from God, not Moses primarily. He says 
that was almost certainly the reason Moses had felt obligated 
to do all the judging himself. The answers involved God's own 
decisions. And Moses understood himself 
to be the sole conduit for those to the people. In other words, 
Moses had a good heart. Moses had a great desire. Moses 
understood the difficulties involved with the people of Israel and 
that they needed the word of Yahweh to come to adjudicate 
their particular tensions or disputes or their friction. So 
Moses had good reason for doing this. But before we move on, 
one other point that I think verse 15 calls attention to. Moses said to his father-in-law, 
because the people come to me to inquire of God. OK, so revelatory 
in nature. So God speaks through Moses to 
these people. But there is a principle here 
that I think John Calvin nails. John Calvin says, he says that 
disputants come to inquire of God and that he makes them to 
know the statutes of God and his laws. Hence it follows that 
this is the object of political government. that God's tribunal 
should be erected on earth, wherein He may exercise the judge's office, 
to the end that judges and magistrates should not arrogate to themselves 
to decide anything arbitrarily or wantonly, nor in a word to 
assume to themselves what belongs to God. Then and then only will 
magistrates acquit themselves properly when they remember that 
they are the representatives of God. So in other words, they're 
not there to be despots. They're not there to be tyrants. 
They're not there to be oppressors. They are there to ensure the 
safety and protection of the body politic. They are there 
as God's representative. Romans chapter 13, let every 
soul be subject to the governing authority, for there is no authority 
except from God. So if God raises up the authority 
and God establishes the authority, that authority is ultimately 
responsible to the people that he's over, but as well to God 
ultimately. In other words, he's not a law 
unto himself, he is not a renegade, he is not to function the way 
that Pharaoh functioned in Egypt. So the people come to Moses to 
inquire of God, and then the practice of Moses was to reveal 
the mind of God. Notice in verse 16, when they 
have a difficulty, they come to me, and I judge between one 
and another, and I make known the statutes of God and his laws. Again, that's what you want. 
That was to be the function of the judiciary and of the legislative 
branch in Israel's government. Now notice the recommendation 
of Jethro. In the first place, he gives 
some general advice, verses 17 to 20. Notice the fact that the 
arrangement was not good for Moses or the people. See, if one man tries to do it 
all, it's not only detrimental to his own health and well-being, 
but ultimately the body politics suffers also. Notice what he 
says in verse 17. So Moses' father-in-law said 
to him, the thing that you do is not good. Again, not that 
he's giving the revelation of God. He's not saying that. He's 
saying that you're doing it from morning till evening all by yourself. That's not good. He says, both 
you and these people who are with you will surely wear yourselves 
out. For this thing is too much for 
you, you are not able to perform it by yourself. What's the implication? Some of those who had been there 
from morning until evening, some of those who were being worn 
out, perhaps were not getting their fair hearing as well. So 
it was detrimental not only for Moses' health and well-being, 
but also for the people that needed faithful adjudication. 
So verse 13, from morning until evening. Verse 18, both you and 
these people who are with you will surely wear yourselves out. You are not able to perform it 
by yourself. So most likely, some persons 
were being overlooked. Stewart, I think, again, helpfully 
comments. In effect, Jethro's argument 
is an early version of the now popular legal saying, justice 
delayed is justice denied. So what happens? It's not just 
taxing upon Moses. It is as well taxing upon the 
people who aren't getting their day in court, who aren't getting 
the full hearing and the ability for one man trying to oversee 
all of these thousands and thousands of people with all of their disputes. He wasn't able to perform it. 
So what he does here in terms of recommendation is very good. Notice in verse 20. Or verse 
19 rather. Now brethren, there are people 
that say Moses shouldn't have listened to this pagan priest. 
Moses should not have listened to Jethro. But listen, Jethro's converted 
now. But Jethro, having dealt most 
likely with the same sorts of situations, functioning as a 
priest in Midian, would have learned some good horse sense 
along the way. But you also need to understand 
that Jethro is not arrogating to himself the position of God. 
Notice what he says in verse 23. If you do this thing, and 
God so commands you, Jethro lays this advice at the feet of Moses, 
knowing that Moses is the type of fellow that's going to pray 
to Yahweh, that's going to inquire of Yahweh. If Moses would inquire 
of Yahweh for a dispute affecting Israelites that had a particular 
issue that Moses was adjudicating, don't we think that Moses would 
inquire of Yahweh with reference to this advice from Jethro as 
to whether or not he should delegate judicial authority? I would argue 
most certainly he would have, and he did. He doesn't do this 
based on the testimony of a pagan priest. He does this in light 
of good counsel, good advice given from now a Yahweh worshiper, 
who nevertheless, in his background as pagan priest, learned some 
things about the world from the light of Revelation, the general 
light of nature. There are laws and truths that 
we witness and see in the created order around us. So Moses is 
not to be faulted for listening to a pagan. Moses functions on 
behalf of God, and I would submit that he would have inquired of 
the Lord in order to adopt this particular advice. So back to 
verse 20. Verse 19, listen now to my voice, 
I will give you counsel and God will be with you. Stand before 
God for the people so that you may bring the difficulties to 
God and you shall teach them the statutes and the laws and 
show them the way in which they must walk and the work which 
they must do. What could possibly be wrong 
with this counsel? This is great counsel. Stand 
before God, stand before God for the people so that you may 
bring the difficulties to God. And then you shall teach them 
the statutes and the laws and show them the way in which they 
must walk and the work they must do. In other words, he is basically 
confirming or validating all that Moses has already been doing. 
This is what Moses' own report was. This is what I do. They 
inquire of me, I go to the Lord, I get the ruling from God, and 
I bring it back. Now, verses 21 and following, 
he says you need to delegate. There needs to be a division 
of labor. One man cannot do this all. You're going to kill yourself, 
and you're going to jip the people, and they're not going to be able 
to receive the judgments that they desire or they need. Now 
notice in terms of the specific counsel in verses 21 to 23. In the first place, Moses is 
to select men. Verse 21, moreover, you shall 
select from all the people. "'You shall select from all the 
people.'" Kelvin, on this passage, says, "'Thou shalt provide,' 
meaning thou shalt choose out, "'and take the most worthy, "'so 
that such an office be not entrusted rashly "'to any on that offers, 
"'or rather anyone that offers. "'But this was most reasonable 
among a free people, "'that the judges should not be chosen "'for 
their wealth or rank, "'but for their superiority in virtue.'" 
Now, notice he gives four specific qualifications. We're all sort 
of savvy with this idea of qualifications for church eldership because 
we've been working our way through 1 Timothy 3, 1 to 7 on Sunday 
night. Well, there was a necessity for 
qualified men in the judiciary at the time of Moses. It wasn't 
just by wealth or status. You weren't born into this, but 
rather you were selected from the people because you had evidence 
of worthiness to function in this particular capacity. Notice 
in the first place they must be able men. I don't know what 
it is about humans. We have a knack for picking the 
most unable men and giving them as much possible power as we 
can invest in them. It is truly amazing that we have 
such a knack for this. Let's find the most miserable, 
the most corrupt, the most deceptive, the most duplicitous, and let's 
put them in the highest office in our land. If people don't 
wake up and start to see the reality that these leaders are 
taking our country down into the sewage pit, we better get 
our minds in order as to what kind of men we ought to be selecting 
for high office. So they must be able men. Listen 
to Matthew Poole's comment here. Able men, literally in the Hebrew, 
men of might. Excuse me for a moment. men of 
might, not for strength of body, but for greatness, resolution, 
courage, and constancy of mind, which is the best preservative 
against partiality and corruption in judgment, to which men of 
little minds or narrow souls are easily swayed by fears or 
hopes or gifts. See, brethren, we always pick 
the latter. We always pick the ones he describes at the end. 
Those men of little minds or narrow souls that are easily 
swayed by fears or hopes or gifts. We need men of might that are 
great, resolute, have courage and constancy of mind. And then he says, which is the 
best preservative against what? Partiality and corruption and 
judgment. I mean, the case that we had 
in March of 2021, I don't care if every judge in Canada despises 
the church. Rule according to the law. That's the job, right? The Charter 
of Rights and Freedoms provides for us security to worship our 
God freely. You may hate that as a judge, 
you may despise that, you may be against that in terms of your 
religious commitment, but do the job that has been entrusted 
to you. This is why Lady Justice is blind. This is why Lady Justice has 
a blindfold on. It shouldn't depend on if the 
person is rich, neither should it depend upon the person that's 
poor. The law of God prohibits partiality toward the poor man 
as well. The judge isn't supposed to feel 
pity and compassion because the defendant is poor, the guy is 
poor, so we're going to cut him some slack. No, if he's guilty, 
throw the book at him. If he's innocent, let him go 
free. Should it matter if he's rich? Should it matter if he's 
poor? You should have blindfold on and you should rule accordingly. 
That is descriptive of Messiah, too, in Isaiah 11. That was part 
of the Messianic expectation, was that Messiah could potentially 
be blind. Because in Isaiah 11, it describes 
him thus, underscoring the reality that he doesn't judge according 
to the eyesight. He doesn't judge according to 
poverty or to riches. He doesn't judge according to 
anything in which he would be partial. He judges according 
to the law. So, they must be able men. Secondly, 
they must be men who fear God. They must be men who fear God. Imagine that. God establishing 
civil polity in Israel demands that the people who function 
on His behalf fear Him, because they are prosecuting and executing 
and implementing His law. If they don't fear Him, then 
they are not qualified to function in His behalf. Notice as well, 
they must be men of not lies, not deceit, not two-facedness. They must be men of truth. In the final analysis, brethren, 
that's what is requisite in our civil leaders, whether they be 
in the judiciary, whether they be in the legislative or the 
executive branch. We need men that are committed 
to the truth. And then the last one should 
be patently obvious. Hating covetousness. Why? Because you shouldn't be able 
to buy off a judge. You shouldn't be able to have 
some great sort of a contract behind the scenes where he's 
going to get his beak wet insofar as he renders a verdict that 
is sympathetic to the persons that are wetting his beak. More 
often than not, follow the money to see the corruption that obtains 
with reference to our political class. They must hate covetousness. And again, notice when we jump 
into the New Covenant, what is something that is replete in 
terms of emphasis for both elders and deacons? They must not have 
a love for money. That doesn't mean they live in 
huts. That doesn't mean they have no shoes. That doesn't mean 
they eat gruel when everyone around them is eating great food. 
But rather it means that though they see it as a tool, and though 
it is necessary in order to live, that's not what motivates them, 
that's not what drives them, that's not what makes them tick. 
It isn't the desire to get their beaks wet that they pursue a 
life of religious leadership. So with reference to these qualifications, 
they must be able men, they must be men who fear God, they must 
be men of truth, and they must be men who hate covetousness. 
Pool comments here, hating covetousness. This though included in the former 
is particularly expressed because gifts and bribes are the great 
corruptors of judges and judgments. This was known back then too. And so there were safeguards 
put in place to try and avoid these sorts of things where you 
have corrupt men on benches or we have corrupt men in the late 
legislative branch that are seeking to fill their own pockets at 
the sacrifice of the people they're supposed to govern and rule over. 
So they were to select, or Moses was to select men, and then notice 
secondly the function of men. Verse 22, let them judge the 
people at all times. then it will be that every great 
matter they shall bring to you, but every small matter they themselves 
shall judge. So it will be easier for you, 
for they will bear the burden with you." Again, an establishment 
of a lower court system and a Supreme Court. Moses would function as 
the Supreme Court at this stage in Israel's history. And there 
were checks and balances. There were able and capable men 
under Moses to deal with the things that didn't need Moses' 
direct attention. This is beautiful. It's the division 
of labor. It's delegation for the obvious 
reasons to not exasperate or to frustrate or tax or kill one 
individual man, and also not to frustrate the multitude that 
perhaps are dependent on that one individual man. And then 
notice the relief that is afforded in verse 23. If you do this thing 
again, and God so commands you, he doesn't say, Moses, thou must 
do this. Moses, I'm giving you this information. I'm giving you this recommendation. 
I'm giving you this advice. I'm giving you this counsel that 
will help you. And it will help the people. 
And if God so commands, there's going to be practical benefit. 
Notice, then you will be able to endure. In other words, it's 
not the case, Moses, that you should kill yourself before we 
even begin the proceedings at Sinai. We're not even near the 
promised land at this point, and you're burning yourself out 
to the point where you're going to drop dead. So there's going 
to be remedial benefit for you with this lower court system, 
but then notice that the people will prosper. Then you will be 
able to endure, and all these people will also go to their 
place in peace. So it's remedial not only for 
Moses, but for the people that perhaps had not been heard. Now there's various courts or 
various men that give adjudication to various types of cases. The 
big matters, the great matters, the lofty matters, they still 
have access to Moses. They can still come to him for 
redress for their particular issues. So Jethro's not speaking 
in an authoritative way. He's not saying, I'm a superior 
pagan, Moses. I want you to... No, that's not 
it at all. He's giving him good, good counsel. Now notice the 
implementation of this or compliance of this by Moses in verses 24 
to 27. So Moses heeded the voice of 
his father-in-law and did all that he had said. And Moses chose 
able men out of all Israel and made them heads over the people, 
rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, 
and rulers of tens." Now, the commentaries typically say that's 
similar to what you have in terms of management or leadership in 
the military. They say it shouldn't be pressed 
to the point where every ten persons had their own judge. 
It's just the way that society's divvied up, the idea being, again, 
division of labor, there are men that will be over groups 
of people such that they have access to be able to deal with 
their particular disputes. And again, we know that this 
was God-sanctioned advice when we moved through the Pentateuch, 
because this is how Israel functioned. They had representatives who 
functioned as judges at the local level, and those matters that 
could not be redressed at the local level, they had a superior 
or a higher court. And that's how Israel functioned 
in terms of that system. Verse 25, Moses chose able men 
out of all Israel. He listened to the qualifications 
and he applied the qualifications. It doesn't say, so Moses chose 
his buddies. Moses chose the rich guys. Moses 
chose the guys that he could make backroom deals with and, 
you know, they could all line their pockets at the expense 
of the children of Israel. No, he chose able men, men who 
feared God, men of truth, and men who were not, or men who 
hated covetousness. And then in verse 26, so they 
judged the people at all times, the hard cases they brought to 
Moses, but they judged every small case themselves. Then Moses 
let his father-in-law depart, and he went his way to his own 
land. So everything that we have in 
this passage speaks well concerning Jethro. He's not some renegade 
pagan that Moses gets captured by and is intoxicated with his 
pagan wisdom. No, this was of God, sanctioned 
by Yahweh, and it certainly helped Moses to sustain his own being, 
and it certainly helped the body politic to get verdicts with 
reference to their particular cases. So just a few thoughts 
before we close. First, again, the presence of 
interpersonal problems. It's going to happen. It's just 
we got to deal with it. And God, in His grace, affords 
us a mechanism by which to deal with it. I remember several years 
ago, some of you know Pastor Mike Crawford. He used to come 
and visit here. He's now in Baltimore. But I 
remember when he took a trip to Haiti, kind of a missions 
trip. And you know Haiti, it's not the most wealthy country 
on the face of the earth. very impoverished, very, very 
poor. And so when Pastor Crawford was with the pastors that were 
hosting him, Mike said, what should I preach on? It's kind 
of an interesting situation, a lot of poverty. They said, 
preach against sexual sin. And Mike's like, really? Oh yeah, 
poor people like to fornicate too. It's the same thing. Wherever you are, whether you're 
on mission, whether you're poor, whether you're rich, whether 
you're all going the same way or not, There's going to be problems. There's going to be tension. 
There's going to be friction. But God has instilled mechanisms, 
both in the Old Covenant and in the New Covenant, for us to 
deal with that. In the New Covenant, with reference 
to church discipline issues, guess what? There's a chapter 
devoted to that. The rest of the New Testament 
comments on that. It's not that we just pretend 
that there's no sin. It's not that we just pretend 
that there's no dispute. It's not that we just hope it 
all goes away, but we deal with it the way that God has said. 
So there's an inevitability of these problems due to total depravity, 
inevitability even when we are engaged in the larger project. 
You'd think, again, marching to the promised land, we could 
all learn to get along, but they didn't, and they needed adjudication. and then the inevitability even 
among believers with remaining corruption. This idea that people 
have it, I can't believe my brother would sin against me that way. 
Really? You can't believe that? Do you 
read your Bible? Do you know anything about your 
heart? Do you have witnessed any of your own conduct in the 
way that you treat other people? This affront when anybody ever 
dares to sin against us. That is Just a bizarre reaction 
in the church. Now, obviously, if the guy cuts 
you with a knife or something, there's cause for concern there. But this idea that people, you 
know, they sinned against me. Yeah, get used to it. That's 
life in this particular world. Secondly, the wisdom of God in 
the act of delegation. If you learn one thing from this 
passage, learn that no one man can do everything, which you 
all know already, and that when one man is entrusted with everything, 
then sometimes certain things fall by the wayside, whether 
by design or by accident. So the implementation by Moses 
means that he inquired of the Lord and the Lord endorsed this 
recommendation or advice given by Jethro. And then the implementation 
by Moses brought the needed relief to him and relief for all the 
people. It was good for Moses, it was 
good for the people. Verse 23, then you will be able 
to endure and all this people will also go to their place in 
peace, not that, you know, harmony without sin, but their case had 
been solved. Their issue had been handled. They had gotten closure. Closure 
is important for people. And closure is an important aspect 
in our lives when we deal with disputes and hardships. And then 
the qualifications for these men. We need to think in terms 
of qualifications, yes, for ecclesiastical leaders, but also for civil authority. It ought not to be the case that 
we pick the most incapable, we pick the most liars, we pick 
the most covetous, and we pick the most wretched among us to 
function in the highest capacity over us. We need to think and 
pray in terms of responsible citizens in the civil kingdom. Christ is over. the church, Christ 
is over the state. We happen to be members of the 
spiritual kingdom because of regeneration, because of grace, 
because of mercy, but we're also citizens of this body politic 
and we should function in a responsible manner. Pietism or Quakerism 
or Withdrawalism isn't the biblical norm. We find ourselves in this 
world, we live in a country where we have certain rights and responsibilities, 
and we as God's people should exercise them judiciously. And 
then finally, the grace of God and the conversion of Jethro. 
Who'd have thought, as far as Jethro was concerned, that he 
would be confessing the supremacy of Yahweh of Israel. God takes 
a priest of Midian, calls him out of that darkness into marvelous 
light, and then uses him to instruct his leader, Moses, in a better 
or more excellent way in how to lead the people of Israel. 
God's grace is amazing, and it's on display in Exodus 18. Well, 
let us close in a word of prayer. Our Father in heaven, we thank 
you for your word and for its clarity, and we thank you for 
the wisdom that we find in a passage like this. Timeless wisdom, for 
sure. Things that truly are applicable 
to our own situation. And God, we do cry out to you 
for men in high places, that they would be able men. that 
they would be God-fearing men, that they would be men of truth 
and men that hate covetousness. Have mercy upon us in this land. Have mercy throughout this earth, 
Lord God Most High, and give grace and wisdom to your people. 
Help us to function properly and biblically in civil society 
and as well in our part in the church. And we ask this through 
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Well, any questions or 
comments? All right, great. Delegate what? Delegate or relegate, 
yeah, that's good.