Did Jesus Abolish or Fulfill the Mosaic Law
Jesus' Teaching on the Mosaic Law
Jesus' statement that He came "not to abolish the Law or the Prophets... but to fulfill them" (Matthew 5:17) has been a cornerstone in Christian understanding of the Mosaic Law's role and fate. The verb "fulfill" (πληρῶσαι, plērōsai) here is crucial, as it indicates Jesus' intention to complete or bring to full expression the law, rather than simply obeying it or rendering it obsolete [7].
The Mosaic Law, also known as the Torah, was a comprehensive code given to the Israelites, encompassing moral, ceremonial, and judicial aspects [2]. Jesus' teaching on the law is nuanced, as He both upholds its moral precepts and challenges its interpretations and applications. For instance, He reaffirms the commandments against murder and adultery while intensifying their scope (Matthew 5:21-22, 27-28). In contrast, He appears to relax certain regulations, such as those concerning divorce and Sabbath observance (Matthew 5:31-32; 19:1-9; Mark 10:2-12; Luke 16:18) [1, 5].
Early Christian interpreters, such as Augustine, understood Jesus' fulfillment of the law as both a confirmation of its moral precepts and a transformation of its ceremonial and judicial aspects. According to Augustine, Jesus "confirms the old precepts and supplies their defects" [3]. This view is echoed in the Reformed tradition, where Charles Hodge notes that Christ was "made under the law" and fulfilled "all righteousness" by obeying the law in its various forms [4].
The Patristic tradition also saw Jesus' fulfillment of the law as a key aspect of His mission. Tertullian, for example, argued that the abolition of the Mosaic ordinances was not a proof of a different God, but rather a fulfillment of the Creator's plan [6]. Similarly, Clement of Alexandria understood Jesus as removing the "yoke and bondage" of the old law, while fulfilling its natural precepts [8].
The distinction between the moral and ceremonial aspects of the law is crucial in understanding Jesus' teaching. While the moral precepts remain binding, the ceremonial and judicial aspects are seen as having been fulfilled or superseded by Christ's coming. As Augustine notes, the moral precepts are "fulfilled by the aid of divine grace," while the ceremonial sacraments are "fulfilled by the accomplishment of what they promise" [9].
Sources
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Divorce — The dissolution of the marriage tie was regulated by the Mosaic law (Deut. 24:1-4). The Jews, after the Captivity, were reguired to dismiss the foreign women they had married contrary to the law (Ezra 10:11-19). Christ limited the permission of divorce to the single case of adultery. It seems that it was not uncommon for the Jews at that time to dissolve the union on very slight pretences (Matt. 5:31, 32; 19:1-9; Mark 10:2-12; Luke 16:18). These precepts given by Christ regulate the law of divorce in the Christian Church.”
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Law of Moses — Is the whole body of the Mosaic legislation (1 Kings 2:3; 2 Kings 23:25; Ezra 3:2). It is called by way of eminence simply "the Law" (Heb. Torah, Deut. 1:5; 4:8, 44; 17:18, 19; 27:3, 8). As a written code it is called the "book of the law of Moses" (2 Kings 14:6; Isa. 8:20), the "book of the law of God" (Josh. 24:26). The great leading principle of the Mosaic law is that it is essentially theocratic; i.e., it refers at once to the commandment of God as the foundation of all human duty.”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 4: Augustine — Anti-Manichaean, Anti-Donatist — BOOK XIX. (part 3): fulfillment. Again: "It has been said, Thou shalt not bear false witness; but I say unto you, Swear not." This too is the fulfillment. He thus both confirms the old precepts and supplies their defects. Where He seems to speak of some Jewish precepts, instead of fulfilling them, He substitutes for them precepts of an opposite tendency. He proceeds thus: "Ye have heard that it has been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth; but I say unto you, Whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the ot”
- CCEL (Reformed (Old Princeton)) “Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 2, section 127: § 2. He was made under the Law. The humiliation of Christ included also his being made under the law. The law to which Christ subjected Himself was, (1.) The law given to Adam as a covenant of works; that is, as prescribing perfect obedience as the condition of life. (2.) The Mosaic law which bound the chosen people. (3.) The moral law as a rule of duty. Christ was subject to the law in all these aspects, in that He assumed the obligation to fulfil all righteousness, i.e ., to do everything which the law in all its forms demanded. This s”
- CCEL (Reformed (Old Princeton)) “Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 3, section 46: and Pharisees, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath day? And they held their peace. And he took him, and healed him, and let him go. . . . . And he put forth a parable to those which were bidden, when he marked how they chose out the chief rooms; saying unto them,” etc., etc. This was evidently a large entertainment to which guests were “bidden.” Christ, therefore, thought right, in the 340 prosecution of his work, to attend on such entertainments on the Sabbath. The frequency with which our Lord was accused of Sabbath-breaking by ”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “ANF Vol 3: Tertullian — CHAP.II.--ON THE EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. (part 1): THE ABOLITION OF THE ORDINANCES OF THE MOSAIC LAW NO PROOF OF ANOTHER GOD. THE DIVINE LAWGIVER, THE CREATOR HIMSELF, WAS THE ABROGATOR. THE APOSTLE'S DOCTRINE IN THE FIRST CHAPTER SHOWN TO ACCORD WITH THE TEACHING OF THE OLD TESTAMENT. THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES SHOWN TO BE GENUINE AGAINST MARCION. THIS BOOK AGREES WITH THE PAULINE EPISTLES. The epistle which we also allow to be the most decisive(8) against Judaism, is that wherein the apostle instructs the Galatians. For the abolition of the ancient law we fully admit,”
- Matthew (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Matthew 9:16: 9:16-17 These riddle-like parables contrast the new covenant that Jesus has established (26:26-29) with the old covenant, especially in relation to such rituals as fasting. Jesus consummates, but does not abolish, the law (5:17-20; see Gal 2:21; 5:4). Yet the new covenant requires new practices.”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “ANF Vol 1: Clement, Polycarp, Ignatius, Barnabas, Papias, Justin Martyr, Irenaeus — CHAP. XIII.--CHRIST DID NOT ABROGATE THE NATURAL PRECEPTS OF THE LAW, BUT RATHER FULFILLED AND EXTENDED THEM. HE REMOVED THE YOKE AND BONDAGE OF THE OLD LAW, SO THAT MANKIND, BEING NOW SET FREE, MIGHT (part 4): by means of His own advent, the ignorance of a people in a servile condition. But when He terms His disciples "the friends of God," He plainly declares Himself to be the Word of God, whom Abraham also followed voluntarily and under no compulsion (sine vinculis), because of the noble nature of his faith, ”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 4: Augustine — Anti-Manichaean, Anti-Donatist — BOOK XIX. (part 17): to the commandment? Do Christians not abstain from fornication, and murder. and theft, and false witness, from coveting their neighbor's wife, and from coveting his property,--all of which things are written in the law? These moral precepts are distinct from typical sacraments: the former are fulfilled by the aid of divine grace, the latter by the accomplishment of what they promise. Both are fulfilled in Christ, who has ever been the bestower of this grace, which is also now revealed in Him, and who now makes manif”