Matthew 5:41

Last updated
Matthew 5:41
  5:40
5:42  
dyr l'nb brm 18.jpg
"Sermon on the Mount". Monastery of Saint Abraam.
Book Gospel of Matthew
Christian Bible part New Testament

Matthew 5:41 is the forty-first verse of the fifth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament and is part of the Sermon on the Mount. This is the fourth verse of the antithesis on the commandment: "Eye for an eye".

Contents

Content

In the King James Version of the Bible the text reads:

And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.

The World English Bible translates the passage as:

Whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two.

The Novum Testamentum Graece text is:

καὶ ὅστις σε ἀγγαρεύσει μίλιον ἕν, ὕπαγε μετ’ αὐτοῦ δύο.

For additional translations see Matthew 5:41 .

Analysis

The word here translated as compel, angareuo, is a Persian loan word that is a technical term for the Roman practice of requisitioning local goods or labour. [1] Schweizer notes that it specifically refers to the power of the Romans to demand that a local serve as a guide or porter. Later at Matthew 27:32 Simon of Cyrene will be forced by such rules to carry Jesus' cross, the only other time in the New Testament the word translated as compel is used. [2] The Zealots loathed this practice, and their refusal to participate in such tasks was an important part of their philosophy and a cause of the First Jewish–Roman War. According to R. T. France, these commands would have shocked the Jewish audience as Jesus' response to the Roman occupation was starkly different from the other Jewish activists of the period. [3] Jesus says nothing about the propriety of such demands, Schweizer notes that Jesus simply accepts it as fact. Thomas Aquinas wrote that this verse implies that it is reasonable to follow laws that are unjust, but argued that laws that are unconscionable must not be obeyed. [4]

The word here translated as mile refers to the Roman definition of 1000 paces, slightly shorter than a modern mile. [5] The mile was a specifically Roman unit of measure, locally the stadion was used to measure length. Miles would only have been used by the imperial government and the local occupying forces, which further links this verse with imperial repression. [6] This verse is the origin of the English phrase "going the extra mile," which means to do more than is expected. See The Extra Mile (disambiguation) for its usage in popular culture.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 4:12</span> Verse of the Bible

Matthew 4:12 is the twelfth verse of the fourth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. The temptation scene has just ended, and this verse begins the introduction to the discussion of the Ministry of Jesus, which makes up the bulk of the gospel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 4:18</span> Verse of the Bible

Matthew 4:18 is the eighteenth verse of the fourth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. Jesus has just begun preaching in Galilee. In this verse he encounters the first of his disciples.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 5:1–2</span>

Matthew 5:1 and Matthew 5:2 are the first two verses of the fifth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. The verses introduce the Sermon on the Mount that will be recited in the next several chapters. The previous chapter concluded with large crowds "from Galilee, and from the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan" who followed Jesus to witness him healing: these verses present Jesus as seeing the crowds and going up onto a mountain to begin teaching.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 5:23–24</span>

Matthew 5:23 and Matthew 5:24 are a pair of closely related verses in the fifth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. They are part of the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus has just announced that anger leads to murder, and anger is just as bad as murder itself. And that whosoever is angry with his brother shall be in danger of the judgment himself. This verse states that resolving these disputes should take priority over religious rituals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 5:26</span> Verse of the Bible

Matthew 5:26 is the twenty-sixth verse of the fifth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament and is part of the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus has just warned that if you do not reconcile with your enemies a judge is likely to throw you in jail. In this verse Jesus mentions that your debts must be paid completely before one can leave.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 5:43</span>

Matthew 5:43 is the forty-third verse of the fifth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament and is part of the Sermon on the Mount. This verse is the opening of the final antithesis, that on the commandment to "Love thy neighbour as thyself".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 7:21</span> Bible verse

Matthew 7:21 is the twenty-first verse of the seventh chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament and is part of the Sermon on the Mount. This verse continues Jesus' warning against false prophets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 28:1</span>

Matthew 28:1 is the first verse of the twenty-eighth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. This verse opens the resurrection narrative as Mary Magdalene and "the other Mary" visit Jesus' tomb after the crucifixion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 28:3</span>

Matthew 28:3 is the third verse of the twenty-eighth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. This verse is part of the resurrection narrative and describes the angel who arrived at the tomb of Jesus in the previous verse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 28:4</span>

Matthew 28:4 is the fourth verse of the twenty-eighth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. This verse is part of the resurrection narrative; describing the reaction of the tomb guards after the arrival of the angel of the Lord and the occurrence of an earthquake that opened the tomb.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 28:10</span>

Matthew 28:10 is the tenth verse of the twenty-eighth chapter in the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. This verse is part of the resurrection narrative. Having left the empty tomb, Mary Magdalene and "the other Mary" are on their way to meet the other disciples, when Jesus meets with them. In this verse the risen Jesus speaks with them.

Matthew 28:11 is the eleventh verse of the twenty-eighth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. This verse is part of the resurrection narrative. In this verse some of the guards at the tomb return to Jerusalem to report to the chief priests.

Matthew 28:12 is the twelfth verse of the twenty-eighth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. This verse is part of the resurrection narrative. In this verse the guards of the tomb, after being present for an angel hearkening the resurrection, are bribed by the priests to lie about what they saw.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 28:16</span> Sixteenth verse of the twenty-eighth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew

Matthew 28:16 is the sixteenth verse of the twenty-eighth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. This verse opens the final scene of the gospel, Jesus' resurrection appearance before his disciples in Galilee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 10:1</span>

Matthew 10:1 is the first verse of the tenth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. In this verse Jesus gathers his disciples and grants them healing powers in what is known as the commissioning the twelve apostles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 27:11</span>

Matthew 27:11 is the eleventh verse of the twenty-seventh chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. This verse brings the narrative back to Pilate's Court, and the final trial of Jesus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 27:5</span>

Matthew 27:5 is the fifth verse of the twenty-seventh chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. This verse continues the final story of Judas Iscariot. In the earlier verse Judas had regretted his decision to betray Jesus, but is met with disinterest from the Jewish leaders. In this verse his response is to return the blood money and then commit suicide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 27:4</span>

Matthew 27:4 is the fourth verse of the twenty-seventh chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. This verse continues the final story of Judas Iscariot. In the previous verse, Judas had regretted his decision to betray Jesus. In this verse he returns to the Jewish leaders but finds no interest in his change of opinion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 27:2</span>

Matthew 27:2 is the second verse of the twenty-seventh chapter of the twenty-seventh chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. Jesus has just seen condemned by the Jewish Sanhedrin, and in this verse is presented to Pontius Pilate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew 27:6</span>

Matthew 27:6 is the sixth verse of the twenty-seventh chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. This verse continues the final story of Judas Iscariot. In the previous verse Judas had cast into the temple the thirty pieces of silver he'd been paid for betraying Jesus. In this verse the priests discuss what to do with them.

References

  1. Hare, Douglas R. A. Matthew. Interpretation, a Bible commentary for teaching and preaching. Westminster John Knox Press, 1993 p. 57
  2. Harrington, Daniel J. The Gospel of Matthew. Liturgical Press, 1991 p. 89
  3. France, R.T. The Gospel of Matthew. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2007 pg. 222
  4. Schweizer, Eduard. The Good News According to Matthew. Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1975
  5. Craig S. Keener. A commentary on the Gospel of Matthew. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1999. p. 200
  6. Hare, 1993 p. 37.
Preceded by
Matthew 5:40
Gospel of Matthew
Chapter 5
Succeeded by
Matthew 5:42