Resist not – ἀντιστῆναι

Walter Wink is a theologian that I first discovered in my final semester of undergrad in a course titled The Askesis (practice) of Nonviolence. After graduation, I would eventually stumble upon his book Jesus and Nonviolence: A Third Way. It is a short little book that I have returned to often and if you see me with a backpack, then most likely the book is in the backpack. 

The beginning of the book mainly deals with Matthew 5:38-41:

“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil. When someone strikes you on your right cheek, turn the other one to him as well. If anyone wants to go to law with you over your tunic, hand him your cloak as well. Should anyone press you into service for one mile, go with him two miles.”

The greek word, ἀντιστῆναι / antistēnai, is translated above “offer no resistance”. Walter Wink notes that,

Jesus did not tell his oppressed hearers not to resist evil. That would have been absurd. His entire ministry is utterly at odds with such a preposterous idea. The Greek word is made up of two parts: anti, a word still used in English for “against,” and histēmi, a verb that in its noun form (stasis) means violent rebellion, armed revolt, sharp disention. In the Greek Old Testament, antistēnai is used primarily for military encounters – 44 out of 71 times. It refers specifically to the moment two armies collide, steel on steel, until one side breaks and flees. In the New Testament it describes Barabbas, a rebel “who had committed murder in the insurrection” (Mark 15:7; Luke 23:19, 25), and the townspeople in Ephesus, who “are in danger of being charged with rioting” (Acts 19:40). The term generally refers to a potentially lethal disturbance or armed revolution.

As noted above, Jesus provides three clear examples to his followers (this quote occurs during the Sermon on the Mount). The first example is the famous “turn the other cheek”, however, we should note it is specifically about offering your left cheek. Why does Jesus assume His followers are getting hit on their right cheek? Well, as Wink notes,

“A blow by the right fist in that right-handed world would land on the left cheek of the opponent. To strike the right cheek with the fist would require using the left hand, but in that society the left hand was used only for unclean tasks. Even to gesture with the left hand at Qumran carried the penalty of exclusion and ten days’ penance. The only way one could strike the right cheek with the right hand would be with the back of the right hand. What we are dealing with here is unmistakably an insult, not a fistfight. The intention is not to injure but to humiliate, to put someone in his or her “place.” One normally did not strike a peer thus, and if one did the fine was exorbitant. A backhand slap was the normal way of admonishing inferiors. Masters backhanded slaves; husbands, wives; parents, children; men, women; Romans, Jews. We have here a set of unequal relations, in each of which retaliation would be suicidal…

Once we understand that the followers of Jesus are struck on their right cheek, we are still left wondering why Jesus would then instruct the offering of the left cheek? Wink suggests, 

Such a response would create enormous difficulties for the striker. Purely logistically, what can he do? He cannot use the backhand because his nose is in the way. He can’t use his left hand regardless. If he hits with a fist, he makes himself an equal, acknowledging the other as a peer. But the whole point of the back hand is to reinforce the caste system and its institutionalized inequality. Even if he orders the person flogged, the point has been forced, against his will, to regard this subordinate as an equal human being. The powerful person has been stripped of his power to dehumanize the other. This response, far from admonishing passivity and cowardice, is an act of defiance.”

I recommend reading through those quotations above with a friend and role-playing the situation (SLOWLY AND WITHOUT MAKING CONTACT). 

As noted in the initial scripture quotation, Jesus provides two more examples of actions that reclaim human dignity and power through active nonviolence. The third example that Jesus provides, of “going the second mile”, was beautifully depicted in The Chosen series and I would recommend you watch that clip once again with this new understanding in mind. 

It is clear that Jesus instructs His disciples very much to in fact resist evil. The goal as Christians should be to develop more of these nonviolent techniques that meet the demands of our current conflicts, both in our personal lives and in the world. 

Further Scripture to reflect on:

• Consider different translations of Matthew 5:39. How would each translation cause you to live your life differently? Consider how the King James’ translation (1611) may have impacted generations of potential nonviolent Christians. 
• King James version: “But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.”
• NABRE (Catholic lectionary): “But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil. When someone strikes you on your right cheek, turn the other one to him as well.”
• Walter Wink  “Don’t strike back at evil (or, one who has done you evil) in kind.” or “Do not retaliate against violence with violence.
• Scholars Version: “Don’t react violently against the one who is evil.” 

Source: Wink, Walter. Jesus and Nonviolence: A Third Way, 2003, Augsburg Fortress, Minneapolis, MN.