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One of the best sources for information about
the concept of a Noahide court is the chapter on "Courts of Law" in "The Path of the Righteous Gentile." Every nation which
holds itself to be an independent and autonomous entity is obligated to establish a system of courts to uphold
the Seven Noahide Commandments. (Aside from this, it is assumed that the Gentile nations also establish civil laws
according to their own principles and that their courts rule on civil matters, since these inevitably arise in
the normal functioning of a society.)
But even if there are no courts which expressly follow the Noahide Commandments, as in our day and age, every Gentile
is still obligated to constrain himself or herself to believe in and follow the Seven Noahide Commandments. It
is praiseworthy to enourage others to do so as well, and to support laws which move toward the letter and spirit
of the Noahide Commandments.
In the future Era of the Messiah, which is coming speedily and in our days, there should be no need for criminal
trials, since the Messiah will improve the entire world and motivate all the nations to serve G-d together, as
it is prophecied in Zephaniah 3:9
- "I [G-d] will make the peoples pure of speech that they all will call upon the Name
of G-d and serve Him with one purpose." All
Gentiles will return to the true Noahide faith and will no longer destroy or steal. In that time, the occupation
of the entire world will be only to know G-d, as Isaiah 11:9 states: "The world will be filled with the knowledge of G-d as the sea fills the
ocean bed." (Maimonides, Laws of Kings, Chap.
11-12.)
It would appear that it is the responsibility of the ruling power to institute oversight on the courts to be sure
that only proper and expert judges are appointed, and that the judges do not act corruptly or unrighteously, which
is forbidden.
More research is needed to address questions about "appeals"
courts or "referral" courts.
The rules for a case brought to trial are that (1) the guilty
person must be mentally competent and a legal adult, according to the Torah's standards, and (2) the person must
be properly tried in a court with proper Noahide witnesses and proper Noahide judges.
The judges in Noahide courts must themselves be strict followers
of the letter and spirit of the Noahide Commandments, and they must refer any questions they have on the Torah
Law to reliable and expert Orthodox Rabbis.
Also, any witness who is known to transgress any of the Noahide Laws is not allowed to testify in the court. Only
adult males who keep the Noahide Laws, do acts of kindness, and behave in a straight, honest and upright way are
allowed to testify against the accused person in a capital case.
Someone who acts disgracefully in public is disqualified as a witness. From "The Path of the Righteous Gentile,"
p. 109: "These are people who walk and eat in coarse, impolite fashion in public, or who go naked in public,
... or anyone who feels no self-embarrassment."
Furthermore, as a practical matter, the Torah-based authority
of the Noahide court to function and carry out punishments would have to be accepted by the society in which it
is functioning.
Noahide courts can exercise discretion in the
face of special conditions. For example, Jacob did not want to bring the case of the sinful city of Shechem to
judgement (Gen. 34:30)
Here is one more point: the Torah does not allow incarceration
(jail or prison terms) to be used as a standard form of punishment for either Gentiles or Jews, because it is considered
to be a cruel and inhuman punishment, and in opposition to G-d's plan for mankind. It is allowed only in extenuating
circumstances.
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QUESTION : I find it interesting that the law of not bearing false witness is left out of the Noahide Laws.
Why is it missing? Am I misunderstanding the Seven Noahide Laws?
> B. W.
ANSWER : The Noahide Laws do not leave out a prohibition against bearing false witness. This prohibition
is included as a detail of the general Noahide commandment to set up righteous courts of law. For more information
about this, you can refer to the chapter on Courts of Law in the book "The Path of the Righteous Gentile."
The prescribed punishment for bearing false witness is quite strict. The chapter linked to above concludes with
the following points:
"[Bearing] false witness [in a capital case] ... is tantamount to conspiring against another, and this is
a grave transgression. (Note: One who gives false testimony which convicts a person and causes him to be executed
receives the death penalty.)"
Furthermore, in addition to the Seven Noahide Laws, the nations of antiquity voluntarily accepted several rules
of moral behavior, and these are also considered binding (see our page on Righteous Traditions).
One of these established moral obligations is to not deceive others. This is evidenced by Jacob's accusation against
Laban (Gen. 29:25), "Why have you deceived me?", against which Laban takes pains to justify himself (thus
showing that he agreed that deception was considered a sin). This rule also forced Jacob to marry Rachel as he
had originally promised her, before Laban switched her for Leah, even though he personally wished to restrict himself
to only one wife.
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