In the previous verses, Jesus made it clear that the Law has not been abolished. Through the rest of the chapter, at first glance, there may appear to be a contradiction. Jesus is going to give several statements starting with the same formula. “You have heard, but I say.” Some of these statements, like the one we will look at today, are directly from the ten commandments. Does this mean Jesus is contradicting the Old Testament? If we read carefully, we will see that He is not. It is not the Old Testament that Jesus is contradictng. It is people’s understanding of it. The religious leaders of that time added and taught many extra rules outside of God’s Word. They also focused only on external obedience. What Jesus is going to illustrate about the Law is that the heart of the matter is a matter of the heart.
A Murderous Heart
“You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court” (Matthew 5:21, NASB). Jesus is not telling them something they don’t already know. Because of the severity of the offense, this is among the most obvious of the ten commandments. According to the external letter of the law, most people would feel safe with this one. “I haven’t killed anyone. Check. I’m good.” What comes next is jarring.
“But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty…” (Matthew 5:22a, NASB). What Jesus does with this transition is a troubling thing. He has now revealed that we can share in the murderer’s guilt without actually murdering someone. He digs down underneath the action of murder to reveal the root. We discover at this point that the external act of murder is the culmination of what has already been growing in the heart. Though the person who harbors anger in his heart is not guilty of the act of murder, he is guilty of a murderous heart. And that is the poisonous fountain from which the act arises.
What Jesus does next is to highlight the severity of this heart guilt. Some have tried to note a progression in severity in verse 22. Jesus goes from the court to the supreme court (the Sanhedrin), and then to the fiery hell. I don’t believe He is detailing a progression of different levels of guilt. I believe He is using repetition with building severity as a rhetorical tool. The point is that the sinful anger that resides within the heart is just as damning as the murder it threatens to produce. And the judgment for it is even worse than the human courts can give.
Jesus did not come to abolish the Law. No, in His coming He revealed the heart of the Law and exposed our unfaithfulness to it. For His people in particular, He changes their hearts to align with the Law. Our Lord is not interested in strict behavior management. You can sometimes change the external behaviors of a person, but you may not have changed their internal corruption. Jesus gives us new hearts. He changes the inner man that lies at the heart of the external behaviors. He reveals that we may not all be guilty of murder in our actions, but we are all guilty in our hearts. Of course, since He fulfills the Law, only through Him can we be cured of that. No mere behavioral change will do. We must have a change of heart.
Cut It Off at the Root
In verses 23-24, Jesus instructs us to reconcile animosity with others before offering sacrifices. This emphasizes the Lord’s focus on the heart. You may not be doing anything sinful toward the person, but you are harboring sinful anger toward them. In doing so, your offering is mere ritual. It is not an offering that truly comes from the heart. God told the people of Israel on different occasions that He did not recognize their sacrifices. There were times He even told them that He hated their sacrifices. This is because He desires the sacrifice of a pure heart above a mere ritual. Our worship of the Lord, and all of our external obedience to Him, is to come out of a heart that pursues righteousness. We obey Him outwardly because we honor Him inwardly. You cannot offer pleasing sacrifices in worship and service to the Lord while also hating your brother.
Anger and Hatred Are Cruel Masters
In verses 25-26, Jesus illustrates the harm and disadvantage that come from holding on to our anger. He uses the imagery of a man heading to trial against another. He does not detail what the offense was because that is not the point. The path to freedom runs through reconciliation. This is true of our relationship with God. We must be reconciled to God if we want eternal life. It is also true of our relationships with one another. The person who stubbornly holds grudges only harms himself. To remain obstinate against your brother or sister is to engage in prolonged warfare. And those who sow war will reap the same.
In verse 26, we see where the obstinate grudge-holder ends up. He is in prison. That sentence drains him of all he has. Anger and hatred are a prison also. Angry people will find themselves constantly driven and manipulated by their anger. It sucks the energy out of them. It costs them relationships. It hinders them from having peace. Just like the man in the illustration, it drains them of all they have.
The Alternative
Jesus gives the problem very clearly in this passage. Anger, bitterness, and grudge-holding are murderous heart attitudes. They will bring us to judgment, cause our sacrifices to be unacceptable before God, and drain us of all our life and peace. But He doesn’t leave us there. He gives us the solution to the problem. We must be ready and quick to reconcile with others. This will greatly benefit both our relationship with others and with God.
Subscribe for free or support The Verse and receive extra content with a paid subscription.