Matthew 5:21-22 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment:
22 But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be
in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be
in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be
in danger of hell fire.
Jesus delineates three groups here:
1. The judgment: " It was a court that sat in each city or town, and consisted commonly of seven members. It was the lowest court among the Jews, and from it an appeal might be taken to the Sanhedrim." (Barnes)
2. The council is known as the Sanhedrin throughout the Scriptures. It was made up of 72 of the chief priests and elders of the city.
3. Hell fire--Gehenna--the valley of hinnon.
A small brook or torrent usually ran through this valley, and partly encompassed the city. This valley the idolatrous Israelites devoted formerly to the horrid worship of Moloch, 2Ki 16:3; 2Ch 28:3. In that worship the ancient Jewish writers inform us that the idol of Moloch was of brass, adorned with a royal crown, having the head of a calf, and his arms extended, as if to embrace any one. When they offered children to him, they heated the statue within by a great fire; and when it was burning hot, they put the miserable child into his arms, where it was soon consumed by the heat; and, in order that the cries of the child might not be heard, they made a great noise with drums and other instruments about the idol. These drums were called Toph; and hence a common name of the place was TOPHET, Jer 7:31-32 (Barnes)
The parallel that is drawn here:
1. If you are angry without a cause you are danger you are in danger of the judgement. Therefore get it resolved in the immediate context, that is your own church, your own community, or just between you and your brother as the case may be. The following verses bear this out. Read Mat.5:23-25. Agree with thine adversary quickly. Bringing the matter before a small group of people and getting the problem resolved, and not letting it go any farther is best.
2. "whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council."
This is the equivalent of church discipline. Bring it before the church. Matthew 18. The council is no longer the Sanhedrin; it is the local church as a whole. Raca is a serious charge. It has the meaning of: worthless, stupid, empty-headed. Words hurt, and sometimes forever. Such foolish and anry words were cause enough to bring to the Sanhedrin. They were the words of a fool. God does not tolerate fools. Neither does the church. A man who continually runs his mouth with such verbal abuse needs to be disciplined.
3. "whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire."
This is the most serious charge of all, and it puts a person at the judgment bar of God as one that is unsaved, and worthy only of the condemnation of God. Look elsewhere in Scripture.
1 John 3:15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.
Those that hate; those who have continual anger with their brother are not saved. The Bible labels them as murderers. And we know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. Only the lake of fire awaits him. He will stand at the Great White Throne Judgement awaiting the final sentencing of God.
Thus Jesus draws this parallel using the Jewish mode of justice and applies it to God's justice system for us.
DHK
