Even where Jesus referred to the Ten Commandments and the law against committing adultery, He amped up this law to reflect what the heart’s intent was, saying “ You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery. No, it’s not as serious as actually murdering someone but the intent of this could be seen as if someone had opportunity to get away with it, they would. Jesus equated hating someone as murdering them in their heart. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell” (Matt 5:22). Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the court. When Jesus said “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago” He is obviously referring to the Old Covenantal laws found in the Old Testament but now “ anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment.
Jesus said “ You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment” (Matt 5:21).
Jesus showed that it’s not so much a change in the law due to a change in covenants but there is a higher standard today by which God will judge the world. Today, it seems that criminals actually play the victims. The reason for this was so that “ the people will hear of this and be afraid” and hopefully, this will be a deterrent to crime. Thereby they should “ Show no pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot” (Duet 19:21) or in other words, the punishment must fit the crime no more and no less. The rest of the people will hear of this and be afraid, and never again will such an evil thing be done among you” (Duet 19:18-20). In Deuteronomy 19:16-17 for example it says that “ If a malicious witness takes the stand to accuse someone of a crime, the two people involved in the dispute must stand in the presence of the Lord before the priests and the judges who are in office at the time” however the judges “ must make a thorough investigation, and if the witness proves to be a liar, giving false testimony against a fellow Israelite, then do to the false witness as that witness intended to do to the other party. In the Old Testament, as with today, witnesses were invaluable in determining whether a crime had truly been committed or not. Maybe you’ve heard the phrase “an eye for an eye” but what does it mean? Does it mean the same thing under the New Covenant as it did in the Old? The Old Testament Meaning
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