Gospel of Matthew Chapter 5 Vs. 26

 Anger

Matthew 5:26 “Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.”

Verily I say... This is in connection with the last lesson, where we need to agree before going to court and being thrown in jail.

by no means... Christians, as I said in an earlier lesson, should not be looking for reasons to sue someone. We need to live peaceably with all men.

the uttermost farthing... In the case of some debt.

Without such reconciliation, gifts presented at the altar mean nothing: Even on the way to a court trial a defendant should seek to clear up any such problem. Otherwise the Sanhedrin, the Jewish court of 70 members, would send him to prison and he would be penniless.

Book of Hosea Chapter 2 Vs. 22

The Lord's Mercy on Israel 

And the earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil; and they shall hear Jezreel. Hos. 2:22

earth shall hear... They (Israel) in turn will respond by calling to the earth from which they are produced. The earth in turn will look to the heavens, the source of the rain which makes the soil productive. The heavens will then call to the Lord, the One who ultimately controls the agricultural cycle. He will respond by providing the rain necessary for agricultural prosperity.

The relationship with God and Israel is restored. This time, it will never be separated again. When this great day comes, there will be no enemy. The land will abundantly produce for Israel during the Millennium.

The promise of restored agricultural blessing, mentioned briefly in Hos. 2:15, is expanded here. A series of cries and responses is envisioned as different elements of the natural world are personified. Jezreel (the nation of Israel here) will cry out to the grain… wine, and oil.

shall hear Jezreel... (as in 1:11), used here in the positive sense of scattering seed to sow it.

Jezreel (the nation of Israel here) will cry out to the grain… wine, and oil. They in turn will respond by calling to the earth from which they are produced. The earth in turn will look to the heavens, the source of the rain which makes the soil productive. The heavens will then call to the Lord, the One who ultimately controls the agricultural cycle. He will respond by providing the rain necessary for agricultural prosperity.

Gospel of Matthew Chapter 5 Vs. 25

 Anger

Verses 25-26: The Savior then went on to say that even if “thine adversary” (an opponent at law), disagrees with you; it is to your advantage to be reconciled to him. Jesus’ exhortation here is to urge us to go out of our way to avoid legal conflicts before human judges (verse 40). The payment of debt and the “prison” referred to here, simply mean the normal legal process that one would encounter in a civil suit.

Matthew 5:25 “Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison.”

with thine adversary... Opponent at law. Under Roman law an adversary could force his opponent to go before the judge (Mat. 18:28-30). If he would settle on the way to the judge he would not be tried in court (Luke 12:58-59).

whiles thou art... Jesus calls for reconciliation to be sought eagerly, aggressively, quickly, even if it involves self-sacrifice. It is better to be wronged than to allow a dispute between brethren to be a cause for dishonoring Christ.

I really believe that Jesus told us that if there is any possible way to settle something out of court, do it. People have gotten into a rut, suing everyone for the slightest thing. Most things could be settled out of court, if people would just try. There is no reason for two Christians to fight something out in court. The two should get together, and pray, and each gives a little.

These terribly expensive court cases could be stopped. Give a little if necessary, it will be cheaper than hiring an attorney. Praying together can solve many problems. Learn to forgive and forget. Christians should not subject themselves to the judges of this earth. There is one Judge and His name is Jesus.

Such wrongful attitudes should be dealt with and made right. Reconciliation between brothers must be accomplished whether the “innocent” (Mat. 5:23-24) or the “offending” (Mat. 5:25-26) brother takes the first step.

Book of Hosea Chapter 2 Vs. 21

 The Lord's Mercy on Israel

And it shall come to pass in that day, I will hear, saith the LORD, I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth; Hos. 2:21

in that day... In that day and at that day are characteristic of Isaiah in whose book they are found 53 times compared to the 4 in Hosea (Hos. 2:1:5; 2:16, 2:18, 2:21).

I will hear,... These statements express prosperity (Hos. 2:21-22).

A reversal of circumstances (compare 1:4, 6, 9).

This is speaking of the time when the door to heaven is opened. God has access to the people, and we have access to Him.

Renewed blessing

The promise of restored agricultural blessing, mentioned briefly in Hos. 2:15, is expanded here. A series of cries and responses is envisioned as different elements of the natural world are personified.

Gospel of Matthew Chapter 5 Vs. 23-24

 Anger

Matthew 5:23-24 “Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee;” “Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.”

We must, as Christians, love our brothers and sisters in Christ as we do ourselves. God will not accept offerings made from a heart full of bitterness. If we take communion with bitterness in our hearts, we may drink sickness, and sometimes death unto our bodies.

Quickly forgive everyone and particularly the brothers and sisters in Christ. God desires that we love each other. We do not love the sins in someone lives, but we love the person. Hate the sin and love the sinner.

Such wrongful attitudes should be dealt with and made right. Reconciliation between brothers must be accomplished whether the “innocent” (Mat. 5:23-24) or the “offending” (Mat. 5:25-26) brother takes the first step.

Book of Hosea Chapter 2 Vs. 20

 The Lord's Mercy on Israel

I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness: and thou shalt know the LORD. Hos. 2:20

I will even... And it is he that makes them faithful unto him, and gives them faith to believe in him, receive, embrace, own, and acknowledge him as their husband: and in this sense, some understand it, rendering it, "in faith".

This is the third time the word "betroth" is used, or this promise made; which, according to Jerome, refers to them espousing of the Jews in Abraham, at Mount Sinai, and in the times of Christ.

Keeping the marriage contract inviolable, Christ will never suffer his faithfulness to fail, nor break his covenant. As he is faithful to his Father that appointed him, so he is, and will be, to his church and people, and to every believer, to whom he is espoused.

and thou shalt... That the Messiah is Jehovah, and that he is their husband; they shall all know him, from the least to the greatest; they shall have a saving knowledge of him, which will issue in eternal life; they shall own him, and acknowledge him, serve and obey him, as their Lord, Head, and Husband, as well as love him, and believe in him.

Hebrews 8:11 "And they shall not teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest."

thou shalt know... This is very characteristic of Ezekiel who uses such an idea about 75 times, compared to this once in Hosea.

This knowing is a free gift from God.

In response to the divine love showered on her, Israel will acknowledge the Lord. In contrast with her former tendency to forget (cf. Hos. 2:13) she will recognize His authority by demonstrating loyalty to Him. “Acknowledge” (yāḏa‛, “to know”) often occurs in covenantal contexts with the sense of “recognize.” For example, the Lord recognized (lit., “knew”) Israel’s special relationship to Him (cf. Amos 3:2 1, KJV). Israel in return was to recognize (lit., “know”) only the authority of her Lord (cf. Hos. 13:4). In Hebrew thought, such recognition was not a mere mental exercise; it implied action (cf. Jer. 22:16). In Israel’s case it meant obedience to the Lord’s commandments (cf. Hos. 8:1-2). In the future all Israel will “know” the Lord because, as Jeremiah wrote, He will put His “Law in their minds and write it on their hearts” (Jer. 31:33). This is the promise of the New Covenant (Jer. 31:31-34), which corresponds to the new marriage pictured in Hos. 2:19-20.

Gospel of Matthew Chapter 5 Vs. 22

 Anger

Matthew 5:22 But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.

I say unto... Christ speaks with authority in making the laws of the new covenant (Mat. 7:29; 26:28; John 1:17).

without a cause... People must have just and lawful causes to be angry and even then they are to keep their temper under strict control (Eph. 4:26). The fruit of the Spirit is temperance or self-control (Gal. 5:22).

his brother, Raca... An Aramaic word of utmost contempt and scorn, such as scoundrel or wicked rascal.

of the council... The Sanhedrin, composed of 71 judges presided over by the high priest, or a local council of each synagogue composed of 3 or more men.

Thou fool, shall... Greek: moros, a wicked reprobate, destitute of all spirituality.

of hell fire... Greek: gehenna (Hebrew: gay’ Hinnom, Valley of Hinnom), near Jerusalem, where perpetual fires were kept to burn all refuse and purify the air to prevent pestilence (Isa. 30:33; Jer. 7:31-32; 19:6-14; 2Kgs. 23:10). Used 12 times of hell, the place of eternal punishment of the wicked (Mat. 5:22, 5:29, 5:30; 10:28; 18:9; 23:15, 23:33; Mark 9:43-47; Luke 12:5; Jas. 3:6). It is the same as "the lake of fire" (Rev. 19:20; 20:11-15; 21:8), "furnace of fire" (Mat. 8:12; 13:42, 13:50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30; Luke 3:17), and a place of eternal "fire and brimstone" (Mat. 25:41, 25:46; Rev. 14:9-11; 19:20; 20:10-15; 21:8; Isa. 66:22-24). See, Luke 12:5.

Jesus suggested here that the verbal abuse stems from the same sinful motives (anger and hatred), that ultimately lead to murder. The internal attitude is what the law actually prohibits, and therefore an abusive insult carries the same kind of moral guilt as an act of murder.

Here again, Jesus was telling us that the sin takes place in the heart. We have sinned already if we desire to kill, even if we do not carry it out. We should not call people names. First of all, we are not their judge, Jesus is their judge. Notice here, it says do not call your brother “Raca”. This is one Christian calling another this name. “Raca” means, “o empty one”, or “thou art worthless”. Christians are never empty; they are filled with the Spirit of Jesus. They are never worthless. Jesus thought they were valuable enough that He gave His life for them. You can see, if we were to call a Christian this name, we would be saying that Jesus was in error. You can readily see how dangerous this would be.

The word that was translated “fool” here, has a base meaning of stupid, blockhead, absurd, or dull. It is very important to be more concerned with cleaning up our own lives, than trying to criticize our brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk.

Furthermore, becoming angry and assuming a position of superiority over another by calling him a derogatory name (such as the Aram. Raca or You fool!) demonstrates sinfulness of the heart. A person with such a sinful heart obviously is a sinner and therefore is headed for the fire of hell (“hell” is lit., “Gehenna”; cf. Mat. 5:29-30; 10:28; 18:9; 23:15, 23:33; 7:1-29 of the 11 references to Gehenna are in Mat.). “Gehenna” means valley of Hinnom, the valley south of Jerusalem where a continually burning fire consumed the city refuse. This became an apt name for the eternal punishment of the wicked.