Section 56 of 12718:13–27Exodus

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King James VersionExodus 18:13–27

And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses sat to judge the people: and the people stood by Moses from the morning unto the evening.

And when Moses’ father in law saw all that he did to the people, he said, What is this thing that thou doest to the people? why sittest thou thyself alone, and all the people stand by thee from morning unto even?

And Moses said unto his father in law, Because the people come unto me to enquire of God:

When they have a matter, they come unto me; and I judge between one and another, and I do make them know the statutes of God, and his laws.

And Moses’ father in law said unto him, The thing that thou doest is not good.

Thou wilt surely wear away, both thou, and this people that is with thee: for this thing is too heavy for thee; thou art not able to perform it thyself alone.

Hearken now unto my voice, I will give thee counsel, and God shall be with thee: Be thou for the people to God-ward, that thou mayest bring the causes unto God:

And thou shalt teach them ordinances and laws, and shalt shew them the way wherein they must walk, and the work that they must do.

Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens:

And let them judge the people at all seasons: and it shall be, that every great matter they shall bring unto thee, but every small matter they shall judge: so shall it be easier for thyself, and they shall bear the burden with thee.

If thou shalt do this thing, and God command thee so, then thou shalt be able to endure, and all this people shall also go to their place in peace.

So Moses hearkened to 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.

And they judged the people at all seasons: the hard causes they brought unto Moses, but every small matter they judged themselves.

And Moses let his father in law depart; and he went his way into his own land.

Italic words were supplied in the English translation for clarity.

Scripture text: King James Version, Standardized 1769 text. Public domain in the United States.About this Bible text

Exodus 18:13–27

Jethro Counsels Shared Judgment

Moses sits alone from morning to evening

The next day Moses judges the people, who stand by him all day. Jethro asks what he is doing, sitting alone with the people around him from morning until evening. Moses says they come to enquire of God: he judges between one and another and makes known God's statutes and laws.

This thing is not good: teach, share, and keep the hard cases

Jethro says Moses will wear away, and the people too; the thing is too heavy to do alone. He should continue to be for the people toward God and bring causes to God, teach ordinances and laws, show the way to walk and the work to do. He should provide able men who fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness, and place them as rulers of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens. They will judge every small matter; every great matter they will bring to Moses.

If Moses does this, and God commands him so, he will be able to endure, and the people will go to their place in peace. Moses hearkens, chooses able men, and they judge at all seasons. Jethro departs to his own land. Shared load is not unbelief in Moses' calling. It is how a rescued people get justice without destroying the mediator or leaving the camp standing in line all day.

How this should shape us

When one person has become the entire justice system, say so. Teach the standards in public, qualify judges for truth and against greed, keep an appeal for hard cases, and let good counsel from outside the inner circle actually change the structure.

Teach it back

Explain Exodus 18:13–27 in your own words. Include both movements, its place in Exodus, one historical or compositional uncertainty, one affected person or group, and one conclusion the complete context rules out.

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Go deeper

The explanation above is meant to stand on its own. Open these notes only if you want language, history, disagreements, or source locations.

Where careful interpreters disagreeThe strongest options and their difficulties

Where do careful interpreters disagree?

Best judgment: Careful interpreters agree that the received text states the following: Moses' solitary judging exhausts leader and people; Jethro proposes taught standards, qualified judges, layered cases, and a shared load that Moses accepts. They disagree over source layers, date, historical recovery, archaeology, Hebrew details, ritual development, legal use, and canonical relationship in different proportions; this study treats the final form directly while marking those alternatives as probable or uncertain rather than settled fact.

How certain? probable

Research trail and exact locationsThe source record behind this section

King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006

Supports: Exact KJV wording, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage for this thought unit.

Exodus 18:13–27, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus

Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Exodus

Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording, morphology, names, speech, law, ritual vocabulary, older-English controls, and translation limits.

Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Exod.xml, words and morphology for 18:13–27

NET Bible: Exodus with translators' notes

Supports: Unit-bounded Hebrew, syntax, lexical, textual, name, measure, legal, ritual, and older-English notes; silence is not evidence.

NET Bible Exodus PDF, complete 127-page PDF, translation and verse-attached translator notes for 18:13–27

The Book of the Covenant Study Guide

Supports: Case-law form, ancient Near Eastern comparanda, social setting, slavery and gender inequality, legal restraint, and limits of direct modern transfer.

Yale Bible Study, 'The Book of the Covenant,' complete study guide pp. 1–5, ancient Near Eastern law, slavery, lex talionis, property, justice, worship, and legal dating limits; applied to Exodus 18:13–27

Sinai Study Guide

Supports: Mountain location uncertainty, covenant and treaty comparison, source plurality, mediation, Decalogue, covenant blood, and priestly dwelling instruction.

Yale Bible Study, 'Sinai,' complete study guide pp. 1–6, covenant, Moses and the mountain, Decalogue, Exodus 24, and tabernacle framing; applied to Exodus 18:13–27

Sources for This Section

These records identify the source, the claim it supports, and the exact location used. A source remains evidence to evaluate; it does not replace the biblical text.

Biblical text

King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006

eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society

USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.

Supports: Exact KJV wording, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage for this thought unit.

Exact location: Exodus 18:13–27, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus

Open source ↗

hebrew text and morphology

Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Exodus

Open Scriptures

Open Scriptures, release 2.2

Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording, morphology, names, speech, law, ritual vocabulary, older-English controls, and translation limits.

Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Exod.xml, words and morphology for 18:13–27

Open source ↗

translation and translator notes

NET Bible: Exodus with translators' notes

Biblical Studies Press

eBible.org distribution of the NET Bible, PDF generated 2026-08-12

Supports: Unit-bounded Hebrew, syntax, lexical, textual, name, measure, legal, ritual, and older-English notes; silence is not evidence.

Exact location: NET Bible Exodus PDF, complete 127-page PDF, translation and verse-attached translator notes for 18:13–27

Open source ↗

open university course study guide

The Book of the Covenant Study Guide

Joel S. Baden and John J. Collins

Yale Bible Study, 2019 course edition

Supports: Case-law form, ancient Near Eastern comparanda, social setting, slavery and gender inequality, legal restraint, and limits of direct modern transfer.

Exact location: Yale Bible Study, 'The Book of the Covenant,' complete study guide pp. 1–5, ancient Near Eastern law, slavery, lex talionis, property, justice, worship, and legal dating limits; applied to Exodus 18:13–27

Open source ↗

open university course study guide

Sinai Study Guide

Joel S. Baden and John J. Collins

Yale Bible Study, 2019 course edition

Supports: Mountain location uncertainty, covenant and treaty comparison, source plurality, mediation, Decalogue, covenant blood, and priestly dwelling instruction.

Exact location: Yale Bible Study, 'Sinai,' complete study guide pp. 1–6, covenant, Moses and the mountain, Decalogue, Exodus 24, and tabernacle framing; applied to Exodus 18:13–27

Open source ↗

Exodus 18:13–27, King James Version

Moses sits alone from morning to evening

This thing is not good: teach, share, and keep the hard cases

How this should shape us

Teach it back

Go deeper

Where do careful interpreters disagree?

King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006

Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Exodus

NET Bible: Exodus with translators' notes

The Book of the Covenant Study Guide

Sinai Study Guide