But to you who hear I say, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 To the person who strikes you on one cheek, offer the other one as well, and from the person who takes your cloak, do not withhold even your tunic. 30 Give to everyone who asks of you, and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you. 32 For if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do the same. 34 If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit [is] that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, and get back the same amount. 35 But rather, love your enemies and do good to them, and lend expecting nothing back; then your reward will be great and you will be children of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as [also] your Father is merciful.
37 Stop judging and you will not be judged. Stop condemning and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven. 38 Give and gifts will be given to you; a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing, will be poured into your lap. For the measure with which you measure will in return be measured out to you.
In forming His disciples, Jesus lays out a clear pattern: “love… do good… bless… pray” (vv. 27-28). Love is more than a feeling. It is willing and doing the good of the other, even when the other is an enemy (cf. Mt. 5:44-45; Lk. 23:34). “Do good” means concrete acts of kindness and help, even toward those who oppose us (cf. Lk. 6:27; Rom. 12:17-21; Gal. 6:10; 1 Thes. 5:15; Prov. 25:21-22). “Bless” means to speak well of and to ask God to do good for the person (cf. Rom. 12:14; 1 Pet. 3:9; 1 Cor. 4:12-13). “Pray” means to bring that person before the Father by name, asking God to bless and convert—not to harm (cf. Lk. 6:28; Rom. 12:14). This fourfold way becomes the daily shape of Christian life.
Jesus then speaks about retaliation and possessions. “To the person who strikes you on one cheek, offer the other one as well” (v. 29). In ordinary speech, “turn the other cheek” can be misunderstood. Jesus is not telling victims to accept ongoing abuse or saying that civil authorities should ignore injustice. He forbids revenge in the heart and action (Lev. 19:18). True disciples refuse the cycle of payback. They seek the other’s conversion and the protection of the innocent, but they do so without hatred.
He adds, “from the person who takes your cloak, do not withhold even your tunic” (v. 29). In the first century, the cloak was an outer garment and the tunic an inner one. Jesus uses vivid examples to train our hearts in detachment and generous giving. He calls us to stop clutching our rights or goods and to answer wrongdoing without payback (vv. 29-30; cf. Mt. 5:40-42). “Give to everyone who asks of you” (v. 30) sets a generous posture. It does not require reckless giving or support of harmful choices. It calls us to a ready heart, wise help, and open hands that seek the person’s true good before God—generous with prudence and mercy.
The Golden Rule follows: “Do to others as you would have them do to you” (v. 31). This is not a vague ideal. It is a concrete test. Imagine yourself in the other’s place. Act as you would hope someone would act toward you. Be patient. Be truthful. Be generous. Jesus then exposes our limits: it is easy to love those who love us, to do good to those who do good to us, and to lend when repayment is secure (vv. 32-34). None of that marks a new life in Christ. It does not wait to be treated well. It is patient, truthful, and generous, even toward those who oppose us.
The heart of the passage is identity: “Love your enemies and do good to them, and lend expecting nothing back; then your reward will be great and you will be children of the Most High” (v. 35). “Most High” is a biblical title for God who is above all. To be called His children means to resemble Him by grace. God’s kindness reaches all—He is good even to the ungrateful and the wicked (Lk. 6:35); He makes his sun rise on the bad and the good (Mt. 5:45). Luke states that resemblance in a single word: mercy. “Be merciful, just as [also] your Father is merciful” (v. 36). Mercy is love that meets misery and works to heal it. It does not deny justice. It overcomes evil with good and seeks to restore communion.
Jesus then turns to judgment, condemnation, forgiveness, and generosity (vv. 37-38). In this context, “judge” means a harsh stance that claims to read the heart and to stand over the person. “Condemn” goes further and passes a final sentence. Disciples avoid both. We practice moral discernment, but we leave final judgment to God. Instead, we forgive as people who live by God’s forgiveness (Eph. 4:32; Col. 3:13), remembering Jesus’ parable of the unforgiving servant (Mt. 18:21-35). We give as people who live by God’s gifts.
The image in v. 38 comes from the marketplace. Grain sellers would “pack,” “shake,” and then heap the measure so the buyer received a full and overflowing portion. Jesus uses this familiar scene to reveal the Father’s economy. God’s measure is abundant. When we measure life with small, tight portions, we train our hearts to receive in the same way. When we measure with generosity, we discover that God is never outdone in giving: “a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing, will be poured into your lap” (v. 38).
The good news is that Jesus never commands what He will not help us to do. He gives the Holy Spirit to reshape our reactions. He trains our imagination to see others as the Father sees them. He teaches our hands to give and our lips to bless. This is the life of God’s children: a simple, steady way of mercy that points others to Him.
Lord Jesus, You loved us when we were far from You. Give us Your heart. Teach us to bless when we are cursed, to pray when we are mistreated, to forgive as we have been forgiven, and to give without keeping score. Form in us the Father’s measure—packed, shaken, and overflowing—so that our lives lead others to God. Amen.
______________________
Sources and References (short form)
- Scripture (NABRE, 2011): Lk. 6:27-38 (primary); Mt. 5:38-39, 40-42, 43-45; Mt. 18:21-35; Lk. 23:34; Rom. 12:14, 17-21; Gal. 6:10; 1 Thes. 5:15; 1 Pet. 3:9; Prov. 20:22; Prov. 24:29; Prov. 25:21-22; Eph. 4:32; Col. 3:13; Lk. 7:47.
- The Navarre Bible: Luke. Faculty of the University of Navarre, 2008.
- The Paulist Biblical Commentary, “Luke,” ed. J. E. A. Chiu et al., 2018.
- New Jerome Biblical Commentary, “Luke,” ed. R. E. Brown et al., 1990.
Comments