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"You have heard that it was said, to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.
"Furthermore it has been said, "Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce. But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.
"Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.' But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool, nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No.' For whatever is more than these is from the evil one."
- Matthew 5:27-37
This week, we are reading through the Sermon on the Mount (chapters 5 - 7 of Matthew's Gospel). Jesus tells us, "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."
"You have heard that it was said, to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart." My study bible tells us that "God sees the hidden desires which motivate our actions. The issue here is lust, not simply the God-given mutual attraction of men and women. Sin does no come out of nature, but out of internal self-indulgence. He who feasts on lust within himself brings sin into his heart through his thoughts. (Thoughts which enter the mind involuntarily are temptations, not sins. They become sins only when they are held onto and entertained.)"
"If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell." My study bible explains that Jesus is speaking here in vivid imagery, but not literally, using the physical body as an illustration. To remove an eye would be to reproach the Creator (see 18:8-9; Mark 9:43-48). An "eye" would indicate a relationship to how we see and what we see; in this case, we're speaking of lust. Jesus uses the image of the eye as a way to describe a character trait; no matter how much a part of us it may seem, we need to pluck it out and cast it from us.
"Furthermore it has been said, "Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce. But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery." My study bible notes: "In contrast to the easy access to divorce under the Mosaic Law, and because of the misuse of divorce in that day, Christ repeatedly condemns divorce and emphasizes the eternal character of marriage (19:8-9; Mark 10:2-9; Luke 16:18). However, the possibility of divorce on grounds of unchastity, for example, clearly shows that Christ considered that the marriage bond is not absolute: it can be destroyed by sin. The Orthodox Church thus allows divorce as a corrective measure of compassion when a marriage has unfortunately been broken. Human freedom implies the possibility of sin; sin can separate husband and wife from each other, and ultimately from the body of Christ and from God Himself. Sexual immorality is a grave sin against the divine sacrament of marriage."
"Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.' But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool, nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black." A note reads, "Jesus speaks against casual use of God's name and superficial oaths. The words of Jesus have not only a negative meaning, but a positive one also. They not only forbid us to swear, that is, to bind ourselves with an oath; they also command us to speak the truth and to keep our promises."
"But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No.' For whatever is more than these is from the evil one." My study bible tells us that "this is a well-known saying in the New Testament (James 5:12). Trust is secured not by an oath which exceeds Yes and No, but by inner integrity. Jesus teaches us to live in the simplicity of the present moment."
If we look at today's reading all together, we'll see a kind of common thread running through these verses. In each set of thoughts here, teachings on different subjects, we see Jesus advising a kind of caution and modesty, counseling us not to go to extremes. We can look lustfully at just about everything, but here Jesus is speaking about the way we might look at another human being. Since He is naturally speaking to men here ("whoever looks at a woman to lust for her"), we assume that Jesus is speaking of a particular way of looking, of coveting for particular purposes, and in a way that diminishes the humanity and dignity of the person being "looked at." An easy divorce is, similarly, a kind of extreme behavior. Just like over-responding to anger (see yesterday's reading), a divorce for not much of any real reason is a harsh over-reaction; a way, in effect, to kill something that is sacred, or to abuse it - and to treat a person as a property, an object for certain purposes. This teaching also only applies to men in Jewish society, and not to women who could not initiate divorce. Not only does it abuse marriage itself, but women in Jesus' time were utterly dependent upon men and risked destitution if divorced. Swearing falsely is another form of over-reaction, going to extremes. We needn't swear by anything; better to have a personal integrity where your word is truly your bond, to maintain a true centeredness, a kind of grativas we take with us, in our own person, rather than swearing by anything that is outside of ourselves. If our "yes" is "yes" and our "no" is really "no" then we needn't go outside ourselves, to extremes, to swear by anything. We have our own dignity and integrity that is the true center of ourselves. And the same can be said for everything else discussed in today's reading. Ultimately, it's about carrying oneself with integrity, an inner substance that speaks more loudly than anything else for who we are, because our value is in our character. Let us consider what it is to walk with this kind of self-respect (and respect for others, and the things that are sacred to God), this kind of substance and dignity, and to be able to give the same to others, not giving in to extremes of responses that might be used to impress, persuade, or manipulate. In short, it seems to me that Jesus is describing what it is to carry His image inside of us and to reflect it into the world. This is the gift of His teachings.
