{"id":64,"date":"2014-11-14T12:00:40","date_gmt":"2014-11-14T12:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/forbiblestudynerds\/?p=64"},"modified":"2014-10-25T19:01:33","modified_gmt":"2014-10-25T19:01:33","slug":"matthew-71-6-judging-others-symbolism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/forbiblestudynerds\/2014\/11\/matthew-71-6-judging-others-symbolism.html","title":{"rendered":"Matthew 7:1-6; Judging Others (Symbolism)"},"content":{"rendered":"

OK, brace yourself Bible Study Nerd, because this commentary section is going to be longer than normal. You\u2019ve been warned.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/em>What the heck does that mean?<\/p>\n

Jesus\u2019 words in Matthew 7:6 are difficult to follow given the context of the verses before and after them. \u201cDo not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs\u2026\u201d seems either an abrupt shift of topic, or a confusing turn of thought. That situation lends credence to the idea that Matthew\u2019s record of the Sermon on the Mount may not have been from one uninterrupted lecture, but rather (as Bible historian, Stephen M. Miller describes it), \u201cThe Best of Jesus, a condensed version of all his most important teachings.\u201d<\/p>\n

Regardless, trying to decipher the symbolism of Matthew 7:6 is a perplexing task. Jesus didn’t feel the need to identify what each key element represented, and that makes it somewhat confusing. It appears Matthew 7:6 was a maxim his original hearers would have understood without much explanation, but which doesn’t have clear interpretation to the modern ear. We\u2019re left to make our own best guesses, so here goes\u2026<\/p>\n

The reference to \u201cwhat is sacred\u201d probably referred to meat from ritual animal sacrifice which was dedicated to God as a sin offering (Leviticus 4:1-5:13). As such, it could represent holiness and a vehicle for salvation. Pearls were considered a prized jewel, a \u201ctouchstone of beauty, value, and permanence.\u201d They would seem to represent some or all of God\u2019s truth. Dogs and pigs were reviled scavengers in ancient Jewish society, so calling a person a dog was a humiliating, contemptible insult. Only the worst of the worst would be compared to dogs and pigs, thus Jesus\u2019 reference here obviously represented some class of people with contemptible habits and standards.<\/p>\n

There, you understand Matthew 7:6 completely now, don\u2019t you? Well, me neither. However, there are a few popular interpretations that are worth summarizing here, as food for thought:<\/p>\n