The Sermon on the Mount has long posed problems to the Christian community, not because of the difficulty in understanding it, but rather the simplicity. The words of Jesus contained within are plain and direct. Our response to them is usually anything but, trying as we do to duck and dive in the face of seemingly impossible instructions.Here is the pertinent passage from the Sermon which will garner our attention for the next post or three:
"You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.
"You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect."
What is your initial reaction upon reading these words?
Professor Hays lists several influential interpretations of the above passage, which he dubs “ingenious interpretations that mitigate the normative claim of this text”. See if you, like me, have bought into one (or several) of these interpretations.
- These words describe life in the future kingdom of God, and so are not meant for present earthly application. (I call this the “not yet” interpretation.)
- The ethic pronounced in this passage was only to have a short life-span, with the expectation being that the end of history and God’s final judgment were just around the corner. (I call this the “already…but not for very long” interpretation.)
- Some, for example, Augustine, see this passage as forbidding self-defense, but not defense of an innocent third party.
- These words only apply to that special class of Christians such as monks or clergy, and not to the rank and file believer.
- These words are a plumbline which measures how crooked we are, thus exposing our condition as sinners in need of divine grace. They are a moral diagnosis as opposed to moral directives.
- This passage is highly contextualised, thus having little global application.
Do any of those interpretations resonate with your own? If so then a challenge lies ahead, because Hays claims that “A careful exegetical consideration of the passage in its broader Matthean context…will demonstrate that none of these proposals renders a satisfactory account of Matthew’s theological vision.”
The key word there is “context”. When it comes to biblical interpretation, the golden rule when buying property applies - location, location, location. Where is this passage found? It is found in the Sermon on the Mount. Where is the Sermon on the Mount located? It is located toward the beginning of Matthew’s gospel, the first book of the New Testament, though almost certainly not the first written.
In sketching both the “immediate literary frame” of this passage and its wider Matthean context, Hays attempts to help us read these plain words of Jesus afresh.
(As an aside, I think we are in desperate need of this help. Years of reading Paul almost exclusively (and in a somewhat mistaken fashion, some will argue) has dulled our understanding when it comes to reading Jesus in the gospels. Paul we know, the epistles we recognise, but who is Jesus? Hay’s approach will help us to once more get to grips with this neglected or misunderstood Jewish teacher, revealed in the end to be the Jewish Messiah and (thus) Saviour of the world.)
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