Matthew 5:43
Encyclopedia
Matthew 5:43 is the forty-third verse of the fifth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew
in the New Testament
and is part of the Sermon on the Mount
. This is the verse is the opening of the final antithesis
, that on love.
In the King James Version of the Bible
the text reads:
The World English Bible
translates the passage as:
For a collection of other versions see BibRef Matthew 5:43
This verse begins like the other antitheses with a reference to the Old Testament. "Love your neighbour" comes from Leviticus 19:18. In Jesus' time neighbour was interpreted to mean fellow Israelites, and to exclude all others. In full the Leviticus verse states that you should love your neighbour "as you love yourself." Leaving out this last phrase somewhat reduces its demands. As the second part makes clear, however, Jesus was probably not making a reference to scripture, but rather to a common interpretation.
Nowhere in the Old Testament does it directly state that one should hate one's enemies, but it is implied by several verses, such as in Psalm 137
that calls for vengeance. However at several places in the Old Testament there are also limited calls to love one's enemies such as 1 Samuel 24:19. At the time Jewish thinkers were thus divided, some extolled universal love, others hatred of enemies. One of the clearest hatred commands is found in the rules of the Qumran
community, which stated that believers should love everyone God has elected and hate everyone he has cast aside. Another hate commandment is found in Luke 14:26. In this case Jesus was not questioning or rejecting Mosaic law, but a misinterpretation that might have been common in his day. Nolland notes that the idea of reciprocity, doing good to those who do you good, and evil to those who do you evil was also a central doctrine of Greco-Roman ethics, addressed by scholars such as Plato
.
Gospel of Matthew
The Gospel According to Matthew is one of the four canonical gospels, one of the three synoptic gospels, and the first book of the New Testament. It tells of the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth...
in the New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
and is part of the Sermon on the Mount
Sermon on the Mount
The Sermon on the Mount is a collection of sayings and teachings of Jesus, which emphasizes his moral teaching found in the Gospel of Matthew...
. This is the verse is the opening of the final antithesis
Antithesis
Antithesis is a counter-proposition and denotes a direct contrast to the original proposition...
, that on love.
In the King James Version of the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
the text reads:
- Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou
- shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.
The World English Bible
World English Bible
The World English Bible is a public domain translation of the Bible that is currently in draft form. Work on the World English Bible began in 1997 and was known as the American Standard Version 1997...
translates the passage as:
- “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall
- love your neighbor, and hate your enemy.’
For a collection of other versions see BibRef Matthew 5:43
This verse begins like the other antitheses with a reference to the Old Testament. "Love your neighbour" comes from Leviticus 19:18. In Jesus' time neighbour was interpreted to mean fellow Israelites, and to exclude all others. In full the Leviticus verse states that you should love your neighbour "as you love yourself." Leaving out this last phrase somewhat reduces its demands. As the second part makes clear, however, Jesus was probably not making a reference to scripture, but rather to a common interpretation.
Nowhere in the Old Testament does it directly state that one should hate one's enemies, but it is implied by several verses, such as in Psalm 137
Psalm 137
Psalm 137 is one of the best known of the Biblical psalms. Its opening lines, "By the rivers of Babylon..." have been set to music on several occasions....
that calls for vengeance. However at several places in the Old Testament there are also limited calls to love one's enemies such as 1 Samuel 24:19. At the time Jewish thinkers were thus divided, some extolled universal love, others hatred of enemies. One of the clearest hatred commands is found in the rules of the Qumran
Qumran
Qumran is an archaeological site in the West Bank. It is located on a dry plateau about a mile inland from the northwestern shore of the Dead Sea, near the Israeli settlement and kibbutz of Kalia...
community, which stated that believers should love everyone God has elected and hate everyone he has cast aside. Another hate commandment is found in Luke 14:26. In this case Jesus was not questioning or rejecting Mosaic law, but a misinterpretation that might have been common in his day. Nolland notes that the idea of reciprocity, doing good to those who do you good, and evil to those who do you evil was also a central doctrine of Greco-Roman ethics, addressed by scholars such as Plato
Plato
Plato , was a Classical Greek philosopher, mathematician, student of Socrates, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Academy in Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the Western world. Along with his mentor, Socrates, and his student, Aristotle, Plato helped to lay the...
.