Section 5:17–20
Jesus came to fulfill Scripture
In this section, Jesus taught that he came into the world to fulfill the prophecies in the Old Testament Scripture (5:17). The Old Testament indicates that the Christ (Messiah) would be the Savior of mankind. God showed that Jesus was the Christ by the many miracles he did through Jesus. Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection brought the Scripture to its completion. In this section, Jesus also exhorted his disciples to live righteously (5:19–20).
Here are some other possible headings for this section:
Teaching about the law
-or-
The fulfillment of the law
-or-
Jesus fulfills the prophecies of Scripture
Paragraph 5:17–20
5:17a
Do not think that: Jesus knew that some Jews would later accuse him of trying to destroy God’s laws. So he said here that they should not think such thoughts.
Here are some other ways to translate this expression:
You (plur.) should not think that
-or-
Don’t suppose that (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
Do not say in your mind/heart that
I have come: The clause I have come refers to Jesus coming into the world.
So here is another way to translate this clause:
I have come to the earth
This clause does not refer to Jesus’ coming to the mountain where he was preaching.
to abolish: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as abolish means “do away with, make invalid, repeal.”
Here are some other ways to translate this word:
to destroy (New Century Version)
-or-
to do away with (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
to set aside (God’s Word)
the Law or the Prophets: By itself, the phrase the Law refers to the first five books of the Old Testament. The phrase the Prophets refers to the Old Testament books from Isaiah to Malachi. When these two phrases are used together, they refer to the entire Old Testament including all the books between the law and the Prophets.
Jesus used the conjunction or to indicate that he would abolish no part of the Old Testament.
Here are some other ways to translate these phrases:
⌊the books of⌋ the law ⌊that God gave to Moses⌋ or ⌊the books of⌋ the Prophets
-or-
⌊the books of⌋ the laws ⌊of Moses⌋ or ⌊the books of⌋ the Prophets
-or-
⌊The Scriptures starting from⌋ the laws ⌊given to Moses⌋ ⌊through⌋ ⌊the writings of⌋ the Prophets
5:17b
I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them: In some languages, it may be more natural to change the order of the clauses in 5:17b. For example:
I have come to fulfill them and not to abolish them.
to fulfill them: Here, the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as to fulfill has a broader meaning than its meaning in previous contexts like 4:14. Here this word includes the aspects of:
(a) to make them come true (as in God’s Word). Jesus made come true the Old Testament prophecies which refer to the promised Messiah.
(b) to complete them (as in the New Jerusalem Bible). Jesus finished the requirements of the Old Testament, like sacrifices. (As such, it is not necessary for us to do these sacrifices again.)
(c) to obey them. Jesus obeyed all the Old Testament commandments (though not always in the way that the religious leaders thought that he should obey them).
(d) to teach their true meaning. Jesus, by his life and teaching, revealed the true meaning and implications of the Old Testament Scriptures. He revealed how to apply the Scriptures.
To adequately translate this word, it may be necessary to include several of the aspects above. For example:
to fulfill them and show/reveal their true meaning
-or-
to complete them and make them come true
-or-
to make their true meaning clear and to cause them to come true
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All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
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