EXOD774 All that we have written applies even if there is a single speaker or listener. However, if one joins a group of wicked people who are habitual lashon hara speakers in order to relate or listen to lashon hara, then he also violates the prohibition of לֹֽא־תִהְיֶ֥ה אַחֲרֵֽי־רַבִּ֖ים לְרָעֹ֑ת, “Do not follow the majority for evil" (Shemos 23:2). According to Rabbeinu Yonah (Shaarei Teshuvah 3:50), this prohibition cautions a person not to concur or associate with wrongdoers, even if they are numerous.

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EXOD778 Follow the majority. In any argument regarding Torah law, the opinion of the majority rules, for the truth lies with the majority of the Sages. Even if the majority failed to see the truth, we still must follow the majority’s view. If everyone were to fulfill the Torah according to his own determination of what is right and proper, we would wind up having many Torahs instead of one. Therefore, in every matter of law, we are commanded to follow the decision of the majority of our Sages, never swerving from it no matter what. Thereby, we have one Torah for all of us, and we can stand together strongly under its guidance. When we perform mitzvos according to the ruling of the majority opinion, we follow the Will of Hashem. If, God forbid, the Sages comprising the majority erred, we have not sinned, for all of the responsibility is theirs. One who does not follow in majority decision of the Sages is punished severely, for majority rule is the pillar upon which all of Torah leans.

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EXOD779 In capital punishment cases, do not convict on the strength of a majority of only one judge. In court cases involving offenses punishable by death, do not convict the accused on the basis of a majority of only one judge. A majority of at least two judges is required. On the other hand, the courts can rely on a majority of only one judge in order to acquit the accused, just as such a majority is sufficient in non-capital cases. In all that we do, we are obliged to emulate Hashem. Kindness is one of the Divine traits. Hashem goes beyond the strict letter of the law in His dealings with mankind. In court, therefore, when a life is at stake, we must be more ready to acquit than to convict. Therefore, while a majority of only one judge suffices to acquit, a majority of at least two is required to convict. More certainty is required, for once a person is put to death, there is no reversing the court's action.

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EXOD780 In cases of capital punishment, he who originally argued in the defendant’s favor cannot later argue against him. The verse teaches us several laws about Jewish court procedures in cases involving offenses punishable by death: (1) A judge must not rule a certain way simply because a judge of higher standing rules that way. Similarly, a judge must not simply follow the majority. His ruling must be based upon his own understanding and weighing of the evidence. Similarly, if he thinks of a point that to him seems relevant to the case, he is not allowed to remain silent about it. Neither is he allowed to dismiss the thought and rule only on the basis of other points that his fellow judges mentioned in the deliberations. (2) A judge who originally argued for acquittal cannot later argue to convict. (3) The first argument offered in the deliberation should not be in favor of convicting the accused. Rather, the judges should try to first present an argument for acquittal. (4) The first argument cannot come from the most prestigious judge on the court, lest other judges submit and defer to his opinion. Rather, the deliberations must open with statements from the court's least prestigious judge. Key concepts: If a judge were allowed to follow the thinking of one of his fellow judges, without weighing the facts of the case himself, it could happen that a case would be decided on the basis of only one judge’s opinion. Perhaps every judge on the court would follow the thinking of just one of them! Hashem does not want anyone to be put to death on the basis of just one man's opinion. All of the above-mentioned laws derived from this verse show Divine compassion on the person being tried, for Hashem has compassion on all of His creations, as a father has compassion on his sons. The elements discussed above are not activated in court procedures concerning money matters, however, because money and property can always be returned.

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EXOD775 "You must not follow the majority to do evil" [this verse]. We have herein been admonished not to verbally strengthen the hands of sinners; and also not to associate ourselves with those who concur with wrongdoing, similar to what the pasuk says (Yeshayahu 8:12), "Do not say to join to everything that this people says regarding rebellion" [i.e., even though you are in the minority (Rashi)].

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EXOD777 Because the biblical ideals of charity, love of neighbor, and the sanctity of human life have for so long pervaded the Western world influencing people such as Bertrand Russell ... [thus, Russell, a lifelong political dissident, used to recall the words written on the flyleaf of his parents' family Bible [this verse)], people often don't realize that these notions came into the world through the doctrine of ethical monotheism introduced by the Hebrew Bible more than 3,000 years ago. But take away the divine foundations for teachings such as "Love your neighbor as yourself" (the basis for the Golden Rule), and they make no sense. As John Locke wrote in 1690: "Should that most unshaken rule of morality and foundation of all social virtue, 'That one should do as he would be done unto,' be proposed to one who has never heard of it before… may he not without any absurdity ask the reason why?" (Essay Concerning Human Understanding).

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EXOD776 [Rabbi Eliezer] retorted to them: “If the ruling is with me-- it will be proved from heaven.” A Heavenly Voice resounded and it said: “What do you want from R. Eliezer? The rulings agree with him everywhere.” R. Joshua stood to his feet and said: “It is not in Heaven.” What does “It is not in heaven” mean? R. Jeremiah said: “The Torah was already given at Mount Sinai. We don't consider the Heavenly Voice. It was already written at Mount Sinai in the Torah, “Incline to the majority” (Exodus 23:2). R. Nathan met Elijah and said to him: “What did the Holy One, Blessed be He, do in that hour?” He said to him: “He laughed, and he said, ‘My children have defeated me, my children have defeated me.’” [Baba Metsia 59b] Eliezer battles with the others about the oven [of Akhnai-AJL], arguing with ‘supernatural’ evidence. He finally summons a Heavenly Voice that the other sages reject as well. But the sages argue that the Torah is given to human interpreters, and thus the “author’ has no longer any privilege in interpreting it. The story continues, with God delighted to be beaten in argument by the sages. But the story appears in the context of the topic of what is oppressed with words, because Eliezer is then excommunicated and is thus oppressed. The details are worth pursuing (Chapter 9). The responsibilities, even in winning the argument against Eliezer, are so extreme that his loss causes others’ deaths.

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EXOD781 The text (Exodus 23:1-2) is concerned with perversions of justice, and the second verse is particularly obscure. The sages elsewhere interpret it in terms of legal procedures for acquittal and conviction, concerned for questions about the size of the majority. But the verse warns us not to FOLLOW THE MANY, particularly in an evil matter, and not to assume that the many are correct in a dispute. Indeed, the matter seems to have to do with pandering either to the majority, or to the poor. Justice must be fair to all. While the tradition of focusing on how to determine the proper majority is valuable, Jeremiah’s use here [Baba Metsia 59b] must utterly recontextualize the verse. For him, the verse proves that majority rules, ignoring the beginning of the clause, which is a prohibition. The sages depend on the sense of a majority precisely because they do not insist on consensus. The matter has to be resolved in a way that tolerates dissent. In this particular case, Jeremiah argues that Eliezer must abide by the majority. But the very practice of interpretation coheres with this interpretation. The text, inscribed at Sinai, is made to justify an interpretive practice by that same practice: not what it seems to say in its context, but by a recontextualization it becomes the authority for dissenting interpretation and majority rule. If the text were not given to people, if it were still in heaven, then one could not read this text this way, nor could one use it to justify the authority of the community of interpreters against the Heavenly Voice.

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EXOD783 The very first reference to the concept of following a majority opinion in deciding a Jewish law comes from the Torah. This refers to a majority of judges who decide the guilt or innocence of an accused criminal. But the very fact that a minority can speak up and try to convince the majority it has the correct view, shows that Judaism tolerates minority opinions, even in cases that they do not rule that way. This was further demonstrated by how the highest Jewish Court, the Sanhedrin, deliberated capital crimes and other issues that affected the entire Jewish nation. The physical setup of the Sanhedrin was that of a semicircle, which is imitated today by the Knesset, the Israeli parliament. The Talmud states that the younger and less experienced members of the deliberative body would sit on the sides, while the more prominent members sat towards the middle. But when they begin deliberations, the first members who spoke were those that sat on the sides, the newest members, who gave their opinions first. This was the intentional order, so that the less experienced judges would not be influenced or intimidated by the opinion of the veterans. Sanhedrin 32b, 36a Thus, we see that Judaism not only tolerated different views, but actually encouraged and wanted different viewpoints on each subject that was judged.

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EXOD782 See [[DEUT848]] Deuteronomy 16:20 justice DORFFDRAG 114-5

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