You have heard that it was said to your ancestors,

You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment. But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment, and whoever says to his brother, Raqa, will be answerable to the Sanhedrin, and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ will be liable to fiery Gehenna. Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court with him. Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison.

Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.

In Matthew’s gospel today, Jesus calls for more that keeping a law forbidding killing someone physically. He asks for loving others by the way we think, speak or act toward them. He speaks of anger, a neutral emotion that can push us to do good or do harm. Laws can’t legislate anger; anger goes beyond law. 

Anger can lead to hatred and disrespect. Thoughts can kill, words can destroy. The commandment “You shall not kill” goes further than killing the body. Watch the way you think and speak about others, Jesus teaches. The commandment not to kill goes far beyond a law about murder. 

Jesus doesn’t dispute the need for laws in society in Matthew’s gospel, nor does he call for replacing Jewish law for laws of his own. His words, directed to the Jewish-Christian church represented in Matthew’s gospel, affirms the place of the Torah, the Jewish law. Unfortunately, the English word “law” often used to describe the Torah, restricts its meaning. A law like “Thou shalt not kill” is not meant to be reduced to a law against murder.

Jesus saw the Torah as a guide to something more.