The Meaning of Matthew 5:39 Explained

Matthew 5:39

KJV: 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.

YLT: but I -- I say to you, not to resist the evil, but whoever shall slap thee on thy right cheek, turn to him also the other;

Darby: But I say unto you, not to resist evil; but whoever shall strike thee on thy right cheek, turn to him also the other;

ASV: but I say unto you, resist not him that is evil: but whosoever smiteth thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

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. 

What does Matthew 5:39 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Jesus first expounded God"s intention regarding retaliation. Essentially He said: When evil people do you wrong, do not resist them. "Resist" (Gr. anthistemi) means to defend oneself, not to take aggressive action against someone, as the following verses illustrate. When evil people do bad things to us, Jesus" disciples should accept the injustice without taking revenge. [1] Implicit in this view are Old Testament promises that God will take care of the righteous. Therefore to accept injustice without retaliating expresses trust that God will faithfully care for His own. The Old Testament taught that the Jews were to leave vengeance to God ( Leviticus 19:17-18; Deuteronomy 32:35; Psalm 94:1; Proverbs 20:22; Proverbs 24:29). Discerning Jews realized this in Jesus" day. [2] Paul resisted (Gr. anthistemi) Peter ( Galatians 2:11) out of love for the gospel and his fellow believers, not out of selfishness. We should stand up for what is right and for the rights of others, but we should trust God to stand up for us.

Context Summary

Matthew 5:38-48 - Brotherly Relationship
In mentioning the second mile, our Lord refers to a well-known Eastern custom of forwarding messages by relays of forced labor. We leave our homes on a given morning, anticipating no evil. Suddenly and unexpectedly there are sounds of horses' hoofs and a great demand is thrust upon us. We are sent off in a direction we never contemplated and are compelled to go one mile. It is the second that tests character; and your actions with respect to it will determine whether you have entered into the spirit of Christ and are willing to serve others for love's sake and at cost of peril and inconvenience to yourself.
Love to one's neighbor appears in many passages in the Old Testament. See Exodus 23:4-5. But we have to love enemies and resemble God's sun and rain, Matthew 5:45. You say that it is impossible! Remember those sweet old words: "I taught Ephraim to go," Hosea 11:1-4. Ask your Heavenly Father to teach you to love. Remember Galatians 5:22. Dare to believe that He will perfect what concerneth you. [source]

Chapter Summary: Matthew 5

1  Jesus' sermon on the mount:
3  The Beattitudes;
13  the salt of the earth;
14  the light of the world
17  He came to fulfill the law
21  What it is to kill;
27  to commit adultery;
33  to swear
38  He exhorts to forgive wrong,
43  to love our enemies;
48  and to labor after perfection

Greek Commentary for Matthew 5:39

Resist not him that is evil [με αντιστηναι τωι πονηρωι]
Here again it is the infinitive (second aorist active) in indirect command. But is it “the evil man” or the “evil deed”? The dative case is the same form for masculine and neuter. Weymouth puts it “not to resist a (the) wicked man,” Moffatt “not to resist an injury,” Goodspeed “not to resist injury.” The examples will go with either view. Jesus protested when smitten on the cheek (John 18:22). And Jesus denounced the Pharisees (Matthew 23) and fought the devil always. The language of Jesus is bold and picturesque and is not to be pressed too literally. Paradoxes startle and make us think. We are expected to fill in the other side of the picture. One thing certainly is meant by Jesus and that is that personal revenge is taken out of our hands, and that applies to “lynch-law.” Aggressive or offensive war by nations is also condemned, but not necessarily defensive war or defence against robbery and murder. Professional pacifism may be mere cowardice. [source]

Reverse Greek Commentary Search for Matthew 5:39

Matthew 6:24 The other [ἕτερον]
Implying distinction in quality rather than numerical distinction ( ἄλλος ). For example, “whoever smiteth thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other ( τὴν ἄλλην ); i.e., the other one of the two (Matthew 5:39). At Pentecost, the disciples began to speak with other ( ἑτέραις ) tongues; i.e., different from their native tongues. Here the word gives the idea of two masters of distinct or opposite character and interests, like God and Mammon. [source]
Matthew 26:67 Smote with the palms of their hands []
All expressed by one word, ἐράπισαν , from ῥαπίς , a rod, and meaning to smite with rods, not with the palms. The same word is employed in Matthew 5:39. It came to mean generally to strike. [source]
Matthew 26:52 Put up again thy sword [αποστρεπσον την μαχαιραν σου]
Turn back thy sword into its place. It was a stern rebuke for Peter who had misunderstood the teaching of Jesus in Luke 22:38 as well as in Matthew 5:39 (cf. John 18:36). The reason given by Jesus has had innumerable illustrations in human history. The sword calls for the sword. Offensive war is here given flat condemnation. The Paris Pact of 1928 (the Kellogg Treaty) is certainly in harmony with the mind of Christ. The will to peace is the first step towards peace, the outlawing of war. Our American cities are often ruled by gangsters who kill each other off. [source]
Luke 6:29 On the cheek [επι την σιαγονα]
Matthew 5:39 has “right.” Old word meaning jaw or jawbone, but in the N.T. only here and Matthew 5:39, which see note for discussion. It seems an act of violence rather than contempt. Sticklers for extreme literalism find trouble with the conduct of Jesus in John 18:22. where Jesus, on receiving a slap in the face, protested against it. [source]
John 18:22 Struck - with the palm of his hand [ἔδωκε ῥάπισμα]
Literally, gave a blow. Interpreters differ as to whether it was a blow with a rod, or with the hand. The kindred verb ῥαπίζω , from ῥαπίς , a rod, is etymologically related to ῥαβδίζω , from ῥάβδος , a rod, and occurs Matthew 5:39, of smiting on the cheek, and Matthew 26:67, where it is distinguished from κολαφίζω , to strike with the fist. This latter passage, however, leaves the question open, since, if the meaning to smite with a rod can be defended, there is nothing to prevent its being understood there in that sense. The earlier meaning of the word was, undoubtedly, according to its etymology, to smite with a rod. So Herodotus of Xerxes. “It is certain that he commanded those who scourged ( ῥαπι.ζοντας ) the waters (of the Hellespont) to utter, as they lashed them, these barbarian and wicked words” (vii., 35). And again: “The Corinthian captain, Adeimantus, observed, 'Themistocles, at the games they who start too soon are scourged ( ῥαπίζονται )'” (viii., 59). It passes, in classical Greek, from this meaning to that of a light blow with the hand. The grammarian Phrynichus (A. D. 180) condemns the use of the word in the sense of striking with the hand, or slapping, as not according to good Attic usage, and says that the proper expression for a blow on the cheek with the open hand is ἐπὶ κόρρης πατάξαι . This shows that the un-Attic phrase had crept into use. In the Septuagint the word is clearly used in the sense of a blow with the hand. See Isaiah 50:6: “I gave my cheeks to blows ( εἰς ῥαπι.σματα ). Hosea 11:4, “As a man that smiteth ( ῥαπίζων ) upon his cheeks” (A.V. and Rev., that take off the yoke on their jaws ). In 1 Kings 22:24, we read, “Zedekiah - smote Micaiah on the cheek ( ἐπάταξε ἐπὶ τὴν σιαγόνα ).” The word in John 18:23, δέρεις , literally, flayest, hence, do beat or thrash (compare Luke 12:47), seems better to suit the meaning strike with a rod; yet in 2 Corinthians 11:20, that verb is used of smiting in the face ( εἰς πρόσωπον δέρει ), and in 1 Corinthians 9:27, where Paul is using the figure of a boxer, he says, “So fight I ( πυκτεύω , of boxing, or fighting with the fists ), not as one that beateth ( δέρων ) the air.” These examples practically destroy the force of the argument from δέρεις . It is impossible to settle the point conclusively; but, on the whole, it seems as well to retain the rendering of the A.V. and Rev. [source]
Romans 12:17 Evil for evil [κακον αντι κακου]
Directly opposite to the law of retaliation of the Pharisees as in Matthew 5:39; 1 Thessalonians 5:15; 1 Corinthians 13:5. Take thought of (προνοουμενοι — pronooumenoi). “Taking thought beforehand.” Old word. See note on 2 Corinthians 8:21. [source]
2 Corinthians 11:20 Smite you on the face []
The climax of insult. Compare Matthew 5:39; Luke 22:64; Acts 23:2. Also the injunction to a bishop not to be a striker, 1 Timothy 3:3; Titus 1:7. Stanley notes the decree of the Council of Braga, a.d. 675, that no bishop, at his will and pleasure, shall strike his clergy. [source]
2 Thessalonians 3:3 From evil [ἀπὸ τοῦ πονηροῦ]
Possibly, from the evil one. Τὸ πονηρόν evilis found Romans 12:9; Matthew 5:39; but general N.T. usage favors the masculine, personal sense. See Matthew 13:19, Matthew 13:38; Ephesians 6:16; 1 John 2:13, 1 John 2:14; 1 John 3:12; 1 John 5:18. In lxx, τὸ πονηρόν evil is very common: ὁ πονηρὸς a few times, but always of men. See Deuteronomy 24:7; Esther 7:6; Job 21:30. In Tobit 3:8,17, τὸ πονηρόν δαιμόνιον thewicked demon. The masculine is favored by the Jewish formularies, of which traces appear in the Lord's prayer; by the unanimous tradition of Greek interpreters; by the interpretations of Tertullian and Cyprian, and by the evidence of the Syriac and Sahidic Versions. [source]

What do the individual words in Matthew 5:39 mean?

I however say to you not to resist the evil [person] Instead whoever you shall strike on the right cheek of you turn to him also other
ἐγὼ δὲ λέγω ὑμῖν μὴ ἀντιστῆναι τῷ πονηρῷ ἀλλ’ ὅστις σε ῥαπίζει εἰς τὴν δεξιὰν σιαγόνα σου στρέψον αὐτῷ καὶ ἄλλην

δὲ  however 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: δέ  
Sense: but, moreover, and, etc.
λέγω  say 
Parse: Verb, Present Indicative Active, 1st Person Singular
Root: λέγω 
Sense: to say, to speak.
ὑμῖν  to  you 
Parse: Personal / Possessive Pronoun, Dative 2nd Person Plural
Root: σύ  
Sense: you.
ἀντιστῆναι  to  resist 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Infinitive Active
Root: ἀνθίστημι  
Sense: to set one’s self against, to withstand, resist, oppose.
πονηρῷ  evil  [person] 
Parse: Adjective, Dative Neuter Singular
Root: πονηρός  
Sense: full of labours, annoyances, hardships.
ἀλλ’  Instead 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: ἀλλά  
Sense: but.
ὅστις  whoever 
Parse: Personal / Relative Pronoun, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: ὅστις  
Sense: whoever, whatever, who.
ῥαπίζει  shall  strike 
Parse: Verb, Present Indicative Active, 3rd Person Singular
Root: ῥαπίζω  
Sense: to smite with a rod or staff.
δεξιὰν  right 
Parse: Adjective, Accusative Feminine Singular
Root: δεξιός  
Sense: the right, the right hand.
σιαγόνα  cheek 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Feminine Singular
Root: σιαγών  
Sense: the jaw, the jaw bone.
σου  of  you 
Parse: Personal / Possessive Pronoun, Genitive 2nd Person Singular
Root: σύ  
Sense: you.
στρέψον  turn 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Imperative Active, 2nd Person Singular
Root: στρέφω  
Sense: to turn, turn around.
αὐτῷ  to  him 
Parse: Personal / Possessive Pronoun, Dative Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Root: αὐτός  
Sense: himself, herself, themselves, itself.
καὶ  also 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: καί  
Sense: and, also, even, indeed, but.
ἄλλην  other 
Parse: Adjective, Accusative Feminine Singular
Root: ἄλλος  
Sense: another, other.