Matthew 5:15-25

15 Nor do [men] light a lamp and put it under the bushel, but upon the lamp-stand, and it shines for all who are in the house.
16 Let your light thus shine before men, so that they may see your upright works, and glorify your Father who is in the heavens.
17 Think not that I am come to make void the law or the prophets; I am not come to make void, but to fulfil.
18 For verily I say unto you, Until the heaven and the earth pass away, one iota or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law till all come to pass.
19 Whosoever then shall do away with one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of the heavens; but whosoever shall practise and teach [them], *he* shall be called great in the kingdom of the heavens.
20 For I say unto you, that unless your righteousness surpass [that] of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of the heavens.
21 Ye have heard that it was said to the ancients, Thou shalt not kill; but whosoever shall kill shall be subject to the judgment.
22 But *I* say unto you, that every one that is lightly angry with his brother shall be subject to the judgment; but whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be subject to [be called before] the sanhedrim; but whosoever shall say, Fool, shall be subject to the penalty of the hell of fire.
23 If therefore thou shouldest offer thy gift at the altar, and there shouldest remember that thy brother has something against thee,
24 leave there thy gift before the altar, and first go, be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.
25 Make friends with thine adverse party quickly, whilst thou art in the way with him; lest some time the adverse party deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison.

Footnotes 9

  • [a]. I have left 'bushel' as well known; it was a measure under half a bushel.
  • [b]. I do not put 'good works,' because it has acquired the force of benevolent actions, which is not the force here, but all that is upright and honourable and comely, what ought to be in one who feels aright. 'Upright' does not quite give the whole sense: see 'good work,' Mark 14.6; Titus 2.14.
  • [c]. 'Give the fulness of.' It is not to fulfil a command in the way of obedience, nor to complete another thing by adding to it; but to fill up some system sketched out, or that which is expressed in the thing fulfilled, as a whole. Thus the doctrine of the Church completed the word of God, made full what was expressed by it. Christ does not here fulfil what is said, nor add to what still remained and was perfect itself; but came to make good the whole scope of law and prophets. The passage has nothing to do with obeying the law. Nor is it here accomplishing a particular prophecy. He comes as the revealed completeness of God's mind, whatever the law and the prophets had pointed out. Verse 18 forbids the sense of obedience as not to be maintained, though 19 proves that he was to be condemned who, being under law, broke the commandments spoken of. But this is a consequence; Christ speaks of their authority. All was to be fulfilled in some way or another, not set aside.
  • [d]. Or 'excel.' It includes the idea of being a better righteousness: see ver. 47.
  • [e]. i.e. stupid, worthless, a term of contempt.
  • [f]. As chs. 23.17; 25.2,3,8.
  • [g]. Eis: has the force of 'even to,' 'as far as,'as in other cases: as Rom. 5.21, 'to eternal life;' Rev. 13.3, 'to death;' Eph. 3.19, 'to all the fulness.'
  • [h]. Gehenna: so vers. 29,30.
  • [i]. Or 'lest it may be.' Perhaps 'lest' is sufficient; it suggests something uncertain which otherwise might happen any time: see Mark 4.12.
The Darby Translation is in the public domain.