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2020-06-172021-05-23

Why Gentiles do not have to comply with the Law of Moses (Matthew 5:19)

This is the third article in the series that explains, if Jesus said, “not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law,” why the church council in Acts 15, a decade or two later, decided that Gentiles do not have to comply with the Law of Moses. The current article discusses Matthew 5:19-20. It is, actually, also part of the series of articles on Galatians, for it uses Galatians to explain the decision of the church council. The articles in this series are:

1. Jesus came to fulfill the Law.
2. Sermon on the Mount
3. Not the smallest letter shall pass from the Law. – Current article

MATTHEW 5:19-20

Matthew 5:19 “whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 “For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.

SUMMARY

Since it was Jesus’ intention to use the Old Testament as the basis for His sermon, He started His sermon by confirming the continued validity of the Old Testament. He said, “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets” (Matt 5:17).

In verse 19, Jesus switches the topic from “the Law” (the Old Testament) to God’s “commandments.” as contained in the Old Testament. For most of the sermon, He then continues to preach on those “commandments.”

Since Jesus taught the people what kind of people they must be to receive eternal life, He only spoke about those “commandments” by which people will be judged in the last judgment. He never mentioned the ceremonial rituals of the Old Testament even once. It is, therefore, not valid to use Matthew 5 to argue that the ceremonial rituals of the Old Testament are applicable to Christians.

The question in this article series is, if Jesus said, “not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished,” why did the church council in Acts 15, a decade or two later, decide that Gentiles do not have to comply with the Law?

This question is answered above as that there is no requirement in Matthew 5:18 that Christians must abide by the Law of Moses. This verse does not talk about the Old Testament commandments. Rather, Jesus’ point was that He came to put into effect what the Old Testament promised.

PAUL TAUGHT THE AGE-OLD GOSPEL.

However, if everything promised in the Old Testament will come to pass, why do Gentile Christians not have to comply with the Law of Moses?

The answer is that that is what the Old Testament requires. We can substantiate this conclusion from the Letter to the Galatians, which reflects Paul’s arguments at the Acts 15 Church Council. In the letter Paul indicates, in a number of ways, that the Old Testament foresaw that Gentiles are to subject to the Law:

The Scripture ‘foresaw’ that God would justify the Gentiles by faith and preached the gospel to Abraham (Gal 3:8). Paul claims that he preaches the same age-old gospel.

Paul argues that people in the Old Testament were also saved by faith. He uses Abraham as an example (Gal 3:6) and quotes from Habakkuk 2:4; “the righteous man shall live by faith” (Gal 3:11).

The “seed” of Abraham, to whom God gave the promises, is Christ (Gal 3:16). Paul argues that Gentiles become heirs of the promises in Christ (e.g. Gal 2:17). In other words, their salvation is the blessing that God promised to Abraham.

CONCLUSION

Mankind existed for thousands of years without the Law of Moses. The promises which God made to Abraham existed for hundreds of years without the Law. When God gave the law, it did not invalidate the promises (Gal 3:17-18). The Law was only a temporary measure to keep Israel on the right path “until the seed would come” (Gal 3:19).

The “gospel” which Paul preached was the same gospel that God gave to Abraham. Paul’s gospel, therefore, is not a break from the Old Testament, but a continuation of it.

Since the Law of Moses is no longer relevant, Christ gave us a “new commandment” (e.g. John 13:34), which Paul called the Law of Christ. This is the eternal law as it always existed, as explained by Christ.

– END OF SUMMARY –

CONFIRMS THE OLD TESTAMENT

The previous article showed that Christ’s purpose was to teach people what kind of people they must be to receive eternal life. Since it was Jesus’ intention to use the Old Testament as the basis for His teaching, He started His sermon by confirming the continued validity of the Old Testament. He said:

“Do not think that I came to abolish
the Law or the Prophets” (Matt 5:17).

On the contrary, He said that He came to fulfill “the Law and the Prophets” (what we today call the Old Testament). This was explained in the first article as meaning that, in Christ, everything that is promised in the Old Testament will come true (Matt 5:17-18).

At the end of His sermon, Jesus again confirmed the continued validity of the Old Testament by summarizing His sermon as follows:

“In everything, therefore,
treat people the same way you want them to treat you,
for this is the Law and the Prophets” (Matt 7:12).

SWITCHES TO THE COMMANDMENTS

Having confirmed the continued validity of the Old Testament in verses 17 and 18, in Matt 5:19 He switches the topic from “the Law” to the “commandments.” In other words, He now shifts His attention from the complete Old Testament to God’s commandments as contained in the Old Testament. He then continued to preach on those “commandments,” referring to them with phrases such as, “the ancients were told …” (Matt 5:21) and “you have heard that it was said …” (Matt 5:27).

ONLY MORAL COMMANDMENTS

The previous article showed that Jesus taught the people what kind of people they must be to receive eternal life. For that reason, the “commandments” do not include the ceremonial rituals of the Old Testament. He never mentioned them even once. He only spoke about those “commandments” by which people will be judged in the last judgment, when “the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds” (Rev 20:12).

This is confirmed by how the word “commandment” is used in the gospels. It is used for instructions given by:

Human beings (Luke 15:25-29; John 11:57);

The Father to Christ specifically (John 15:10), including to lay down His life and “to take it up again” (John 10:17-18) as well as, “the Father Himself who sent Me has given Me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak” (John 12:49-50);

Christ to His followers (John 14:15, 21; 15:10), including “that you love one another” (John 13:31-34); The article Law of Christ concludes that Christ did more than to merely interpret the Law of Moses; He replaced the Law of Moses with much higher moral standards, which reflects the Father’s perfect heart; the eternal law as it existed from the beginning.

But when used for God’s commandments in the Old Testament, it always refers to the “commandments” by which people will be judged; never to ceremonial rituals, for example:

The Ten Commandments, such as honor your father and mother, murder, adultery, stealing, bearing false witness and the Sabbath (Matt 15:3-5; 19:16-19; Mark 7:8-13; 10:17-22 and Luke 18:18-20; 23:55)

Other moral laws, such as “love the Lord your God” and “love your neighbor as yourself” (Matt 19:16-19; 22:35-40; Mark 12:28-31);

This confirms that the “commandments” in Matthew 5:19 are limited to moral commandments. It is, therefore, not valid to use Matthew 5 to argue that the ceremonial rituals of the Old Testament are applicable to Christians.

CONCLUSIONS

The question in this article series is, if Jesus said, “Until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished” (Matt 5:18), why did the church council in Acts 15, a decade or two later, decide that Gentiles do not have to comply with the Law? This question is answered above as that there is no requirement in Matthew 5:18 that Christians must abide by the Law of Moses:

This verse does not talk about the Old Testament commandments. “The Law” refers to to the entire Old Testament. Verse 19, which introduces the main topic of the sermon, does refer to God’s commandments, but this does not mean that verse 18 also discusses the commandments. It is important to note that verse 18 discusses the Old Testament in general but verse 19 switches the topic to God’s commandments in particular.

Furthermore, Jesus’ point was not that something remains. His point was that something will change, namely, He said that the Old Testament will be “accomplished.” Christ came to “fulfill” “the Law and the Prophets.” This means that He will put into effect what the Old Testament promised.

However, if Jesus said that He came to put in place what the Old Testament promised, then that does imply continuity. Also, the fact that Jesus used the Old Testament commandments as the basis for His sermon implies that the new covenant is a continuation of the old covenant. Therefore the question remains, why do Gentile Christians not have to comply with the Law of Moses?

The reason is that the Old Testament says so. The fact that the Law of Moses is no longer relevant was foreseen by the Old Testament. We can substantiate this conclusion from the Letter to the Galatians, as explained in the next section:

PAUL PREACHED ABRAHAM’S GOSPEL.

Paul was the leader of the party at the Acts 15 church council that advocated against the circumcision of Gentiles. The Letter to the Galatians reflects Paul’s arguments at that meeting. See, When was Galatians written? We can, therefore, accept that letter as an explanation of the logic behind the church council’s decision. The following discussion highlights certain verses from that letter that shows that Paul argued that the Old Testament predicted that Gentile Christians will not be subject to the Law of Moses:

THROUGH THE LAW I DIED TO THE LAW (Gal 1:17)

People sometimes struggle to understand how one can die “to the Law” “through the Law.” Simple: “Through the Law” means that the Old Testament predicted or foresaw that Christians would die “to the Law.”

ALL THE NATIONS BLESSED IN YOU (Gal 3:8)

The following is a key part of Paul’s logic:

Galatians 3:6 … Abraham BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS. 7 Therefore, be sure that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham. 8 The Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “ALL THE NATIONS WILL BE BLESSED IN YOU.” 9 So then those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the believer.

In this section, Paul included two quotes from the Old Testament (shown in capital letters) from which he makes certain conclusions:

3:6 … Abraham “BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.”
This means that Abraham was justified (saved) by faith.

3:7 Therefore, be sure that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham.
Abraham’s true sons are not his physical descendants, but those who believe, including believing Gentiles (Gal 3:29).

3:8 The Scripture
The Scripture is what we today call the Old Testament.

foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham
This is the main point for the purpose of the current article, namely that all of this was predicted by the Old Testament. Note the word “gospel.” Paul was very careful to explain that his gospel is not a break from the Old Testament, but the same old “gospel” (v8; cf. Gal 1:6-7) which God gave to Abraham.

saying, “ALL THE NATIONS WILL BE BLESSED IN YOU.”
This phrase is explained by the previous phrase. Therefore, to be Blessed in Abraham is to be Justified by Faith. Verse 9 confirms this point. The blessings which the Gentiles receive, namely justification, is not something new, but it is the blessing that was promised to Abraham.

THE RIGHTEOUS MAN SHALL LIVE BY FAITH (Gal 3:11)

Paul claimed that the Jews know “that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus” (Gal 2:15), because the Old Testament says so. As mentioned above, he uses Abraham as an example of where the Old Testament reveals this principle, saying, “Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness” (Gal 3:6). And Paul also frequently quotes from Habakkuk 2:4; “the righteous man shall live by faith” (E.g. Gal 3:11; Rom 1:17).

Note how often Paul quotes from the Old Testament in these arguments, as indicated by the capital letters in the NASB. This confirms that Paul was adamant that his gospel is not a break from the “Scriptures.”

ABRAHAM’S SEED (Gal 3:16)

God gave the promises to Abraham and his seed (Gen 22:17). Paul interprets that “seed” as, essentially, Christ (Gal 3:16; cf. 3:19). The Gentiles become heirs of the promises in Christ, which we can understand as through Christ. As stated before, the purpose of the Old Testament is accomplished in Christ. He is the Vehicle through which God saves this world.

THE LAW CAME LATER (Gal 3:17-18).

In these verses, Paul indicates the following:

The Law of Moses came hundreds of years after God gave these promises to Abraham and did not invalidate the promises (Gal 3:17-18). What is really important are the promises which God made to Abraham. The Law was only a temporary measure to keep Israel on the right path “until the seed would come” (Gal 3:19). The Law does not “impart life” (save to eternal life – Gal 3:21) because everybody has sinned (Gal 3:22). “The Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ … But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor” (Gal 3:24-25).

Paul’s argument, that Gentiles do not have to be circumcised was, therefore, based on God’s covenant with Abraham. Paul claimed that he preached the same gospel which God gave to Abraham. The Law of Moses was a later and temporary addition. “Now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor” (3:24-25). In other words, the Law is not even relevant to Jews that are “in Christ” and, therefore, most certainly not applicable to Gentile Christians.

LAW OF CHRIST

So, if we are not under the Law of Moses, under what law are we?

Firstly, in the Sermon on the Mount, as discussed in the previous article, Jesus only spoke about the rules for moral behavior by which people will be judged; identified as “commandments” in Matthew 5:19

Secondly, as explained more fully in the article Law of Christ, Christ did more than to merely interpret the Law of Moses; He replaced the Law of Moses with much higher moral standards, which reflects the Father’s perfect heart; the eternal law as it existed from the beginning. People will be judged against these rules; not the moral laws as reflected in the Law of Moses.

ARTICLES IN THIS SERIES

Jesus came to fulfill the Law. – A study of Matthew 5:17-18 – Jesus did not come to abolish but to fulfill the Law and the prophets. What are “the Law and the Prophets” and how did Jesus fulfill them?

Sermon on the Mount – Jesus taught His followers what kind of people they must be to be rewarded with eternal life. Jesus did not believe that people have essential immortality and taught that they will be judged by their deeds.

Not the smallest letter shall pass from the Law. Jesus said that not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” Why then did the Acts 15 Church Council, a decade or two later, decide that Gentiles do not have to comply with the Law? Paul’s letter to the Galatians explains the decision.– Current article

Articles on Galatians – Since Galatians explains the decision of the Church Council, these articles are, in a sense, part of the series on Galatians.

2020-06-172023-05-28

How did Jesus fulfill “the Law and the Prophets?” (Matt 5:17-18)

PURPOSE

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “Until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law” (Matt 5:17-18). Given this, the purpose of this article series is to explain why the church council in Acts 15, a decade or two later, decided that Gentiles do not have to comply with the Law. The articles in this series are:

1. Jesus came to fulfill the Law. – Current article
2. Sermon on the Mount
3. Not the smallest letter shall pass from the Law.

Unless otherwise indicated, all quotes are from the NASB.

SUMMARY

ACTS 15 CHURCH COUNCIL

Some Jewish Christians taught that, unless Gentile Christians are circumcised, they cannot be saved. Paul and Barnabas disagreed passionately, causing a huge argument. The apostles and the elders then convened in Jerusalem to discuss this question.

After some discussions, Peter stood up and pointed out that God gave the Holy Spirit to uncircumcised Gentiles, just as to circumcised Jews at Pentecost. God made no distinction between Jew and Gentile. Peter said that God saves both groups by faith through grace. Gentiles, therefore, do not need to be circumcised.

To conclude the meeting, James summarized the consensus of the meeting as that “we do not trouble those who are turning to God from among the Gentiles” (Acts 15:19). In other words, Gentiles do not have to be circumcised and they, consequently, do not have to abide by the Law of Moses.

DID NOT COME TO ABOLISH THE LAW (v17)

Jesus said that He did not come “to abolish the Law or the Prophets” (Matt 5:17).

“The Law and the Prophets” was a term that the Jews used to refer to the entire Old Testament. “The Law” in verse 18 does not refer to God’s commandments per se. HELPS Word-studies explains “the Law” ‘as Scripture, with emphasis on the first five books of Scripture’. Since verse 18 explains Matthew 5:17, and since the context in verse 17 is the whole Old Testament, “the Law” in verse 18 also refers to the whole Old Testament.

CAME TO FULFILL THE LAW (Matt 5:17)

Jesus added that He came to “fulfill” “the Law and the Prophets.”

The Greek word pléroó, which is translated as “fulfill” in this verse, is explained by Strong’s Concordance as “to make full, to complete.” “Fulfill,” therefore, is an action that completes something that previously was not complete. What did Jesus mean when He said that He came to complete the Old Testament?

Matthew uses pléroó seventeen times, and in fifteen of them, it clearly refers to prophecy being fulfilled or coming to pass through some event. “Fulfill,” therefore, is used in Matthew 5:17 to say that Jesus came to make true what was prophesied in the Old Testament, for example:

“… that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled” (Luke 24:44).

Jesus did not come to fulfill a few isolated predictions in the Old Testament. Rather, the Old Testament is essentially about Jesus. As Jesus said:

“You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me” (John 5:39).

UNTIL ALL IS ACCOMPLISHED (v18)

Verse 18 confirms the conclusion that pléroó means that Jesus came to put in effect what the Old Testament promised. This verse explains the ‘I came to fulfill’ statement in Matthew 5:17 and uses “accomplished” as a synonym for “fulfill.”

Since “the Law” refers to the Old Testament, the statement “not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished” (Matt 5:18) does not mean that all of God’s commandments, as recorded in the Old Testament will always remain applicable. It, rather, means that everything that is promised or predicted in the Old Testament will come true through Christ.

– END OF SUMMARY –

THE ACTS 15 CHURCH COUNCIL

Some Jewish Christians came from Judea to Antioch and taught:

“Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved” (Acts 14:26; 15:1).

All Jewish Christian males were already circumcised. These Jewish Christians demanded that Gentile Christians also be circumcised. Paul and Barnabas passionately disagreed with them, resulting in a huge debate (Acts 15:2). The church in Antioch then sent Paul and Barnabas and some others up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders to get finality on this matter (v2). When they arrived in Jerusalem, some Pharisees, who have become Christians, repeated their stance:

“It is necessary to circumcise them and
to direct them to observe the Law of Moses” (Acts 15:4-5).

PETER’S TESTIMONY

The apostles and the elders met to discuss this matter. There was much debate. Eventually, Peter stood up and said that God, “in the early days,” choose him (Peter) to preach the gospel to Gentiles. He continued:

“God, who knows the heart, testified to them giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He also did to us; and He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith. Now, therefore, why do you put God to the test by placing upon the neck of the disciples a yoke which neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? But we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they also are.” (Acts 15:6-11)

His point is that it was not necessary to circumcise the Gentiles because God gave the Holy Spirit to the uncircumcised Gentiles in exactly the same way as He gave the Spirit to the circumcised Jews on Pentecost. God “made no distinction.”

While some Christian Pharisees claimed, “unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved” (Acts 14:26), Peter said that Jews and Gentiles are all saved by grace through faith; a point which Paul also emphasizes in his letters. In other words, it is not necessary to circumcise the Gentile believers.

Gentiles were always allowed to convert to Judaism through circumcision. What these Christian Pharisees actually sought was that Gentile Christians also convert to Judaism. Consequently, what Peter argued was that one does not have to become a Jew to be saved. God, “who knows the heart,” accepted the Gentiles without circumcision.

Then everybody kept silent, and they listened to Barnabas and Paul as they told them what signs and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles (Acts 15:12).

JAMES’ CONCLUSION

James, who apparently chaired the meeting, then summarized the consensus of the meeting as follows:

“It is my judgment that we do not trouble those who are turning to God from among the Gentiles” (Acts 15:19).

The council then agreed to send men with a message to Antioch, saying that the men who previously came from Judea to Antioch had no mandate from the church leaders in Jerusalem (Acts 15:24). The message asked the Gentile Christians to refrain from some things that were particularly repulsive to Jews, but the main point is that Gentiles do not have to be circumcised or adopt a Jewish lifestyle (Acts 15:28).

THE LAW WILL NOT PASS AWAY.

However, a decade or two earlier, in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said,

“Until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law” (Matt 5:18).

The purpose of this article is to ask, if the smallest letter of the Law will remain “until heaven and earth pass away,” why do Gentiles not have to comply with the Law?

MATTHEW 5:17-19

Let us read Jesus’ words in more detail. He said:

“Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets;
I did not come to abolish but to fulfill“ (Matt 5:17).

“For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished” (Matt 5:18).

The four phrases in bold are explained below.

THE LAW AND THE PROPHETS (Matt. 5:17)

“The Law and the Prophets” was a term which the Jews used to refer to the entire Old Testament, for example:

“On these two commandments (love for God and love for your neighbor) depend the whole Law and the Prophets” (Matt 22:40).

“After the reading of the Law and the Prophets the synagogue officials sent to them, saying …” (Acts 13:15).

“Treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets” (Matt 7:12; cf. Luke 16:16; John 1:45).

In Matthew 5:17, quoted above, Jesus said that He came to “fulfill” the Law and the Prophets. He later said:

“How then will the Scriptures be fulfilled, which say that it must happen this way?” (Matt 26:54)

Here He used the word “Scriptures,” rather than “Law and the Prophets” together with “fulfill.” Since the “Scriptures” are the Old Testament, this again confirms that the “Law and the Prophets” refers to the entire Old Testament.

THE LAW (Matt 5:18)

The “Law” in the phrase “the Law or the Prophets” (Matt 5:17) refers to the first five books of the Bible, namely the books that were written by Moses:

The Greek word is nomos. Strong’s defines it as: “that which is assigned, usage, law.”

HELPS Word-studies explains nomos as:
1. the Law (Scripture), with emphasis on the first five books of Scripture; or
2. any system of religious thinking (theology)

“The Law” in Matt 5:18, therefore, does not specifically refer to God’s commandments. It is a name for the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

Furthermore, verse 18 explains verse 17. Since verse 17 refers to “the Law and the Prophets,” “the Law” in verse 18 is an abbreviation for “the Law and the Prophets” and, therefore, also speaks of the entire Old Testament.

FULFILL (Matt 5:17)

TO MAKE FULL, TO COMPLETE

The word “fulfill” is translated from the Greek word pléroó (Strong’s 4137). Strong’s Concordance defines this word as “to make full, to complete.”

Pléroó, therefore, does not mean ‘do away with’. That is also quite clear from Jesus’ statement, “I did not come to abolish” (Matt 5:17).

The following are instances in Matthew where pléroó is used in the sense of “to make full, to complete:”

“It is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness” (Matt 3:15).

Jesus told a parable of “a dragnet cast into the sea, and gathering fish of every kind; and when it was filled …” (Matt 13:47-48)

Jesus said to the “scribes and Pharisees,” “Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers” (Matt 23:29, 32).

“Fulfill,” therefore, is an action that fills up something that previously was not full; in these instances, righteousness, a dragnet and guilt. In what sense did Jesus fill up or complete the Old Testament?

DEMONSTRATE THE PURPOSE OF THE LAW

This is sometimes explained as that Jesus came to show the true purpose of the law; to show how God intended a human being to be; that Jesus showed us, through His life and death, what a person is like who loves God with his whole heart and his neighbors as himself.

TO FULFILL OLD TESTAMENT PROPHECY

However, Matthew uses this word pléroó seventeen times, and in fifteen of them, it clearly refers to prophecy being fulfilled or coming to pass through some event. For example:

“All this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet” (Matt 1:22).

“This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet” (Matt 4:14).

“Then what had been spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled” (Matt 2:17).

As another example, when the soldiers came to arrest Jesus, and one of the disciples cut off the ear of the high priest’s slave with his sword, Jesus told His disciple to put his sword away, saying, “How then will the Scriptures be fulfilled, which say that it must happen this way?” (Matt 26:54).

Other such examples can be found in Matthew 2:14, 23; 8:17; 12:17; 13:14, 35; 21:4; 26:56; 27:9). [Incidentally, note again in these quotes the references to “the Scriptures,” “the prophet,” and the prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah. This confirms that the phrase “the Law and the Prophets” refers to the Old Testament.]

Since “fulfill” is mostly used in Matthew to describe things done to Christ or by Christ to make true what was prophesied in the Old Testament, we conclude that “fulfill” in 2:17 also has that meaning. As Jesus stated in Luke 24:44:

“All things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled” (Luke 24:44).

TESTIFY ABOUT ME

This conclusion is explained by other statements that do not use the word pléroó (fulfill) but that express the same concept in different words, for example:

After His resurrection, Jesus met two of His disciples on the road to Emmaus and, “beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures” (Luke 24:27; cf. v32).

To the Pharisees, Jesus said, “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me” (John 5:39).

Jesus did not come to fulfill a few isolated predictions in the Old Testament. Rather, the Old Testament is essentially about Jesus. He is “the way, and the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). The Old Testament promised Christ as the Savior of the world and He came to convert promise into reality.

UNTIL ALL IS ACCOMPLISHED (v18)

This conclusion, that Jesus came to put in effect what the Old Testament promised, is also confirmed by verse 18. Note that this verse explains the ‘I came to fulfill’ statement in verse 17 and uses “accomplished” as a synonym for “fulfill:”

Matthew 5:17 “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. 18 “For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.

“Accomplished” is not translated from a different Greek word. Other translations render this word as follows:

- - “Till all is fulfilled” (NKJV).
  - “Until everything is accomplished” (NIV)
  - “Till all come to pass” (DNT)
  - “Before everything has come true” (GWT)
  - “Until everything has happened” (NCV)

In all these translations the meaning is that everything that is predicted will certainly happen.

Since “the Law” refers to the entire Old Testament, the statement “not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished” (verse 18) does not mean that all of God’s commandments, as recorded in the Old Testament will always remain applicable. It, rather, means that everything that is predicted in the Old Testament will come true. This confirms the interpretation above of “fulfill.”

If Jesus made the Old Testament come true, does that mean that the Old Testament is now done away with? Obviously not. Everything in the Old Testament must come true, including the promised end-time events, such as the “new heavens and a new earth” (Isaiah 65:17). But all things will become true “In Christ.”

ARTICLES IN THIS SERIES

Jesus came to fulfill the Law. – A study of Matthew 5:17-18 – Jesus did not come to abolish but to fulfill the Law and the prophets. What are “the Law and the Prophets” and how did Jesus fulfill them?

Articles on Galatians – Since Galatians explains the decision of the Church Council, these articles are, in a sense, part of the series on Galatians.