In Matthew 5:25 what does it mean to be in the way with our adversary?
Upvote:2
The meaning of Matthew 5:25 may be clearer if you consult a more recent translation:
Come to terms quickly while you are on the way to court with him, or your accuser may hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. [NRSV]
Upvote:2
Matthew is talking here about the thoughts that lead one to commit a crime. For emphasis, he gives two examples that can better be understood by looking at verse 5:25 in the context of a longer passage, Matthew 5:21-28, which I will discuss in two parts.
Matthew 5:21-26: "You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, 'You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgement.' But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgement, and whoever says to his brother, 'Raqa,' will be answerable to the Sanhedrin, and whoever says, 'You fool,' will be liable to fiery Gehenna.
Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court with him. Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.
The Greek word used here for brother is gender neutral and does not necessarily imply siblings. Anger can inflame a situation and lead to killing, so Jesus says:
- Whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgement
- Whoever says to his brother, Raqa, ['empty'] will be answerable to the Sanhedrin
- Whoever says, 'You fool,' will be liable to fiery Gehenna.
Instead, verse 5:25 says that if someone has anything against you, to be reconciled with him and reach a settlement before this goes to court. Otherwise, the judge may find against you and hand you over for imprisonment.
Matthew 5:27-28: "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you, everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
Matthew then says that just as anger can lead to killing, so also lust can lead to adultery. He says that anyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery in his heart.
So, in real life: hold your temper and avoid inflaming a situation, particularly if you may be in the wrong. Note that this is equally true whether your opponent is taking you to court or simply in dispute with you. In the second example, do not lust after a woman if this would result in adultery, because your very thoughts are adulterous.
More post
- 📝 Why did God become angry with Balaam?
- 📝 In Catholic teaching, to what scripture is each of the seven sacraments referenced?
- 📝 Why did the Romans put Jesus' clothes on him again, just to take it off later? (Matt.27:31; Jn. 19:23) Was nakedness not allowed on temple ground?
- 📝 Is Jesus speaking in Isaiah 40-48?
- 📝 What is the biblical basis for seeing Saint Peter at the gates of heaven?
- 📝 What arguments do KJV-only proponents give to support that the 1611 translation is better than say, Greek language Bibles?
- 📝 Are biblical laws supposed to be part of Government?
- 📝 How do small groups pray the Liturgy of the Hours?
- 📝 What are Mormons allowed to discuss about the temple, when not inside the temple?
- 📝 What misconceptions about the LDS church are a product of Mark Hofmann's forgeries?
- 📝 What practical difference does it make between "Word by word" Inspiration and Dynamic Inspiration of the Bible?
- 📝 History of the formation of the Biblical canon. Searching for accessible bibliographical references
- 📝 How does the Mormon Church reconcile the following claim with the Bible? "The Church of Jesus Christ was well established in the time of Adam."
- 📝 Was Charles Haddon Spurgeon a five-point Calvinist?
- 📝 When and why did the modern literal 6-Day creation theory become popular?
- 📝 Is it morally commendable to volunteer your own life to go to Hell in place of someone else?
- 📝 Why was heliocentrism such a threat to Roman Catholic leaders that their proponents were threatened to be burnt at the stake?
- 📝 What is the most accurate calculation of Jesus' birth date?
- 📝 Are there any denominations that accept the gap theory?
- 📝 How do Trinitarians explain James 1:17, John 4:24 and John 17:3?
- 📝 The question of graven images
- 📝 What is the Christian view on Breatharianism?
- 📝 What's the position of main Christian churches about brothers of Jesus?
- 📝 Why did the Old Testament command to kill?
- 📝 What is the evidence that the bones found under St. Peter's Basilica are actually St. Peter's bones?
- 📝 What is the concept of kowtow in Christianity?
- 📝 Are experiences of revelatory “impressions of the Holy Spirit” reported by Charles Spurgeon common among cessationists?
- 📝 Why are days like "Sunday" or "Monday" not mentioned in the Bible?
- 📝 Historical evidence for a separate Jewish branch of Christianity?
- 📝 Is there any quiz or tool that identifies the denomination which is closest to my personal beliefs?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 In Matthew 5:25 what does it mean to be in the way with our adversary?
- 📝 What does being lukewarm mean in contrast with being hot or cold for the church of Laodicea?
- 📝 What does the Catholic Church mean when it calls humans co-creators with God?
- 📝 What does inherit the earth mean in Matthew 5:5
- 📝 What does it mean that Jesus fulfilled the law but did not abolish it?
- 📝 How does Matthew 25:31-46 ("The Sheep and the Goats") reconcile with salvation by faith?
- 📝 What exactly does it mean that Jesus Christ is the son of God?
- 📝 What does it mean that Jesus was the "second Adam"?
- 📝 What does it mean to "Bless the LORD"?
- 📝 What does it mean to interpret the Bible literally?
- 📝 What does "gates of hell" mean in Matthew 16:18?
- 📝 What does it mean to comment on scripture with scripture?
- 📝 What does the abbreviation "RNIO" mean in a painting of the Virgin and Child?
- 📝 What does it mean to say "Jesus died for our sins"?
- 📝 What does it mean to be an heir of God and a joint-heir with Christ?
- 📝 What does the Bible say about people with mental illness?
- 📝 What does it mean that Jesus, Father, and Holy Spirit are of the same nature but different personas?
- 📝 What does it mean that John's Gospel does not have an account of the institution of the Eucharist?
- 📝 What does John Calvin mean to imply by the "suffrage" of the church?
- 📝 What does "communion of saints" mean in the Apostle's Creed?
- 📝 What does it mean for the Spirit to only speak of what he hears? (trinitarian perspective)
- 📝 From a Fundamentalist viewpoint, what does it mean to "take the Bible literally"?
- 📝 What is consumerism and what does the Pope see wrong with it?
- 📝 What does "Christ was born across the sea" mean in Julia Ward Howe's The Battle Hymn of the Republic?
- 📝 What does TS Eliot mean by "old dispensation" in The Journey of the Magi?
- 📝 What do Christians mean by "Jesus took our illnesses upon himself on the cross" and why?
- 📝 What does it mean to magnify or glorify the Lord?
- 📝 What is the significance of Matthew starting with the names of the ancestors of Jesus?
- 📝 What does R. C. Sproul mean by the 'essence' of God?
- 📝 What does Romans 13:13-14 mean by "behave decently, as in the daytime"?