Jesus said, “You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘You shall not commit murder’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.’ I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, “Raca” shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell…” Matthew 5:21-22
The entire fifth chapter of Matthew records a timeless discourse given by Jesus before a great crowd who had gathered on a hillside. There, our Lord spent time assuring the wounded and the unseen that God saw their hearts in the midst of all they were going through and that their faithfulness would one day be rewarded. Jesus then took time to contrast mere image with substance, outward appearances with the condition of the heart. He made it powerfully apparent that, although we may content ourselves with what is seen outwardly, God sees it all, including the motives and intentions of our hearts.
Among other things, Jesus soberly compares the obvious sin of murder – and its consequences – with verbal cruelty. Committing murder obviously merited swift, severe judgment from lawful authorities. But Jesus set His gaze beyond physical wounds and acknowledged that unseen injuries inflicted as a result of hatred and abject cruelty are similarly subject to punishment that supersedes earthly judgment – even the expectation of hell.
In certain instances, calling someone out as a fool (as Jesus did at times) was intended to incite the hearer to acknowledge vanity or folly. But when words are spoken not respectfully but maliciously, with an intent to inflict great emotional pain, “…it is the smoke of that fire that is kindled in hell and falls under the same character,” notes renowned Bible Commentator Matthew Henry (whose insights are shared here). For “You fool,” might similarly be used as “a spiteful phrase born of hatred.” It looked upon another with arrogant contempt and essentially inferred to the hearer that he or she was “vile and not to be loved.” They were cruel, devaluing words that were intended to inflict deep and lasting shame.
Similarly, “Raca” was a scornful word that essentially meant, “You empty fellow.” At its worst, the term could be used in a brutal, heartless manner – to assert that the hearer was truly worthless, even unworthy of keeping company with dogs. The behavior Jesus was referencing went far beyond “…a haughty taunting of our brother [to the point of] a malicious censuring and condemning of him, as abandoned of God.” Such verbal assaults constitute “…poison under the tongue that kills secretly and slowly…”
Jesus acknowledged how deeply such cruelties are felt not only by their victims, but by God Himself, whereby the one who says, “Thou fool, thou profane person, thou child of hell” shall be in danger of hell-fire.”[i]
So our Lord condemns the heart-murderer. This is not simply that the one saying such cruel things has a murderous heart, but that the person who says such things murders the heart of another.
What does this say of the verbal abuser who carelessly, callously and consistently says or otherwise infers that those in his household are worthless and unworthy of love?
Those of us who have survived abusive relationships have been subject to much the same. How many of us have heard these kinds of heart-killing words?
“No one else would ever want you.”
“I wish I had never married you.”
“You make me sick.”
“I wouldn’t care if you died.”
More than once, my former husband told me as he glared at me with disgust, “There is something seriously wrong with you.” It was a phrase that always dared me to consider whether I was truly mentally ill and somehow blind to my own insanity. His inference was that I should never doubt his ways or his will, because my judgment could not be trusted.
These same heart-killers may also impose a devastating kind of shame on our children: 
“You’re so stupid.”
“You can’t do anything right.”
“Why can’t you be like your brother?”
“I never wanted you anyway.”
“You’ll never amount to anything.”
“What makes you think I care?”
“Leave me alone. I don’t have time for you.”
We should never feel obligated to remain in the same household with someone who carries such wickedness in his* heart that he would seek to destroy with his words those who should be under his protective care. Heart-murder is a serious offense in the eyes of God – an offense potentially worthy of hell.
Shouldn’t we take such offenses as seriously as He does?
Of course we should.
“The good person out of the good treasure of the heart produces good, and the evil person out of evil treasure produces evil; for it is out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks.” Luke 6:45
“Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life.” Proverbs 4:23
[i] Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible, Complete and Unabridged, ©1991, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., (Third Printing, 1993), 1632.
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Cindy Burrell
Copyright 2018, All Rights Reserved
*Abusers may be of either gender, however, the overwhelming majority of abusers are male; therefore, the abuser is referenced in the masculine. The reader’s understanding is appreciated.
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