רִיב

And there was discord between the herdsmen of Abram and the herdsmen of Lot. At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were also living in the land.

He named the place Massah and Meribah because the Israelites quarreled, and because they tested the LORD, saying, “Is the LORD among us or not?”

You shall not follow the crowd in wrongdoing. When you testify in a lawsuit, do not pervert justice by siding with the crowd.

And do not show favoritism to a poor man in his lawsuit.

You shall not deny justice to the poor in their lawsuits.

But how can I bear your troubles, burdens, and disputes all by myself?

If a case is too difficult for you to judge, whether the controversy within your gates is regarding bloodshed, lawsuits, or assaults, you must go up to the place the LORD your God will choose.

…both parties to the dispute must stand in the presence of the LORD, before the priests and judges who are in office at that time.

And the priests, the sons of Levi, shall come forward, for the LORD your God has chosen them to serve Him and pronounce blessings in His name and to give a ruling in every dispute and case of assault.

If there is a dispute between men, they are to go to court to be judged, so that the innocent may be acquitted and the guilty condemned.

But Jephthah replied, “My people and I had a serious conflict with the Ammonites, and when I called, you did not save me out of their hands.

May the LORD be our judge and decide between you and me. May He take notice and plead my case and deliver me from your hand.”

On hearing that Nabal was dead, David said, “Blessed be the LORD, who has upheld my cause against the reproach of Nabal and has restrained His servant from evil. For the LORD has brought the wickedness of Nabal down upon his own head.” Then David sent word to Abigail, asking her to become his wife.

He would get up early and stand beside the road leading to the city gate. Whenever anyone had a grievance to bring before the king for a decision, Absalom would call out and ask, “What city are you from?” And if he replied, “Your servant is from one of the tribes of Israel,”

And he would add, “If only someone would appoint me judge in the land, then everyone with a grievance or dispute could come to me, and I would give him justice.”

You have delivered me from the strife of my people; You have preserved me as the head of nations; a people I had not known shall serve me.

Moreover, Jehoshaphat appointed in Jerusalem some of the Levites, priests, and heads of the Israelite families to judge on behalf of the LORD and to settle disputes. And they lived in Jerusalem.

For every dispute that comes before you from your brothers who dwell in their cities—whether it regards bloodshed or some other violation of law, commandments, statutes, or ordinances—you are to warn them, so that they will not incur guilt before the LORD and wrath will not come upon you and your brothers. Do this, and you will not incur guilt.

Hear now my argument, and listen to the plea of my lips.

I was a father to the needy, and I took up the case of the stranger.

If I have rejected the cause of my manservant or maidservant when they made a complaint against me,

(Oh, that I had one to hear me! Here is my signature. Let the Almighty answer me; let my accuser compose an indictment.

A man is also chastened on his bed with pain and constant distress in his bones,

You have delivered me from the strife of the people; You have made me the head of nations; a people I had not known shall serve me.

You hide them in the secret place of Your presence from the schemes of men. You conceal them in Your shelter from accusing tongues.

Awake and rise to my defense, to my cause, my God and my Lord!

Vindicate me, O God, and plead my case against an ungodly nation; deliver me from deceitful and unjust men.

O Lord, confuse and confound their speech, for I see violence and strife in the city.

Rise up, O God; defend Your cause! Remember how the fool mocks You all day long.

Defend my cause and redeem me; revive me according to Your word.

A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger calms dispute.

Better a dry morsel in quietness than a house full of feasting with strife.

To start a quarrel is to release a flood; so abandon the dispute before it breaks out.

A fool’s lips bring him strife, and his mouth invites a beating.

The first to state his case seems right until another comes and cross-examines him.

It is honorable for a man to resolve a dispute, but any fool will quarrel.

…for the LORD will take up their case and will plunder those who rob them.

…for their Redeemer is strong; He will take up their case against you.

Argue your case with your neighbor without betraying another’s confidence,

Like one who grabs a dog by the ears is a passerby who meddles in a quarrel not his own.

Like charcoal for embers and wood for fire, so is a quarrelsome man for kindling strife.

For as the churning of milk yields butter, and the twisting of the nose draws blood, so the stirring of anger brings forth strife.”

Your rulers are rebels, friends of thieves. They all love bribes and chasing after rewards. They do not defend the fatherless, and the plea of the widow never comes before them.

For the LORD has a day of vengeance, a year of recompense for the cause of Zion.

Behold, all who rage against you will be ashamed and disgraced; those who contend with you will be reduced to nothing and will perish.

“Present your case,” says the LORD. “Submit your arguments,” says the King of Jacob.

You fast with contention and strife to strike viciously with your fist. You cannot fast as you do today and have your voice be heard on high.

O LORD of Hosts, who judges righteously, who examines the heart and mind, let me see Your vengeance upon them, for to You I have committed my cause.

Woe to me, my mother, that you have borne me, a man of strife and conflict in all the land. I have neither lent nor borrowed, yet everyone curses me.

O LORD of Hosts, who examines the righteous, who sees the heart and mind, let me see Your vengeance upon them, for to You I have committed my cause.