Payment of Judges (1)

An important issue for Christians is the payment of judges. If judges are God’s servants, do they have authority to impose taxes for their support? The answer is a resounding No! In a godly society, being a judge will be a part-time task, as most local communities will not have enough cases to occupy a full-time judge. Judges will be able to earn their living by pursuing another career. If a case is complicated and involves a lot of work for the judge, they may request that the litigants pay costs. The biblical principle that a workman is worthy of his wages would apply (1 Tim 6:18). The person causing the case and the person benefiting would have a responsibility to cover the costs of the judge.

As the kingdom of God expands, the incidence of crime will decline and there will be less work for judges. Sometimes some of the people of a community might decide to pay a good judge a retainer, so that they will always have a quality judge whom they trust available to hear cases when they arise. This would give the judge time to study God’s law and keep update with decisions being made by other judges. Any contributions to the retainer would be voluntary and should not give those who pay any benefits in terms of justice.