Remember how Joseph (Genesis 39:11-12) in the Old Testament fled Potiphar's wife, when she lustfully sought him? He ran from her as fast as he could!
What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.
in 1st Corinthians 6:19-20 we're instructed to flee sexual immorality as our bodies are temples of the Lord;
everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. https://biblehub.com/interlinear/matthew/5-28.htm28 I however say to you, that everyone looking upon a woman in order to lust after her already has committed adultery with her in the heart of him.
The Greek word for “looks” is a present participle which refers to a continuous gaze.3 He speaks about the person who gazes to satisfy his or her lustful desires.
the Greek word usually translated “lust” in this passage (ἐπιθυμέω; epithumeô) is precisely the word for “covet” (Hebrew חמד) in the Tenth Command in the Septuagint (Greek Old Testament), which says:
You will not covet your neighbor’s wife.
https://www.jasonstaples.com/bible/most-misinterpreted-bible-passages-1-matthew-527-28/
Jesus is even able to use the word of himself:
“And He said to them, ‘I have lusted [ἐπιθυμέω] to eat this Passover with you before I suffer!'” (Luke 22:15)
This is what I thought until I had a conversation with an elder who had a completely different take on Matthew 5:27 - He said the correct translation of the greek word instead of "lust" is "covet" - He also said Jesus is referring to married women here apparently because adultery can only happen when a married woman is involved. He said Jesus here is talking about looking at a married woman with the intent to covet her and not about looking at an attractive woman. Can you beloved souls kindly comment on this?
“anyone who looks at a woman in order to covet her.”
https://www.bereanpatriot.com/why-lusting-in-matthew-527-28-doesnt-make-all-men-adulterers/
it specifically condemns those "looking upon a woman in order to lust after her." Note that this isn't a case of someone just happening to look at a woman and feeling instinctive, unthinking attraction. It's someone who sees a woman and makes a conscious, intentional decision to ogle her for the purpose of their own sexual titillation.
Job says in Job 31:1, “I have made a covenant with my eyes; how then could I gaze at a virgin?”
“If my step has turned from the way, or my heart followed my eyes.” Our hearts are prone to follow what we put before our eyes. How did it start with Eve? “when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes”
Matthew 15:19
New International Version (2011)
19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.d
For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:
ABSTRACT
This chapter examines Jesus teaching on adultery in Mt. 5.2730, within the context of contemporary rabbinic discussion of adultery. It argues that certain biblical texts with the mindset of a traditional heterosexual male may help to unlock the meaning and coherence of that text. The Babylonian Talmud Tractate Niddah provides a fascinating parallel to the saying of Jesus in Mt. 5.2730. In a work on masculinity and male spirituality, James Nelson argues that men have become the victims of patriarchy. Ishmael refers to masturbation as adultery of the hand. Ishmael interprets the seventh commandment as prohibiting masturbation, and R. Tarfon recommends that the hand that touches the penis be cut off as punishment. This he understood to be preferable to the pit of destruction. Concerning the criterion of continuity and discontinuity with Christianity, New Testament writers uphold and interpret the seventh commandment.
OK the AI answer is below:
- Scholars like Bruce Chilton highlight connections between Talmudic discussions, particularly around physical purity and intent, and Jesus's teachings.
- In Matthew 5:27-30, Jesus declares that lustful thoughts are equivalent to adultery, and extreme measures (like cutting off an eye or hand) are better than sinning, emphasizing internal holiness.
- Niddah deals with the laws of menstruation, ritual purity, and impurity related to bodily fluids, establishing strict guidelines for separation and purification.
- While Niddah focuses on physical purity, the parallel to Jesus's teaching lies in the principle of extending spiritual accountability beyond overt actions to internal states and potential for impurity, albeit in a different context (bodily emissions vs. sexual desire).
- The Talmud's detailed regulations, even if seemingly strict, aim to define and manage impurity, paralleling Jesus's call to extreme internal purity to avoid spiritual corruption.
- The general rabbinic idea, often summarized by the phrase "The measure you give will be the measure you get" (found in other texts, not directly Niddah in this phrasing, but related to intent and consequence), shows a parallel focus on the weight of actions and intentions, aligning with Jesus's emphasis on the heart..............
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