Deuteronomy 19:17-19

19:17 then both parties to the controversy must stand before the Lord, that is, before the priests and judges ¹  who will be in office in those days. 19:18 The judges will thoroughly investigate the matter, and if the witness should prove to be false and to have given false testimony against the accused, ²  19:19 you must do to him what he had intended to do to the accused. In this way you will purge ³  evil from among you.

Psalms 82:2

82:2 He says, ⁴  “How long will you make unjust legal decisions

and show favoritism to the wicked? ⁵  (Selah)

Psalms 101:5

101:5 I will destroy anyone who slanders his neighbor in secret.

I will not tolerate anyone who has a cocky demeanor and an arrogant attitude. ⁶ 

¹ tn The appositional construction (“before the Lord, that is, before the priests and judges”) indicates that these human agents represented the Lord himself, that is, they stood in his place (cf. Deut 16:18-20; 17:8-9).

² tn Heb “his brother” (also in the following verse).

³ tn Heb “you will burn out” (בִּעַרְתָּ, bi’arta). Like a cancer, unavenged sin would infect the whole community. It must, therefore, be excised by the purging out of its perpetrators who, presumably, remained unrepentant (cf. Deut 13:6; 17:7, 12; 21:21; 22:21-22, 24; 24:7).

⁴ tn The words “he says” are supplied in the translation to indicate that the following speech is God’s judicial decision (see v. 1).

⁵ tn Heb “and the face of the wicked lift up.”

⁶ tn Heb “[one who has] pride of eyes and wideness [i.e., arrogance] of heart, him I will not endure.”