Bible

 

마태복음 5

Studie

   

1 예수께서 무리를 보시고 산에 올라가 앉으시니 제자들이 나아온지라

2 입을 열어 가르쳐 가라사대

3 심령이 가난한 자는 복이 있나니 천국이 저희 것임이요

4 애통하는 자는 복이 있나니 저희가 위로를 받을 것임이요

5 온유한 자는 복이 있나니 저희가 땅을 기업으로 받을 것임이요

6 의에 주리고 목마른 자는 복이 있나니 저희가 배부를 것임이요

7 긍휼히 여기는 자는 복이 있나니 저희가 긍휼히 여김을 받을 것임이요

8 마음이 청결한 자는 복이 있나니 저희가 하나님을 볼 것임이요

9 화평케 하는 자는 복이 있나니 저희가 하나님의 아들이라 일컬음을 받을 것임이요

10 의를 위하여 핍박을 받은 자는 복이 있나니 천국이 저희 것임이라

11 나를 인하여 너희를 욕하고 핍박하고 거짓으로 너희를 거스려 모든 악한 말을 할 때에는 너희에게 복이 있나니

12 기뻐하고 즐거워하라 ! 하늘에서 너희의 상이 큼이라 너희 전에 있던 선지자들을 이같이 핍박하였느니라

13 너희는 세상의 소금이니 소금이 만일 그 맛을 잃으면 무엇으로 짜게 하리요 후에는 아무 쓸데 없어 다만 밖에 버리워 사람에게 밟힐 뿐이니라

14 너희는 세상의 빛이라 ! 산 위에 있는 동네가 숨기우지 못할 것이요

15 사람이 등불을 켜서 말 아래 두지 아니하고 등경 위에 두나니 이러므로 집안 모든 사람에게 비취느니라

16 이같이 너희 빛을 사람 앞에 비취게 하여 저희로 너희 착한 행실을 보고 하늘에 계신 너희 아버지께 영광을 돌리게 하라

17 내가 율법이나 선지자나 폐하러 온 줄로 생각지 말라 폐하러 온 것이 아니요 완전케 하려 함이로다

18 진실로 너희에게 이르노니 천지가 없어지기 전에는 율법의 일점 일획이라도 반드시 없어지지 아니하고 다 이루리라

19 그러므로 누구든지 이 계명 중에 지극히 작은 것 하나라도 버리고 또 그같이 사람을 가르치는 자는 천국에서 지극히 작다 일컬음을 받을 것이요 누구든지 이를 행하며 가르치는 자는 천국에서 크다 일컬음을 받으리라

20 내가 너희에게 이르노니 너희 의가 서기관과 바리새인보다 더 낫지 못하면 결단코 천국에 들어가지 못하리라

21 옛 사람에게 말한 바 살인치 말라 누구든지 살인하면 심판을 받게 되리라 하였다는 것을 너희가 들었으나

22 나는 너희에게 이르노니 형제에게 노하는 자마다 심판을 받게 되고 형제를 대하여 라가라 하는 자는 공회에 잡히게 되고 미련한 놈이라 하는 자는 지옥 불에 들어가게 되리라

23 그러므로 예물을 제단에 드리다가 거기서 네 형제에게 원망들을 만한 일이 있는 줄 생각나거든

24 예물을 제단 앞에 두고 먼저 가서 형제와 화목하고 그 후에 와서 예물을 드리라

25 너를 송사하는 자와 함께 길에 있을 때에 급히 사화하라 그 송사하는 자가 너를 재판관에게 내어주고 재판관이 관예에게 내어주어 옥에 가둘까 염려하라

26 진실로 네게 이르노니 네가 호리라도 남김이 없이 다 갚기 전에는 결단코 거기서 나오지 못하리라

27 또 간음치 말라 하였다는 것을 너희가 들었으나

28 나는 너희에게 이르노니 여자를 보고 음욕을 품는 자마다 마음에 이미 간음하였느니라

29 만일 네 오른눈이 너로 실족케 하거든 빼어 내버리라 네 백체 중 하나가 없어지고 온 몸이 지옥에 던지우지 않는 것이 유익하며

30 또한 만일 네 오른손이 너로 실족케 하거든 찍어 내버리라 네 백체 중 하나가 없어지고 온 몸이 지옥에 던지우지 않는 것이 유익하니라

31 또 일렀으되 누구든지 아내를 버리거든 이혼증서를 줄 것이라 하였으나

32 나는 너희에게 이르노니 누구든지 음행한 연고 없이 아내를 버리면 이는 저로 간음하게 함이요 또 누구든지 버린 여자에게 장가 드는 자도 간음함이니라

33 또 옛 사람에게 말한 바 헛 맹세를 하지 말고 네 맹세한 것을 주께 지키라 하였다는 것을 너희가 들었으나

34 나는 너희에게 이르노니 도무지 맹세하지 말지니 하늘로도 말라 이는 하나님의 보좌임이요

35 땅으로도 말라 이는 하나님의 발등상임이요 예루살렘으로도 말라 이는 큰 임금의 성임이요

36 네 머리로도 말라 이는 네가 한 터럭도 희고 검게 할 수 없음이라

37 오직 너희 말은 옳다 옳다,아니라 아니라 하라 이에서 지나는 것은 악으로 좇아 나느니라

38 또 눈은 눈으로, 이는 이로 갚으라 하였다는 것을 너희가 들었으나

39 나는 너희에게 이르노니 악한 자를 대적지 말라 누구든지 네 오른편 뺨을 치거든 왼편도 돌려 대며

40 또 너를 송사하여 속옷을 가지고자 하는 자에게 겉옷까지도 가지게 하며

41 또 누구든지 너로 억지로 오리를 가게 하거든 그 사람과 십리를 동행하고

42 네게 구하는 자에게 주며 네게 꾸고자 하는 자에게 거절하지 말라

43 또 네 이웃을 사랑하고 네 원수를 미워하라 하였다는 것을 너희가 들었으나

44 나는 너희에게 이르노니 너희 원수를 사랑하며 너희를 핍박하는 자를 위하여 기도하라

45 이같이 한즉 하늘에 계신 너희 아버지의 아들이 되리니 이는 하나님이 그 해를 악인과 선인에게 비취게 하시며 비를 의로운 자와 불의한 자에게 내리우심이니라

46 너희가 너희를 사랑하는 자를 사랑하면 무슨 상이 있으리요 세리도 이같이 아니하느냐

47 또 너희가 너희 형제에게만 문안하면 남보다 더 하는 것이 무엇이냐 이방인들도 이같이 아니하느냐

48 그러므로 하늘에 계신 너희 아버지의 온전하심과 같이 너희도 온전하라

   

Komentář

 

Bridling the Tongue

Napsal(a) Bill Woofenden

"If anyone considers himself religious, and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless." James 1:26

Other versions translate this to read "control" or "bridle" the tongue. In Apocalypse Explained 923 we read: "The term 'bridle' is used in a number of passages of the Word, and it signifies in the spiritual sense restraint and government, and it is predicated of the understanding and its thought, because a bridle belongs to horses and “horses” signify the understanding."

One of the more revealing facts about ourselves may be that the simplest, most basic, most obvious principles of the spiritual way of life are the ones we seem to need to be reminded of over and over again. Is there any one of us who does not really know—deep inside—that the Lord's way is the way of peace, of gentleness, of purity, of friendliness, of compassion, of fruitfulness, of forbearance, of self-control? Yet which of us has never been guilty of belligerence, contentiousness, overbearing attitude, impurity, lust, hostility, ill will, indifference, harshness, sloth, shiftlessness, vindictiveness, or gross indulgence? Over and over again!

It seems unfortunately true of "human nature", as we know it, that all of us—young and old, rich and poor, saint and sinner—stand in need repeatedly to be reminded of the basic ingredients of human decency. It is thus no surprise to us that the Scriptures are liberally sprinkled with admonitions about the obvious. The words of Micah 6:8 come readily to mind: "He hath showed 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?"

If in fact, we were to set out to collect and review all such passages in the Scriptures, we would be here all of today and well into the night, I suspect. This I do not intend to do, you'll be glad to know. Instead, let us narrow our gaze to one relatively small facet of this life-wide problem, the focus of our text from James, the need to bridle the tongue.

In the Old Testament, in Psalm 15, we read of the danger inherent in slandering with the tongue. In Psalm 34 we read, "Keep thy tongue from evil and thy lips from speaking guile"—not only to avoid speaking anything evil, but also to refrain from even thinking it.

A little further on—in Psalm 39—the psalmist apparently decided to take things in his own hands and to set for himself course of action. He decided he would, in fact, repress or suppress his feelings and desires. "I will not let my tongue make me sin... I will not say anything while evil men are near... not say a word, not even about anything good."

Did it work? No. "My suffering only grew worse, and I was overcome with anxiety. The more I thought, the more troubled I became."

Complete silence does not seem to be the answer. (Those of us who essentially earn our living by talking should be relieved to learn this.) No, the symbol of the bridle or restraint seems to be the direction in which one must move. Swedenborg, in reporting a meeting with spirits from another planet, said these extraterrestrial beings observed that "the spirits of our earth...speak much and think little" (Arcana Coelestia 8031). Not too flattering, but probably accurate.

In his work on Ethics, Spinoza noted that "the world would be much happier if men were as fully able to keep silence as they are to speak. But experience abundantly shows that men can govern anything more easily than their tongues."

He (Spinoza) may have been prompted in part to write that by the picturesque analysis in the third chapter of the letter of the apostle James, which reads in part:

"We put a bit into the mouth of a horse to make it obey us, and we are able to make it go where we want. Or think of a ship: big as it is and driven by such strong winds, it can be steered by a very small rudder, and it goes wherever the pilot wants it to go. So it is with the tongue: small as it is, it can boast about great things.

“Just think how large a forest can be set on fire by a tiny flame! And the tongue is like a fire. It is a world of wrong, occupying its place in our bodies and spreading evil through our whole being. It sets on fire the entire course of our existence with the fire that comes to it from hell itself. Man is able to tame and has tamed all other creatures—wild animals and birds, reptiles and fish. But no one has ever been able to tame the tongue. It is evil and uncontrollable, full of deadly poison. We use it to give thanks to our Lord and Father and also to curse our fellow-man, who is created in the likeness of God. Words of thanksgiving and cursing pour out from the same mouth. My brothers, this should not happen! No spring of water pours out sweet water and bitter water from the same opening. A fig tree, my brothers, cannot bear olives: a grapevine cannot bear figs, nor can a salty spring produce sweet water.

“Is there anyone among you who is wise and understanding? He is to prove it by his good life, by his good deeds performed with humility and wisdom. But if in your heart you are jealous, bitter and selfish, don't sin against the truth by boasting of your wisdom. Such wisdom does not come down from heaven: it belongs the world; it is unspiritual and demonic. Where there is jealousy and selfishness, there is also disorder and every kind of evil. But the wisdom from above is pure first of all; it is also peaceful, gentle and friendly; it is full of compassion and produces a harvest of good deeds; it is free from prejudice and hypocrisy. And goodness is the harvest that is produced from the seeds the peacemakers plant in peace.” (James 3:3-18)

We are forced to face the reality that there is no easy or "pat" answer to the problem of bridling the tongue. The early American political motto—"eternal vigilance is the price of liberty"—could as well have been spoken of the "battle of the tongue." May we paraphrase and say, "Eternal vigilance to restrain the tongue is the price of regeneration"?

In a provocative Diary entry, Swedenborg wrote: "When souls speak otherwise than they think, as if they speak good because it is to their advantage, there appears a sword, and the point of the sword appears, as it were, to be falling upon the head of the speaker. And this is the case even when no deceit is intended, but when it appears as though one ought to speak in this manner because the speaker observes it to be true, even though his mind does not feel the truth of what he says, but disagrees with it; in which case a sword appears behind the back, endangering the speaker" (Spiritual Diary 934). What a compelling word-picture to have in mind whenever we find ourselves "speaking guile!"

It is an axiom of the New Church that we are citizens of two worlds—that we are living simultaneously in both the natural world and the spiritual world. Further, that the two fold spiritual world profoundly influences us at all times—heavenly influences leading us to think and say heavenly things, hellish influences beguiling into thinking and saying hellish things. We dare never ignore the reality and presence of these influences. Nor can we take refuge in claiming, "The devil made me do it!" For the truth is that although "the devil" undoubtedly suggested it, we—you and I—decide whether or not to accept the suggestion.

“In the natural world man has a twofold speech, because he has a twofold thought, an exterior and an interior; for a man can speak from interior thought, and at the same time from exterior thought; and he can speak from exterior thought, and not from the interior, and even against the interior: hence come simulations, flatteries, and hypocrisies. But in the spiritual world man's speech is not twofold but single. He there speaks as he thinks: otherwise the sound is harsh, and offends the ear. But still he can be silent, and thus not divulge the thoughts of his mind: therefore when a hypocrite comes among the wise, he either goes away, or hurries himself into a corner of the room and makes himself inconspicuous, and sits mute.” (Apocalypse Revealed 294)

Can we set before ourselves an ideal? Yes. We find one in that short portion of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5:33-37. It involves the danger in resorting to oaths and vows. Literally it sounds strange, as if we are not to make binding promises. But spiritually, we learn, it refers to the ideal state of those in the celestial or highest heaven. The Rev. William Bruce explains, "The command not to swear is a command not to confirm or uphold, by our own wisdom, the authority of divine wisdom, not to obtrude ourselves or our own wisdom into the domain of the eternal government, where the wisdom of God is everything."

He further explains that “if we loved good with our whole heart, and always followed it, if we hated evil in every form and constantly shunned it," we would then be able to obey the scripture, "Simply let your Yes be Yes and your No be No" (Matthew 5:37). But pending our reaching that exalted state, we do well to heed the words of our text: "If anyone considers himself religious, and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless."