Question:
Dear Greg,
What
does Jesus mean exactly, when he says, “turn the other cheek”?
Does that mean we shouldn’t defend ourselves and offer others a chance
to hit us again? Unless you know for
absolutely sure what this verse means, I would rather you say you’re not
positive because I have heard different answers to this and I’ll just get more
confused.
Thank
you,
Steve
Answer: Dear Steve,
The
passage about which you ask is found in Matthew 5:39.
The larger passage is called the Sermon on the Mount, and it is necessary
to understand the larger context of the Sermon before attempting to understand
what is meant by Matthew 5:39.
I
do not have the time to sufficiently set this stage, but suffice it to say that
Jesus was expounding a new way, a new covenant and new commandments that were
beyond the legalistic literalism of the old covenant.
As he taught the implications of the new, he was not replacing the old
literalism with new literalism. When
he said, for example, “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth” he was not
suggesting that Christians who are hurt or maimed in such a way demand justice
from the person who inflicts such wounds by exacting the same treatment upon
them.
“Turning
the other cheek” is simply a teaching of non-resistance as opposed to
punishment and justice in kind, which leads to aggression and escalation of the
kind we see today in the Middle East. One
side kills or maims, the other answers back, the other side then must respond in
kind, etc. Jesus taught that the
chain of aggression and violence can and should be ended.
In order for that to happen someone must break that chain and not respond
in kind. While humanity views such a
lack of response as weakness, Jesus teaches it as part of the spiritual
foundation of the kingdom of God.
Jesus
is not suggesting that anyone or any nation be a doormat, but he teaches that
aggression is not the answer to peace.
In
Christ,
Greg
Albrecht