Sanhedrin veha’Onashin haMesurin lahem - Chapter 1

In the name of the Lord, the God of the world.
These too are for the wise; To have respect [for persons] in judgment is not good.
He who says to a wicked man, "You are righteous"-peoples will curse him; nations will be wroth with him.
But for those who reprove it will be pleasant, and a good blessing shall come upon them.

The fourteenth book which is The Book of Judges

It contains five sets of Halachot and this is their order:

The Laws of Sanhedrin V'HaOnshin Hamesurim Lahem
The Laws of Edut
The Laws of Mamrim
The Laws of Evel
The Laws of Melachim UMilchamotehem

Introduction to Hilchos Sanhedrin veha`Onashin haMesurin lahem

These laws contain 30 mitzvot: Ten positive commandments and twenty negative commandments. They are:

1. To appoint judges,
2. Not to appoint a judge who does not know the proper manner of judgment
3. To follow the majority if there is a difference of opinion among the judges
4. Not to issue a death sentence if there is a majority of only one condemning the defendant; rather, a majority of at least two is necessary,
5. For a judge who argued in favor of acquittal in a capital case not to argue for a conviction,
6. To execute by stoning the condemned to death,
7. To execute by burning the condemned to death,
8. To execute by decapitation,
9. To execute by strangulation,
10. To hang the corpses of certain sinners who were executed,
11. To bury the executed person on the day of his execution,
12. Not to allow his corpse to remain unburied overnight,
13. Not to allow a sorcerer to live,
14. To punish a sinner with lashes,
15. Not to add blows when lashing a sinner,
16. Not to punish a person forced to commit a sin,
17. Not to kill an innocent person based on an apparent conclusion,
18. Not to have mercy on a person who killed or injured a colleague,
19. Not to have mercy on a poor person in judgment,
20. Not to honor a man of stature in judgment,
21. Not to pervert judgment against a sinner even though he is known to be a transgressor,
22. Not to act deceitfully in judgment,
23. Not to pervert the justice due converts or orphans,
24. To render a righteous judgment,
25. For a Judge not to fear rendering a just judgment because of a powerful person,
26. Not to accept a bribe,
27. Not to curse the judges,
28. Not to accept a false report,
29. Not to curse the nasi,
30. Not to curse any other Jew of moral repute.

The explanation of these mitzvot is found in the coming chapters.

It is a positive Scriptural commandment to appoint judges and enforcement officers in every city and in every region, as Deuteronomy 16:18 states: "Appoint judges and enforcement officers in all your gates."

"Judges" refers to magistrates whose attendance is fixed in court, before whom the litigants appear. "Enforcement officers" refers to those equipped with a billet and a lash who stand before the judges and patrol the market places and the streets to inspect the stores and to regulate the prices and the measures. They inflict corporal punishment on all offenders. Their deeds are controlled entirely by the judges.

Whenever a person is seen perpetrating injustice, they should bring him to the court, where he will be judged according to his wickedness.

We are obligated to appoint courts in every region and in every city only in Eretz Yisrael. In the diaspora, by contrast, we are not obligated to appoint courts in every region. This is derived from the continuation of the above verse: "Appoint...in all your gates which God your Lord is giving you for your tribes."

How many established courts should there be among the Jewish people and how many judges should there be in each court?

First, a supreme court is established in the Temple. This is called the Great Sanhedrin. It was composed of 71 judges. This is derived from Numbers 11:16 which states: "Gather for Me seventy men from the elders of Israel." And Moses presided over them, as the verse continues: "And they shall stand there with you." Thus there are 71.

The one who is of greatest knowledge is placed as the head over them. He acts as the Rosh Yeshivah. And he is called the nasi by the Sages in all sources. He assumes the position of Moses our teacher.

The greatest among the remaining 70 is appointed as an assistant to the head. He sits at his right and is called av beit din. The remaining judges from the 70 sit before them and are seated according to their age and according to their stature. Whoever possesses greater wisdom than his colleague is seated closer than his colleagues to the nasi on his left. The members of the Sanhedrin sit in a semi-circle so that the nasi and the av beit din can see all of them.

In addition, two courts of 23 judges each are appointed. One holds sessions at the entrance to the Temple courtyard. and the other at the entrance to the Temple Mount.

In addition, in every city in Israel in which their are 120 or more adult males, we appoint a minor Sanhedrin. They hold court at the entrance to the city, as implied by Amos 5:15: "And you shall present judgment in your gates." How many judges should be in such a court? 23. The one who possesses the greatest wisdom is the chief justice and the remainder sit in a semi-circle so that the chief justice can see all of them.

When there are less than 120 adult males in a city, we appoint a court of three judges. For a court should never be less than three. In that way, there will be a majority and a minority if there is a difference of opinion in any particular judgment.

When a city does not possess two sages of great knowledge - one fit to teach and issue rulings with regard to the entire Torah and one who knows how to listen diligently and knows how to raise questions and arrive at solutions - a court should not be appointed for it even though thousands of Jews live there.

When a court has two judges of this caliber: one capable of listening with regard to the entire Torah, and one capable of expounding, it is a valid court. If there are three, it is of intermediate esteem. If the court possess four judges who can expound upon the entire Torah, it is a wise court.

We sit three rows of Torah scholars before every minor Sanhedrin. In each row, there are 23 men. The first row is seated next to the Sanhedrin, the second row below it, and the third row below it. In each row, the scholars are seated in the order of their level of wisdom.

If there is a difference of opinion among the judges and it is necessary to grant semichah to one student to add to the number, the scholar of the greatest stature from the first row is granted semichah. The first scholar in the second row advances and sits in the first row to make up for the lack, and the first scholar in the third row advances and sits in the second row to make up for the lack. One of the remaining people is chosen and is seated in the third row. Similarly, if they must grant semichah to a second or third judge, they follow this pattern.

Whenever a Sanhedrin functions, two legal scribes should stand before them: one at the right and one at the left. One writes the arguments of those who seek to hold the defendant liable, and one writes the arguments of those who seek to exonerate him.

Why is a Sanhedrin appointed only in a city with a population of 120? So that there will be a Sanhedrin of 23 judges, three rows of 23 students each, ten sitters in the synagogue, two scribes, two court officers, two litigants, two witnesses, two witnesses who seek to invalidate the testimony of the witnesses, two witnesses who seek to invalidate the testimony of the second pair of witnesses and restore the validity of the first, two charity collectors, and a third to distribute these collections, a doctor who is a bloodletter, a scribe, and a teacher for young children. This reaches a total of 120.