---
title: "Deuteronomy 16:20"
description: "The command is emphatic and exclusive: 'justice, and only justice.' It forbids a mixed policy in which injustice is written into the law as a means to a just end. 'Justice later' or 'partial justice now' is not what is commanded; the object of pursuit is justice itself, not incremental steps that…"
type: "scripture"
book: "Deuteronomy"
chapter: 16
verses: "20"
translation: "NASB"
refutes: "Pro-life incrementalism"
affirms_abolition: true
themes:
  - "justice only"
  - "no compromise"
  - "national blessing"
  - "abolition mandate"
  - "means and ends"
source_url: "https://www.abhortion.org/scripture/deuteronomy-16-20.html"
---

# Deuteronomy 16:20

Book of Deuteronomy · Chapter 16

## The text

> “Justice, and only justice, you shall pursue, that you may live and possess the land which the Lord your God is giving you.”
> — Deuteronomy 16:20, NASB

**The claim this verse counters:** "Some justice now (with exceptions) is better than no justice; we will pursue full justice later."

## The argument

The command is emphatic and exclusive: 'justice, and only justice.' It forbids a mixed policy in which injustice is written into the law as a means to a just end. 'Justice later' or 'partial justice now' is not what is commanded; the object of pursuit is justice itself, not incremental steps that legalize some injustice along the way.

## Context & notes

The thematic backbone of the abolitionist case and the most-cited verse across the talks. The doubling ('justice, and only justice' / Heb. tsedeq tsedeq) is read as an intensifier excluding compromise. The tie to possessing the land frames national blessing and judgment as hinging on doing justice.

## Themes

- justice only
- no compromise
- national blessing
- abolition mandate
- means and ends

## Discussion questions

1. The verse says 'justice, and ONLY justice.' Does a bill that legalizes some abortion while banning others qualify as pursuing 'only justice'?
2. What is the object we are commanded to pursue — incremental steps, or justice itself?
3. If pursuing justice is tied to possessing the land, what does refusing justice invite?

## Source transcript

Drawn from Does the Pro-Life Movement Hate Justice? (T. Russell Hunter, 'Justice Alone') — The conference/talk theme ('Justice Alone'); recited at the open and close and throughout V2..

## Related

**Related scriptures:**

- [Deuteronomy 16:19](deuteronomy-16-19.md)
- [Leviticus 19:15](leviticus-19-15.md)
- [Micah 6:8](micah-6-8.md)
- [Isaiah 10:1-2](isaiah-10-1-2.md)
- [Amos 5:14-15](amos-5-14-15.md)

**Related arguments:**

- [God commands 'justice, and only justice' — not partial or deferred justice](../arguments/arg-justice-only.md)
- [“A bill that protects some children now is better than a bill that protects none and…”](../arguments/def-some-justice-better.md)
- [“Bills that ban abortion at a heartbeat, at pain-capability, or after an ultrasound…”](../arguments/def-milestone-bills.md)

## Attribution

Verse text is quoted from the NASB. Scripture quotations taken from the New American Standard Bible® (NASB), Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org