You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder'

"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.' But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother 'Raca!' shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, 'You fool!' shall be in danger of hell fire. Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him, lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison. Assuredly, I say to you, you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny."

- Matthew 5:21-26

In yesterday's reading, Jesus continued with His Sermon on the Mount. After the Beatitudes, He teaches what it is to be the salt of the earth, and the light of the world. This is how He wants His followers to think of themselves -- for salt, it must never lose its savor; and for light, it must shine before all, to glorify our Father who is in heaven. He also taught about the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets, and that He is teaching a righteousness that "exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and the Pharisees." See You are the salt of the earth... You are the light of the world.

Let us begin today's commentary with the thoughts from yesterday's reading, on righteousness. According to the New Oxford Annotated Bible, righteousness (or right-relatedness) is "ones acceptance of God's requirements and one's being accepted by God." It refers us to the parable in Luke of the Publican and the Pharisee as illustration, a fitting comment on Jesus' words about the righteousness of His followers that is to exceed that of the scribes and the Pharisees. My study bible says that righteousness is more than good acts (or proper behavior) and holy thoughts, but centers on our relationship with God. And, I would add, with others, as in the greatest commandments.

"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.' But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother 'Raca!' shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, 'You fool!' shall be in danger of hell fire." We begin with the law against murder. But Jesus, illustrating His righteousness that is to exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees, takes this law further. To be angry without a cause is to instigate discord, a kind of spiritual murder. This is contrasted with righteous anger - which does not sin (see Ephesians 4:26 and Psalm 4:4). In the former (anger without a cause) one is carried away by this feeling, but in the latter example anger does not dominate one's life and choices. "Raca!" means "empty" in Aramaic - it is a way to call someone senseless or empty-headed. The council is the Jewish legal body; this is therefore an actionable complaint. I see this in the context of relationships with spiritual "brothers" of all kinds, and to call someone a name like this is to instigate trouble, not to reconcile a difference or bring a just cause, but to foment anger and strife. To call someone a "fool" is given in Greek. The Greek word is "moros" (from which we derive the English word moron). My study bible says here that Jesus is teaching that reconciliation or peace with other believers takes primacy over the duties of worship. Therefore, truly settling a conflict becomes something entirely different within the church context than sweeping a problem under the rug, or crushing a sincere complaint.

"Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him, lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison. Assuredly, I say to you, you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny." This is a way to search our hearts - is there something that we have the power to settle, something we need to take care of and do our best about? How can we make peace? Jesus is saying that to prolong a conflict isn't worth it, to take heed of how we enter into anger -- and what we may lose in the resulting strife. We are to take every measure we can to reconcile, and when that fails, we turn to God and ask to help with forgiveness, 'giving up' even what others may not help wish to reconcile at all. It is better than risking what we stand to lose in real judgment. We just don't know how far down that road of anger it may prevent us from going to refrain from calling someone a name, and reconcile before things go further. We must think about the good we could be doing with our precious lives and time instead.

Jesus therefore takes the statute against murder, and expands it to include strife of any kind among "brothers." So we must ask, what does this mean for us? The answers are many and so are the questions. What about those who do not wish to reconcile with us, who hold us in injustice and all manner of deception and difficulty? The answer is also here. We are to watch our anger, to measure our response, to keep reconciliation as the goal - and especially how we express that anger, so that we do not fan its flames. Jesus Himself will of course express His own righteous anger. He will call the scribes hypocrites in the temple. He will teach His followers to beware the leaven of the Pharisees and Herod. So how do we keep Jesus' commands here, exceeding the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, and discern His teaching? We go back to Jesus' greatest commandments, which together form the commandment of love: to love God with all our heart and soul and mind and strength - and to love our neighbor as ourselves. Right-relatedness is truly the key to this passage, and what we cannot reconcile we take to God in prayer and "give up" or "let go" (the translation of the Greek word for "forgive"). My study bible says, "Delaying reconciliation and good works gives room for the working of more evil." Esphesians 4:27 teaches, "Do not give the devil a foothold." How do we let our light shine through all things, and preserve our flavor of salt?