Did Jesus Abolish the Law?

No. Matthew 5:17Matthew 5:17 · King James VersionThink not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.Matthew 5:17 · King James VersionOpen source says Jesus did not come to destroy the Law or the Prophets, but to fulfill them. Fulfillment is not a sentence that every later disciple keeps the whole Mosaic code. He presses the commands further in, and the apostles treat the temple calendar as a shadow whose body is Christ.

Key Points

• Matthew 5:17Matthew 5:17 · King James VersionThink not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.Matthew 5:17 · King James VersionOpen source (1): “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.”
• Matthew 5:18Matthew 5:18 · King James VersionFor verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.Matthew 5:18 · King James VersionOpen source says not one jot or tittle passes from the law till all is fulfilled. The “till” is in the sentence.
• Matthew 5:21–22Matthew 5:21 · King James VersionYe have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment:Matthew 5:21 · King James VersionOpen source and Matthew 5:27–28Matthew 5:27 · King James VersionYe have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:Matthew 5:27 · King James VersionOpen source take “do not kill” and “do not commit adultery” down into anger and lust.
• Romans 10:4Romans 10:4 · King James VersionFor Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.Romans 10:4 · King James VersionOpen source (2) says Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes. Romans 3:31Romans 3:31 · King James VersionDo we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.Romans 3:31 · King James VersionOpen source says faith establishes the law.
• Galatians 3:24–25Galatians 3:24–25 · King James Version^3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. ^3:25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.Galatians 3:24–25 · King James VersionOpen source (3) calls the law a schoolmaster until Christ, and says that after faith has come we are no longer under that schoolmaster.
• Colossians 2:16–17Colossians 2:16–17 · King James Version^2:16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: ^2:17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.Colossians 2:16–17 · King James VersionOpen source calls food, festivals, new moons, and sabbaths a shadow. Hebrews 8:13Hebrews 8:13 · King James VersionIn that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away.Hebrews 8:13 · King James VersionOpen source says the new covenant has made the first old.
• Qur’an 3:50Qur’an 3:50 · Saheeh InternationalAnd [I have come] confirming what was before me of the Torah and to make lawful for you some of what was forbidden to you. And I have come to you with a sign from your Lord, so fear Allāh and obey me.Qur’an 3:50 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source (7) has Jesus confirm the Torah and make lawful some of what was forbidden. Qur’an 5:48Qur’an 5:48 · Saheeh InternationalAnd We have revealed to you, [O Muḥammad], the Book [i.e., the Qur’ān] in truth, confirming that which preceded it of the Scripture and as a criterion over it. So judge between them by what Allāh has revealed and do not follow their inclinations away from what has come to you of the truth. To each of you We prescribed a law and a method. Had Allāh willed, He would have made you one nation [united in religion], but [He intended] to test you in what He has given you; so race to [all that is] good. To Allāh is your return all together, and He will [then] inform you concerning that over which you used to differ.Qur’an 5:48 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source says God prescribed to each community a law and a method.

Not to Destroy, but to Fulfil

Matthew 5:17–18Matthew 5:17–18 · King James Version^5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. ^5:18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.Matthew 5:17–18 · King James VersionOpen source, King James Version:

Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.

Matthew 5:17–18 · King James Version

The verb is fulfil, not abolish. The next line keeps every jot until all is fulfilled. A reading that makes Jesus cancel Moses in this paragraph is not the paragraph. A reading that makes “till all be fulfilled” into “the code never reaches its end” also skips the “till.” He is speaking as the one in whom the Law and the Prophets land. What Does the Bible Say About Salvation?

The Command Goes Further In

Matthew 5:21–22Matthew 5:21 · King James VersionYe have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment:Matthew 5:21 · King James VersionOpen source quotes “Thou shalt not kill,” then says anger with a brother is already in danger of the judgment. Matthew 5:27–28Matthew 5:27 · King James VersionYe have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:Matthew 5:27 · King James VersionOpen source quotes “Thou shalt not commit adultery,” then says the lustful look has already committed adultery in the heart. This is not a lighter law. It is the same law pressed past the outward act. The Sermon on the Mount does not read like a repeal.

The End of the Law for Righteousness

Romans 10:4Romans 10:4 · King James VersionFor Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.Romans 10:4 · King James VersionOpen source: “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.” “End” here is tied to righteousness, not to a claim that God changed his mind about right and wrong. Romans 3:31Romans 3:31 · King James VersionDo we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.Romans 3:31 · King James VersionOpen source asks whether faith makes the law void, and answers, “God forbid: yea, we establish the law.”

Galatians 3:24–25Galatians 3:24–25 · King James Version^3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. ^3:25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.Galatians 3:24–25 · King James VersionOpen source calls the law a schoolmaster to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith, and then says that after faith has come we are no longer under a schoolmaster. The schoolmaster’s work is to lead to Christ. Justification is by faith in him, not by finishing the Mosaic syllabus.

Acts 15:10–11Acts 15:10–11 · King James Version^15:10 Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? ^15:11 But we believe that through the grace of the LORD Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they.Acts 15:10–11 · King James VersionOpen source is the apostles refusing to put on Gentile disciples a yoke “which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear,” and saying they are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. Colossians 2:16–17Colossians 2:16–17 · King James Version^2:16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: ^2:17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.Colossians 2:16–17 · King James VersionOpen source says not to let anyone judge you in food, drink, a holy day, a new moon, or sabbath days, “which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.” Hebrews 8:13Hebrews 8:13 · King James VersionIn that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away.Hebrews 8:13 · King James VersionOpen source says that in speaking of a new covenant he has made the first old. Is the Sabbath Saturday or Sunday? stays with that shadow. The moral weight of the commands, pressed in Matthew 5, is not the same thing as the temple calendar.

A Law and a Method in the Qur’an

Qur’an 5:46Qur’an 5:46 · Saheeh InternationalAnd We sent, following in their footsteps, Jesus, the son of Mary, confirming that which came before him in the Torah; and We gave him the Gospel, in which was guidance and light and confirming that which preceded it of the Torah as guidance and instruction for the righteous.Qur’an 5:46 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source says Jesus, son of Mary, confirmed the Torah, and that God gave him the Gospel, with guidance and light, confirming the Torah. Qur’an 3:50Qur’an 3:50 · Saheeh InternationalAnd [I have come] confirming what was before me of the Torah and to make lawful for you some of what was forbidden to you. And I have come to you with a sign from your Lord, so fear Allāh and obey me.Qur’an 3:50 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source, Saheeh International, in words given to Jesus:

And [I have come] confirming what was before me of the Torah and to make lawful for you some of what was forbidden to you. And I have come to you with a sign from your Lord, so fear Allāh and obey me.

Qur’an 5:46 · Saheeh International

Qur’an · accepted by Muslims

Confirming the Torah, and making lawful some of what was forbidden, are both in that verse. The brackets mark words the translators supply. The confirmation and the making-lawful are not inside the brackets. The Qur’an itself does not say Jesus left every earlier prohibition untouched.

Qur’an 5:48Qur’an 5:48 · Saheeh InternationalAnd We have revealed to you, [O Muḥammad], the Book [i.e., the Qur’ān] in truth, confirming that which preceded it of the Scripture and as a criterion over it. So judge between them by what Allāh has revealed and do not follow their inclinations away from what has come to you of the truth. To each of you We prescribed a law and a method. Had Allāh willed, He would have made you one nation [united in religion], but [He intended] to test you in what He has given you; so race to [all that is] good. To Allāh is your return all together, and He will [then] inform you concerning that over which you used to differ.Qur’an 5:48 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source then says God revealed the Qur’an confirming what preceded it and as a criterion over it, and “To each of you We prescribed a law and a method.” The communities are not given one unchanged code. Does the Qur’an Confirm the Bible? follows 5:46–48 and the command that the People of the Gospel judge by what God revealed in it. What Is the Injil? is the book the Qur’an says Jesus received. The Christian reading of Matthew 5 is that Jesus fulfills Israel’s Law and Prophets in his own person, not that he installs a later sharia. What Is Sharia Law?

Frequently Asked Questions

Where Does the Bible Say Jesus Abolished the Law?

It does not. Matthew 5:17Matthew 5:17 · King James VersionThink not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.Matthew 5:17 · King James VersionOpen source says the opposite of “destroy.” Romans 10:4Romans 10:4 · King James VersionFor Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.Romans 10:4 · King James VersionOpen source calls him the end of the law for righteousness. Colossians 2:16–17Colossians 2:16–17 · King James Version^2:16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: ^2:17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.Colossians 2:16–17 · King James VersionOpen source calls the calendar a shadow. Those are different sentences from a claim that he came to throw Moses out.

If Jesus Fulfilled the Law, Do We Still Follow It?

Matthew 5:21–28Matthew 5:21 · King James VersionYe have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment:Matthew 5:21 · King James VersionOpen source still binds the disciples at the level of the heart. Acts 15:10–11Acts 15:10–11 · King James Version^15:10 Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? ^15:11 But we believe that through the grace of the LORD Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they.Acts 15:10–11 · King James VersionOpen source does not put the whole yoke of the Mosaic code on Gentile churches. Galatians 3:24–25Galatians 3:24–25 · King James Version^3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. ^3:25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.Galatians 3:24–25 · King James VersionOpen source says the schoolmaster led to Christ. Food laws, festivals, and sabbaths are the shadow in Colossians 2:16–17Colossians 2:16–17 · King James Version^2:16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: ^2:17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.Colossians 2:16–17 · King James VersionOpen source. Love of God and neighbor, which Jesus draws out of the Law in Mark 12:29–31Mark 12:29 · King James VersionAnd Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:Mark 12:29 · King James VersionOpen source, is not retired.

Did Jesus Come Only for the Jews and Their Law?

Matthew 5 is spoken to disciples in Israel, about Israel’s Law and Prophets. Qur’an 3:50Qur’an 3:50 · Saheeh InternationalAnd [I have come] confirming what was before me of the Torah and to make lawful for you some of what was forbidden to you. And I have come to you with a sign from your Lord, so fear Allāh and obey me.Qur’an 3:50 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source also has him confirm the Torah and loosen some of what was forbidden to them. The Gospel then sends the same Christ to the nations. Is Jesus the Only Way to Heaven? Romans 10:4Romans 10:4 · King James VersionFor Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.Romans 10:4 · King James VersionOpen source says the end of the law for righteousness is for everyone who believes.

Keep Reading

• What Does the Bible Say About Salvation?
• Is the Sabbath Saturday or Sunday?
• Does the Qur’an Confirm the Bible?
• What Is the Injil?
• Was the Bible Corrupted?
• What Is Sharia Law?