Deuteronomy 25:2
If the guilty man deserves to be beaten, the judge shall have him lie down and be flogged in his presence with the number of lashes his crime warrants.
What it says
If the guilty man deserves flogging, the judge is to oversee it and match the number of lashes to the offense.
What it is doing
It regulates punishment by placing it under measured judicial supervision.
In context
1If there is a dispute between men, they are to go to court to be judged, so that the innocent may be acquitted and the guilty condemned. 2If the guilty man deserves to be beaten, the judge shall have him lie down and be flogged in his presence with the number of lashes his crime warrants. 3He may receive no more than forty lashes, lest your brother be beaten any more than that and be degraded in your sight. 4Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.