NL 125: The Golden Rule

image: Norman Rockwell Mosaic "The Golden Rule", by United Nations Photo (Flickr)

Matthew 7:1-14, 24-29

Initial Thoughts

  • “Having inserted all the material of chapter 6 into the middle of the shorter Q sermon, Matthew now returns to his source.” Douglas Hare, Interpretation: Matthew, p.  76.

  • Wraps up the Sermon on the Mount with one more week before Transfiguration and then Lent. A lot gets skipped between this week and next week (chapter 13).

  • A quick series of greatest hits and quotables

  • What gets skipped here (v 15-23)

    • Beware of false prophets, wolves and sheep, trees and fruit - Good tree = Good fruit. 

    • “Not everybody who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will get into the kingdom of heaven.” 

    • Both of these are about the difference between talking about God’s will and doing God’s will.

Bible Study

  • 1-6 Don’t judge.

    • Two references from The  Simpsons, both coming from Lisa - the family agnostic - quotes Matthew 7:1 twice (apparently the Tyndale version):

      • Season 6, episode 7 “Bart’s Girlfriend” --  Lisa: “Doesn’t the Bible teach us, ‘judge not lest ye be judged, Reverend?’” Rev. Lovejoy: ‘I think it may be somewhere toward the back.”

      • Treehouse of Horror VIII -- Lisa (while trying to stop angry mob from pushing Marge, who was accused of being a witch, off a cliff: “Stop! Doesn’t the Bible say, ‘Judge not lest ye be judged.” Mob: Murmurs. Chief: “The Bible says a lot of things, shove her!” Full scene

    • “[To Judge not] suggests that the judgment prohibited by the four uses of the verb judge in vv. 1-2 is eschatological judgment. Disciples must not usurp God's role and decide someone's future destiny. Such “writing off” of a person is prohibited, not only because it lacks mercy or compassion (5:7, 22) but because only the all-seeing and all-knowing God can exercise that role.” (Warren Carter,. Matthew and the Margins: A Sociopolitical and Religious Reading. p. 181)

      • This does not mean that Christians should not exercise judgment. It is not our role, however, to condemn someone, or to deem them unworthy of God’s love.

    • The speck and the log reveals how easy it is to see the faults in others.

      • As we remove the log from our own eye- we are called in to empathy for our neighbor with a speck in their eye

    • Self-examination is important, and must be done before correcting someone else. “Correction follows self-examination that is shaped by the presence and future of God's empire. Aware of one's own limitations and formed by God's reign, merciful and life-giving correction of another is possible.”(Carter, p. 182.)

    • Judgment vs Justice (Eric’s view) - Judgment changes our view of someone into something less than an equally beloved child of God. Justice is about building, reforming, and re-creating systems that ensure each child of God is treated equally and equitably. In many ways justice works to dismantle systems created by human judgment.

  • v. 6 - Dogs, Pearls and Swine

    • “Dogs” are scavengers, not cute lovable pets. Dogs are an insult to an opponent.

    • “Do not give corrections to opponents or those who don’t want to hear it.”

      • “In this context, there is no point offering valuable correction when it will be despised and rejected, trampled under foot. The one providing it will be in danger: they will turn and maul you. But even in such circumstances, the rejected one is not permitted to consign them to hell.” (Carter, p. 182.)

  • vv. 7-11 Ask, seek, knock 

    • Often, incorrectly and unfaithfully, interpreted to mean that you will get whatever you ask for, yet “The New Testament makes it perfectly clear that prayer is not intended as a means of manipulating God into satisfying our selfish desires.” Hare, p. 78.

      • Pauls prays for the “thorn in the flesh” to be removed

      • Jesus prays “let this cup pass from me”

    • Faithful interpretation: connect this with the rest of the sermon. Everything the Kingdom of God asks of us: not being angry, not retaliating, not judging, loving our enemies, forgiving ourselves and others - all of this is impossible, but not for God (cf. Matthew 19:26). 

      • “That is, only by persistently asking, seeking, and knocking at heaven’s door through prayer will we find grace to obey these impossible demands. Solely through tenacious dependence on God’s graciousness can we deal graciously with those who provoke a negative reaction in us.” Hare, p. 79.

      • Just as those who are evil are still generous and kind to their children, how much more will God give us the strength, will, and desire to live into the Kingdom of God

      • “It is the Holy Spirit that makes possible a suprahuman love of enemies.” Hare, p. 79.

  • Golden Rule

    • Not unique to Jesus (paraphrases are in the book of Tobit and attributed to Hillel, a Jewish Rabbi contemporary of Jesus

    • Must be heard in context

      • The Golden Rule has been critiqued as secular, ego-centric, and based on human introspection as opposed to God’s wisdom. Following the Golden Rule, one is commanded to direct their behavior based on their own personal desires for themselves. This can be ethical, but also can create systems and cultures of oppression. E.g. Don’t report illegal/abusive behavior if you don’t want others to report your illegal/abusive behavior. Furthermore, what is right to me may be offensive or hurtful to someone of a different culture.

      • “the Golden Rule serves Matthew as a summary not merely of the sayings about love of enemies and non-retaliation but of all the other ethical teaching as well. It becomes for Matthew a shorthand reference to all the intervening material concerning the righteousness that anticipates the kingdom of heaven.” Hare, p. 81

        • “For this is the law and the prophets” - calls back to Matthew 5:17 and reinforces the idea that this Golden Rule is informed by the whole sermon on the mount regarding righteousness.

    • “Some claim that it is a universal ethic which expresses the wish of all people to be treated with decency and justice. While that may be so, it does not adequately express its meaning in this context near the end of the sermon and in relation to Jesus’ vision of an alternative way of life.” (Carter, p. 184)

    • “Matthew sees the “golden rule” as the guide for interpreting all laws; the rule does not substitute for the rest of the Torah.” Aaron M Gale, “Matthew”, The Jewish Annotated New Testament, p.24

  • 13-14 Two Paths

    • The idea of two paths is seen in other ancient near east and, specifically Jewish, sources. Most obvious of these is Moses’ farewell speech (Deut. 30:15). See also Psalm 1:6

  • 24-27 Building houses

    • Ends the discourse with a parable about wisdom (even if he doesn’t call it a parable)

    • Wisdom reflecting in building houses is a part of other wisdom literature, including Proverbs, Psalms, and Sirach. “The house in wisdom literature depicts human life as part of the larger world which is ordered either according or in opposition to the divine will. Lady Wisdom builds a house (Prov 9:1-6; 14:1; 24:3) wherein are evidenced understanding” (Carter, p. 192)

    • Here, these traditional wisdom concepts get a Christological lens. Listening and following Jesus is the rock-solid foundation. 

    • Those present who do not become disciples are foolish, building houses on sand. This discourse to the crowds demands response.

    • “To build a life on enemy love, nonretaliation, and the return of good for evil will feel like a life lived in a hurricane. The house will shake, whirl, creak, and threaten to give.” Jason Byassee, “Theological Perspective on Matthew 7:21‒29,” in Feasting on the Word: Year A, vol. 1, p. 430.

  • 28-29 Crowd’s Reaction

    • Crowds and disciples are distinct groups The response of the overhearing crowds, not the disciples to whom it was addressed (see 4:25; 5:1-2), is highlighted.27 The focus on the crowds highlights the existence of these two distinct groups, crowds and disciples. While crowds are not disciples, they remain here open to Jesus’ ministry” (Carter, p.194)

    • The struggle over authority is a major issue between Jesus and the Scribes and Pharisees. The crowd’s response shows that Jesus is winning, but the crowds do not shift suddenly to be disciples. The tension between Jesus and Scribes has already begun (back at John’s ministry).

    • “Scribes were religious experts who typically appeal to precedent whereas Jesus teaches on his own authority.” Aaron Gale, The Jewish Annotated New Testament, p.25

Year 1Eric FistlerMatthewComment