Scripture Study

Matthew 5:17-20

Background

“Do not think that I have come to destroy the law or the prophets. I have not come to destroy them but to fulfill them. This is the truth I tell you – until the heavens and the earth shall pass away, the smallest letter or the smallest part of any letter shall not pass away from the law, until all things in it shall be performed. So then, whoever will break one of the least of these commandments, and will teach others to do so, shall be called least in the kingdom of the heaven; but whoever will do them and will teach others to do them, he will be called great in the kingdom of the heavens. For I tell you, that you will certainly not enter into the kingdom of heaven, unless your goes righteousness beyond that of the scribes and Pharisees.”

STOTT Jesus has spoken of a Christian’s character, and of the influence the Christian will have in the world if he exhibits this character and if his character bears fruit in “good works.” He now proceeds to further define this character and these good works in terms of righteousness. He explains that the righteousness He has already mentioned twice – that for which His disciples hunger (verse 6) and for which they will suffer (verse 10) – is a conformity to God’s moral law which surpasses the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. The “good works” are works of obedience. He begins His Sermon with Beatitudes in the third person (“Blessed are the poor in spirit,” “Blessed are they . . . “); He continues in the second person (“You are the salt of the earth.”); and now He changes to the authoritative first person and uses for the first time His distinctive and dogmatic formula “I say to you . . .” (verse 18) or “I tell you . . .” (verse 20).

This paragraph is of great importance not only for its definition of Christian righteousness but also for the light it throws on the relation between the NT and the OT, between the gospel and the law. It divides itself into two parts: first, Christ and the law (17, 18); and secondly, the Christian and the law (19, 20).

LLOYD-JONES These verses, although they are a continuation of what has gone before, mark the beginning of a new section in the Sermon. Before this we have been reminded of what we are; then we have been told that we must remember it and let our life be such that it will always be a manifestation of this essential being of ours. We are children of God and citizens of the kingdom of heaven. Because of that, we must manifest the characteristics of such people. We do this in order to manifest God’s glory, and so that others may be brought to glorify Him.

The question then arises as to how this is to be done. The answer can be put like this: we are to live a life of righteousness. That one word sums up Christian living: “righteousness.” The theme of the remainder of the Sermon on the Mount (until you come to 7:14) is just that -- the kind of life of righteousness which the Christian is to live.

What is the characteristic of this righteousness which we must manifest? This passage in the fifth chapter is a general introduction to that subject. Jesus introduces this whole question of the righteousness and the righteous life which are to characterize the Christian. Observe His method. Before He comes to the details, He lays down certain general principles. He has an introduction before He really begins to explain and expound His subject. It is always vital to start with principles.

He does so by laying down in this paragraph two categorical propositions. In the first, in verses 17 and 18, He says that everything He is going to teach is in absolute harmony with the entire teaching of the OT Scriptures. There is nothing in this teaching which in any way contradicts them. The second proposition which He lays down in verses 19 and 20, is that this teaching of His which is in such harmony with the OT is in complete disharmony with and an utter contradiction of the teaching of the Pharisees and scribes.

Those are two great pronouncements and they are important, because we shall never understand the record of Christ’s life – which we have in the four Gospels – unless we grasp these two principles. Here we have an explanation of all the antagonism towards Him which was displayed by the Pharisees and the other Jewish legalists. Here is the explanation of all the troubles that He had to endure, and the misunderstanding to which He was constantly subjected.

Another observation is that Jesus was not content with making positive statements only; He also made negative ones. He was not content with just stating His doctrine; He also criticized other doctrines. Many people seem to object to negative teaching, but Jesus criticized the teaching of the Pharisees and scribes. He exposed it and denounced it frequently.

Why did He introduce the Sermon on the Mount in this way? As we read the Gospels, we see that there was much confusion with regard to Jesus and His teaching; He was a problem to His contemporaries. He was not a Pharisee, and He had not been trained as a Pharisee. He had not been to the customary schools, so they looked at Him and asked: “Who is this man who teaches and makes these dogmatic pronouncements?” He did not come to His position as a teacher along the usual channels, and that created a problem. He deliberately criticized the Pharisees and the scribes and their teaching – the acknowledged leaders and religious leaders. Here was a Man who did not belong to their schools; who not only taught, but also denounced their authoritative teaching. He did not spend time expounding the law, but He preached an extraordinary doctrine of grace and of the love of God. Even worse, He mixed with publicans and sinners. Not only did He not seem to observe all the rules and regulations, He actually seemed to be deliberately breaking them. In His words He criticized their official teaching, and in practice He did the same.

Questions began to arise about whether He believed the Holy Writings, and whether He had come to do away with the law and denounce the prophets. Jesus knew that these questions would arise because of His personal character and what He taught. So here, at the very introduction of His detailed teaching, He met the criticism. In particular, He warned His disciples in case they should be confused and influenced by the talk and criticism. He prepared their minds and outlook by laying down these two fundamental postulates.

He had already told them in general what they were to be like and the kind of righteousness they were to manifest. Now, He wanted them to understand the whole setting. This is a very urgent and practical subject for each one of us who is concerned about the Christian life. This is not merely an old problem; it is a modern one. It is not something theoretical, but for some people Christ’s relationship to the law is a stumbling block in their Christian life.

Two main difficulties are raised in regard to this. One group believes that all Jesus did was to continue teaching the law. According to these people, the Gospels are nothing but an exposition of the ancient law, and Jesus of Nazareth was a Teacher of the Law. The Gospels are nothing but law, ethical teaching and moral instruction; there is nothing in them about the doctrine of justification by faith sanctification and such things. The other difficulty is the exact opposite of that. The second view is that Christ abolished the law completely, and that He introduced grace in place of it. They argue that the Bible says we are under grace; so, they believe we must have nothing to do with the law.

Jesus answers both of these in the vital statement in verses 17 and 18 which deals with the specific matter of His relationship to the law and to the prophets. The best way to understand what He said is to define the terms to be certain that we understand their meaning.

The “law,” as it is used in this passage, means the entire law. This, as given to the children of Israel, consisted of three parts: the moral; the judicial; and the ceremonial. God gave it in the books of Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers. The moral law consisted of the Ten Commandments and the moral principles that were laid down once and forever. The judicial law means the legislative law given for the nation of Israel in its special circumstances at that time, which indicated how men were to order their behavior in relationship to others and the various things they were and were not to do. The ceremonial law concerned burnt offerings and sacrifices and all the ritual and ceremony in connection with their worship in the temple and elsewhere. The “law” included all that. Therefore we can conclude that Jesus is here referring to everything that it teaches directly about life, conduct and behavior.

The law includes everything that is taught by the various types – the different offerings and all the details that are given about them in the OT. [Types are events, persons, or statements in the OT seen as pre-figuring or superseded by antitypes -- events or aspects of Christ or His revelation described in the NT.] Some Christians see no reason to study or even read the Pentateuch (the first five books of the OT). For instance, the importance of details about the meal and the salt and various other things are questioned. These are just types, and they are all prophecy in their way of what was done perfectly by Jesus Christ. When we talk of the law, we must remember all that is included – not only the positive, direct teaching of these books and their injunctions on how life should be lived; but also all they suggest and foretell with regard to what was to come. The law must be taken in its entirety in verses 17-20. In the rest of the Sermon from verse 21 onwards when Jesus speaks of the law, He is speaking only of the moral section.

The next term to examine is “the prophets.” The term means all that we have in the prophetic books of the OT. The prophets actually taught the law, and they applied and interpreted it. Their main endeavor was to call the people back to a true understanding of God’s law by reading and expounding on it. In addition, they did foretell the coming of the Messiah.

The final term is “fulfill.” There has been much confusion with regard to its meaning. It does not mean to complete, to finish. It does not mean to add to something that has already been begun. It has been said that the OT began a certain teaching, and that it carried on so far and up to a point. Jesus came and carried it a stage further, rounding it off and fulfilling it. The real meaning of the word “fulfill” is to carry out – to fulfill in the sense of giving full obedience to it, literally carrying out everything that has been said and stated in the law and in the prophets.

Let us now consider what Jesus is really saying. We will look at the verses 17 and 18 in reverse order. The first pronouncement is that God’s law is absolute; it can never be changed – not even modified to the slightest extent. It is absolute and eternal. Its demands are permanent, and can never be revoked or reduced “till heaven and earth pass” – until the end of the age. Heaven and earth are signs of permanence. While they are there, nothing shall pass away, not even a jot or a tittle – the smallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet and the smallest point in the smallest letter. This is a momentous announcement, emphasized by the word “for” – which always calls attention to something and denotes seriousness and importance. Then He adds to the importance by saying: “Verily, I say unto you.” He is impressing the statement with all the authority He possesses. The law that God laid down, which you can read in the OT and all that has been said by the prophets, is going to be fulfilled down to the minutest detail; and it will hold and stand until this absolute fulfillment has been entirely carried out.

In light of that, Jesus makes his second statement to the effect that obviously, therefore, He has not come to destroy – or even to modify – the teaching of the law or the prophets. He has come to fulfill and to carry them out, and to adhere to them and give them perfect obedience. That is the central claim made by Christ. It is that all the law and all the prophets point to Him and will be fulfilled in Him down to the smallest detail. Everything that is in the law and the prophets culminates in Christ, and He is the fulfillment of them.

Jesus, in these two verses confirms and puts His seal of authority on the entire OT – the law and the prophets. To Christ the OT was the Word of God; it was Scripture; it was something absolutely unique and apart; it had authority which nothing else has ever possessed nor can possess. This is His vital statement with regard to the subject of the authority of the OT.

Many people think that they can believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and yet reject the OT – which raises a question of our attitude toward Jesus. If we say we do not believe the accounts in the OT (creation, Abraham, the law given to Moses, etc.), we are contradicting everything Jesus said about Himself, the law, and the prophets. Everything in the OT, according to Him is the Word of God – which is going to stand until it is fulfilled. It is God’s law; it is God’s enactment.

The words of the prophets were not the words of poets who saw a little further into life -- and made wonderful statements about life and how to live it. These were men of God who were given their message by Him. They spoke the truth -- and all will be fulfilled. It was all given with reference to Christ. He is the fulfillment of all these things, which will end only when they are fully carried out by Him.

The early church understood the vital significance of the OT. The OT and the NT cast light upon each other, and in a sense can only be understood in the light of the other. These two Testaments must always go together. St Augustine put it this way: “The New Testament is latent [hidden, concealed] in the Old Testament; the Old Testament is patent [evident, manifest] in the New Testament.”

Jesus said that He had not come to supersede the OT, the law and the prophets. He had come to carry it out and fulfill it. He regarded it all as the Word of God, and we should as well. When you begin to question the authority of the OT, you are of necessity questioning the authority of the Son of God Himself. Watch His quotations from the OT Scriptures – the quotations from the law and the prophets and from Psalms. He quotes them everywhere. It is God’s own Word which “cannot be broken,” and which is going to be fulfilled in the minutest detail and which lasts as long as heaven and earth are in existence.

B-MT(1) In this statement, Jesus lays down the eternal character of the law; yet Paul says in Romans 10:4: “Christ is the end of the law.” Jesus repeatedly broke what the Jews called the law. He did not observe the hand washings that the law laid down; He healed sick people on the Sabbath, although the law forbade such healings, etc. He was condemned and crucified for being a law-breaker, but here He speaks of the law with a reverence no Pharisee could exceed. The smallest letter – the letter which the AV calls the jot – was the Hebrew letter iodh. It was like an apostrophe; not even a letter not much bigger than a dot was to pass away. The smallest part of the letter – what the AV calls the tittle – is what we call the serif, the little projecting part at the foot of a letter, the little line at each side of the foot of the letter “I”, for example. Jesus tells His followers that the law is so sacred that not the smallest detail of it will pass away.

The Jews used the expression “the law” in four different ways:

  1. They used it to mean the Ten Commandments.
  2. They used it to mean the first five books of the Bible, the Pentateuch – which literally means “The Five Rolls.” That was to the Jews the law par excellence and was to them the most important part of the Bible.
  3. They used the phrase “the law and the prophets” as a comprehensive description of the entire Scripture – what we call the OT.
  4. They used it to mean the “oral” or the “scribed law.”

In the time of Jesus, it was the scribal law which was most common and which both Jesus and Paul so utterly condemned. In the OT we find very few rules and regulations. What we do find are great, broad principles which people must interpret for themselves under God’s guidance, and then apply to the individual situations in life. In the Ten Commandments, there are no rules and regulations at all; they are each one of them great principles out of which people must find their own rules for life. That did not seem enough to the later Jews. They believed that the law was divine, and that in it God had said His last word – and that everything must be in it. If something were not in the law “explicitly,” it must be there “implicitly.” They, therefore, argued that out of the law it must be possible to deduce a rule and a regulation for every possible life situation. There arose a group of men called the scribes whose job it was to reduce the great principles of the law to thousands of rules and regulations.