Matthew 5:24

Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.

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Word by word — the Greek

Word	Greek	Strong’s	Meaning
Leave	ἄφες aphes	G863	an intensive form of · verb — second aorist active imperative, 2nd person singular
there	ἐκεῖ ekei	G1563	there · adverb
thy	σοῦ soû	G4675	of thee
gift	δῶρόν dōron	G1435	a present · noun — accusative singular neuter
before	ἔμπροσθεν emprosthen	G1715	in front of (in place (literally or figuratively) or ti… · preposition
the altar	θυσιαστηρίου thusiastēriou	G2379	a place of sacrifice · noun — genitive singular neuter
and	καὶ kai	G2532	and · conjunction
go thy way	ὕπαγε, hupage	G5217	to lead (oneself) under · verb — present active imperative, 2nd person singular
first	πρῶτον prōton	G4412	firstly (in time
be reconciled	διαλλάγηθι diallagēthi	G1259	to change thoroughly · verb — second aorist passive imperative, 2nd person singular
to	ἀδελφῷ adelphō	G80	a brother (literally or figuratively) near or remote (m… · noun — dative singular masculine
thy	σοῦ soû	G4675	of thee
brother	ἀδελφός adelphós	G80	a brother (literally or figuratively) near or remote (m…
and	καὶ kai	G2532	and · conjunction
then	τότε tote	G5119	the when · adverb
come	ἐλθὼν elthōn	G2064	to come or go (in a great variety of applications · verb — second aorist active participle, nominative singular masculine
and offer	πρόσφερε prosphere	G4374	to bear towards · verb — present active imperative, 2nd person singular
thy	σοῦ soû	G4675	of thee
gift	δῶρόν dōron	G1435	a present · noun — accusative singular neuter

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

James 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availet…
Romans 12:17-18 Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men.
Matthew 18:15-17 Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast…
Job 42:8 Therefore take unto you now seven bullocks and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and my se…
1 Peter 3:7-8 Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs to…
Proverbs 25:9 Debate thy cause with thy neighbour himself; and discover not a secret to another:
1 Corinthians 6:7-8 Now therefore there is utterly a fault among you, because ye go to law one with another. Why do ye not rather take wrong? why do ye not rath…
1 Timothy 2:8 I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Matthew 5:21-26

Christ having laid down these principles, that Moses and the prophets were still to be their rulers, but that the scribes and Pharisees were to be no longer their rulers, proceeds to expound the law in some particular instances, and to vindicate it from the corrupt glosses which those expositors had put upon it. He adds not any thing new, only limits and restrains some permissions which had been abused: and as to the precepts, shows the breadth, strictness, and spiritual nature of them, adding such explanatory statutes as made them more clear, and tended much toward the perfecting of our obedience to them. In these verses, he explains the law of the sixth commandment, according to the true i…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Matthew 5:24

Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother--The meaning evidently is--not, "dismiss from thine own breast all ill feeling, "but" get thy brother to dismiss from his mind all grudge against thee." and then come and offer thy gift--"The picture," says THOLUCK," is drawn from life. It transports us to the moment when the Israelite, having brought his sacrifice to the court of the Israelites, awaited the instant when the priest would approach to receive it at his hands. He waits with his gift at the rails which separate the place where he stands from the court of the priests, into which his offering will presently be taken, there to be slain by th…

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John Gill on Matthew 5:24

Leave there thy gift before the altar,.... This might easily be done, and the business soon dispatched, at some seasons; particularly, at their public feasts, as the passover, pentecost, and feast of tabernacles, when all the Israelites were together: and go thy way; make what haste thou canst, first be reconciled to thy brother: use all means to reconcile him; acknowledge the offence; ask his pardon; assure him that thou wishest well to him, and not ill; and then come and offer thy gift, by putting it on the altar, before which it was left. This shows, that acts of love and friendship are preferable to sacrifices; and that sacrifices offered up in wrath, and whilst unreconciled to others…

The Church Fathers

He did not say, if you have something against your brother, but if your brother has something against you, so that a harsher necessity of reconciliation may be imposed on you. As long as we cannot appease him, I do not know whether we should consequently offer our gifts to God.
— Jerome, Commentary on Matthew

To give assent to sin is already a completed evil, even if someone does not actually commit the deed. And by this saying our Savior, hurling us away from the cause of sins, endeavors to cut sin off completely. For when this intention is not present in our souls, neither shall the action accompany it.
— Origen of Alexandria, FRAGMENT 103

In the spiritual sense therefore we may understand faith as an altar in the inner temple of God, to which the visible altar symbolically points. Whatever gift we offer to God—whether it be prophecy, or doctrine, or prayer, or a hymn, or a psalm, or whatever other spiritual gifts of this kind may come to mind—cannot be acceptable to God unless it is held up by sincere faith and firmly and immovably fixed on it, so that our words may be pure and undefiled.
— Augustine of Hippo, SERMON ON THE MOUNT 1.10.27

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Brother — (1.) In the natural and common sense (Matt. 1:2; Luke 3:1, 19). (2.) A near relation, a cousin (Gen. 13:8; 14:16; Matt. 12:46; John 7:3; Acts 1:14; Gal. 1:19). (3.) Simply a fellow-countryman (Matt.…
Gift — (1.) An gratuity (Prov. 19:6) to secure favour (18:16; 21:14), a thank-offering (Num. 18:11), or a dowry (Gen. 34:12). (2.) An oblation or proppitatory gift (2Sa 8:2, 6; 1Ch 18:2, 6; 2Ch 26:8; Ps.…
Sermon on the mount — After spending a night in solemn meditation and prayer in the lonely mountain-range to the west of the Lake of Galilee (Luke 6:12), on the following morning our Lord called to him his disciples, and…
Altar Of Burnt Offering, The · All gifts to be presented at — All gifts to be presented at
Charitableness · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Commandments · DISCOURSE — DISCOURSE
Fraternity · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Judaism · .To make room for the Gospel — .To make room for the Gospel
Offerings · Required to be: Offered in love and charity — Required to be: Offered in love and charity
Reconciliation · Between man and man — Between man and man
Reconciliation With God · Necessity for — Illustrated — Necessity for — Illustrated
Religion · TRUE

Matthew 5:24

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Matthew 5:21-26

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Matthew 5:24

John Gill on Matthew 5:24

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Matthew 5:24

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Matthew 5:21-26

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Matthew 5:24

John Gill on Matthew 5:24

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

John Calvin on Matthew 5:23-26

Tyndale Open Study Notes on Matthew 5:23-26