Matthew 5:38-39a
You have heard that it was said, "An eye for and eye and a tooth for a tooth". But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil
The eye for an eye principle in the OT was not there as a brutal example of a much different God, but as a civil law for the good of the people. It was there to prevent escalation and revenge/retaliation and was handled by the courts to decided compensation/punishment for a case, not personally. It was not an instruction that said "he took your eye... go and get him back by taking his".
"The Pharisees had taken something that was meant as a limit on vengeance and turned it into a mandate for vengeance" McArthur.
When Jesus tells us to not resist the one who is evil, he is not telling us to let anything go. Sin should be confronted (as Jesus is doing as he is speaking in this passage) and crimes should be dealt with by the law of the land but on a personal level, our position towards the offender should be love. We find this hard enough to do with people who might have accidentally wronged us, let alone the deliberate offender described in this passage (someone who has slapped you, sued you or forced you to do something). Our only hope lies in the One who we have offended, but who shows us mercy and grace - Jesus
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