Today Jesus begins to clarify what he meant when he said, “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill” (Matthew 5:17).
This was typical rabbinic posturing to clarify his doctrine as truth, and distinguish himself from the teachings of the Pharisees. A common rhetoric, used by disagreeing rabbis, would be for each to accuse the other of nullifying the Torah by inaccurate or false teaching. Jesus used this one himself when he challenged the Pharisees on their teaching. “You have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition, he said. (Matthew 15:5-6, Mark 7:11-13).
Here, as Jesus introduced his newly recruited disciples to the kingdom, he made it clear he intended to take on the Pharisees’ teaching by dismantling their interpretation of it and clarifying how he would apply the Torah in the kingdom.
He began by using the rhetorical challenge, “You have heard it said … but I say to you.” This in itself is a means of calling for repentance, for to challenge accepted ideas with new ones and expect life change from that is a call for repentance. In so doing Jesus clarified that obedience to the law proceeds from the heart, not outward appearance.
Jesus used this rhetorical challenge six times in the address we call the “Sermon on the Mount,” and today we consider four of them.
The Torah says, “You shall not murder” (Exodus 20:13; Deuteronomy 5:17). The scribes had taught for many years, “Whoever murders shall be guilty of the judgment.” Jesus clarified that by saying, “whoever is angry at his brother without cause is in danger of judgment.” Thus Jesus moved the issue from an outward behavior issue to a heart issue. Unjustified anger directed toward another leads to murder. Jesus intended to address the heart of the issue in the kingdom.
He pushed the matter further with a parallelism:
The Torah says, “You shall not commit adultery” (Exodus 20:14; Deuteronomy 5:18). Adultery was understood as sexual relations between people not married to each other where the woman is married or betrothed to someone else. In Hebrew thought the woman’s marital status defines adultery. Sexual relations between man and woman where the woman was unmarried, regardless of the man’s marital status was considered fornication, and though serious, was not as offensive as adultery.
That is because in Hebrew thought the integrity of the family is critically important to an orderly society. That integrity is achieved when intimacy and resulting childbearing kept within marriage. For a woman to risk bearing the child of someone else places the integrity of the home at serious risk.
Adultery, like all sins, begins with lust in the heart (see James 1:14-15). Lusting after a married woman, Jesus said, is the same as adultery. It is just as inappropriate as the physical act.
The Torah says, “When a man takes a wife and marries her, and it happens that she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some uncleanness in her,” he could write a bill of divorce and send her out of his house (Deuteronomy 24:1). While the scribes had argued over this for centuries, it was generally assumed that the cause for disfavor leading to justified divorce rested in “some uncleanness in her,” and referred to a wedding night discovery that the woman had been unchaste.
By Jesus’ time many apparently interpreted the justification for divorce as anything that caused the husband to find “no favor in his eyes.” A group of Pharisees once challenged Jesus on this, asking if he thought a man should be able to divorce his wife for any reason. Jesus responded by quoting from Genesis 2 and clarifying God’s intention for marriage to be one man married to one woman for life.
As he introduced his disciples to the kingdom, Jesus clarified the law. “Whoever divorces his wife for any reason except for sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.” It is clear Jesus is interested in the integrity of the family.
Finally, the Torah says, “You shall not swear by My name falsely, nor shall you profane the name of your God” (Leviticus 19:12). By Jesus’ time the scribes and Pharisees had developed different kinds of oaths, including promises, rash oaths, oaths regarding things left in trust, and testimonial oaths. Much time was devoted to determining what kind of oath had been given and the degrees of severity in breaking them and the degree to which one could be held liable by one’s oaths.
Jesus clarified the whole issue by saying, “Do not swear at all.” The kingdom prefers plain speech and a degree of personal integrity so infallible that one’s word is one’s bond. A yes is yes, and a no is no. A promise is a promise. Simply live in integrity, Jesus said, and there will be no need for defending oneself through oaths. Honesty comes from the heart, and is readily discernible to those around.
I cannot help but be reminded of the wisdom of Proverbs 4:20-27 …
Matthew 5:21-37 (6 Epiphany A) 2014
This was typical rabbinic posturing to clarify his doctrine as truth, and distinguish himself from the teachings of the Pharisees. A common rhetoric, used by disagreeing rabbis, would be for each to accuse the other of nullifying the Torah by inaccurate or false teaching. Jesus used this one himself when he challenged the Pharisees on their teaching. “You have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition, he said. (Matthew 15:5-6, Mark 7:11-13).
Here, as Jesus introduced his newly recruited disciples to the kingdom, he made it clear he intended to take on the Pharisees’ teaching by dismantling their interpretation of it and clarifying how he would apply the Torah in the kingdom.
He began by using the rhetorical challenge, “You have heard it said … but I say to you.” This in itself is a means of calling for repentance, for to challenge accepted ideas with new ones and expect life change from that is a call for repentance. In so doing Jesus clarified that obedience to the law proceeds from the heart, not outward appearance.
Jesus used this rhetorical challenge six times in the address we call the “Sermon on the Mount,” and today we consider four of them.
The Torah says, “You shall not murder” (Exodus 20:13; Deuteronomy 5:17). The scribes had taught for many years, “Whoever murders shall be guilty of the judgment.” Jesus clarified that by saying, “whoever is angry at his brother without cause is in danger of judgment.” Thus Jesus moved the issue from an outward behavior issue to a heart issue. Unjustified anger directed toward another leads to murder. Jesus intended to address the heart of the issue in the kingdom.
He pushed the matter further with a parallelism:
Whoever says to his brother, “Raca!” is in danger of the council,Again a matter of the heart. Raca was a term of abuse in Jesus’ time meaning, empty-headed one. It was used by one who had the highest contempt toward another. And fool is the word for moron. In Hebrew thought life, movement, and fruitfulness are highly valued, while lifelessness and unproductivity were abhorred. To label someone as worthless due to mental incapacity was an extremely derogatory label, the ultimate verbalization of disdain. There is no place for that in the kingdom, Jesus said.
Whoever says, “You fool!” is in danger of hell fire.
The Torah says, “You shall not commit adultery” (Exodus 20:14; Deuteronomy 5:18). Adultery was understood as sexual relations between people not married to each other where the woman is married or betrothed to someone else. In Hebrew thought the woman’s marital status defines adultery. Sexual relations between man and woman where the woman was unmarried, regardless of the man’s marital status was considered fornication, and though serious, was not as offensive as adultery.
That is because in Hebrew thought the integrity of the family is critically important to an orderly society. That integrity is achieved when intimacy and resulting childbearing kept within marriage. For a woman to risk bearing the child of someone else places the integrity of the home at serious risk.
Adultery, like all sins, begins with lust in the heart (see James 1:14-15). Lusting after a married woman, Jesus said, is the same as adultery. It is just as inappropriate as the physical act.
The Torah says, “When a man takes a wife and marries her, and it happens that she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some uncleanness in her,” he could write a bill of divorce and send her out of his house (Deuteronomy 24:1). While the scribes had argued over this for centuries, it was generally assumed that the cause for disfavor leading to justified divorce rested in “some uncleanness in her,” and referred to a wedding night discovery that the woman had been unchaste.
By Jesus’ time many apparently interpreted the justification for divorce as anything that caused the husband to find “no favor in his eyes.” A group of Pharisees once challenged Jesus on this, asking if he thought a man should be able to divorce his wife for any reason. Jesus responded by quoting from Genesis 2 and clarifying God’s intention for marriage to be one man married to one woman for life.
As he introduced his disciples to the kingdom, Jesus clarified the law. “Whoever divorces his wife for any reason except for sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.” It is clear Jesus is interested in the integrity of the family.
Finally, the Torah says, “You shall not swear by My name falsely, nor shall you profane the name of your God” (Leviticus 19:12). By Jesus’ time the scribes and Pharisees had developed different kinds of oaths, including promises, rash oaths, oaths regarding things left in trust, and testimonial oaths. Much time was devoted to determining what kind of oath had been given and the degrees of severity in breaking them and the degree to which one could be held liable by one’s oaths.
Jesus clarified the whole issue by saying, “Do not swear at all.” The kingdom prefers plain speech and a degree of personal integrity so infallible that one’s word is one’s bond. A yes is yes, and a no is no. A promise is a promise. Simply live in integrity, Jesus said, and there will be no need for defending oneself through oaths. Honesty comes from the heart, and is readily discernible to those around.
I cannot help but be reminded of the wisdom of Proverbs 4:20-27 …
My son, give attention to my words;Clarifies it for me.
Incline your ear to my sayings.
Do not let them depart from your eyes;
Keep them in the midst of your heart;
For they are life to those who find them,
And health to all their flesh.
Keep your heart with all diligence,
For out of it spring the issues of life.
Put away from you a deceitful mouth,
And put perverse lips far from you.
Let your eyes look straight ahead,
And your eyelids look right before you.
Ponder the path of your feet,
And let all your ways be established.
Do not turn to the right or the left;
Remove your foot from evil.
Matthew 5:21-37 (6 Epiphany A) 2014
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