01.06. The Sermon on the Mount (14)
"The Sermon on the Mount" (14) Hatred Among Brethren (Matthew 5:21-26) In Matthew 5:21-48 the Lord Jesus gives six examples in which He warns against wrong interpretation and application of the commandments by the scribes and Pharisees. He does not set aside the law as such but in this way shows His disciples various important details.
Firstly, He reminds them that many of the commandments which God gave to Israel only referred to outward conduct.
Secondly, He points out that by their interpretations the scribes had narrowed down the application of these commandments so that sometimes little remained of their true meaning.
Thirdly, He shows them that it was not only the outward keeping of the commandments that mattered but the desire of the heart to live in accordance with God’s thoughts and to His glory. The sixth commandment: "Thou shalt not kill" The Lord Jesus begins the first of the six examples with the words, "Ye have heard that it was said to the ancients" (A.V.-"them of old time"). The "ancients" here are not only the contemporaries of Moses, since the following text contains an addition to the original commandment. The audience of the Lord Jesus had heard two things: First, that the commandment, "Thou shalt not kill," was given by God, and second, what they knew had probably been added by the scribes since the Babylonian captivity, "and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment." It would seem that "judgment" here means the judges and officers mentioned for example in Deuteronomy 16:18 who were to be appointed in every town in Israel.
"But I say unto you" The Lord Jesus now sets His own words over against this commandment with its human addition: "But I say unto you." These words occur five times in this part of the fifth chapter. He speaks with the same authority as the One who had once given the law, for He is the Son of God. Yet He does not set aside the law by His words but extends its application to man’s condition of heart. Whilst the commandment only forbade the extreme manifestation of hatred, i.e. killing a person, the Lord shows that anger with a brother (which means the Jewish "brother" here) deserves the same punishment as killing itself.
If in the opinion of the Rabbis only the murderer was subject to this judgment, the Lord’s words show that the one who was angry with his brother for no reason was subject to the same judgment. The one who called his brother "Raca" (Aramaic: "reka"-fool, lunatic) was subject to be called before the Sanhedrin (the supreme Jewish court at that time), and whosoever should say "fool" was to be subject to hell ("Gehenna"): eternal damnation. If the last of these three sins, which hardly differ from one another, led to eternal damnation, then the others would do so as well. God does not look at the outward appearance but into our hearts. The following two examples in Matthew 5:23-26 then deal with the right condition of heart. The first one shows how necessary it is to have a good conscience and the second one teaches us that time for repentance is limited.
First example: "Be reconciled to thy brother"
"Therefore, if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee, Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift" (Matthew 5:23-24). We should remember that the Lord Jesus was addressing His disciples and still had the sacrificial system of the temple before Him. Nevertheless, His words have something to say to us too.
It cannot be pleasing to God if we come before Him in worship without having first put our relationship with our brother in order. How easily relationships can be broken! Perhaps it was only a misunderstanding, or I may have deliberately hurt a child of God, a brother or sister. Anyway, he or she has something against me. The Lord says in this case, "Go." The disturbed relationship between believers can only be put in order again by reconciliation and this is unlikely to be achieved without an honest confession. Only then can brotherly love flow again freely. Our fellowship with our God and Father is then restored as well: "And then come and offer thy gift."
Second example: Use the time
"Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison. Verily I say to thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing" (Matthew 5:25-26). In the past it was common to leave a convicted debtor in prison until all his debts were paid (cf. Matthew 18:30; Matthew 18:34). The Lord says here in symbolical language: "There is the opportunity to be reconciled with the adverse party in a peaceful manner before it is too late, even though one might find this difficult. But the time for reconciliation will cease. The one who is not prepared to act in this way, however, will have to bear the consequences." The very serious nature of the Lord’s teaching in this place becomes clear when comparing the passage with a similar one in Matthew 18:34-35.
Wrong spiritual applications of the latter part of this example (Matthew 18:26, cf. Luke 12:57-59) have lead to much confusion, of which the doctrine of "purgatory" is probably the saddest proof. Nowhere in Scripture is it taught that a man must suffer a temporal punishment of God, after his death, in order to be eternally saved. No; once death has come in the eternal destiny of the soul is decided: one is either eternally and perfectly saved or eternally lost! This verse therefore can only refer to circumstances on earth.
These words of the Lord Jesus are in agreement with various Old Testament prophecies concerning the people of Israel. When the future time of Jacob’s trouble has come to an end the word of the prophet Isaiah will be fulfilled: "Comfort ye, comfort ye My people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the Lord’s hand double for all her sins" (Isaiah 40:1-2). When their King and Saviour was with them to deliver them the Jews were not prepared to receive Him or to respond to the call to repentance. Therefore God had to reject this unbelieving people (Romans 11:25). The setting aside of Israel, which will climax in the great tribulation, will last until He has completed His whole work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem (Isaiah 10:12; Zechariah 13:8-9).