This essay continues a sequence. Read the previous one here.
But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil:
but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.
And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloke also.
And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.
— KJV, Matt 5:39-41
To find, we must actively seek…
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We have established that understanding Christ’s Word requires a reorientation of the mind (ref. “We Don’t Understand The Word“).
If He is the personification of Divine Truth (ref. “What Is The Word?: The Basics“) then we cannot overestimate the wisdom in each of His words. We must always seek a deep spiritual meaning.
Many explanations of Matt 5:39 (e.g. non-violent resistance, pacifism, etc.) are based on literal readings of the text e.g. literally turn the other cheek when struck on the face. They then seek to explain the “why” based on this understanding.
John 18:23 reports that Christ was struck by an officer when being interrogated by the High Priest, and He did not literally turn the other cheek. So He could not have meant it literally – He spoke figuratively with the expectation that we would seek the deeper meaning.
There is also a slightly similar interpretation that calls for nonresistance, e.g. “When attacked, do nothing. Do not react or escalate“.
But The Word did not say do nothing. He says do something (e.g. turn the other cheek; give him thy cloke; etc.). It is the meaning of this figurative something that we need to investigate.
Some scholars have developed intellectually sophisticated explanations, e.g.: “Striking on the right cheek denoted contempt in Hebrew culture, so turning the left cheek denotes a demand for equality“.
But if Christ is the manifestation of Eternal Truth (ref. “What Is The Word?: The Basics“), He is not a mere mortal. Scholarly approaches that base the interpretation of The Word on transient Hebrew social norms are making the mistake of anthropomorphism (ref “God Is Neither Superman Nor Santa“). They assume that Christ speaks as a human being. They disregard the eternal nature of The Word and reduce it to something that is narrowly context-dependent.
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Since the spiritual determines the material (ref. “Creating Is Perpetual“), what we should seek first is the spiritual attitude, the mindset, that Christ is alluding to. It is this mindset that would form the basis of the unconventional material behaviour that He is describing figuratively.
So it is not that we should literally turn the other cheek. It is that we should have a mindset that makes such unconventional behaviour possible. This mindset would then determine the appropriate action.
What personal characteristics would we need to possess to be capable of responding by turning the other cheek when slapped?
We would need to have cultivated deep self-awareness and, in addition, complete self-control. This is what we explored in “Blessed Are The Meek“.
One of the things we established in that essay is that true self-control comes from obedience to the fundamental commandment “Love Thy Neighbor”.
So, Christ is referring to love for our neighbour, as He so often did. It is a restatement of “Blessed Are The Meek“.
We stated in “Blessed Are The Meek” that the Greek word (praus; πραεῖς) that was translated into “meek” actually has nothing to do with weakness.
We have also established that true love is not weak, soft, or yielding (ref. “Real Love Is Tough Love“). Love is a strong force that seeks the spiritual progress of others, and this may sometimes involve the application of disciplinary measures. This is another indication that literal interpretations that promote weakness and yielding are inaccurate.
We have now established some facts about the mindset we are to adopt. With this figurative language The Word is trying to paint a vivid and unconventional picture of how a loving mindset reacts to provocation.
So, what exactly are we to do? We will pursue this in the next essay.
Today’s Resolution:
- We will strive to understand the love that is at the heart of all aspects of The Word.
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