The Prohibitions of Jesus: An Analysis of Negative Commands in the Gospels - Part 2
II. Explicit Prohibitions in the Gospels ("Do Not...")
A. Overview
A significant portion of Jesus' ethical instruction involves direct commands phrased in the negative. These prohibitions explicitly forbid certain actions, attitudes, or ways of thinking, thereby delineating the boundaries of acceptable conduct for his followers. This section examines the most prominent of these "Do not..." commands found in the Gospels, analyzing their meaning within their specific narrative and teaching contexts.
B. Key Prohibitions and Contextual Analysis
1. Judging Others (Matt 7:1-5; Luke 6:37)
- Command: Perhaps one of the most widely cited, yet frequently misunderstood, commands of Jesus is,
Don't judge, so that you won't be judged
(Matthew 7:1). Luke's account adds the parallel command,Don't judge, and you won't be judged. Don't condemn, and you won't be condemned. Set free, and you will be set free.
(Luke 6:37). - Context: This prohibition appears prominently in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) and its Lukan parallel, the Sermon on the Plain (Luke 6). In Matthew, it follows teachings on authentic piety (giving, praying, fasting) and precedes warnings about discernment (giving holy things to dogs, identifying false prophets). Jesus immediately links the command to hypocrisy through the memorable analogy of the speck in the brother's eye versus the log in one's own eye (Matthew 7:3-5).
- Analysis: Scholarly consensus, reflected in the provided resources, indicates this is not a blanket ban on all forms of evaluation or discernment. Such an interpretation would contradict other scriptural injunctions, including Jesus' own commands requiring discernment (e.g., Matthew 7:6 concerning "dogs" and "pigs"; Matthew 7:15-20 concerning false prophets). Instead, the command specifically targets a particular kind of judgment: that which is hypocritical, harsh, condemning, and arises from a sense of superiority. Jesus emphasizes the need for self-examination before attempting to correct others:
You hypocrite! First remove the beam out of your own eye, and then you can see clearly to remove the speck out of your brother's eye.
(Matthew 7:5). The warning carries a principle of reciprocity: the standard one uses to judge others will be the standard by which one is judged (Matthew 7:2). The prohibition is primarily against setting oneself up as the final arbiter of another's standing before God, a role belonging to God alone, and against judging others while ignoring one's own significant failings. It calls for judgment tempered with humility, self-awareness, and mercy. - The command against judging reveals a core tension in Jesus' ethics: the call for radical grace and non-condemnation alongside the necessity of moral discernment within the community. Jesus forbids condemning judgment, yet elsewhere commands discernment regarding those who would profane holy things or lead others astray. This apparent tension underscores that the manner and motive of judgment are paramount. The prohibition targets judgment rooted in hypocrisy, pride, and a lack of mercy, while the call for discernment serves to protect the integrity of the community and its adherence to truth. This reflects Jesus' broader emphasis on internal transformation—humility, self-awareness, and mercy—over mere external compliance or the pronouncement of judgment from a position of perceived moral superiority.
2. Lust (Matt 5:28-30)
- Command: In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus declares,
but I tell you that everyone who gazes at a woman to lust after her has committed adultery with her already in his heart.
(Matthew 5:28). This constitutes a prohibition against the internal act of lust. - Context: This command is part of the section often referred to as the "antitheses" (Matthew 5:21-48), where Jesus contrasts traditional interpretations of the Mosaic Law ("You have heard that it was said...") with his own authoritative teaching ("But I say to you..."). Here, he specifically addresses the seventh commandment, "You shall not commit adultery" (Exodus 20:14).
- Analysis: Jesus radically internalizes the prohibition against adultery. He moves the locus of sin from the external act to the internal thought and desire ("in his heart"). The mere look coupled with "lustful intent" (Greek epithumeō, implying a strong desire, often for what is forbidden) is equated with the completed act in terms of its moral gravity before God. The seriousness of this internal sin is underscored by the subsequent hyperbolic language:
If your right eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out and throw it away from you. For it is more profitable for you that one of your members should perish, than for your whole body to be cast into Gehenna. If your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off, and throw it away from you. For it is more profitable for you that one of your members should perish, than for your whole body to be cast into Gehenna.
(Matthew 5:29-30). This graphic imagery emphasizes the necessity of taking decisive, even drastic, action to deal with the root causes of sin, rather than merely managing outward behavior. - Jesus' prohibition against lust demonstrates his radical focus on the heart as the source of action and impurity, shifting ethical evaluation from outward conformity to internal disposition. While the Old Testament law primarily addressed the physical act of adultery, Jesus extends the prohibition to the precedent internal thought and desire. This aligns perfectly with his later teaching that defilement originates not from external things but from within the human heart, citing "evil thoughts, sexual immorality," etc. (Mark 7:19-23). This implies that the righteousness required by God involves more than behavioral control; it demands a fundamental transformation of inner desires and intentions, setting a standard far higher than the external legalism practiced by many religious figures of his time.
3. Anxiety/Worry (Matt 6:25-34; Luke 12:22-31)
- Command: Jesus repeatedly commands his followers,
Therefore I tell you, don't be anxious for your life: what you will eat, or what you will drink; nor yet for your body, what you will wear. Isn't life more than food, and the body more than clothing?
(Matthew 6:25) about basic life necessities like food, drink, and clothing, or about the future (Matthew 6:25, 31, 34; Luke 12:22). - Context: This teaching appears in both the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew) and the Sermon on the Plain (Luke). In Matthew, it logically follows Jesus' warnings against storing up earthly treasures (Matthew 6:19-21) and the impossibility of serving both God and Mammon (wealth) (Matthew 6:24).
- Analysis: Jesus provides several reasons for this prohibition. Firstly, worry is futile; it cannot add a single hour to one's life span (Matthew 6:27; Luke 12:25). Secondly, it demonstrates a lack of faith in God's providential care. Jesus points to God's provision for the birds of the air and the lilies of the field, arguing that humans, being far more valuable, can surely trust God to provide for their needs (Matthew 6:26, 28-30; Luke 12:24, 27-28). Thirdly, worry about material things is characteristic of those outside a trusting relationship with God ("the pagans run after all these things" - Matthew 6:32; "the nations of the world seek after all these things" - Luke 12:30). Jesus assures his listeners that their "heavenly Father knows that you need them" (Matthew 6:32; Luke 12:30). The positive antidote to worry is given:
But seek first God's Kingdom and his righteousness; and all these things will be given to you as well.
(Matthew 6:33). Worry distracts from this primary commitment. The command culminates in focusing on the present:Therefore don't be anxious for tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Each day's own evil is sufficient.
(Matthew 6:34). - The prohibition against worry intrinsically links theological trust with economic anxiety. It suggests that worry often stems from misplaced trust—reliance on oneself or on accumulated wealth, rather than on God. Jesus has just warned against serving Mammon and storing earthly treasures. The subsequent command not to worry about material needs implies that such anxiety arises precisely when one fails to trust God as the ultimate provider, often because trust has been invested elsewhere. By contrasting worry with God's care for creation and knowledge of human needs and by linking worry to the pursuits of those outside the faith ("pagans run after all these things"), Jesus presents worry not just as an unhelpful emotion but as a symptom of spiritual misalignment. Overcoming anxiety, therefore, requires more than positive thinking; it demands a fundamental reorientation of one's trust and priorities toward God and His Kingdom.
4. Swearing Oaths (Matt 5:33-37)
- Command: Jesus instructs,
Don't swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is the throne of God; nor by the earth, for it is the footstool of his feet; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Neither shall you swear by your head, for you can't make one hair white or black. But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes' and your 'No' be 'No.' Whatever is more than these is of the evil one.
(Matthew 5:34-37). - Context: This is another of the antitheses in the Sermon on the Mount, addressing the Old Testament commands regarding oaths (e.g., Leviticus 19:12; Numbers 30:2; Deuteronomy 23:21). Jesus confronts the contemporary rabbinic practice of creating distinctions between different kinds of oaths, some considered binding and others not, which facilitated deception.
- Analysis: The Old Testament permitted and regulated oaths, primarily those invoking God's name, as a means to guarantee truthfulness. However, complex systems had developed where swearing by created things (heaven, earth, Jerusalem, one's head) was sometimes considered less binding or non-binding, allowing individuals to make seemingly solemn promises without intending to keep them. Jesus rejects these distinctions, arguing that any oath ultimately invokes God, as all creation belongs to Him (heaven is His throne, earth His footstool, Jerusalem His city, even the hairs of one's head are under His control). His command to avoid oaths altogether aims higher: his followers should be characterized by such consistent truthfulness and integrity that their simple word ("Yes" or "No") is sufficient guarantee. The need for oaths arises from a context of potential dishonesty; Jesus calls his disciples to live in a way that transcends this need. Anything beyond simple affirmation or denial "comes from evil" (ek tou ponerou), suggesting it originates either from the evil one (Satan) or from the evil inherent in the human tendency towards deception.
- By forbidding oaths, Jesus challenges systems of regulated dishonesty prevalent in his culture. He calls for a radical transparency and trustworthiness that should render such verbal guarantees obsolete within the community of faith. Oaths existed in the Old Testament as a concession to human untrustworthiness, designed to ensure truth-telling in specific situations. The rabbinic interpretations created loopholes that undermined this purpose. Jesus' complete prohibition for his followers signifies a call to a higher standard of communication, demanding simple, direct, and consistently truthful speech. Within the community reflecting the values of God's kingdom, elaborate verbal guarantees should be unnecessary because members operate on a foundation of inherent trustworthiness, mirroring the truthfulness of God Himself.
5. Retaliation/Resistance to Evil Persons (Matt 5:38-42; Luke 6:29-30)
- Command: Jesus teaches,
Don't resist him who is evil; but whoever strikes you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also.
(Matthew 5:39). - Context: This command forms part of the Sermon on the Mount's antitheses, directly addressing the Old Testament principle of lex talionis: "An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth" (Exodus 21:24; Leviticus 24:20; Deuteronomy 19:21).
- Analysis: The lex talionis was originally intended not to encourage revenge, but to limit it by ensuring that judicial punishment was proportionate to the offense, thus preventing escalating cycles of violence. Jesus, however, shifts the focus from legal settings to personal responses to injury or insult. He commands his followers not to engage in retaliatory action against the person committing the evil act. He illustrates this with specific examples: turning the other cheek when slapped on the right (often interpreted as a response to a backhanded slap, a particularly degrading insult in that culture, met not with retaliation but a refusal to accept the shame and an offer for the aggressor to strike as an equal); giving one's cloak in addition to the tunic when sued (exceeding the legal demand in generosity); and going a second mile when compelled by Roman authority to carry baggage for one mile (subverting the oppression through voluntary, unexpected service). This teaching is not necessarily a mandate for absolute pacifism in every circumstance (e.g., defending one's family or self-defense against lethal threat is not explicitly addressed or forbidden here), but it constitutes a radical rejection of personal vengeance. Instead of responding in kind, disciples are called to absorb the offense and respond with surprising acts of forbearance, generosity, or service, thereby overcoming evil with good.
- Jesus' command against resisting evil persons aims to fundamentally break cycles of violence and retribution. It introduces a radically different, counter-intuitive ethic rooted in absorbing personal offense and responding with unexpected generosity or service. This approach subverts the natural human tendency toward retaliation and the cultural norms that supported it. By commanding his followers not to resist evil persons in these specific ways, Jesus is not advocating passivity in the face of injustice but rather a creative, non-violent engagement that refuses to mirror the aggressor's methods. The examples he provides—turning the other cheek, giving the cloak, going the second mile—all involve actions that maintain human dignity while simultaneously refusing to be defined by the offense or to perpetuate cycles of violence. This teaching aligns with Jesus' broader ethic of enemy love (Matthew 5:43-48) and his own example of non-retaliation, even in the face of his arrest and crucifixion.
C. Other Explicit Prohibitions
Beyond these major prohibitions, Jesus issued numerous other negative commands throughout his ministry. These include:
- Fear:
Don't be afraid of those who kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul. Rather, fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.
(Matthew 10:28; Luke 12:4-5). This prohibition redirects fear from human threats to appropriate reverence for God. - Storing Earthly Treasures:
Don't lay up treasures for yourselves on the earth, where moth and rust consume, and where thieves break through and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consume, and where thieves don't break through and steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
(Matthew 6:19-21). This command warns against materialism and misplaced security. - Serving Two Masters:
No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You can't serve both God and Mammon.
(Matthew 6:24; Luke 16:13). This prohibition addresses divided loyalty between God and wealth. - Hypocrisy in Religious Practices:
When you pray, you shall not be as the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Most certainly, I tell you, they have received their reward.
(Matthew 6:5). Similar prohibitions address giving alms and fasting (Matthew 6:2, 16). - Causing Others to Stumble:
Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to stumble, it would be better for him if a huge millstone were hung around his neck, and that he were sunk in the depths of the sea.
(Matthew 18:6; Mark 9:42; Luke 17:2). This strong warning protects vulnerable believers. - Despising Children/Little Ones:
See that you don't despise one of these little ones, for I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven.
(Matthew 18:10). This prohibition elevates the status of children and the humble. - Divorce and Remarriage:
Whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and he who marries her when she is divorced commits adultery.
(Matthew 19:9; Mark 10:11-12; Luke 16:18). This teaching restricts divorce and protects the marriage covenant. - Seeking Prominence and Titles:
But don't you be called 'Rabbi,' for one is your teacher, the Christ, and all of you are brothers. Call no man on the earth your father, for one is your Father, he who is in heaven. Neither be called masters, for one is your master, the Christ.
(Matthew 23:8-10). This prohibits seeking religious status and titles.