Matthew 7:12 - The Golden Rule
MATTHEW 5:12 WAS CORRECTED TO MATTHEW 7:12 IN FIVE OBVIOUS
PLACES BELOW!
Mat.7:12: The Golden Rule.
Matt 7:12 (NLT) "Do for others what you would like them to do
for you. This is a summary of all that is taught in the law and the
prophets.
DEVOTIONAL PEARL
Christ teaches that our anxiety should not be, How much are we
to receive? but, How much can we give?.....
In your association with others, put yourself in their place.
Enter into their feelings, their difficulties, their disappointments,
their joys, and their sorrows. Identify yourself with them, and then
do to them as, were you to exchange places with them, you would
wish them to deal with you....... It is another expression of the law.
"Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." Matthew 22:39. And it is
the substance of the teaching of the prophets. It is a principle of
heaven, and will be developed in all who are fitted for its holy
companionship....
There is a yet deeper significance to the golden rule. Everyone
who has been made a steward of the manifold grace of God is called
upon to impart to souls in ignorance and darkness, even as, were he
in their place, he would desire them to impart to him....
So also with the gifts and blessings of this life: whatever you
may possess above your fellows places you in debt, to that degree,
to all who are less favored. Have we wealth, or even the comforts
of life, then we are under the most solemn obligation to care for
the suffering sick, the widow, and the fatherless exactly as we
would desire them to care for us were our condition and theirs to be
reversed......
The golden rule teaches, by implication, the same truth which is
taught elsewhere in the Sermon on the Mount, that "with what measure ye
mete, it shall be measured to you again." That which we do to others,
whether it be good or evil, will surely react upon ourselves, in
blessing or in cursing. Whatever we give, we shall receive again. The
earthly blessings which we impart to others may be, and often are,
repaid in kind.... But, besides this, all gifts are repaid, even in this
life, in the fuller inflowing of His love, which is the sum of all
heaven's glory and its treasure. And evil imparted also returns again.
Everyone who has been free to condemn or discourage, will in his own
experience be brought over the ground where he has caused others to pass.
{MB 134-137}
THE FOLLOWING FOR THOSE WHO DESIRE DEEPER STUDY:
CONTENT; What's in the verse; Translations; Paraphrase; Word
Study:
Matt 7:12 (KJV) Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that
men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and
the prophets.
Matt 7:12 (NIV) So in everything, do to others what you would
have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
Matt 7:12 (NLT) "Do for others what you would like them to do
for you. This is a summary of all that is taught in the law and the
prophets.
CONTEXT; What's around the verse; Overview; Topic:
Overview
Kingdom citizens have an "in-secret" relationship with God
(6:1-5), knowing how (vv. 6-8) and what (vv. 9-15) to pray. Such prayer
has nothing to do with outward show (vv. 16-18). With our attention
on heaven (vv. 19-24) and our trust in God as Father, we are freed
to concentrate on kingdom living (vv. 25-34). Because relationship
with God is "in secret," we do not judge others (7:1-6), we
consciously depend on our Father (vv. 7-12), and we choose His "narrow gate"
(vv. 13-14). As we do, God's power is exhibited in our good lives
(vv. 15-23) and obedience (vv. 24-29). [The 365-Day Devotional
Commentary]
Jesus concluded the Sermon on the Mount by offering entrance to
the kingdom to those who would act on his words (7:7-27). The
present imperatives could be translated in a continuous sense, "keep on
asking," "keep on seeking," "keep on knocking" (7:7). This section also
served as a warning ("Watch out," 7:15) against false doctrines and
ungodly living. To show how crucial this warning was, Jesus placed it in
the context of the end times; it was important to act immediately,
for the end was near ("destruction," 7:13; "life," 7:14; "fire,"
7:19; "on that day," 7:22; "Away from me," 7:23; "it fell with a great
crash," 7:27). Jesus compared life's way, that could lead either into
the kingdom or into destruction, to two roads (7:13-14), two trees
(7:15-23), and two houses (7:24-27). [New Bible Companion]
SECTION HEADINGS
The Golden Rule (7:12-14)
The Golden Rule--Luke 6:31
The Most Important Rule
CROSS REFERENCES; What's in verses elsewhere.
Luke 6:31 (KJV) And as ye would that men should do to you, do
ye also to them likewise.
Leviticus 19:18 (KJV) Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any
grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy
neighbour as thyself: I am the Lord.
Matthew 22:39-40 (KJV) And the second is like unto it, Thou
shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. [40] On these two commandments
hang all the law and the prophets.
Mark 12:30, 31 (KJV) And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with
all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and
with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. [31] And the
second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
There is none other commandment greater than these.
Galatians 5:14 (KJV) For all the law is fulfilled in one word,
even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Romans 13:8-10 (KJV) Owe no man any thing, but to love one
another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. [9] For this,
Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not
steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if
there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this
saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. [10] Love
worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the
law.
Micah 6:8 (KJV) He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and
what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love
mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?
Amos 5:14 (KJV) Seek good, and not evil, that ye may live: and
so the Lord, the God of hosts, shall be with you, as ye have
spoken.
Isaiah 1:17 (KJV) Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the
oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.
Zech. 7:9, 10 (KJV) Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying,
Execute true judgment, and shew mercy and compassions every man to his
brother: [10] And oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the
stranger, nor the poor; and let none of you imagine evil against his
brother in your heart.
COMMENTARY / APPLICATION: Moving From The Head To The Heart.
What is God teaching here? What does it teach about Jesus?
How can it improve my relationship with Jesus?
The so-called Golden Rule is found in negative form in rabbinic
Judaism and also in Hinduism, Buddhism and Confucianism. It occurred in
various forms in Greek and Roman ethical teaching. Jesus stated it in
positive form. [NIV SB]
Profound thinkers of other times and other cultures have
discovered and stated the sublime truth expressed in the golden rule,
generally, however, in a negative form. For example, to Hillel, most
revered rabbi of the generation before Jesus, these words are credited:
"'What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor; that is the whole
Torah, while the rest is the commentary thereof'" (Talmud Shabbath 31a,
Soncino ed., p. 140). The golden rule also appears in the Apocryphal
book of Tobit (ch. 4:15): "Do that to no man which thou hatest," and
in the Letter of Aristeas (ed. and tr. by Moses Hadas, p. 181):
"'Just as you do not wish evils to befall you, but to participate in
all that is good, so you should deal with those subject to you and
with offenders.'" [SDA Commentary]
It is worthy of note that Jesus transformed a negative precept
into a positive one. Herein lies the essential difference between
Christianity and all false religious systems, and between true Christianity
and that which consists in the form of religion but denies the vital
power of the gospel. The golden rule takes supreme selfishness, what
we would like others to do for us, and transforms it into supreme
selflessness, what we are to do for others. This is the glory of Christianity.
This is the life of Christ lived out in those who follow Him and bear
His name. [SDA Commentary]
This is commonly known as the Golden Rule. In many religions it
is stated negatively: "Don't do to others what you don't want done
to you." By stating it positively, Jesus made it more significant.
It is not very hard to refrain from harming others; it is much more
difficult to take the initiative in doing something good for them. The
Golden Rule as Jesus formulated it is the foundation of active goodness
and mercy--the kind of love God shows to us every day. Think of a
good and merciful action you can take today. [Life Application SB]
The golden rule summarizes the obligations of the second table
of the Decalogue, and is another statement of the great principle
of loving our neighbor (see Matt. 19:16-19; 22:39, 40; cf. 1 John
4:21). Only those who make the golden rule their law of life and
practice can expect admission to the kingdom of glory. Our attitude
toward our fellow men is an infallible index of our attitude toward God
(see 1 John 3:14-16). [SDA Commentary]
Christ teaches that our anxiety should not be, How much are we
to receive? but, How much can we give?.....
In your association with others, put yourself in their place.
Enter into their feelings, their difficulties, their disappointments,
their joys, and their sorrows. Identify yourself with them, and then
do to them as, were you to exchange places with them, you would
wish them to deal with you....... It is another expression of the law.
"Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." Matthew 22:39. And it is
the substance of the teaching of the prophets. It is a principle of
heaven, and will be developed in all who are fitted for its holy
companionship....
The golden rule is the principle of true courtesy, and its
truest illustration is seen in the life and character of Jesus. Oh,
what rays of softness and beauty shone forth in the daily life of our
Saviour! What sweetness flowed from His very presence! The same spirit
will be revealed in His children. Those with whom Christ dwells will
be surrounded with a divine atmosphere.....
There is a yet deeper significance to the golden rule. Everyone
who has been made a steward of the manifold grace of God is called
upon to impart to souls in ignorance and darkness, even as, were he
in their place, he would desire them to impart to him....
So also with the gifts and blessings of this life: whatever you
may possess above your fellows places you in debt, to that degree,
to all who are less favored. Have we wealth, or even the comforts
of life, then we are under the most solemn obligation to care for
the suffering sick, the widow, and the fatherless exactly as we
would desire them to care for us were our condition and theirs to be
reversed....
The golden rule teaches, by implication, the same truth which is
taught elsewhere in the Sermon on the Mount, that "with what measure ye
mete, it shall be measured to you again." That which we do to others,
whether it be good or evil, will surely react upon ourselves, in
blessing or in cursing. Whatever we give, we shall receive again. The
earthly blessings which we impart to others may be, and often are,
repaid in kind.... But, besides this, all gifts are repaid, even in this
life, in the fuller inflowing of His love, which is the sum of all
heaven's glory and its treasure. And evil imparted also returns again.
Everyone who has been free to condemn or discourage, will in his own
experience be brought over the ground where he has caused others to pass...
A religion that leads men to place a low estimate upon human
beings, whom Christ has esteemed of such value as to give Himself for
them; a religion that would lead us to be careless of human needs,
sufferings, or rights, is a spurious religion.... It is because men take upon
themselves the name of Christ, while in life they deny His character, that
Christianity has so little power in the world. The name of the Lord is
blasphemed because of these things....
Of the apostolic church, in those bright days when the glory of
the risen Christ shone upon them, it is written that no man said
"that aught of the things which he possessed was his own." "Neither
was there any among them that lacked." "And with great power gave
the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and
great grace was upon them all." "And they, continuing daily with one
accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat
their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, praising God, and
having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church
daily such as should be saved."...
Search heaven and earth, and there is no truth revealed more
powerful than that which is made manifest in works of mercy to those who
need our sympathy and aid. This is the truth as it is in Jesus. When
those who profess the name of Christ shall practice the principles of
the golden rule, the same power will attend the gospel as in
apostolic times. {MB 134-137}
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