Responding to Insults, Lawsuits, and Forced Labor—Jesus’ 4 Case-studies in Applied Meekness

In this week’s post, we consider Jesus’ take on the perhaps the oldest law in the world, Lex Talionis, or in English, the Law of Retribution in Matthew 5:38-43,

                    “You have heard that it was said,

‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’

   But I say to you,

        Do not resist the one who is evil.

    But if anyone slaps         you on the right cheek,

                                 turn to him the other also.

   And if anyone would sue you

                                       and take your tunic,

                                 let him have your cloak as well.

   And if anyone       forces you to go one mile,

                                         go with him two miles.

       Give to           the one who begs from you,

and do not refuse the one who 

                                     would borrow from you.

The law of retribution taught “An eye for an eye” and as harsh as it sounds to the modern ear it was actually designed to limit the escalation of violent responses, and prevent ongoing blood feuds like the Hatfields and the McCoys. It also took retribution away from the realm of an individual vendetta and put it in the hands of the Government. We can see this law applied in three different contexts in the Old Testament,

• Exodus 21:22-25 Premature Birth injuries 
• Leviticus 24:17-22 Personal Injury claims
• Deuteronomy 19:15-21 Laws Concerning Witnesses (penalties for perjury)

However, at the time of Christ, the focus of retaliation had shifted back to that of revenge. People were using this law as a way to get their pound of flesh from those who had offended them. Jesus forbids retaliation in the face of persecution for the sake of Christ and kingdom righteousness. He gives

Four Case Studies

Jesus' subsequent teaching contains four examples, or illustrations, of how Christian disciples should endure personal injury and endure self-sacrifice in the face of persecution.

v. 39 Slapping (Insults)

    But I say to you,
        Do not resist the one who is evil.
    But if anyone slaps          you on the right cheek,
                                 turn to him the other also. 

This slap on the right cheek is not an “I could have had a V8!” kind of slap on the forehead, nor a Special Agent Gibbs’ “get it together” slap to the back of the head.  It was a deliberate and dehumanizing insult. Rabbinic literature shows that being slapped backhand was twice as insulting as an open-handed slap. Notice that Jesus specifies the right cheek…which, since the majority of people are right-handed would imply a most insulting backhanded slap. This was not someone trying to kill you or your family this was someone who wanted to treat you disrespectfully. Jesus’ ethic doesn’t necessarily demand absolute pacifism although many take it that way. What it does suggest is that you don’t stoop to their level and slap them back…instead, you let them insult the other side of your face as well.

v. 40 Suing (Lawsuits)

 And if anyone would sue you
                                 and take your tunic,
                           let him have your cloak as well.

I can’t think about a tunic now without laughing as I remember Kahmunrah’s “It’s not a dress it’s a tunic” scene in Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian (2009). However, what this verse describes is not funny. This type of lawsuit describes someone wanting to wring the last possessions possible away from the very poorest in the land…those whose tunic, or the very shirt on their back, was their most valuable possession that could be repossessed. This is indicative of those who have lost all they own because of their discipleship.  Exodus 22:26-27 says,

If ever you take your neighbor's cloak in pledge, you shall return it to him before the sun goes down, for that is his only covering, and it is his cloak for his body; in what else shall he sleep? And if he cries to me, I will hear, for I am compassionate.

If someone wants your tunic, Jesus says we should not hold back our cloak as well, which represents our basic human rights. We are not called to defend even our own basic human rights to a cloak to wrap up in at night. This is a far cry from our “demand-your-rights-and-more” culture that is willing to use the power of litigation to enrich themselves at the expense of others. The disciple of Christ is not to be a taker, but a giver.

v. 41 Schlepping (Forced labor)

    And if anyone       forces you to go one mile,
                                         go with him two miles
 
In case you didn’t know, schlepping is actually a Yiddish word that means “to carry or drag an unwieldy object” and it may also be a term used to refer to a “clumsy person”. So in a sense, when asked to carry the soldier’s pack, schlepping was what you were doing, as well as what you might be called by the owner of the pack. Simon of Cyrene was pressed into service by the Roman soldiers to carry Jesus' cross. Some believe it was because they knew that he was a follower of Jesus.
So, when compelled by an oppressive law to carry the soldier’s pack and luggage for 1000 paces, what was the disciple to do? Jesus encouraged his disciples to show coercive love by carrying the load 2000 paces. In fact, the point was not to begrudgingly give another 1000 paces but to cheerfully serve with a generous and loving spirit. How can the man show the oppressor that he is not merely a slave or an object to be used? You cannot rebel without suffering a beating or even death, you cannot respond with a bad attitude without giving the soldier the satisfaction that they have power over you What can you do?  In love, you can go twice as far as they have a right to expect... Recently a bakery was sued for refusing to bake a cake for a gay wedding and has been hit with huge fines. Some astute conservative politicians noted that it might have been a more biblical response for the bakery to bake them two cakes instead of refusing to bake one.

v. 42 Siphoning (economic harassment)

    Give to               the one who begs from you,
 and do not refuse the one who  
                                     would borrow from you.             

This verse about giving to those who beg does not mean that anytime someone asks for money you should give it to them. Sometimes helping hurts, as Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert make clear in their book, When Helping Hurts. Do we ever stop to consider who was permitted to beg at the time of Christ? They were usually blind, maimed, or diseased not merely those who would not work. Today we are faced with people begging for money at almost every freeway onramp and exit. Some have legitimate needs and some do not. What captured my attention in this passage was the word apostrepho which is here translated as “do not refuse.” Literally, it means “do not turn away from” and I like this aspect of our response to those who ask to borrow. What if we chose to not turn away? What would that mean? What would it look like? How can we best be loving and relational? Sometimes it is easier to give a bit of money or food and walk away, but even that superficial giving can still be a “turning away from” them. I am reminded of 1 Corinthians 13:3, “If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.”

So in these four examples of persecution and harassment which Jesus put forth, we can see that disciples who follow Jesus are challenged to:

1.    Respond to others better than they deserve. (v.39)

2.    Give to others more than they try to take. (v.40)

3.    Go further and work harder than those in power can demand. (v.41)

4.    Care more relationally for those in need than they actually expect. (v.42)

In applied meekness, Jesus did all four of these things for us…out of His unmatched love for us. To Him be the glory!