Day 3 | The Antitheses

Read: Matthew 5:21-44

On murder and reconciliation

21 “You heard that it was said to the ancient people, ‘You shall not murder’; and anyone who commits murder shall be liable to judgment. 22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be liable to judgment; anyone who uses foul and abusive language will be liable to the lawcourt; and anyone who says, ‘You fool,’ will be liable to the fires of Gehenna.

23 “So, if you are coming to the altar with your gift, and there you remember that your brother has a grievance against you, 24 leave your gift right there in front of the altar, and go first and be reconciled to your brother. Then come back and offer your gift. 25 Make friends with your opponent quickly, while you are with him in the street, in case your opponent hands you over to the judge, and the judge to the officer, and you find yourself being thrown into jail. 26 I’m telling you the truth: you won’t get out until you’ve paid every last copper coin.”

On adultery and oaths

27 “You heard,” Jesus continued, “that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I say to you: everyone who gazes at a woman in order to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye trips you up, tear it out and throw it away. Yes: it’s better for you to have one part of your body destroyed than for your whole body to be thrown into Gehenna. 30 And if your right hand trips you up, cut it off and throw it away. Yes: it’s better for you to have one part of your body destroyed than for your whole body to go into Gehenna.

31 “It was also said, ‘If someone divorces his wife, he should give her a legal document to prove it.’ 32 But I say to you: everyone who divorces his wife, unless it’s in connection with immorality, makes her commit adultery; and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

33 “Again, you heard that it was said to the people long ago: ‘You shall not swear falsely, but you shall give to the Lord what you promised under oath.’ 34 But I say to you: don’t swear at all! Don’t swear by heaven (it’s God’s throne!); 35 don’t swear by the earth (it’s God’s footstool!); don’t swear by Jerusalem (it’s the city of the great king!); 36 don’t swear by your head (you can’t make one hair of it turn white or black!). 37 When you’re talking, say ‘Yes’ when you mean Yes, and ‘No’ when you mean No. Anything more than that comes from the evil one.”

Loving your enemies

38 “You heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39 But I say to you: don’t use violence to resist evil! Instead, when someone hits you on the right cheek, turn the other one towards him. 40 When someone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your cloak, too. 41 And when someone forces you to go one mile, go a second one with him. 42 Give to anyone who asks you, and don’t refuse someone who wants to borrow from you.

43 “You heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I tell you: love your enemies! Pray for people who persecute you!

Consider:

The next section in the sermon is called “The Antitheses.” It would be easy to see this as merely a list of commonly agreed-upon vices that Jesus then intensifies. It is this, on the surface, but we must remember that the Sermon on the Mount, as a whole, isn’t primarily moral instruction. Like the Beatitudes, the Antitheses are also subcategories of the larger focus of Jesus’s message: how we should behave and act amongst each other in God’s heaven-plus-earth reality.

Both the beginning and ending of the Antitheses describe situations of enmity between people, and the other concrete directives in between can be read as variants of this broader theme of love of enemies.

Too often, Christians have taken these directives and turned them into points of personal honor: “I don’t do that, so I’m a superior Christian.” Morality matters, but the heart of these matters for Jesus is in resolving the deep, underlying intersocial issues. It’s about reconciliation as a model of God’s bringing together all things in heaven and on earth.

Take the first section about anger: it relates both to the heart anger, which leads to violence, and to the simmering anger that blocks our attempts at reconciliation. In both instances, the angry person and the object of their anger end up worse for wear. Jesus warns that managing human relationships with anger and revenge doesn't work in the new economy of God’s kingdom. We are to be people of peace.

The middle three (adultery, divorce, and oaths) extend this picture of the correct ordering of relationships. God plans to join all things in heaven and on earth in Christ. Jesus is beginning this project in the Sermon on the Mount by calling for people to live in this joining-together way, whether this is worked out specifically in marriage, cultural reconciliation, or loving our enemies. Jesus’s audience knew there was a better way to be human together. They discover Jesus himself as an example of that better way.

As Jesus is persecuted, he doesn’t react with retaliation or violence. His posture is one with an eye towards reconciliation. He prays for those who are shouting horrible things at him and beating him and even those who put him up on the cross. The parallels are striking. In the Sermon, Jesus talks about turning the other cheek when someone slaps you and giving over your cloak when someone sues you for your coat. These examples play out in the passion narrative as Jesus heads to the cross. We see Jesus endorse this way of being in the Sermon on the Mount and reinforce it through his ministry.

Reflect:

Which of the antitheses do you struggle with the most? What larger conflict or vocational challenge might underlie this? How can you work to reconcile whatever is broken underneath this struggle?