Tzedek Tzedek Tirdof-Justice, justice thou shalt pursue. The duplication of the word justice is meant to put an accent on it as is the biblical way. It specifies the sort of justice the judges are commanded to pursue. For example, it should be totally even-handed kind of justice, not influenced by the standing of the man in the society nor by his riches. Conversely, a judge shouldn't be influenced  by pity for a litigant because he is poor and has a low standing in the community.

The parasha also warns the judges against the temptation of taking a bribe because the bribe: "doth blind the eyes of the wise, and perverts the words of the righteous".

It is hard not to be astonished by the relevance of this commandment to contemporary life as each new day brings  with it the disturbing news of judges, Congressmen, or other people of power and authority being tempted by bribes. Also, it is refreshing and encouraging to see that justice does not distinguish between the rich and the poor, the high heeled and the simple person.

The remainder of the parasha deals with a variety of topics, among them the kind of sacrifices disallowed, the ban on idol worshipping and its punishment, and we find here also the  foundation to the Supreme Court of today, one of the three wings which constitutes our democratic government. Additionally, it deals with the Kohanim and the Leviim and their compensation  for not receiving their own pieces of land like the rest of the tribes, rules regarding the king if and when there will be one, or the cities of refuge in the Promised Land; all of these topics touching upon important issues relating to life in biblical times, but not today.

The one and only topic Parashat Shoftim presents which is ageless and universal  and does have a resounding relevance to contemporary life is found at its very beginning: Tzedek, tzedek  tirdof- Justice, justice thou shalt pursue which should constitute the cornerstone of the justice system of any enlightened society, and like many other things in the Torah, it doesn't cease to amaze me how relatively progressive our civilization was in comparison to the other ancient civilization in the area which perhaps can explain that from all of them we are still here.