Luke 6:27-31

6:27 “But I say to you who are listening: Love your enemies, ¹  do good to those who hate you, 6:28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat ²  you. 6:29 To the person who strikes you on the cheek, ³  offer the other as well, ⁴  and from the person who takes away your coat, ⁵  do not withhold your tunic ⁶  either. ⁷  6:30 Give to everyone who asks you, ⁸  and do not ask for your possessions ⁹  back ¹⁰  from the person who takes them away. 6:31 Treat others ¹¹  in the same way that you would want them to treat you. ¹² 

Luke 22:51

22:51 But Jesus said, ¹³  “Enough of this!” And he touched the man’s ¹⁴  ear and healed ¹⁵  him.

Luke 23:34

23:34 [But Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.”] ¹⁶  Then ¹⁷  they threw dice ¹⁸  to divide his clothes. ¹⁹ 

Matthew 5:39

5:39 But I say to you, do not resist the evildoer. ²⁰  But whoever strikes you on the ²¹  right cheek, turn the other to him as well.

Romans 12:21

12:21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Romans 12:1

Consecration of the Believer’s Life

12:1 Therefore I exhort you, brothers and sisters, ²²  by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a sacrifice – alive, holy, and pleasing to God ²³  – which is your reasonable service.

Romans 2:21-23

2:21 therefore ²⁴  you who teach someone else, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? 2:22 You who tell others not to commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor ²⁵  idols, do you rob temples? 2:23 You who boast in the law dishonor God by transgressing the law!

¹ sn Love your enemies is the first of four short exhortations that call for an unusual response to those who are persecuting disciples. Disciples are to relate to hostility in a completely unprecedented manner.

² tn The substantival participle ἐπηρεαζόντων (ephreazontwn), sometimes translated “those who abuse” (NRSV), is better rendered “those who mistreat,” a more general term (see L&N 88.129).

³ sn The phrase strikes you on the cheek probably pictures public rejection, like the act that indicated expulsion from the synagogue.

⁴ sn This command to offer the other cheek as well is often misunderstood. It means that there is risk involved in reaching out to people with God’s hope. But if one is struck down in rejection, the disciple is to continue reaching out.

⁵ tn Or “cloak.”

⁶ tn See the note on the word “tunics” in 3:11.

⁷ sn The command do not withhold your tunic either is again an image of continually being totally at risk as one tries to keep contact with those who are hostile to what Jesus and his disciples offer.

⁸ sn Jesus advocates a generosity and a desire to meet those in dire need with the command give to everyone who asks you. This may allude to begging; giving alms was viewed highly in the ancient world (Matt 6:1-4; Deut 15:7-11).

⁹ tn Grk “your things,” sometimes translated “what is yours” or “what belongs to you.”

¹⁰ sn Do not ask for your possessions back… is an example of showing forgiveness. Paul’s remarks in 1 Cor 6:7 may reflect this principle.

¹¹ tn This is a generic use of ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo"), referring to both males and females.

¹² sn Jesus’ teaching as reflected in the phrase treat others in the same way you would want them to treat you, known generally as the Golden Rule, is not completely unique in the ancient world, but it is stated here in its most emphatic, selfless form.

¹³ tn Grk “But answering, Jesus said.” This is redundant in contemporary English and has been simplified in the translation.

¹⁴ tn Grk “his”; the referent (the slave of the high priest mentioned in the previous verse) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁵ sn When Jesus healed the man’s ear he showed grace even to those who hated him, following his own teaching (Luke 6:27-36).

¹⁶ tc Many important mss (Ì⁷⁵ א¹ B D* W Θ 070 579 1241 pc sy^s sa) lack v. 34a. It is included in א*^,2 (A) C D² L Ψ 0250 Ë^1,(13) 33 Ï lat sy^c,p,h. It also fits a major Lukan theme of forgiving the enemies (6:27-36), and it has a parallel in Stephen’s response in Acts 7:60. The lack of parallels in the other Gospels argues also for inclusion here. On the other hand, the fact of the parallel in Acts 7:60 may well have prompted early scribes to insert the saying in Luke’s Gospel alone. Further, there is the great difficulty of explaining why early and diverse witnesses lack the saying. A decision is difficult, but even those who regard the verse as inauthentic literarily often consider it to be authentic historically. For this reason it has been placed in single brackets in the translation.

¹⁷ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

¹⁸ tn Grk “cast lots” (probably by using marked pebbles or broken pieces of pottery). A modern equivalent “threw dice” was chosen here because of its association with gambling.

¹⁹ sn An allusion to Ps 22:18, which identifies Jesus as the suffering innocent one.

²⁰ tn The articular πονηρός (ponhro", “the evildoer”) cannot be translated simply as “evil” for then the command would be “do not resist evil.” Every instance of this construction in Matthew is most likely personified, referring either to an evildoer (13:49) or, more often, “the evil one” (as in 5:37; 6:13; 13:19, 38).

²¹ tc ‡ Many mss (B D K L Δ Θ Ë¹³ 565 579 700 1424 pm) have σου (sou) here (“your right cheek”), but many others lack the pronoun (א W ˹ 33 892 1241 pm). The pronoun was probably added by way of clarification. NA²⁷ has σου in brackets, indicating doubt as to its authenticity.

²² tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:13.

²³ tn The participle and two adjectives “alive, holy, and pleasing to God” are taken as predicates in relation to “sacrifice,” making the exhortation more emphatic. See ExSyn 618-19.

²⁴ tn The structure of vv. 21-24 is difficult. Some take these verses as the apodosis of the conditional clauses (protases) in vv. 17-20; others see vv. 17-20 as an instance of anacoluthon (a broken off or incomplete construction).

²⁵ tn Or “detest.”