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Matthew 5:38-42 (Eye for an eye)

INTRODUCTION: We are continuing our series on the Sermon on the Mount and we are in the middle of a section where Jesus is revealing the true meaning behind various parts of the Old Testament law. Jesus said in order to enter heaven you must have a righteousness that exceeds the Pharisees and teachers of the law. Now in each of these cases he shows us what that surpassing righteousness looks like. So far in this section we have looked at murder, adultery and oaths, and now we come to the matter of justice and revenge. (Read Matthew 5:38-42 and pray.)

When I lived in California I had a friend who called these commands the RLC’s – the “Radical Love Commands.” And they really bothered him because he said he didn’t know any Christians who actually followed them. I believe he had a point, although I think he also partly missed the point of these commands.

We are entering deep waters here and yes, this is a very difficult part of the Sermon on the Mount to obey. Jesus commands us to practice radical love over revenge, and that’s hard for us because when we are offended, most of us want revenge. We have a whole genre of movies organized around the themes of justice and revenge, and in these movies it is usually the hero who is hunting down the bad guys to take revenge on his enemies.

There are two mistakes people make with these commands of Jesus. Some people try to explain them away, which takes away the punch of Jesus’ commands. While others find them impossible to obey, and so give up on them altogether. We need to be careful that we look at these commands within their immediate context and also in conjunction with other related commands of Scripture. Otherwise, like my friend in California, we may put these commands so far out of reach that we never even attempt to obey them.

I. The Old Testament taught justice – “eye for an eye” (38)

So let’s look at the immediate context first. And the immediate context is the Old Testament teachings on justice. Look at verse 38 where Jesus says: “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’” Jesus is speaking hear about what is often referred to as the lex talionis (law of retaliation) or “the law of the tooth.” It is mentioned three times in the Old Testament: in Exodus 21:24, Leviticus 24:20 and Deuteronomy 19:21. It sounds gruesome to us, because we tend to think of it in terms of personal revenge, but that was not the original intent of the law.

   A. Excessive punishment was prohibited (Deuteronomy 19:16-21)

The original intent was that excessive punishment was prohibited. The purpose of this law was not to give you permission to take revenge on people who hurt you but rather to limit the punishment that could be meted out. And in doing so this law accomplished two things when it came to justice.

      1) The punishment fit the crime

First of all, the punishment fit the crime. The idea here is not just “eye for an eye” but “only” an eye for an eye, “only” a tooth for a tooth. You couldn’t go beyond that. No excessive punishments allowed; no unlimited revenge; no “you knocked out my tooth, so I’ll knock off your head.”

This law promoted justice rather than revenge. Revenge could care less whether the punishment fits the crime. Revenge just wants to hurt the other person back. And so you had people like Lamech in Genesis 4:23 who boasted: “I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for injuring me.” (Genesis 4:23) The law of the tooth was meant to prevent excessive punishment. Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth – the punishment fit the crime.

      2) Evil was restrained

The other thing this law accomplished is that evil was restrained. You might not care what happened to someone else, but if you were liable to the same damages yourself, you would be more likely to refrain. So it restrained people from evil actions and, at the same time, it also restrained people from the evil of making false accusations. We read in Deuteronomy 19:

If a malicious witness takes the stand to accuse a man of a crime … the judges must make a thorough investigation, and if the witness proves to be a liar … then do to him as he intended to do to his brother … The rest of the people will hear of this and be afraid, and never again will such an evil thing be done among you. (Deuteronomy 19:16–21)

So the original intent of this law was that excessive punishment was prohibited. The punishment fit the crime, and evil was restrained. In other words, this was a good law with good results.

   B. Personal revenge was forbidden (Deut 32:35; Romans 12:19)

But not only was excessive punishment prohibited by the Old Testament. Also personal revenge was forbidden.

      1) Let the courts do their job

Did you notice that the law of the tooth took place within the court system, with judges in place and careful investigations? This law applied only to the courts, not to matters of personal revenge. You were supposed to let the courts do their job.

The problem was that the Pharisees had extended this teaching to personal relationships. And so instead of a principle limiting excessive punishments by the court, it became a personal permission for exacting the maximum revenge allowed under the law. Basically the Pharisees misread this law to give you permission to retaliate.

      2) God will repay

But God’s Word has always been clear that personal revenge is forbidden. God says in Deuteronomy 32:35: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay.” (Deut 32:35) Paul quotes this verse in Romans 12:19 when he says: “Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says the Lord.” (Romans 12:19)

So what was the context for this Old Testament command of an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth? Excessive punishment was prohibited, and personal revenge was forbidden.

II. Jesus taught radical love over revenge (39-42)

But now Jesus goes beyond the written word and shows us the deeper meaning of the law just as he did with murder, adultery and oaths. The Old Testament taught justice, which was good. Jesus taught radical love over revenge, which is even better.

   A. Do not resist an evil person (39a)

Look at verse 39 where Jesus says, “But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person.” (Matthew 5:39) And so Jesus moves us from the realm of limited retaliation to no retaliation. Yes the Pharisees said you could take an eye for an eye. But Jesus says, “Do not resist an evil person.”

      1) Spoken to individuals in their personal relationships

Please notice that these words of Jesus were spoken to individuals in their personal relationships. This is important because some people have misinterpreted these words to say that we should not resist any evil at all. Leo Tolstoy famously used these words of Jesus to argue that we should get rid of the military, the courts and the police force altogether, that we should just let evil play itself out on its own and leave it all in God’s hands.

But that is not what Jesus is saying here. Jesus is talking to individuals in their personal relationships. There should be no Christian vigilantes, no taking the law into your own hands, no trying to get even with others. When someone hurts you, when someone upsets you, when someone offends you – instead of taking revenge, Jesus says love them back.

      2) Different set of Scriptural commands for governments, courts, military, police, etc. (Romans 13:1-4)

There is a different set of Scriptural commands for governments, courts, the military and police. For example we read in Romans 13: “Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right … But if you do wrong, be afraid, for … he is God’s servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer.” (Romans 13:3-4)

In other words it is the government’s job to resist evil in society. The courts should punish lawbreakers, the military should protect our country, and the police should arrest criminals. “Do not resist an evil person” is a command for the individual, not for the government.

There is also nothing wrong with the Christian using the court system to resist evil and to promote justice, as long as you are not doing it out of personal revenge. Even as we practice Jesus’ radical love commands, we need to make sure that we do not encourage or enable sin in others.

And so you may personally forgive someone, and yet still prosecute them – not out of hate for the person but out of love for society. In fact love for your neighbor requires prosecution of the criminal. Martin Luther wrote: “No Christian shall wield or invoke the sword for himself and his cause. In behalf of another, however, he may and should wield it and invoke it to restrain wickedness and to defend godliness.” Or as Thomas Scott wrote: “A Christian may prosecute a criminal out of love to public justice, though not from private revenge.”

So justice is given over to the courts, but Jesus commands you as a Christian to practice radical love over revenge.

   B. Four examples of radical love over revenge:

Which finally brings us to the RLC’s – the four radical love commands that so bothered my friend out in California. So let’s take a look at these four examples Jesus gives us of radical love over revenge.

      1) Personal insults: turn the other cheek (39b)

Jesus’ first example has to do with personal insults. Look at verse 39: “If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” (Matthew 5:39) Jesus is speaking here of a backhanded slap across the right cheek. The backhanded slap was deemed a great insult in Jesus’ day and was even punishable by law. In fact it carried twice the fine of an open-handed slap. But Jesus says if someone slaps you across the right cheek, turn to him the other also.

Now once again the context of this verse is radical love over revenge. This verse does not prohibit self-defense or protecting others from harm. Notice Jesus does not say if someone gouges out your right eye, offer him your other. Jesus doesn’t say if someone is bullying someone else, let them keep on bullying. No, as Christians we may fight to protect ourselves and others from physical harm, and we are to stand up for the oppressed. But what we must not do is strike back in anger or revenge. And so Jesus says turn the other cheek.

Now this one actually happened to me. Back in high school I was riding my bike when I passed these three guys on the sidewalk. One of them was the school bully, he was bigger and stronger than the rest of us, and the other two were these little scrawny guys who hung out with him, just like in the movies. I probably shouldn’t have said anything, but I was in a good mood so I called out to them, “Hey guys!” That caused some excitement because they jumped on their bikes and started chasing after me. I wasn’t sure what was going on, so I stopped my bike to wait for them.

The bully comes up to me and says, “We didn’t like the way you called us ‘guys.’” I’m still not sure what he didn’t like about it but as I started to apologize, suddenly this big fist comes out of nowhere and slams me across the cheek. I wasn’t sure what to do about that, but I remembered these words from Jesus so I turned my other check towards him and said, “Do you want another?” He did, and that big old fist came crashing into my other cheek. Now I really didn’t know what to do. I was out of cheeks, and Jesus never said what to do if they actually hit you the second time. Short on options and maybe a little dizzy from the blow, I turned the original cheek back to him and asked, “Do you want another?”

This time he just stared. I still didn’t know what to do, so I asked him, “Have you ever trusted in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?” His eyes grew wide; he looked at the other two guys, and then he yelled, “Let’s get out of here!” They started biking away, which meant I was off the hook, but I was caught up in the moment so I jumped on my bike and started chasing after them! When I finally caught up with them, I told him I wanted to tell him about Jesus. The bully just stared at me, and then said, “You can talk to these two if you want, but I don’t want anything to do with it.” So off he went, and I shared the gospel with his two friends instead.

Now I don’t know if I applied Jesus’ words correctly or not, but I believe God blessed me in that situation because I at least tried. And one thing I learned is that when you turn the other cheek, in one sense that gives you the upper hand, because you are no longer the victim but you are now the one giving permission. How do you respond to personal insults? Jesus says, “Turn the other cheek.”

      2) Lawsuits: Let him have your cloak as well (40)

Jesus’ second example has to do with lawsuits. Look at verse 40: “And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well.” (Matthew 5:40) In this example Jesus moves from unjust actions against your person to unjust actions against your possessions.

The tunic in Jesus’ example was a person’s undergarment, while the cloak was the outer garment or coat. Now by law you could take someone’s tunic, but you could not take someone’s outer garment because they needed it as a blanket to sleep at night. (see Exodus 22:26-27) In other words although you didn’t have a right to your tunic, you did have a right to your cloak. So in this example Jesus is saying we should be willing to sacrifice even our own rights in order to reach out in love to other people.

Now once again, we must balance this command with other Scriptures. You have a Scriptural obligation to take care of your family and so protect your estate. (see 1 Tim 5:8) So if someone is suing you or your business and your livelihood is at stake, you should use the courts to defend yourself. But even then you do that out of responsibility for your family, not out of personal animosity to the person who is suing you. And you still look for ways to reach out to the person who is causing the offense. Jesus says to respond with a radical love that is even willing to give up your rights rather than take revenge on the person who is suing you.

      3) Forced actions: Go the second mile (41)

Jesus’ third example has to do with forced actions. Look at verse 41: “If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.” (Matthew 5:41) The Jews in Jesus’ day were under Roman occupation, and the Roman soldiers could stop you at any time and force you to carry their belongings, but only for a prescribed distance. For example, the soldiers forced a man named Simon to carry Jesus’ cross. (Matthew 27:32) Now it was bad enough to be forced to do something you didn’t want to, but this was the ultimate offense – carrying equipment for the enemy who occupied your land.

The Roman mile was 1,000 paces or about 4,800 feet – just shy of a modern mile. Jesus says if someone forces you to go one mile, instead of fussing and fighting about it, double the distance. Show a radical love that goes beyond what is required.

In a sense they owe you the extra mile. They forced you to go a mile, so revenge would say they should walk a mile for you now. So pay it off for them instead. Go the extra mile so the debt is paid in full, and show them radical love over revenge.

      4) Requests: Give to the one who asks you (42)

And then Jesus’ last example has to do with requests. Look at verse 42: “Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.” (Matthew 5:42)

Proverbs 3:27 says, “Do not withhold good from those who deserve it, when it is in your power to act.” (Proverbs 3:27) But what if they don’t deserve it? What if they’ve hurt you in the past? Does that let you off the hook? Jesus says no. It doesn’t matter what they’ve done. Their asking you should not be an opportunity for refusal but rather an opportunity for radical love over revenge.

Now once again we must balance this with other Scriptures. Jesus is not saying if someone asks for your house, you should give them your house. Psalm 112:5 says: “Good will come to him who is generous and lends freely, who conducts his affairs with justice.” (Psalm 112:5) That word “justice” speaks of wisdom and discernment. We are to be generous and lend freely, but we are also supposed to be wise and discerning.

Proverbs 11:15 says: “He who puts up security for another will surely suffer, but whoever refuses to strike hands in pledge is safe.” (Proverbs 11:15) So there’s another example when it would not be wise to give someone what they asked for.

2 Thessalonians 3:10 says: “If a man will not work, he shall not eat.” (2 Thess 3:10) And so we are not to encourage laziness by giving someone something they should be working for.

St. Augustine observed that Jesus does not say “give whatever you are asked,” but rather “give to whomever asks.” And so when the beggar in the book of Acts asked Peter and John for some money, Peter replied: “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” (Acts 3:6) He didn’t give him what he asked for, but he gave him something. And we can do the same. It is not always wise to give money, but perhaps we can help someone with food or a bus pass. Or we can certainly tell them about Jesus.

Jesus’ point in all four of these examples is that as Christians we should never try to get even or get back at another person. Rather, we should practice radical love over revenge.

CONCLUSION: Let me close today’s message with three applications.

   1) Practice mercy rather than justice (James 2:13)

Number one: Practice mercy rather than justice. James 213 says: “Judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!” (James 2:13) There is a place for justice in the courts and to restrain evil in society. But when it comes to our personal relationships, let us practice mercy rather justice. Remember Jesus said, “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” (Matthew 5:7)

   2) Go beyond what is required (Matthew 5:47)

Number two: Go beyond what is required. Peaking ahead to next week’s text, we read in Matthew 5:47: “If you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others?” (Matthew 5:47) In other words, as Christians we should be doing more than others. We see this in all four of Jesus’ examples: turning the other cheek, giving them your cloak as well, going the second mile, giving and lending freely even if the person has hurt you in some way. We are to practice what G. Campbell Morgan called an “undeserved and unnecessary generosity.” We should go beyond what is required.

   3) Trust God with the results (1 Peter 2:23)

And then finally: Trust God with the results. And of course our best example here is Jesus. Looking at 1 Peter 2:23 we read: “When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.” (1 Peter 2:23)

You can trust God with the results because God is good, God is just, and he will see that justice is done. That’s his job. As Christians we are called to radical love over revenge … every single time.

© Ray Fowler

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