Why Even a Lawful Gift Bends the Judge in Midrash Tanchuma

"You shall not take a bribe" (Deuteronomy 16:19). Once a judge sets his heart upon the bribe, his eye is bent in judgment, and he is no longer able to judge the matter truthfully. Rabbi Eleazar said: Behold, it says, "The princes of Israel, every one according to his arm, were in you" (Ezekiel 22:6) — for they would stretch out their arms beneath their robes and take the bribe. Rabbi Abbahu said: Whoever takes from his fellow the worth of a perutah is called wicked, as it is said, "A bribe from the bosom [the wicked] takes" (Proverbs 17:23). Rabbi Ishmael ben Elisha said: Come and see how harsh bribery is. One time a certain man came and brought me the first of the fleece, and he had a case before the judge, and I was standing to one side. And I said: If he pleads before the judge thus and so, he will be acquitted in the judgment. And I was hoping for his acquittal — even though he had given me only what was mine, and it was not a bribe — and my heart drew near to him every time I saw him. And even though he went to the court, I would inquire about him, whether he was acquitted or not. This is to make known to you how harsh a bribe is, for it blinds the eyes. And these things are an argument from the lesser to the greater: if I, to whom he brought what was mine, and from what was mine I took, was hoping for his acquittal — one who takes a bribe, how much more so.