1. Prevalence of antithesis in the gospels.
- Matthew 5:43-44: "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you . . ." Jesus asks us to do things which are opposed to our natural sinful nature. The verb "love" is notoriously difficult to translate in some cultures. Where there is no clear equivalent, phrases have been utilized such as "be concerned for their welfare," "care for," "treat/think of with affection," or "have sweet (or hot or cool, etc) stomach (or liver, heart, etc.) for." (Newman, 152) It may be argued that these options all fall short of the highly defined concept of love in Greek. (Here from αγαπάω, which is differentiated from φιλία, στοργή, πρᾶγμα, or ξενία) What is interesting, however, is how functional these renderings would be in the Christian life, despite their difference from the original and their differences from each other. No matter which of these options you choose, the saying is still a confrontation of the normal state of things. We naturally hate our enemies and love those who are nice to us. We give to those who will give us something in return. We lend out things only when we expect to get them back. Jesus however, is saying that God is not like us. He gives good things to evil men. He sends rain on those who will never thank him for it, and so anyone who would seek to be like him must do the same. This goes against our natural sinful state, making it transferable and translatable into any culture.
Newman, Barclay Moon, and Philip C. Stine. A Translator's Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew. New York: United Bible Societies, 1992.
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