Smoodock's Blog

In our previous study we discovered that Jesus began mentioning what Jewish traditions claimed, showing that the Oral Law, which is preserved, today, in the Babylonian Talmud, falls far short of accurately interpreting the Mosaic Law and, therefore, what it means to be truly righteous. The Jewish scribes (rabbis or doctors of the Law) and the Pharisees were considered to be the most righteous of Jewish society, and they endorsed the Oral Law or the “traditions of the elders.”

Jesus began this portion of his discourse by saying he had come to fulfill the Law (Matthew 5:17), and his disciples would not even be able to enter the Kingdom of Heaven (God’s Presence) unless their righteousness exceeded that of the scribes and Pharisees (Matthew 5:20). Thus, he stated his case, and then went on to explain what he meant by offering his interpretation of the Law, while contrasting that with what the scribes and Pharisees taught through the Oral Law (Matthew 5:21-48). Jesus mentioned five areas of disagreement that he had with the Jewish authorities. We covered the first area in our previous study (Matthew 5:21-26), and, now, we’ll consider the second area of the Mosaic Law in which Jesus disagreed with the Jewish authorities.

The Oral Law, as is the case of all the laws of men, is interested in only the infraction, or the act, which breaks the law. In the matter at hand the Jewish authorities defined the outward promiscuous act as committing adultery (Matthew 5:27). Such an interpretation of any law does little to address the heart of man, out of which proceeds all sorts of evil acts (Mark 7:18-23).

On the other hand, Jesus claimed that even the thought of lustful desire defiled the man, because he had already committed adultery in his heart. To make his point Jesus engages in hyperbole, which is something everyone at some time uses to express the importance of a statement. For example, we exaggerate the importance of an event by saying “everyone will be there!” Obviously, everyone won’t be at the event, but the hyperbole emphasizes its importance. Therefore, we are able to understand that Jesus didn’t mean for anyone to take his words literally. The eye is the window to the soul, and almost every imagination of our heart is sparked by what we see or observe. On the other hand, the right hand is symbolic of what we do, our activity, our work etc. If our imagination leads us astray, we are able to change what we think about, what we rehearse in our thoughts etc. Jesus is telling his disciples to change what they think about, if that initiates lustful imaginations. Likewise, if what we labor in or what we do for entertainment causes us to stumble, that kind of thing must change. Although the activity isn’t evil in itself, if it makes it easier for us to behave wickedly, then even innocent activity must be changed, if we wish to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, vis-à-vis the Presence of God (Matthew 5:29-30).

Next, Jesus addressed this same idea by addressing the Oral Law’s solution to the adultery problem. The Jewish authorities taught in terms of outward appearance. In modern vernacular their philosophy might be described as: if your vehicle has no brakes, take away the stop sign to avoid breaking the law! So, if a man’s imagination continually leads him astray, or if his ‘innocent’ activity keeps leading to adultery, then give your wife a bill of divorcement (Matthew 5:31).

However, Jesus declared that the marriage contract cannot be dissolved so readily. Only fornication is grounds for divorcement,[1] but even that offense doesn’t demand that the innocent party divorce the guilty one. It only permits the marriage to be dissolved. The fact is, if the marriage contract is dissolved for any other reason, then the one who gives the bill of divorcement to the innocent party causes that one to commit adultery, and anyone who marries the one divorced commits adultery (Matthew 5:32).

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[1] The Greek word porneia (G4202) concerns sexual relations with another. It is also used symbolically for idolatry, which would also seem to be grounds for divorce, since this was the reasons why the Lord divorced Israel and Judah (Jeremiah 3:8; cp. 1Corinthians 7:12-15). Moreover, although I am not a linguist expert, I wonder if the Greek word portheo (G4199) could also be taken into consideration, due to its closeness in spelling. The word has to do with violence. Paul says that he destroyed or wasted the church before he became a believer (Acts 9:21; Galatians 1:13, 23). A believer is one who is married to Christ (Matthew 5:1-10), Paul couldn’t be married to Christ, if he destroyed or wasted (G4199) the church. Therefore, I believe anyone in a violent relationship in marriage also has grounds for divorce, because fornication (G4202), especially in its symbolic meaning of idolatry often includes violence and persecution against the innocent, just a thought.