On the Evidence of Two or Three Witnesses
A Commentary on the 8th Commandment and Its Relevance for the State, Church and Home.
James Preus
The accusation of attempted rape brought against now Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh six years ago, which was followed by other accusations of sexual misconduct from his teenage years over three decades ago brought the topic of the presumption of innocence to the fore. It was this principle, which ultimately sealed Justice Kavanaugh’s confirmation when Senator Collins of Maine cited her “more likely than not” standard in determining her “yea” vote. The country was divided over how to handle the accusations with some declaring that Kavanaugh was innocent until proven guilty while others argued that it wasn’t a court of law, so the standards for determining guilt were different. However, the standards for determining guilt are not different in a courtroom than they should be in a Senate Judiciary Committee, a classroom, or backyard. And here is where even those trumpeting support for the presumption of innocence fell short even as they claimed that this principle is the bedrock of western jurisprudence.
One conservative political commentator stated that the presumption of innocence goes back to Roman times. However, this principle has a much more ancient source. God caused Moses to write in Deuteronomy 19, “A single witness shall not suffice against a person for any offense that he has committed. Only on the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses shall a charge be established.” The divine requirement of two or three witnesses necessitates the presumption of innocence until guilt can be established.
But, why does God require two or three witnesses? For several reasons. First, because God knows that human beings are both sinful and weak. People lie for many reasons, some of which make sense while others do not. Also, people make mistakes and misidentify perpetrators. Second, because God is God and we are not. To establish guilt based on only one witness would be to claim a power that only God has. God is omniscient. He knows all things. We humans do not. Humans simply are not capable of determining guilt without evidence. Therefore, God requires at least two or three witnesses. To declare guilt by the testimony of a single witness alone is not only unfair to the accused, but it is blasphemous to God.
Not only must there be two or three witnesses, but the witnesses must agree with each other. If it is a matter of one person’s word against another’s, then God only knows who is telling the truth. But if two or three witnesses agree on what happened, then the chance that they are all lying is unlikely. Yet, if they disagree, doubt arises again. This is significant, because when Jesus was tried before the High Priest, they brought many witnesses forward, yet the Evangelist is quick to note, “But their testimony did not agree.” (Mark 14:56) This was to show that Jesus’ trial was a sham. Jesus committed no crime and no two witnesses could determine his guilt.
Now, many will object noting that criminals usually commit crimes when no witnesses are present. This is especially relevant for women, who are victims of rape, who are often the only ones to witness the crime. Yet, Scripture permits physical evidence to be used as a witness in court. In Genesis chapter 38 Tamar saved herself from a condemnation of death by fire by presenting Judah’s signet, cord, and staff as her witnesses that she was more righteous than Judah. Because Tamar hid her identity when Judah dealt with her as a prostitute, there were no eyewitnesses. Yet, the signet, cord, and staff, which Judah gave her as a pledge served as her eyewitnesses.
Yet, not all physical evidence should be given equal weight. In the very next chapter Potiphar’s wife used Joseph’s garment, which she grabbed off him as he ran from her adulterous advances, as her second witness that Joseph made sexual advances against her. Potiphar accepted this physical evidence as a sufficient witness and Joseph was sent to prison. Yet, the garment was an insufficient witness. There were many explanations for it to fall into the hands of Potiphar’s wife besides Joseph making inappropriate advances. Yet, there was no reasonable explanation for Tamar possessing Judah’s signet, cord, and staff except for him being the father of her child.
God does not limit his requirement of two or three witnesses to the courtroom. He speaks through St. Paul in 1 Timothy 5, “Do not admit a charge against an elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses.” Here God protects pastors from false accusations. Yet, St. Paul does not here establish pastors as a super-protected class within the church. No, by establishing such a standard for pastors it becomes the norm for the entire congregation. Jesus himself testifies of this in Matthew 18, “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church.”
You’ll notice that before Jesus says to bring the matter to the church, he tells the victim to bring two or three witnesses. This means that even in our private dealings we must not pass judgment except with witnesses. There is not a separate standard for the court room and the church and the home. If a friend accuses another friend of a terrible sin to you, you should ask for evidence. And if he cannot provide evidence or any witnesses, then you should not believe him, because that is how you would want your friend to treat you if you were accused. The standard given by God for the testimony of two or three witnesses to determine guilt is the standard for the state, church, and home.
The Eighth Commandment is, “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.” Martin Luther gives the following explanation, “We should fear and love God that we may not deceitfully belie, betray, slander, nor defame our neighbor, but defend him, speak well of him, and put the best construction on everything.” As the commandment, “Thou shalt not kill” protects your neighbor’s body and the commandment, “Thou shalt not steal” protects his property, so this commandment protects your neighbor’s name, that is, his reputation. The requirement of two or three witnesses to establish guilt whether in your own private mind or in the highest courts in the land is a bulwark to defend your neighbor’s name.
Yet, there is something even more significant in God’s statement that nothing can be established by only one witness. Jesus says in John chapter 8, “In your Law it is written that the testimony of two people is true. I am the one who bears witness about myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness about me.” Here, we see that God does not even want us to believe in Jesus except by the testimony of two or three witnesses. Yet, these witnesses are provided right in the Godhead. The Son bears witness about Himself and the Father is the second witness. And if you keep reading in John, you will see that the Holy Spirit is the third witness (John 14-16). By two and three witnesses the Gospel is established. The standard of two or three witnesses teaches the Holy Trinity. We see this quite clearly in Matthew chapter 3 where Jesus is baptized and the Holy Spirit descends like a dove upon Jesus and the Father speaks from heaven that this is his beloved Son, with whom he is well pleased. So, passing judgment without additional witnesses not only is unfair to the accused and a usurpation of God’s authority, but it is an affront to the very doctrine of the Holy Trinity. Not even God determines a charge on the evidence of only one witness!
It is true that Jesus said to Thomas, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” (John 20:29) Yet, God does not expect us to believe in the resurrection of Christ without witnesses. Rather, Jesus rebuked his disciples for not believing the witnesses of his resurrection (Mark 16:14). God wants us to believe witnesses. And St. Paul tells us that there were over 500 witnesses of the risen Christ (1 Cor. 15:6). God does not establish the Christian faith apart from witnesses. Neither should guilt of any crime or misdeed be established without witnesses.
God gave the standard of two or three witnesses and the Eighth Commandment in order to protect each of our names. Yet, God has done much more for the name of each of his Christians by the testimony of three witnesses. In Baptism, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit bear witness to the baptized that he has been washed in the blood of Christ by the Holy Spirit, died and risen again with Christ, and has been adopted by God the Father and made an heir of eternal life. Their testimony agrees. And it is on this threefold testimony that the baptized Christian sets his hope.
In conclusion, the standard of two or three witnesses is not only the bedrock of the American legal system. It is the divine standard for all people in determining truth. And without two or three witnesses, the presumption of innocence must stand. Yet, even more, by the testimony of two and three witnesses is Christ’s kingdom established and by those same three Witnesses does the baptized Christian receive a verdict of innocence before the throne of God.