Context No. 3450 of 4322 · Matthew

Matthew 5:38-42: in context

38“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39But I tell you, don’t resist him who is evil; but whoever strikes you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also. 40If anyone sues you to take away your coat, let him have your cloak also. 41Whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. 42Give to him who asks you, and don’t turn away him who desires to borrow from you.

Jesus overturns the old measured retaliation, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, with something startling: do not resist the one who is evil; if he strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. Give your cloak as well as your coat. Go the second mile. Give to the one who asks of you.

He calls his followers not merely to limit their revenge but to renounce it altogether, and even to answer wrong with unexpected generosity. This is not weakness or mere passivity; it is a refusal to let evil set the terms, a freedom to overcome hostility with grace instead of trading blow for blow. The person who turns the other cheek and walks the second mile is not defeated but strangely free, no longer trapped in the endless cycle of retaliation. It is a hard teaching, running against every instinct, and yet it reflects the very heart of God, who is kind even to the ungrateful and the evil.

Am I willing to break the cycle of retaliation, responding to wrong not with revenge but with unexpected grace, as Jesus calls me to?

Sources

Matthew 5:39: "But I tell you, don't resist him who is evil; but whoever strikes you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also."
Matthew 5:41: "Whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two."
Matthew 5:44: "Love your enemies, bless those who curse you... and pray for those who mistreat you."