Chap. IV The Number of Their Civil Courts
Their Civil Courts were two, סנהדרים גדולה Sanhedrim gedola, the great Consistory, or Supreme Senate, סנהדרים קטנה Sanhedrim Ketanna, the lesser and inferiour Court. Thus I find them divided generally by the Rabbins: And although the latter was subdivided, as will after appear; yet in old time there were onely two first branches: which division our Saviour Christ seemeth to have followed, calling the lesser Court κρίσιν, by the name of Judgement: the greater συνέδριον, by the name of a Counsel. Whosoever is angry with his brother unadvisedly, shall be culpable of Judgement. Whosoever saith unto his brother Raca, shall be worthy to be punished by the Counsel: Whosoever shall say Fool, shall be worthy to be punished with the fire of Gehenna, Mat. 5. 22. In which words, as there is a gradation of sin, 1. Anger, a passion of the mind. 2. Raca,537 scornful, or slighting speech, as Tut, Tush, &c. 3. Fool, reproachful and opprobrious names: so likewise there is a gradation of punishment. 1. Judgement, a lesser Court. 2. Councel, the greater Court. 3. The fire of Gehenna: Now Gehenna was a Valley, terrible for two sorts of fires in it: First, for that wherein men burnt their children unto Moloch.538 Secondly, for another fire there continually burning, to consume the dead carcasses, and filth of Jerusalem; partly for the terribleness of the first, and partly for the contemptibleness of the place by reason of the second fire, it was a type of hell fire it self. We may resolve that text thus, anger deserved the punishments of the lesser Court; Raca, the punishments of the greater: and Fool deserved punishments beyond all Courts, even the fire of Gehenna.
The greater Court, by way of excellency, was called the Sanhedrim, which word came from the Greek, συνέδριον, a place of Judgement: It was also called בית דין Beth din, the house of Judgment.539 It was distinguished from the other Courts; first, in respect of the number of the Judges, which were seventy one, according to the command of God to Moses at their first institution, Numb. 11. 16. Gather unto me seventy men of the Elders of Israel, whom thou knowest that they are the Elders of the people, the Governours over them, and bring them unto the Tabernacle of the Congregation, and let them stand there with thee. From the latter words of this Text, it is observed, that there were seventy besides Moses; and therefore after his decease they alwaies chose one chief Judge in his room, not reckoning him among the seventy; they called him Nasi, the Prince or chief over the seventy. These seventy are thought540 to be chosen six out of every Tribe, save the Tribe of Levi, out of which only four were chosen. Others think541 the manner of their choice was thus; six of every Tribe had their names written in little scrolls of paper: in seventy of these scrolls was written זקן Zaken, Senex, an Elder, in the two other חלק Cheleck, pars, A part; these scrolls they put into a pitcher or urn, and those that pluck’d out a scroll wherein Elder was written, were counted amongst the number of the Judges; those that pluck’d out the other scrolls, in which a Part was written, they were rejected, Numb. 11. 26. The senior of these seventy was called אב בית דין Ab beth din, the Father of the Judgment Hall. The whole Set542 or Bench of Judges, sate in manner of an half circle, the Nasi sitting in the midst above the rest, the other sitting round about beneath, in such manner that the Father of the Judgement Hall sate next to the Nasi on the right hand. The lesser Consistory was subdivided into two sorts, one consisted of twenty three Aldermen, and two such Consistories there were in Jerusalem, the one at the door of the Court before the Temple, the other at the door of the Mountain of the Temple: yea, in every City throughout Israel where there were sixscore housholders, such a Consistory was erected: the other sort of lesser Courts consisted only of a Triumvirate, three Aldermen; and this was erected in the lesser Cities, which had not the number of sixscore housholders.
The second difference543 between the greater Consistory and the lesser, was in respect of the place. The seventy sate only at Jerusalem, within the Court of the Temple, in a certain house called לשכת הגזית Lischath hegazith, the paved Chamber, because of the curious cut stones wherewith it was paved: by the Greeks it was called λιθόστρωτον, the Pavement. Pilate sat down in the Judgement Seat, in a place called the Pavement, John 19. 13. The other Consistory sate all in the gates of the Cities. Now because the gates of the City are the strength thereof, and in their gates their Judges sate: Hence is that, Mat. 16. 18. The gates of Hell shall not overcome it, that is, neither the strength nor policy of Satan.
Lastly, they differed in respect of their Power and Authority: the Consistory of seventy received appeals from the other inferiour Courts,544 from that there was no appeal: Again, the Consistory of three sate not on life and death, but onely on petty matters, as whipping, pecuniary controversies, and such like; the other of twenty three sate on life and death, but with a restrained power; they had not authority to judge an whole tribe, the High-priest, false Prophets, and other such weighty matters: this belonged only to the seventy in Jerusalem:545 Hence is that, O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the Prophets, Luk. 3. 34. The means how they tryed the false Prophet was thus; they observed the judgements which he threatned, and the good which he prophesied to a place: if the judgements took not effect, this did not argue him a false Prophet, because God was merciful, as in the case of Hezekiah, and the people might repent, as the Ninivites did: but if he prophesied good, and that came not to pass, they judged him a false Prophet. The ground of this tryal they make the words of Jeremiah the Prophet, which prophesied of peace when the word of the Lord shall come to pass, then shall the Prophet be known that the Lord hath truly sent him, Jer. 28. 9.
The Colledge or company of these seventy, exercised judgment, not only under the Kings and Judges,546 but their authority continued in times of vacancies, when there was neither Judge nor King to rule Israel, and it continued until547 Herod put them down, and destroyed them, to secure himself of the Kingdome.
Here some may object, that there were no such Courts, or their liberty much infringed in Samuels time: for he went from year to year in circuit to Bethel, and Gilgal, and Mizpeh, and judged Israel in all those places, 1 Sam. 7. 16. To which, I take it, we may say, that as the Emperours of Rome had power to ride Circuits, and keep Assises, which was done without any infringement of the liberties of their Senate: So the Kings and Judges in Israel had the like power, and yet the authority of their Courts stood firm. This kind of judging by keeping Assises, the Romans termed βουλὴν κυρίαν, the other βουλὴν σύγκλητον.
Notes
537 Raca non grandis alicujus est sermo convitii, sed magis è contemptu natum est, & neglectu dicentis Chrysost. homil. 16. in Mat.
538 David Kimchi. Ps. 27. 13.
539 Moses Kotsen. fol. 186. col. 2.
540 Fran. Junius. Analyt. expos. Num. 11.
541 Solom. Jarchi.
542 Moses Kot. f. 185. col. 2.
543 Moses Kotsen. ibid.
544 Deut. 17. 8.
545 Cunæus de rep. Hebr. p. 109.
546 P. Galat. l. 4. cap. 5.
547 Joseph. Antiq. l. 14. c. 17.