The Sermon on the Mount continues.
“The next section of the sermon deals with the superiority
of the gospel of Christ over the law of Moses, and contrasts the requirements
of the two in particular instances.”[1]
He makes it clear He is here to fulfill the law, meaning the
law of Moses. He “[W]e must remember that the sacrifices of animals were not
symbolic of the birth of Jesus but
rather of His death. This
interpretation means that ‘fulfillment’ of the law of Moses was not to happen
during the mortal ministry of the Savior but after His crucifixion.” (emphasis
in original)[2]
Jesus explained not one part of the Law will pass until all
the Law is fulfilled.
“But what did Jesus mean when He stated that the law of
Moses would be ‘fulfilled’? To answer this question, we must realize that there
was a difference between the ‘fulfillment’ of the sacrificial portions of the
law and the ‘fulfillment’ of the ethical portions of the law. Ritual aspects of
the law would be ‘fulfilled’ in the sense that they would cease once the events
toward which they pointed actually occurred … The moral teachings contained in
the law, however, were fulfilled in a different manner … [C]ommandments in the
law of Moses are not done away; adultery and murder are still prohibited …
Rather than being destroyed these ethical obligations were raised to a higher
level.”[3]
So, “[w]hosoever therefore shall break one of these least
commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the
kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be
called great in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:19).[4]
“[T]he disciples were admonished to take heed that their
keeping of the commandments was not after the manner of the scribes and
Pharisees, whose observance was that of ceremonial externalism, lacking the
essentials of genuine devotion; for they were assured that by such an insincere
course they could ‘in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.’”[5]
Jesus tells His disciples more is expected of them. It was
not enough to keep the commandments. The law of Moses required those who kill
face condemnation for their sin. They were told to control their anger. Those who
did not do so would face judgement.
“[Jesus] is warning against our proclivity toward anger
against our fellowman. Calling someone a fool or ‘empty head’ (Raca literally means ‘empty’ in Aramaic
and may, in modern paralance, be analogous to calling someone an ‘idiot’) is
the outward expression of an inner emotion that Jesus is seeking to change.”[6]
Verse 22, as found in
the King James Version of the Bible qualifies His warning. It reads, “whosoever
is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment…” (emphasis mine). The phrase “without
a cause” has been controversial. The earliest surviving copy of Matthew does
not include the phrase “without a cause.”[7]
We also have two
additional sources for this verse. The first is found in JST Matthew 5:22. “But
I say unto you, that whosoever is angry with his brother shall be in danger of
the judgement.”
Preaching to the
Nephites, Jesus told them, “But I say unto you, that whosoever is angry with
his brother shall be in danger of his judgment. And whosoever shall say to his
brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council; and whosoever shall say, Thou
fool, shall be in danger of hell fire” (3 Nephi 12:22).
Here we have an example of a textual change in the Book of
Matthew which changes Jesus’s teachings.
He tells them that, if “thy brother hath ought against thee;
Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to
thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift” (Matthew 5:23-24).
[1] Jesus the Christ, Chapter 17, Elder James E. Talmage.
[2] Life and
Teachings of Christ – From Bethlehem through the Sermon on the Mount, The
Setting of the Sermon on the Mount, Dr. Frank F. Judd, Jr.
[3]
Ibid.
[4] “Whosoever, therefore, shall break one of these least
commandments, and shall teach men so to
do, he shall in no wise be saved in the kingdom of heaven; but whosoever
shall do and teach these commandments of
the law until it be fulfilled, the same shall be called great, and shall be saved in the kingdom of heaven”
(JST Matthew 5:1).
[5] Jesus the Christ, Chapter 17, Elder James E. Talmage.
[6]
The Life and Teachings of Christ, Vol. 1:
From Bethlehem through the Sermon on the Mount, A Reading of the Sermon on the Mount: A Restoration Perspective, Andrew
C. Skinner.
[7] How the New
Testament Came to Be, Adding and Taking Away “Without a Cause” in Matthew 5:22,
Daniel K. Judd and Allen W. Stoddard.
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