What is the meaning of Matthew 5:17? Do not think “Do not think that I have come…” (Matthew 5:17a) • Jesus opens with a gentle correction. People were already forming opinions about His teaching; some feared He was overturning everything Moses wrote. • Throughout Scripture God often tells His people not to assume the wrong thing (Isaiah 55:8–9; John 5:39). Christ is guarding minds from a mistaken conclusion before it takes root. that I have come “…that I have come…” (Matthew 5:17a) • The phrase underscores purpose: His arrival is deliberate, planned “from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8). • He isn’t another rabbi offering commentary; He is the promised Messiah stepping into history (John 6:38; Galatians 4:4). to abolish the Law or the Prophets “…to abolish the Law or the Prophets.” (Matthew 5:17b) • “Law” refers to the writings of Moses (Genesis–Deuteronomy), “Prophets” to the rest of the prophetic witness. Together they represent all Scripture then in circulation (Luke 24:27). • Abolish means to tear down, nullify. Jesus insists He is not erasing a single inspired sentence (Psalm 119:89; Romans 3:31). • By pairing Law and Prophets, He affirms the unity and enduring value of the whole Old Testament. I have not come to abolish them “I have not come to abolish them…” (Matthew 5:17c) • Repetition drives the point home: abolition is off the table. • The character of God revealed in the Law—holy, just, good—doesn’t change (Psalm 19:7; Romans 7:12). • Prophetic promises stand firm; God cannot lie (Numbers 23:19; Isaiah 40:8). but to fulfill them “…but to fulfill them.” (Matthew 5:17d) • Fulfill means bring to completion, fill up to the brim. Jesus embodies every sacrifice, festival, prophecy, and moral demand. – Moral law: He lives it perfectly (1 Peter 2:22). – Ceremonial law: He is the true Lamb (John 1:29; Hebrews 10:1–10). – Prophetic promises: He is the Branch, the Servant, the King (Luke 24:44; 2 Corinthians 1:20). • Fulfillment doesn’t discard the original; it confirms its truth and reveals its full intent (Romans 10:4; Colossians 2:16–17). summary Jesus is not a revolutionary replacing Moses and the prophets; He is the Redeemer who brings their words to radiant completion. The Law and the Prophets remain trustworthy, their ultimate meaning shining brightest in Christ, who perfectly lives, secures, and reveals everything they anticipated. |
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