How does the Law concern Jesus?
Matthew 5:17-20
Jesus, the good prince of the kingdom of God, came to earth to do the commandments of the Law and to teach it as it was meant to be taught.
#Jesus
#kingdom
#law
Published May 5th, 2021; Updated May 6th, 2021
Matthew 5:17-20
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Matthew 5:17-20
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Matthew 5:17-20 MINE
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Matthew 5:17-20 SBL
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Matthew 5:17-20
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17 Μὴ νομίσητε ὅτι ἦλθον καταλῦσαι τὸν νόμον ἢ τοὺς προφήτας· οὐκ ἦλθον καταλῦσαι ἀλλὰ πληρῶσαι· 18 ἀμὴν γὰρ λέγω ὑμῖν, ἕως ἂν παρέλθῃ ὁ οὐρανὸς καὶ ἡ γῆ, ἰῶτα ἓν ἢ μία κεραία οὐ μὴ παρέλθῃ ἀπὸ τοῦ νόμου, ἕως ἂν πάντα γένηται. 19 ὃς ἐὰν οὖν λύσῃ μίαν τῶν ἐντολῶν τούτων τῶν ἐλαχίστων καὶ διδάξῃ οὕτως τοὺς ἀνθρώπους, ἐλάχιστος κληθήσεται ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ τῶν οὐρανῶν· ὃς δ’ ἂν ποιήσῃ καὶ διδάξῃ, οὗτος μέγας κληθήσεται ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ τῶν οὐρανῶν. 20 λέγω γὰρ ὑμῖν ὅτι ἐὰν μὴ περισσεύσῃ // ὑμῶν ἡ δικαιοσύνη \\ πλεῖον τῶν γραμματέων καὶ Φαρισαίων, οὐ μὴ εἰσέλθητε εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν.
Matthew 5:17-20 ESV
Matthew 5:17-20
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Christ Came to Fulfill the Law 17 p “Do not think that I have come to abolish q the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but r to fulfill them. 18 For truly, I say to you, s until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 19 t Therefore whoever relaxes u one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least v in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great v in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds w that of the scribes and Pharisees, you x will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 5:17-20 MINE
17 Don't think that I've come to set aside the Law or the Prophets. I haven't come to set them aside. No, I came to do them and to teach them as they were meant to be taught. 18 Because—listen up!— until the earth and the sky pass away, not a single letter or even the crossing of a "t" will pass away from the Law. That is, however, until every single one of them accomplishes their purpose. 19 So whoever does set aside even one of the least of the commandments and teaches others to do the same thing will themselves be called "the least" in the kingdom of God. But whoever simply does the commandments and teaches them—that one—well, he will be called "great" in the kingdom of God. 20 And I mean it: unless you're more righteous than the scribes and Pharisees, you won't even enter the kingdom of God.
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Matthew 5:17-20
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νομίσητε
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Matthew 5:17
ἦλθον
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Matthew 5:18
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Matthew 5:19
οὖν
κληθήσεται
ὃς
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λύσῃ
διδάξῃ
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τούτων
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Matthew 5:20
γὰρ
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μὴ
πλεῖον
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γραμματέων
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ὅτι
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Matthew 5:17-20
Matthew 5:17
Do
think
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to
abolish
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that
fulfill
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Matthew 5:18
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Matthew 5:19
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Matthew 5:17-20
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p “Do not think that I have come to abolish q the Law or the Prophets;
Don't think that I've come to set aside the Law or the Prophets.
Μὴ νομίσητε ὅτι ἦλθον καταλῦσαι τὸν νόμον ἢ τοὺς προφήτας·
I have not come to abolish them
I haven't come to set them aside.
οὐκ ἦλθον καταλῦσαι
but r to fulfill them.
No, I came to teach them as they were meant to be taught.
ἀλλὰ πληρῶσαι·
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For truly, I say to you, s until heaven and earth pass away,
Because—listen up!—until the earth and the sky pass away,
ἀμὴν γὰρ λέγω ὑμῖν, ἕως ἂν παρέλθῃ ὁ οὐρανὸς καὶ ἡ γῆ,
not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law
not a single letter or even the crossing of a "t" will pass away from the Law.
ἰῶτα ἓν ἢ μία κεραία οὐ μὴ παρέλθῃ ἀπὸ τοῦ νόμου,
temporal
until all is accomplished.
That is, however, until every one of them is accomplished.
ἕως ἂν πάντα γένηται.
t Therefore whoever relaxes u one of the least of these commandments
So whoever does set aside even one of the least of the commandments
ὃς ἐὰν οὖν λύσῃ μίαν τῶν ἐντολῶν τούτων τῶν ἐλαχίστων
and teaches others to do the same
and teaches others to do the same thing
καὶ διδάξῃ οὕτως τοὺς ἀνθρώπους,
progression
will be called least v in the kingdom of heaven,
will themselves be called "the least" in God's kingdom.
ἐλάχιστος κληθήσεται ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ τῶν οὐρανῶν·
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but whoever does them
But whoever simply does the commandments
ὃς δ’ ἂν ποιήσῃ
and teaches them
and teaches them—
καὶ διδάξῃ,
will be called great v in the kingdom of heaven.
that one?—well, he will be called "great" in God's kingdom.
οὗτος μέγας κληθήσεται ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ τῶν οὐρανῶν.
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For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds w that of the scribes and Pharisees,
That's right: unless you're more righteous than the scribes and Pharisees,
λέγω γὰρ ὑμῖν ὅτι ἐὰν μὴ περισσεύσῃ ⸂ ὑμῶν ἡ δικαιοσύνη ⸃ πλεῖον τῶν γραμματέων καὶ Φαρισαίων,
you x will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
you won't even enter God's kingdom.
οὐ μὴ εἰσέλθητε εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν.
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Commentary Notes
"God swore covenant love to David and promised that one of his immediate descendants would establish the kingdom...Jesus the Messiah came in fulfillment of the kingdom promises to David" (Carson). "The upshot of the debate is that the introductory words 'Do not think that' must be understood, not as the refutation of some well-entrenched and clearly defined position, but as a teaching device Jesus used to clarify certain aspects of the kingdom and of his own mission and to remove potential misunderstandings" (Carson). "[The words 'I have come' can] speak of coming into the world and in light of Matthew's prologue is probably meant to attest Jesus' divine origins. At very least it shows Jesus was sent on a mission" (Carson). "The incident considered important in an earlier time turns out to be only an anticipation of an event of a [similar] kind but ultimately more significant in God's purposes for the salvation of humanity" (Silva). "The focus of Matthew 5 is the relation between the OT and Jesus' teaching, not his actions. So any interpretation that says Jesus fulfills the law by doing it misses the point" (Carson). "It would appear that Matthew holds that Jesus offered...a new depth of insight into what the Law requires over what he (Matthew) considered to be a general superficiality, a foreshortened perspective, in the reading of the Law" (Nolland).
Devotional
How does the Law concern Jesus? Jesus begins by saying, "Do not think," implying that there was either a rumor circulating around that he wanted to combat or, more convincingly, that there was a question in the minds of his followers that he wanted to anticipate. "Do not think," he says, "that I have come," which probably doesn't refer to his recent arrival in Galilee, but rather to his arrival on earth, stressing not merely his location but his position. This position, as Matthew makes clear earlier in his Gospel, is as the long-awaited Prince of Israel. And if Jesus truly came as a prince preparing to take the throne of David, then knowing his demeanor toward the Law would be paramount. For when God gave the Law to Israel, he made it clear that the king of Israel should be very concerned with it, writing out a copy of it for himself, reading it all the days of his life, and keeping and doing its commandments, never turning aside from them (Deut. 17:18-20). Some kings lived up to this expectation, like King David (1 Kings 15:5), but most did not. So in whose footsteps would Prince Jesus follow? "Do not think that I have come," he says, "to abolish the Law and the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them." Jesus assures his followers that he has not come like the wicked kings of old who did what was right in their own eyes and led the nation into ruin, but rather like the king that the Law itself demands, one who does what is right in God's eyes and leads the nation into blessing forevermore. Jesus would do this not by abolishing the Law but rather by doing it and teaching others to do the same (Matthew 5:19). So the Law concerns Jesus because he is the good prince of the kingdom of God who came to earth to do the Law and teach it as was meant to be taught. How does this concern us? Do not look to yourself to do a good job of doing and teaching the Word of God, especially those who are right now trying to write worthy sermons or exegetical papers or blogs. Look at your once-Prince-now-King Jesus, who left heaven and came to earth to teach you how to do it. Ask him and he will come to your aid.
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Disclaimer: The opinions and conclusions expressed on this page are those of the author and may or may not accord with the positions of Biblearc or Bethlehem College & Seminary.