#1225 Matthew 5 Part 10 You Have Heard

 

21 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire. 23 So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. 25 Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison. 26 Truly, I say to you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny. Matthew 5: 21-26

Matthew 5: 21-22 Anger and Murder

You have heard - There is some important context here, for the people my Lord is talking to have been in the dark as to the Word of God for quite some time. This also happened in the church age, the dark ages, when Rome controlled the dispensing and interpretation of the Bible. Here is an excerpt from a J Mac sermon on this very thing.

And by the way, rabbis were called “fathers of antiquity” or “men of long ago.” That was a common term for rabbis, and that is what our Lord is referring to. “You have heard that it was said by the rabbis of old.” In other words, this is a designation related to their oral teaching that glossed over the true law of God, that added their own thoughts to the revelation of the Old Testament. And so Jesus is not contrasting the New Testament with the Old Testament, not contrasting His Word with God’s Word, but with the word of the rabbis, and their traditional interpretation which had been given to the people.

Now let me give you an illustration of this. Martyn Lloyd-Jones uses this, and I think it’s a good illustration. The condition of the Jew at this time is fascinating. Now listen to this. It is remarkably like the people in the Reformation. Let me tell you why. In the days of the Reformation prior to the time when the Reformation really hit, the Scriptures were not translated into the peoples’ language, into English, for example.

When you went to the Catholic Church, the Catholic Mass - which really until the Reformation had captured the whole religious, Christian religious world - the whole thing was in what language? Latin, Latin. So you went there and you sat there. There was no Bible to speak of in the hands of the people. And what was read by the priests was read in Latin. Nobody understood it. Nobody read it. And then the priest would expound upon this Latin text and the people would simply believe whatever the priest said because they had no basis by which to evaluate. They couldn’t read the Latin. They couldn’t interpret it. So they accepted what the priest said.

So century went by after century, and the Roman Catholic Church developed the system which was never really investigated by the people. All because they didn’t have the Bible in their own language. And so they accepted the priestly interpretations and conformity to the system of Rome.

What the Reformation did more than anything else was give the Bible to the people. It put the Word of God in the peoples’ hands. When they began to read the Scripture, then they began to see the false system, the false teaching, the misrepresentation of the gospel, which had been given to them for centuries, and centuries, and centuries. And the truth of the gospel shattered the Dark Ages, and Christianity as we know it today was born out of that. And today, we have the Bible. And we can check any false system because we, too, can understand it.

Well, that’s exactly what was going on in our Lord’s Day. Listen to this. When Israel had gone into captivity in Babylon, when they went in to the Babylonian captivity, they remained there seventy years. And during that time historians tell us for the most part they lost the Hebrew language. They ceased to speak Hebrew. They picked up a language known as Aramaic. And so when they came back from captivity, they spoke in Aramaic. In Jesus time, they spoke Aramaic. Jesus taught, probably, in Aramaic.

And of course, the New Testament was written down in Greek. But the people, the Jewish people spoke Aramaic. They were for the most part completely unfamiliar with Hebrew, as Jewish people are for the most part today. So, the rabbis would come along. The rabbis would read the Hebrew, which the people didn’t understand. The rabbis would interpret it. The people couldn’t argue because they didn’t know what it said, either. And so they begin to build an entire system based upon the ignorance of the people regarding the Hebrew text.

And so when the Lord says, “You have heard that it was said by them of old,” He is saying, “The religion you have is the oral tradition of the rabbis, not the written Word of God,” you see? Very critical. The embellishments, and traditions, and interpretations, and deletions, and additions, and all of the garbage that was added which became the Mishnah, the codification of oral law, the Talmud, and all of that other stuff, which padded the truth of God into obscurity.

Jesus says, “That’s what you’ve been hearing.” Just as the Roman Catholic Church obliterated the truth by keeping the people ignorant of the Scriptures, so the people were ignorant of the Scriptures in the time of the rabbis. And because they couldn’t speak Hebrew, they couldn’t verify what they were getting. - J Mac

You shall not murder - This is true, the Bible says, "thou shalt not kill", and so a man, not just the Pharisees, I have known many to think this way, that you have not ever killed anyone, and you speak of love and joy and peace, so you have fulfilled the law. In our hearts we think, "yes, I have never physically killed someone, so I am a good person, I can stand before God on my own merit with a clear conscience." 

Will be liable to judgment - The act of murder brings you under the requirements of the law, the penalty of the law. This is where we see capital punishment, a life for a life, but if you look back at the early teachings of Moses, you will discover the extent to which Christ is pushing the teaching. In the passages below you will see intent, and the idea of intent is where the Pharisees and Sadducees fell short in their teaching. Intent is looking at the heart, and Jesus will make it abundantly clear that there are none righteous by that standard. You need the righteousness of Christ applied to your account, an alien righteousness. 

12Whoever strikes and kills a man must surely be put to death. 13If, however, he did not lie in wait, but God allowed it to happen, then I will appoint for you a place where he may flee. 14But if a man schemes and acts willfully against his neighbor to kill him, you must take him away from My altar to be put to death.… Exodus 21: 12-14

12 They will be places of refuge from the avenger, so that anyone accused of murder may not die before they stand trial before the assembly. 13 These six towns you give will be your cities of refuge.14 Give three on this side of the Jordan and three in Canaan as cities of refuge. 15 These six towns will be a place of refuge for Israelites and for foreigners residing among them, so that anyone who has killed another accidentally can flee there.

16 “ ‘If anyone strikes someone a fatal blow with an iron object, that person is a murderer; the murderer is to be put to death. 17 Or if anyone is holding a stone and strikes someone a fatal blow with it, that person is a murderer; the murderer is to be put to death. 18 Or if anyone is holding a wooden object and strikes someone a fatal blow with it, that person is a murderer; the murderer is to be put to death. 19 The avenger of blood shall put the murderer to death; when the avenger comes upon the murderer, the avenger shall put the murderer to death. 20 If anyone with malice aforethought shoves another or throws something at them intentionally so that they die 21 or if out of enmity one person hits another with their fist so that the other dies, that person is to be put to death; that person is a murderer. The avenger of blood shall put the murderer to death when they meet.

22 “ ‘But if without enmity someone suddenly pushes another or throws something at them unintentionally 23 or, without seeing them, drops on them a stone heavy enough to kill them, and they die, then since that other person was not an enemy and no harm was intended, 24 the assembly must judge between the accused and the avenger of blood according to these regulations. 25 The assembly must protect the one accused of murder from the avenger of blood and send the accused back to the city of refuge to which they fled. The accused must stay there until the death of the high priest, who was anointed with the holy oil.

26 “ ‘But if the accused ever goes outside the limits of the city of refuge to which they fled 27 and the avenger of blood finds them outside the city, the avenger of blood may kill the accused without being guilty of murder. 28 The accused must stay in the city of refuge until the death of the high priest; only after the death of the high priest may they return to their own property.

29 “ ‘This is to have the force of law for you throughout the generations to come, wherever you live.

30 “ ‘Anyone who kills a person is to be put to death as a murderer only on the testimony of witnesses. But no one is to be put to death on the testimony of only one witness.

31 “ ‘Do not accept a ransom for the life of a murderer, who deserves to die. They are to be put to death.

32 “ ‘Do not accept a ransom for anyone who has fled to a city of refuge and so allow them to go back and live on their own land before the death of the high priest.

33 “ ‘Do not pollute the land where you are. Bloodshed pollutes the land, and atonement cannot be made for the land on which blood has been shed, except by the blood of the one who shed it. 34 Do not defile the land where you live and where I dwell, for I, the Lord, dwell among the Israelites.’ ” Numbers 35: 12-34

More on Cities of Refuge

But I say to you - Christ doesn't change the law, He doesn't add to or reduce it, but He takes it to it's logical source, the perfection of understanding the law. You had cities of refuge for unintentional, accidental loss of life, and take care here, because hitting someone out of anger, whether you intended to kill them or not, if they die, the anger was the source. This doesn't remove the rights of self defense, for it is just to defend yourself or someone else from the heart that seeks to dominate by violence, but remember, you don't fight because you know you are going to win, you fight because it is the right thing to do. You tried to stop it by other means, you pleaded with your enemy, were willing to walk away, yet they persisted, and those that govern were not so near as to intervene or in some cases would not care to. Now for the self righteous, they will always think that they were in the right for using violence, for screaming, temper tantrums, rioting, instigating.

You fool - Other translations have this as "empty head", and basically it invokes or encompasses the sort of language that puts someone beneath you, "worthless, less than, deserving of my disdain and whatever happens to you". It comes from the thing that God hates, which is pride, and it is not only the reaction of the person who was cut off in traffic, but often it is from the person who committed the wrong. It's like this, I cut you off in traffic, you blow your horn to let me know that there was a close call, and I don't know the intent of your heart, but I was in the wrong, maybe even on accident, but when I hear that horn I lose it. I put my hand out the window and give you the international sign of my superiority, telling you I don't care who you are or what I did, I apologize to no one, this is my road, "do you know who I am?" I didn't see the state of your heart, you used your horn for what it's there for, but  now you and everyone around knows the state of my heart.

…44For each tree is known by its own fruit. Indeed, figs are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor grapes from brambles. 45The good man brings good things out of the good treasure of his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil treasure of his heart. For out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks. 46Why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ but not do what I say?… Luke 6: 44-46

Raca appears often in the Rabbinic literature. The idea is that of "empty head ("airhead")," or "numbskull," or "one who thinks like a donkey." In that sense Raca expresses dehumanizing contempt which seeks to strip the person of their dignity by viewing them as worthless! To say “Raca” to a person was like saying, “You idiot!” - Precept Austin

Will be liable to the hell of fire - You didn't even kill anyone, yet this is the conviction, this is the sentence. You used the word "fool", yet you understood it incorrectly, the fool is the one who thought so highly of himself, the fool is the one who tried to shatter the image of God in his fellow, you were the fool. The word itself was used by the prophets and by God to describe those that lived contrary to God's command to "love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and love thy neighbor as thyself." Think about it, it's not hard, you are a human being, so if you devalue someone else you are devaluing the image of God, and since they are human you are devaluing your own humanity by exalting yourself. 

…5Showing partiality to the wicked is not good, nor is depriving the innocent of justice. 6A fool’s lips bring him strife, and his mouth invites a beating. 7A fool’s mouth is his ruin, and his lips are a snare to his soul.… Proverbs 18: 5-7

…10I, the LORD, search the heart; I examine the mind to reward a man according to his way, by what his deeds deserve. 11Like a partridge hatching eggs it did not lay is the man who makes a fortune unjustly. In the middle of his days his riches will desert him, and in the end he will be the fool.” Jeremiah 17: 10-11

…23In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham from afar, with Lazarus by his side. 24So he cried out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue. For I am in agony in this fire.’ 25But Abraham answered, ‘Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things. But now he is comforted here, while you are in agony.… Luke 16: 23-25

MacArthur notes that moros "was sometimes used in secular Greek literature of an obstinate, godless person. It was also possibly related to the Hebrew mārâ which means “to rebel against.” To call someone You fool was to accuse them of being both stupid and godless. The three illustrations in this verse show increasing degrees of seriousness. To be angry is the basic evil behind murder; to slander a person with a term such as Raca is even more serious, because it gives expression to that anger; and to condemn a person’s character by calling him a fool is more slanderous still… Jesus’ prohibition is against slanderously calling a person a fool out of anger and hatred. Such an expression of malicious animosity is tantamount to murder and makes us guilty enough to go into the fiery hell. (MacArthur, J: Matthew 1-7 Macarthur New Testament Commentary Chicago: Moody Press) - Precept Austin

Hell (Gehenna) (1067) (geenna from Hebrew gay = valley + Hinnom = a deep narrow ravine south of Jerusalem once associated with the pagan god Moloch and his disgusting rite of infant sacrifices [cp modern practice of abortion!], 2Kings 23:10; 2Chr 28:3; 33:6; Jer 7:31, 19:5, 6, 32:35; Ezekiel 16:20; 23:37 clearly prohibited by God in Lev 18:21, 20:2, 3, 4, 5) is literally the valley of Hinnom, the valley where the filth and dead animals of the city were cast out and burned and where there were trash fires and perpetually burning rubbish, all a fit symbol of the future home of all unrepentant, unregenerate wicked men and women. It was a foul, forbidding place where the fire, smoke, and stench never ceased. It is thus fitting that gehenna is where sin and unrepentant sinners will one day find it's "resting place". - Precept Austin