Skip to main content

Settle Matters With Your Brother While There is Still Time

Let’s continue with Yeshua’s teaching on anger (Part 6):

Agree with your adversary quickly while you are still on the road with him; lest at any time your adversary deliver you to the judge, and the judge deliver you to the officer, and you be thrown into prison. Amen! I tell you, you will not come out of there until you have paid the last kodranthn (KODRANTEN). (Matthew 5:25-26)

The three key terms in the closing of Yeshua’s lesson on anger are adversary, amen and kodranthn. Let’s begin by discovering the meaning of the Greek word kodranthn. A number of English translators chose to use the word “farthing” -- “until you have paid the last farthing.”  Their decision to use “farthing” reveals something important about the influence of their culture on their translation of the Bible. They chose a familiar English word from their culture that readers would have clearly understood – but the word they chose no longer is used or familiar to American English readers.

What is a farthing? Farthing is derived from the Anglo-Saxon feorthing, a fourthling or fourth part, or “quarter.” Farthing is also the name of a British coin, which was first minted in 1714.[i] “Farthing” is the translation they chose for the Greek word found in the ancient manuscripts -- kodranthn -- which is a transliteration of the Latin word quadrantarius, which means “quarter-, of, relating to a quarter.” A quadran was a Roman copper coin (click here to see pictures & more info). A good translation for American readers today would be penny -- “until you have paid the last penny!”   

The Greek words translated “adversary” are tw antidikw. They may also be translated – enemy or opponent at law (when a law suit is involved). Here, Yeshua was saying, “Agree with the one who is an opponent in a law suit.”

The third word is “Amen!” In a previous blog, we learned that when Yeshua used the word “Amen!” he was making an important point (the earlier blog is What does “Verily” mean & why did Yeshua use it so much?). Dr. Robert Lindsey explained that the use of “Amen!” was part of a three-fold pattern Yeshua often used in his teachings to make important points. The three-fold pattern Yeshua skillfully used consisted of the following:

1. Significant statement
2. Amen
3. Added statement strengthening the Amen.

Now let’s use this information to reconstruct the three-fold patter Yeshua used here.

1. Agree with the one who is your opponent in a law suit while you are still on the road to the court with him; lest at any time your opponent delivers you over to the judge, who will hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison. (significant statement)

2. Amen!

3. You will not come out of the prison until you have paid the last penny you owe your opponent and the court! (added statement strengthening the Amen!).

The point Yeshua made:

Settle things with your brother while you are walking on the road of life, while you still have the option to do so. If you don’t, then a judge will resolve the issue in a human court or on the Great Day of Judgment!

As we saw in the previous blog (Would God Not Accept His Sacrifice?), God cannot forgive a person until the brother he or she has offended forgives the person first. The importance of restoring one’s relationship with his or her brother is absolutely essential for receiving God’s forgiveness. Yeshua’s primary focus in this lesson, as well as many other lessons, was the importance of one’s relationship with his or her brother (neighbor). This is the cornerstone principle of Yeshua’s religion and the original salvation message he taught.

If you like The Real Yeshua Blog and believe that it is sharing important information, please do this:

(1) Go to Facebook and “Like” our Facebook Real Yeshua page at -- https://www.facebook.com/therealyeshua?ref=hl
(2) Share the blogs with others.

We would also appreciate your help in funding this work. Our work is made possible and completely funded by donations. Your support really helps – regardless of the amount. Your gifts are clearly proof that you consider this information important and valuable – that you care – and that want to help. This really helps encourage us, because sometimes it doesn’t feel like anyone cares. Donate today at -- http://www.biblicalheritage.org/yeshua_donate.htm

I hope this work is worthy of your support. Thank you!


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

It’s a Yod -- NOT a Jot and Tittle!

Not only did Yeshua read and speak Hebrew, so did his followers and disciples! Two very well known, but not accurately understood words in the Gospel of Matthew prove it – jot and tittle . For some reason jot and tittle stick in the minds of Christian Bible readers. But when you ask them what jot or tittle mean, you get a lot of conflicting and some really weird answers. Today, you are going to get the facts about what Yeshua originally said and how they ended up in English translations of the Bible as jot and tittle . Let’s begin by reading Matthew 5:18 from the King James translation: For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. If you have not read the article “ From Yeshua to Jesus ” in Yeshua’s Kingdom Handbook please take a moment to read it online by clicking here before you continue. In it you will see how we began with the name “ Jesus ” and traced it through Lati...
Post a Comment
Read more

Do Not Say RAQA! - Yeshua on Anger (Part 2)

In the last blog, we covered the first part of Yeshua’s lesson on Anger -- An Angry Person Should be Tried in Court like a Murderer – keep in mind that “anger” is the focus of Yeshua’s lesson. “Whoever says to a brother, ‘ RAKA ,’ shall be answerable to the Sanhedrin.” [i] Yeshua reveals that the seriousness of the offense has become greater by elevating the crime to the next highest court – the Sanhedrin . It is the highest court in the nation and would be the equivalent of our Supreme Court. What makes this offense more serious than murder, to keep things in the context established by Yeshua? It is because of what the angry person said out of anger – “ RAKA !” RAKA is the English transliteration of the Greek word found in the ancient manuscripts of Matthew. Interestingly, the Greek word is also a transliteration of a Hebrew word into Greek. Keep in mind that when a translator working on a translation of a Greek manuscript transliterates a Greek word, he only finds ...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Prayer Yeshua Prayed Twice Every Day

One of Jesus’s earliest memories was no doubt watching and listening to his family when they gathered to pray the Shema at sunrise before the day’s work began and after the working work day was over at sunset . He also heard and participated in praying the Shema at their synagogue. He was surrounded by neighbors who also prayed the same prayer in their homes every day. The Hebrew word for prayer is tefilah . It is derived from the root Pe-Lamed-Lamed and the word l'hitpalel, meaning “ to judge oneself .” This surprising word origin provides insight into the purpose of Jewish prayer. The most important part of any Jewish prayer, whether it be a prayer of petition, of thanksgiving, of praise of God, or of confession, is the introspection it provides, the moment that we spend looking inside ourselves, seeing our role in the universe and our relationship to God. [1] Most of Jewish prayers are expressed in the first person plural, "us" instead of "me," an...
Post a Comment
Read more