Continuing on in the Sermon on the Mount, we’re ready for Matthew 5:31-32 in the series of comments Jesus makes on different subjects when He starts with “It has been said”, citing different wrong, religious issues common in the Judaism of His day, then ending with “But I say” giving the truth established in the Old Testament or the coming New Covenant. This is verses 31 and 32. “And they’ve always said that when a man doesn’t want his wife anymore, he must divorce her legally by doing the proper paperwork. This gives her the opportunity to marry again. But, the fact of the matter is this: just because they’ve established a legal procedure for divorce doesn’t mean they’re doing what is right. Who are they kidding? Whoever divorces his wife (except on the grounds of her adultery); if she remarries, he makes her an adulteress. And when a man marries a woman who is divorced, he becomes an adulterer. Making something legal doesn’t automatically make it right.”
This is actually Jesus’ shortest statement on divorce and remarriage found in the Gospel accounts. There is a longer, more detailed statement in Matthew 19:3-9 (another version of the same statement is found in Mark 10:2-12), when the Pharisees questioned Jesus on the subject. Jesus’ comments here are to the point, mentioning the “certificate of divorcement” given by Moses in Deuteronomy 24:1-3 and other Old Testament commands regarding adultery. We won’t expand our examination of this subject until we get to the account in Matthew 19, where Jesus goes into some detail on this in His answer to the Pharisees.
But for now, it’s clear from verse 32 that Jesus is not condoning divorce for any reason except adultery, clearly not in agreement with the current practices of the day, as we will see when we get to that account later. When considering the context of the whole of His comments in Matthew 5, 6 and 7, He is exposing the wrong attitudes and practices of the religious establishment. And in that context His meaning is clear: since you ignore God’s commands and make up your own rules contrary to those commands; you need to understand that even though you make divorce legal and easy to obtain for any reason, that doesn't make is right.
The next section is on deceptive speech. This is what He says. “They’ve also said you shouldn’t make promises that you don’t intend to keep. In an attempt to prove their sincerity, people often try to make their promises sound more believable by adding something religious to them. Things don’t become true just because they’re dressed up in religious-sounding talk. In fact, the more religious it sounds, the more reason you have to be suspicious of it. So, keep it simple. Just say yes, when you mean yes; and no, when you mean no. Only those who intend to deceive feel the need to make long, drawn-out, religious-sounding promises.” (Verses 33-37)
Leviticus 19:12 prohibits using the name of God to make a promise sound more truthful or sincere. Numbers 30:2 says anyone who makes a promise using his own name must perform every word of that promise. Deuteronomy 23:21 warns against making a promise to pay a debt and not paying it. Verse 33 in the KJV says “Thou shalt not forswear thyself” (“swear not” again in verse 34). This is from the verb epiorkeo, to forswear (to deny or reject a promise), to commit perjury (lie), to swear or promise with false motives. Jesus exposes false intentions when He talks about making promises using things we have no power to change like heaven, earth, Jerusalem, our own bodies, just to make them sound more truthful. (Verses 34-36, compare James 5:12)
I noticed in different Bible versions the heading leading into this section mentions either “vows” or “oaths”. When you look these words up in the dictionary, they both have to do with using (or implying) God’s name to make a promise appear to be truthful or valid. I know the intention is to make these headings short, but this section could be described as “lying to someone, when you have no intention of keeping your promise”. It reminds me of what I think to myself when someone says, “I’m going to tell you the truth”. And I think, you mean you don’t always tell the truth, so you have to announce when you are?
So again, Jesus’ statement above in verse 37 is in the same context, telling the Pharisees they betray their true intentions and expose their own dishonesty when the dress their vows up in religious-sounding terms. And the fact that they don’t keep their promises short and to the point puts their evil intentions on full display (evil is kakos, what is morally or ethically wrong or injurious).
The next section is a difficult one that will stretch even the most mature of believers. Here Jesus deals with retaliation and how to deal with those who may want to take advantage of you. Pay attention, this is a real test of Godly character. There’s actually three parts to this section, so we’ll take them one at a time. “Here’s another one. You’ve always heard that the punishment should fit the crime. But, I propose a different way. When someone hurts you, don’t retaliate at all. What does it accomplish? Your retaliation only adds to the pain that already exists. If someone hurts you, take it peacefully. And by that, you’ll prove the sincerity of your love by ending it then and there.” (Verses 38-39)
Jesus quotes several Old Testament verses that give laws that prescribe how acts of violence should be dealt with (“eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand”, etc., compare Exodus 21:24; Leviticus 24:20; Deuteronomy 19:21). The principle was meant to discourage acts of violence by making the punishment equal to the result of the injury caused. This is the same principle upon which the death penalty was based. However, Jesus uses the concept to address the issue of retaliation (in this context, returning injury for injury).
Retaliation often leads to further, heightened acts of retaliation. Here Jesus offers a way to break that cycle. As believers we are to work for peace, not personal revenge. This is another new covenant principle that transcends the old. And it’s mentioned in different ways in several of Paul’s epistles (Romans 12:17 “don’t return evil for evil," 19 “do not revenge yourselves”; 1 Corinthians 6:7 “better to be taken advantage of than to take others to law”; 1 Thessalonians 5:15 “do not pay back wrong for wrong, instead, be kind to all”).
So, here again, Jesus exposes the Pharisees who insisted on pursuing others with anger, insults and even violence. The thought of doing what Jesus suggests here would have never crossed their minds.
“If anyone ever has reason to take you to court, and he wins his case, pay him even more than the judge requires. And when someone wants to take unfair advantage of you, fine. Let him do it. And if he asks you for help, don’t refuse. Even if you think he’s trying to take advantage of you.” (Verses 40-41) In these two verses Jesus is simply adding to the previous verses prohibiting retaliation by doing more than is asked or required. In verse 40 He uses the illustration of being sued in court and required to pay a certain amount, but actually paying more than is demanded. He illustrates this by saying “if you’re sued and he takes away your coat (from chiton, an undergarment), give him your cloak also” (from himation, an outer garment). In other words, if they want your briefs and undershirt, give them your outer shirt and pants too.
In verse 41 Jesus refers to the custom of forced service. Before the Roman occupation it had to do with a representative of the king who could demand that others help in carrying out the king’s business and to refuse was a punishable offense. Later, this was something that could be required by representatives of the Roman government. The obvious example of this is when the Roman soldiers required Simon the Cyrenian (a man visiting Jerusalem from Cyrene, the capital of Libya on North Africa, probably a proselyte there to observe Passover) to carry Jesus’ cross as He was being led to Golgotha in His weakened condition (Matthew 27:32). Jesus’point, be willing to do more than is required.
Then we come to the last and maybe most difficult part. “Always be willing to give to others what they might need. And if anyone asks you for a loan, give it to him, even if you have every reason to believe he may never pay it back. I know this might be confusing. But this is what I’m trying to tell you: always be kind and generous, never willing to see others suffer in need, regardless of the circumstances.” (Verse 42)
I think the first part of this (“give to him that asks”) probably refers to family and friends. Similar ideas are found in 1 Timothy 5:8 “If anyone does not provide for his relatives and especially for his immediate family, he has denied what he claims to believe is right and true.” Or 1 John 3:17 “If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no compassion for him, how can the love of God be in him?” The point is obvious — be generous with what you have. This promise is found in 2 Corinthians 9:6-11; God will always make sure people have what is necessary to enable them to give generously to those in need (the principle of sowing and reaping).
And the last part is “from him that would borrow, turn not away”. The reason I added to my translation above the part about loaning to someone even when you believe they may never pay it back, is because Jesus doesn’t qualify His statement in any way. It’s not like the bank that makes you fill out a loan application so they can check you out and assess their risk. If someone asks for a loan, you give it to them, regardless of the circumstances. This requires generosity, the refusal to be judgmental of others and trust (not in man, but in God’s promise).
Once again, when taken together these verses suggest behavior that would be totally
foreign to the Pharisees. Their religion had rules specifically designed to allow them to take advantage of others to enrich themselves. Remember why Jesus drove the vendors and moneychangers out of the temple court at Passover? We’ll see other examples of their dishonest greed in later lessons. Their attitudes and actions in their confrontations with Jesus exposed their self-righteousness, anger, blind hatred and desire for violent retaliation for ridiculous reasons, all contrary to the character and nature of God, the Old Testament (that they seemed to be fairly ignorant of) and the teaching of Jesus in the New Covenant.
And this last section in chapter 5 (verses 43-48) goes directly to that point. “And you’ve been told to love your friends, but hate your enemies. I’m telling you, that’s wrong! Instead, you should love those who hate you, say only good things about those who dislike you, do good things for those who want to destroy you, and pray for those who have wrongfully accused you. Then you’ll be like your Father in Heaven. He doesn’t arbitrarily choose those He will love. He loves everyone the same, regardless of whether they’re good or bad.” (Verses 43-45)
Jesus quotes more of the Old Testament (Leviticus 19:17-18, “Thou shalt not hate thy brother…., but thou shalt love thy neighbor”). This is a continuation of the previous sections. Jesus is saying, “Stop the cycle of hatred, anger and possible violence. Be kind and generous. Be like your Father in heaven, Who treats everyone the same, regardless of whether they’re good or bad, righteous or not.” Where I have “and pray for those who have wrongfully accused you” above (“pray for them which despitefully use you” in the KJV), this sentence is not found in the best manuscripts, though it is included in most subsequent translations, as they tend to follow the KJV.
“When you only love those who love you, do you think you deserve something special for it? I don’t see why, anyone can do that. And when you only say hello to neighbors who greet you first, what’s so great about that? But this is what I’m talking about. You have to show everyone the same God-like character. You have to learn to treat others the way the Father treats you.” (Verses 43-48) It’s easy to love others when you know they love you; and it’s not difficult to say hello to those who greet you first. In previous lessons I have defined love (agape, benevolent love) as the demonstration of the character and nature of God, character being Who He is, and nature, what He does. True love in a Biblical or spiritual sense is showing others God by how we relate to them. Our kindness, generosity, compassion, etc., and the lack of any bias that would disqualify them from any of those things all show how God treats both us and others. That is how we show we are His true children.
There is an interesting element to Jesus’ comments in verses 46 and 47. First He says that even “publicans” love those who love them. This is from telones, a tax collector. Tax collectors were generally hated by the populace, they represented the oppressive Roman occupiers and the taxes were burdensome. They were often put in the same class as “sinners” (Matthew 9:10-11, 11:19). Then He says those same “publicans” even greet their neighbors (the implication in the text is that they greet only their neighbors, not strangers). However, “publicans” here is not from telones, this is ethnikoi, commonly translated Gentiles (called “dogs” in Matthew 7:6, 15:27). In short, Jesus is saying, you hate the tax collectors and despise Gentiles, but they treat others better than you do.