Jesus was the author of the golden rule

JESUS WAS THE AUTHOR OF THE GOLDEN RULE
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
MATT 7:12 12 So in everything, do to others what you
would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law
and the Prophets.
GreatTexts of the Bible
The Golden Rule
All things therefore whatsoeverye would that men should do unto you, even
so do ye also unto them: for this is the law and the prophets.—Matthew 7:12.
1. Perhaps no days have been more ingenious and industrious than our own in
the endeavourto discover working principles and methods for everyday
conduct. One that arousedmuch interestwas contained in the phrase, “What
would Jesus do?” It is a noble question, but its defectfor the purpose for
which it is devisedis that the answeris not always either easyor obvious. It is
an old instruction in dealing with your neighbour to put yourself in his place.
It is a less easything, if you come to think of it, to put somebody else in your
place. And when that somebodyelse is one no less august and unique than the
Lord Christ Himself, the problem is not simplified. It seems sometimes as if
this eagernessfor a new formula of conduct springs from despairof the old.
But perhaps it would be truer and fairer to say that it springs from ignorance
of the old, springs from failure really to graspand clearly to investigate the
content of the old. There is no need to discoverany new formula for the
regulation of conduct. All legaland prophetic, all casuisticaland spiritual
wisdom still stands summarized and complete in the Golden Rule. It is the

pith and marrow of all ethics; and obedience to it is the final achievementof
all religion.
2. The word “therefore” in the text would seemto give it a connexionwith
what precedes, and it will be instructive to inquire the meaning of this
connexion. Now if we look at the context, we shall find that at the seventh
verse of the chapter the Lord commenceda new division of His sermon, of
which division the text is the conclusion. He is speaking of prayer. He says,
“Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be
opened unto you”; and then He goes on to enforce the duty of prayer by
reference to our own conduct towards our children, drawing the very plain
conclusionthat, if we with all our infirmities still answerour children’s
prayers, much more will our Heavenly Fathergive goodthings to those who
ask Him: up to this point all is clearand easy, but then follow apparently
somewhatabruptly the words of the text, “All things therefore whatsoever ye
would that men should do unto you, even so do ye also unto them: for this is
the law and the prophets.” How do these words hang on to the preceding part
of the discourse? We shallunderstand this if we observe that in the
exhortation to prayer in the contextour Lord is in reality only taking up a
point in the former part of His sermon; it is in the preceding chapter that He
first introduces the subject of prayer, and in it He not only gives directions
concerning prayer in general, but utters that particular form of prayer which
has been used by His disciples ever since, knownas the Lord’s Prayer. Now if
we look to this prayer, and then regard the clause of which the text forms the
last verse as a recurrence to the same subject, we shall be able to understand
why Christ began His Golden Rule with a “therefore,” and so made it to hang
upon what He had alreadysaid: for our Lord teaches us in His prayer to
make our own conduct towards our brethren the measure of the grace which
we venture to ask ofGod: “forgive us our trespassesas we forgive them who
trespass againstus,”—forgive us so, and only so—andthis being the ground
upon which we ask for forgiveness ofsins, it is not to be much wondered at
that He who taught us thus to pray should also teachus to be careful, lest our
own conduct should condemn us and prevent our prayers from being heard;
in fact, if we pray to God to dealwith us as we deal with others, it is a

necessarycautionthat we should be taught to deal with our neighbours as we
would wish them to deal with us.
The principle here enunciated is fundamental, underpinning the whole
structure of human society. It is equitable, because allmen are more nearly on
an equality than might be inferred from a considerationof their outward
circumstances. It is portable, “like the two-footrule” which the artisan carries
in his pocketfor the measurement of any work which he may be calledto
estimate. The Emperor Severus was so charmed by the excellence ofthis rule
that he ordered a crier to repeat it wheneverhe had occasionto punish any
person, and he causedit to be inscribed on the most notable parts of the
palace, and on many of the public buildings.1 [Note: F. B. Meyer, The
Directoryof the Devout Life, 179.]
I
The History of the Precept
1. The words of the text are old and familiar. We learn from our infancy to
say, “My duty towards my neighbour is to love him as myself, and to do to all
men as I would they should do unto me.” All Christians acceptthis as an
elementary and fundamental maxim of their religion. But not only are these
words not new to ourselves in this age of Chistendom; they were by no means
altogethernew to the world when our Lord spoke them. Parallels to them can
be found in heathen philosophers, in the sacredbooks ofother religions. The
maxim may justly be regardedas human and universal, rather than as
specificallyChristian.

Christ not only did not claim for the preceptany originality, but He expressly
disclaimed it; He gave this as the sanctionof the rule, that it was “the law and
the prophets,” that is to say, that all the precepts which had been given of old
concerning our conductone towards another were briefly comprehended in
this one saying, that we should do to all men as we would that they should do
to ourselves;the Lord gave this as a key to the whole, and would have us to
understand that if we once master this greatprinciple, and make it the real
principle of our conduct, all particular duties will be easily, and as a matter of
course, performed. And so St. Paul represents the matter. He says, “He that
loveth another hath fulfilled the law. For this, Thou shalt not commit
adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false
witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment it is
briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as
thyself. Love workethno ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of
the law.” What Christ did, then, was to bring togetherscatteredduties under
one generalhead and supply a principle which should be applicable to them
all.
In Confucius this Divine instinct of the soul beganto break forth in history.
He said, “You must not do to others what you would not they should do to
you.” This was only a refrain. It was a rule telling us what to avoid doing. The
grand old Plato went further, and in a kind of prayer says, in the eleventh
book of his Dialogues,“MayI, being of sound mind, do to others as I would
that they should do to me.”1 [Note:D. Swing, Truths for To-Day, i. 34.]
A Gentile inquirer—so the Talmudic story runs—came one day to the great
Shammai, and demanded to be taught the law, condensedto a sentence, while
he stood on one foot. In anger the Rabbi smote him with his staff and turned
away, and the questioner went to Hillel, and Hillel made answer, “Whatsoever
thou wouldestthat men should not do to thee, that do not thou to them. All
our law is summed up in that.” And the strangerforthwith became a
proselyte. The best of the Scribes went no further than this negative goodness

in their approaches to the teaching of our Lord. He teaches that love cannot
be satisfiedwith this cold abstinence from harm-doing. Active, energetic
benevolence is the only true outcome of a characterwhich has yielded to, and
been moulded by, the Divine bounty. Frigid negatives satisfyneither Law nor
Gospel.2 [Note:A. Pearson, Christus Magister, 261.]
2. Our Lord translatedother men’s negatives into God’s positive. Hitherto,
the GoldenRule among men had been in the merely negative form. “That
which is hateful to thyself do not do to thy neighbour”; that is to say, if thou
abstainestfrom certaingross injustices and iniquities, thou hast fulfilled the
whole Law. It is not in such a saying as that that all the philanthropies and
humanities of Christianity lie dormant. Those greatbeneficent systems and
institutions with which Christian feeling has coveredthis land and so many
others are not the outgrowth of a mere negative ambition to abstain from
insulting or injuring one’s neighbours. It was Christ’s genius that translated
the negatives ofreligion into the positives. With Him the “thou shalt nots” of
the Decalogue became the positive constructive doctrine of the ethics of the
Sermon on the Mount.
Eachtime that we turn to the Gospels we find ourselves awed, commanded,
moved, as by no other morality. We know nothing deeper, nothing more
universal, nothing more practical, than the laws of human conduct which our
Lord clothed in language intelligible and impressive to His Galileanhearers.
The gospelmorality needs no championship; it only needs to be understood
and felt. It has much that is manifestly higher than what human wisdom
unenlightened by the gospelhas ever suggested;but it also welcomes and
justifies and exalts every goodidea which has appeared to be independent of
it.
By universal consent, if Jesus has any rival it is Buddha; by common consent
also Sir Edwin Arnold is the man who went through all the Indian literature,

sifted out the straw and the chaff, gatheredup every grain of wheat he could
find, and gave it to us in that poem, The Light of Asia. Then a few years later
Sir Edwin re-opened his New Testament, and after a year published The Light
of the World. And lo, the disciple of Buddha reverses his judgment! With
poetic licence Sir Edwin Arnold represents the Wise Men of the Eastas
Buddhists, who brought their gold and frankincense and offerings to the
infant King, and left them, and journeyed back to the Ganges.Then, when
two-score years hadpassed, one of the Wise Men, still living, retracedhis
steps, fascinatedby that memory of the wonderful child. In his travels he
meets Mary Magdalene,and hears the tragic story of the life and death of
Jesus.
After long brooding upon Christ’s words, the agedIndian priest puts the
Light of the World over againstthe Light of Asia. First, Jesus is infinitely
superior, because, until Christ spake, “neverhave we known before wisdom
so packedand perfectas the Lord’s, giving that Golden Rule with which this
earth were heaven.” And, second, he finds that Buddha held life was one long
sorrow;but “right joyous, though, is Christ’s doctrine, glad ’mid life’s sad
changes and swift vicissitudes, and death’s unshunned and hard perplexities”;
for overagainstthe despair, the gloomand the pessimismthat makes Buddha
propose extinction and a dreamless sleepstands the piercing joyousness and
out-breaking “gladsomeness ofthe life of Jesus.”And, third, the old Buddhist
finds another round in the golden ladder; if Buddha wrapped the universe in
darkness and gloomy mystery, “thy teacherdoth wrap us round in glorious
folds with mighty name of love, and biddeth us believe, not law, not faith, hath
moulded what we are, and built the worlds, but living, regnant love,” for the
fury of unharnessed, natural laws, the ferocity of fate, gives way before the
advancing footprints of a Father of life and love. Then comes the priest’s final
confession. “Myteacherbade us toil over dead duties, and brood above slain
affections, until we reachedNirvana; yours, to love one’s neighbours as one’s
self, and save his soul by losing heed of it, in needful care that all his doings
profit men and help the sorrowful to hope, the weak to stand.”

Oh, nearer road, and new! By heart to see
Heaven closestin this earth we walk upon,
God plainest in the brother whom we pass,
Bestsolitudes ’midst busy multitudes,
Passionso’ercome whenMaster-passionsprings
To serve, and love, and succour.1 [Note:N. D. Hillis.]
II
Its Scope
1. The rule does not coverall behaviour and all conduct. It has nothing to say
of a man’s private attitude and relation to God. It has nothing to sayof our
behaviour when we are alone—inthose times when some men and womenare
conscious ofleastresponsibility, because their thoughts, desires, oractions do
not bring them into any sortof contactwith other people. It is therefore not in
the nature of spiritual discipline; it is not given to regulate the secretinner life
of a man’s thoughts and feelings. It applies to a man’s dealings with his
fellows, the multitudinous occasionswhenthe orbit of his life intersects the
orbits of other lives, and these other orbits intersecthis; and thus it clearly

contemplates that the life of the Christian will be a life necessarilyrich in
socialduties and responsibilities and opportunities.
Froude, in his Erasmus, relates a curious incident in the life of Ignatius
Loyola. Loyola, one day, met with a copy of the New Testament. He took it up,
opened it, and began to read it. But after a short time he threw it down,
because, he said, “it checkedhis devotional emotions.” Froude thinks it very
likely did. He found here a religion taught the supreme expressionof which
was in absolute righteousness, truth, and charity. “If any man deemeth
himself to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, is not just, fair,
honourable, open, merciful, that man’s religion is vain.” Loyola said this sort
of thing checkedhis devotional emotions!Well, if so, it was high time they
were checked. Forthey were running to seed, and not growing, under due
discipline, to flower and fruit. In the religion of Jesus, the ethical, the
practical, is the ultimate. To keepthe Golden Rule is to fulfil the Law and the
prophets.1 [Note: C. S. Horne, The Model Citizen, 140.]
2. Like other generalprecepts, it will not bear to be taken slavishly in the
letter. The worth of a precept is rather to suggesta temper or attitude of mind
than to determine preciselywhat in a given case oughtto be done. It is a
superficial and therefore a bad morality, not merely defective, but
unwholesome and misleading, that attempts to prescribe for conduct by
precise regulations. Human life is too free and various to be governed by such
methods. You may, without any greatingenuity, imagine cases in which it
would be undesirable and wrong to carry out literally our Lord’s injunction,
“All things whatsoeverye would that men should do unto you, even so do ye
also unto them.” Perhaps the most obvious instance is flattery. There are tens
of thousands of people who flatter their fellow-men because they like it and
expectit themselves. And on the principle that you are simply to do to others
what you wish them to do to you, it is unexceptionable. Clearly the criticism is
that you ought not to wish for flattery yourself; in other words, to make the

Golden Rule adequate and true, we must have some guarantee that what we
wish to receive from others is what we ought so to wish.
But there is a far more difficult case forthe applicationof the Golden Rule
than this. Suppose that you have fallen into some gross sin, and incurred a
very severe punishment, what may we assume you would wish that men
should do to you? In ninety-nine casesoutof a hundred the answerwould be,
“Let me off the penalty.” Are we, then, to go on to assume that it is your duty
to remit all punishment, howeverdeserved, because ofyour sense that you
would wish it to be remitted if you were in the wrongdoer’s place? The social
consciencehas saidNo; the Christian consciencesays No. It is not a question
of what you might happen to wish if you were simply an irresponsible and
religiously uneducated being, but of what you would wish if you were subject
to the spirit and discipline of Christianity. In this latter case youwould wish
that your sin should be punished, your offences corrected;and consequently
you would not do to others an injustice and call it mercy, because you were
weak enoughto desire it for yourself.
III
Its Standard of Duty
1. The Golden Rule surpasses allformulas of justice by bringing the case
before our loving, trembling, sensitive self, and begging that it be tried in the
light and justice of all this light of self-love, self-joy, and self-agony. We know
how near and dear a thing one’s own selfis. The moment we stepaway from
our consciousness we lose ourmental graspupon the phenomenon of right or
wrong. We canlook upon a suffering man, sick or wounded, with comparative
peace, becauseour knowledge willnot travel awayfrom our own
consciousness. We may say, “Poorman, poor child, we pity you,” but we are

so cut off from his pain that an infinite gulf lies betweenour feelings and the
sufferer’s agony. But let that pain, that sickness, thatdying, come to self, and
how quickly the heart measures all the depths of the new sorrow.
It was reported that one of the victims of the Cuban massacreoffereda
million dollars if the savageswouldspare his life. The death of others, the
common calamities of life had not filled with tremor that heart naturally
brave; the grief of death at large had been, as it were, spokenin a foreign
language not to be understood by him, but now the grim monster was coming
up againstself, it was his heart that was to be pierced with balls, not yours,
nor mine, but his own, bound to earth, to friends, to country, to home and its
loved ones;his was to pour out its blood and sink into the awful mystery of the
grave. This was the vivid measurement of things that made the hero try to buy
sunshine and home and sweetlife with gold. When it comes to any adequate
measurement of life’s ills or joys, the only line which man canlay down upon
the unknown is the consciousness within, the verdict of this inner self.1 [Note:
D. Swing, Truths for To-Day, i. 39.]
2. It has consequently been allegedthat this precept falls short, as a rule of
morality, of what the inspiring principle of a good man’s life ought to be, and
what the bestmen, in their better moments, have really aimed at. It puts, to a
man’s heart and conscience, his fellow-men only on the same level as himself.
It seems to start from a regardfor self, to recognize the claims of self. It is a
nobler morality—this is what has been alleged—thatcalls upon men to love
their neighbours not merely as well as, but better than, themselves. To live for
others, quite suppressing and subordinating self, may be the high ideal, the
inspiring principle, of a good man’s efforts. Such a man should think, not
“How should I wish my neighbour to behave towards me?” but “How can I
serve my neighbour? How canI do most good, regardlessofmy own pleasure
or interest, to those around me?”

Of course the generalfeeling is that the laws of conduct laid down in the
Gospels are only too high, too exacting;that they require to be toned down
and qualified before they can be applied to the practice of ordinary life. The
morality of the Sermon on the Mount has been regardedas something
exceptional, something ethereal, that might have suited the first disciples or
the saints in later ages who have retired from the world, but “too goodfor
human nature’s daily food.” And Christian expositors have generallyfelt
calledupon to show that the laws of the Kingdom of Heaven, as laid down by
the Lord Jesus in these discourses, were essentiallysuchas men might act
upon and ought to actupon, though they may seemto enjoin an almost
romantic or chimericalsuppressionof selfand superiority to the world. Still,
it is possible to argue that to love my neighbour as myself and to do to him as I
should wish him to do to me, is a rule which assumes that I am caring for
myself, and which does not aim at doing more than placing my neighbour on a
level with myself in my estimate of his claims upon me.
The answeris that the disciple of Jesus Christ is not only to love his neighbour
as himself, but to love the Lord his God with all his heart and soul and mind
and strength. And this latter commandment, the first and greatone, has much
to do with a man’s relations to his fellow-men. It would, we might almostsay,
be enough of itself, if the secondwere not, for the sake ofexplicitness, added
to it.
“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart,” is the first and great
commandment. Nothing comes before first, and nothing canget before this—
nothing can take its place. The secondcommandment is, “Thoushalt love thy
neighbour”; but you cannotget to the seconduntil you have takenin the first.
The essentialthing in religion is loving God, loving God in Jesus Christ.
Religionbegins here. A gospelof love for men, with no antecedentlove for
God, is a gospelwithout life. But the secondcommandment must always
follow the first. Both are essential. As love for man counts for nothing if there
be not first love for God, so love for God, if there be no love for man, is not

genuine. The fountain of religion is always the love of God in us. But if there
be the fountain, the well of water springing up in us, there will also be streams
of water pouring out, rivers flowing forth, to cheer, refresh, and bless the
land.
While I love my God the most, I deem
That I can never love you overmuch:
I love Him more, so let me love you, too.
Yea, as I understand it, love is such,
I cannot love you if I love not Him;
I cannot love Him if I love not you.1 [Note:J. R. Miller, The Blossomof
Thorns, 224.]
(1) In the first place we notice that this standard imposes upon us the duty of
doing justice to our neighbour. The desire for justice is so universal that we
may call it an instinct of human nature. What is history, as we find it in every
age, but one long series ofefforts to obtain justice? These efforts have been
among the strongestof all motive powers towards moral, social, political, and
religious progress. To-daywe are often told that we are living in the midst of a
socialmovement of almost world-wide scope, andwe are also told that the
chief cause of this movement, the force of which is the principal factorin its
momentum, is “a passionate desire for justice.” This is probably true; but it is

also true that apparently many of those who are taking a leading part in the
movement have by no means a clearidea of the exactnature of justice, and
that they have a still less clearconceptionof the conditions which must be
fulfilled in order to obtain it. History teaches us that far too often justice
appears to mean the redressing of any injustice which people themselves may
suffer, by inflicting some injustice upon others. Thus the objectis defeated by
the means employed to attain it.
To dispense justice one must be possessedofthe cultivated attributes of
manhood. A kind heart and a desire to do goodare a very insufficient
equipment with which to take our neighbour’s affairs into our own hands. We
require far more equipment than these, if we are to treat him with the justice
which is his due. What we must remember is that the text requires a very
strong qualification, one doubtless assumedby Christ, and one which must
not be forgottenby us. Thus it should be read, “All things therefore
whatsoeverye would that men should do unto you (if you were equipped with
full knowledge to perceive and skill as perfectas possible to decide what was
best for you), even so do also unto them, for to enable you to do this is the
purpose and the object of the whole course of Divine revelation.”
The one divine work, the one ordered sacrifice is to do justice;and it is the last
we are ever inclined to do.… Do justice to your brother (you can do that
whether you love him or not), and you will come to love him. But do injustice
to him, because youdon’t love him, and you will come to hate him.1 [Note:
Ruskin, The Crown of Wild Olive, § 39 (Works, xviii. 420).]
When Napoleon, with his companions, was climbing the steepdefile of St.
Helena they met a peasantwith a bundle of faggots upon his head. The aide-
de-camp signalledto the peasantto step aside. But Napoleonrebukedhis
officer, exclaiming, “Respectthe burden! Respectthe burden!” It was the
sense ofjustice that was voicedin these words of the soldier, for Napoleonhad

been himself a peasantboy, and he wished to do to a burden-bearer that
which he had askedothers to do for him when as a child he carried his bundle
of faggots downthe mountain side.2 [Note: N. D. Hillis.]
(2) But, in the secondplace, the Christian must not draw the line at justice; he
must exercise mercyand forbearance. Godhas made us neighbours of
hundreds and thousands in this land—the poor, the degraded, the
unattractive; the crippled and the handicapped, the diseasedand the infirm;
children sufferers, adult sufferers; lives suddenly broken, seemingly spoiled
and ruined by accident, lives suddenly menacedby internal disorder, bright
lives blighted, strong lives emaciated. We think of some for whom life has
suddenly resolveditself into a condemned cell, with nothing to look forward to
but dying; the greatarmy of the incurable waiting, some with smiles of brave
anticipation, some with sobs of weakness anddespair, the inevitable hour.
Yes, God has made these our neighbours. And if we were in their place! If we
were the condemned, the pain-stricken, the crippled, the diseased, andthey
were here to-day in our places, in health and hope, what should we wish that
men should do for us? The question answers itself. We should long that all
that skill and care and comfort and kindness can do should be done for us in
our lamentable lot. If a man lives a dissolute life, and nature begins to exact
her penalties and wrecks the physical frame, we maintain a costlystaff of
physicians and an expensive system of hospitals to stand betweenthat man
and the direct consequences ofhis evil living. Logically, that is indefensible.
But there are higher principles in life than the merely logical. And we have
concluded that life is so sacred, and its opportunities are so precious, that we
will direct all our skill and all our care to enlarging and extending life’s
opportunities for every man, even for the worst.
There are vessels onour seas thatbear an ill name, and have an evil notoriety.
But let the worstof these run upon the rocks, andthe men of your lifeboats
will not stay to haggle about characterand deserts. They will do for the worst
what they would do for the best. Such is the inspiring influence of our

Christian conception. Christ Himself died for an evil world that was in peril of
shipwreck.1 [Note:C. S. Horne, The ModelCitizen, 148.]
3. It is not too much to saythat the spirit of the GoldenRule createda new
atmosphere for the world. But it needed to be illumined and reinforced, and
this our Lord proceededto do. If the Golden Rule is the high-watermark of
the other teaching, it is the lowestround in the ladder which Christ begins to
climb. Where the other teachers stoppedon the hill of aspiration and
difficulty, Jesus begins, and rushes on and up to hitherto undreamed-of
heights. At the beginning of His ministry He said, “Do unto others as you
would have others do unto you.” After three years of self-abnegating service
He parted the curtains, and showedthem the heights where perfectlove had
her dwelling-place, from which she beckonedmen out of the low plains of
selfishness up to the realms where perfect truth and beauty have their
dwelling-place. “A new commandment I give unto you”—thatabrogates that
lowerGolden Rule—“thatye love one another, as I have loved you.” The
Golden Rule was a mere embodiment of absolute justice; Christ proposes to
break the alabasterbox of love unmerited and undeserved. “As I have loved
you”—whatword is this? Forthree years He had shownthem the pattern of
earth’s most glorious friendship. Jesus has not done unto the Twelve simply
and alone what He would have the Twelve do unto Him. He has done more.
Peterdenies His Master, and Jesus stretches forth His hand and draws Peter
up out of the abyss, and gives the sceptre of power and the keys of influence
into Peter’s hand.
The solid blocks or tables on which the Ten Commandments were written
were of the granite rock of Sinai, as if to teachus that all the great laws of
duty to God and duty to man were like that oldestprimeval foundation of the
world—more solid, more enduring than all the other strata;cutting across all
the secondaryand artificial distinctions of mankind; heaving itself up, now
here, now there; throwing up the fantastic crag, there the towering peak, here
the long range which unites or divides the races of mankind. That is the

universal, everlasting characterofDuty. But as that granite rock itself has
been fused and wrought togetherby a centralfire, without which it could not
have existed at all, so also the Christian law of Duty, in order to perform fully
its work in the world, must have been warmed at the heart and fed at the
source by a central fire of its own—andthat central fire is Love—the
gracious, kindly, generous, admiring, tender movements of the human
affections;and that central fire itself is kept alive by the consciousness that
there has been in the world a Love beyond all human love, a devouring fire of
Divine enthusiasm on behalf of our race, which is the Love of Christ, which is
of the inmost essenceofthe Holy Spirit of God. It is not contrary to the Ten
Commandments. It is not outside of them, it is within them; it is at their core;
it is wrapped up in them, as the particles of the centralheat of the globe were
encasedwithin the granite tables in the Ark of Temple.1 [Note:A. P. Stanley,
History of the Church of Scotland, 8.]
The Golden Rule
BIBLEHUB RESOURCES
The Golden Rule
Matthew 7:12
W.F. Adeney
This is the greatChristian rule of life. In some respects it was not unknown
before Christ; the famous rabbi Hillel is said to have uttered a maxim
somewhatlike it. Nevertheless,it is distinctly Christian because Christsets it
before us as of primary importance, because it is the first rule of Christian

conduct, because it is the law of our Lord's ownlife, and because he alone
shows us how it canbe carriedout in practice and so makes it real and living.
I. WHAT IT MEANS. It is an application of the old principle of the Law that
we are to love our neighbours as ourselves. It sets before us an excellenttest
by which we may see whether we are doing so, an admirable standard by
which we may measure ourselves. Observe its characteristics.
1. Action. It carries us beyond the love of sentiment to the love that is seenin
action. It is useless to feel kindly to others if we do not actfairly.
2. Breadth. "All things whatsoever"are included under it. It is to apply to
men generally- not merely to brethren, friends, neighbours, fellow-Christians,
fellow-citizens. It applies to strangers, disagreeable people, foreignnations,
the heathen, savage races.
3. Lucidity. Here is a clearguiding light. We can wellperceive what we should
like ourselves. We know how we should like to be treated under certain
circumstances. Accordinglywe may see how others would also wish to be
treated. Thus we can perceive what is desirable, and insteadof letting self-
interest blind us to our duty to others, we may use the voice of self-interestas
the very indicator of what should be done to them.
4. Reasonableness. Nothing unfair is here laid upon us. No one can possibly
complain of this rule. It is a principle of perfectjustice, and every man is to be
his ownjudge in regard to it.
II. WHAT IT CONTAINS. "The Law and the Prophets," i.e. the whole
Scripture. Here is the whole duty of man. Of course, it is evident that Christ is
referring to that side of man's duty which belongs to his fellow-men. Yet even
the further duty of serving God is here best fulfilled.
"He prayeth best who loveth best
All things both greatand small." In human intercourse this maxim may be
takenas a universal guide. Were it always employed no more would be
needed. It is setforth in Kant's categoricalimperative, "So act that thy
conduct may be a universal law to mankind."

III. HOW IT IS PRACTICABLE. The chief distinction betweenChrist and
moralists when he deals with moral questions is not so much the superior
characterof his teaching - though that must be apparent to all - as the power
that accompaniesit. The Utopian dream of the ethical thinker becomes a
possibility, becomes a reality in the kingdom of heaven. The golden rule floats
hopelesslyabove our reachuntil we come into personalcontactwith Christ.
But it is the very law of the life of Christ, and when we are united to him the
inspiration of his life makes it possible for us. Thus it is not just to say that
this rule is Christianity, and that all else in our religion is needless. Onthe
contrary, it is a living, spiritual Christianity - faith in Christ and devotion to
him - that enables us to carry out Christ's greatrule of conduct. - W.F.A.
Biblical Illustrator
That men should do to you, do ye even so to them.
Matthew 7:12
Wherein lies that exactrighteousness whichis required betweenman and man

J. Tillotson, D. D.
I. The EXPECTATION ofit. Put thyself into the place and circumstances of
every man with whom thou hastto do. This is an exactrule. It is plain and
easy. Three things are to be done before this rule will be of use to us.
1. We must make it appearreasonable.
2. Make it certain.
3. Make it practicable.(1)Labour to understand truly every man's condition
so far as you have opportunity.(2) When from distance, self-interestyou
cannot understand, trust the concurrent experience of others that are in that
condition.(3) Conclude that in cases betweensuperiors and inferiors, the
partiality is usually on the inferiors' side.(4)In judging of your present
condition and circumstances, always abate something for the presence of
them, for self-love and self-interestand other passions.
II. THE GROUNDS ofthis. The equity of the rule stands upon these
foundations.
1. All men are equal in many things, and these the greatestthings.
2. In most of those things wherein we are unequal, the inequality is not
considerable, so as to be a ground of any unequal dealing with one another.
3. In all these things wherein men are unequal, the inequality is not fixed and
constant, but mutable and by turns.
4. Among other grounds is the mutual and universal equity and advantage of
this rule.
5. The absurdity and inconvenience of the contrary.
III. THE INSTANCES.
1. In matters of civil respectand conversation.
2. In matters of kindness and courtesies.
3. In matters of charity and compassion.

4. In matters of forbearance and forgiveness.
5. In matters of report and representationof other men, and their actions.
6. In matters of trust and fidelity.
7. In matters of duty and obedience.
8. In matters of freedom and liberty, which are not determined by natural or
positive law.
9. In matters of commerce and contracts which arise from thence.
IV. RULES for directing our commerce.
1. Impose upon no man's ignorance or unskilfulness.
2. Impose upon no man's necessity.
3. Use plainness in all your dealings.
4. In matters of fancy use moderation. Let us not revenge ourselves.
(J. Tillotson, D. D.)It is sometimes said that Christians are defective in the
duties of the secondtable; hypocrites may be, but not real Christians.
I. A RULE OF LIFE. This precept may be consideredin the affirmative and
negative;the latter to restrain injury, the former to do good. To impress this
rule in the negative sense take four considerations.
1. That in the duties of the secondtable we have more light than we have in
the first, for in the first we are to love God with all our heart (Matthew 22:26,
37), but the love to our neighbour is a measure more discernible. Love will tell
us what is goodfor ourselves;in guiding our love to Godwe need many rules.
2. The breach of the rule is more evil in him which hath experiencedthe
bitterness of wrongs, than in another; because experiencegiveth us a truer
knowledge ofthings, than a naked conceptionof them. Thus conscience
workethin the way of restraint.
3. That this rule is spiritual, and concerneththe inward man as well as the
outward, thoughts as well as actions.

4. This rule must be done not only out of love to man, but out of love to God,
and as an act of obedience. Self-love is the measure, but not the principle, of
our action. Now take the affirmative part.
1. In giving. Be as ready to do as to receive good.
2. In forgiving.
II. VINDICATE THIS RULE.
1. It seems not to be so perfecta rule: because many desire and wish much evil
to themselves.
2. It seems to make all men equal, and destroyorder and superiority, as
master and servant.
3. Doth not this establishrevenge and retaliation?
4. Is not this to impose a restraint upon the Christian from which others are
free, and so to expose to constantloss?
III. THE EQUITY OF THIS RULE.
1. The actual equality of all men by nature.
2. The possible equality of all men as to condition and state of life.
IV. THE ILLATIVE PARTICLE "Therefore."
1. That God is the judge of human actions. He will see whether you do to
others as they do to you, and you shall hear of it in your dealing with God.
2. That the usage we expect from God the same in measure we should dealout
to others. Application: What an advantage religion is to mankind in the
present life.
(1)How securelywe might live one by another.
(2)How mutually helpful men would be to eachother.
(3)How much mankind have degenerated, and how few live Christians in the
world.

(J. Manton, D. D.)
Duty towards our neighbour
Dr. Barrow., Bishopof Winchester.
The severalcapacitieswhereinwe can help or hinder him.
I. As to his soul. Promote its goodby —
1. Prayer.
2. Example.
II. As to the body we must do as we would be done by.
III. We must deal with our neigh-bout as we desire be should deal with us, in
respectof his good name.
IV. This rule extends to men's estates.
1. Justice.
2. Charity. Some motives to induce the the practice of this rule:
1. The first shall be takenfrom the end for which they were made.
2. From the intrinsic beauty and loveliness of the rule itself.
3. Becausewe and they both bear the same stamp and impress of heaven.
4. Becauseif we be just and generous in time of our prosperity, it will cause a
like affectionin others to us.
5. It would be the best security of our lives, honour, reputation, riches, power.
(Dr. Barrow.)
1. The mutual dependence of man upon his fellow man.
2. The duty which devolves on eachto assisthis neighbour, especiallyin
spiritual things.

(Bishop of Winchester.)
The goldenrule
Dr. Watts., Anon.
I. What is THE TRUE MEANING of this Divine rule? That we practise
toward our neighbour in such a manner as our hearts and consciences would
think it reasonable he should practise towards us in a like case.
II. What is THE SPECIAL ARGUMENT that our Lord uses in order to
enforce it.
III. Wherein its PARTICULAR EXCELLENCIES appear. It is easyto be
understood and applied, easyto be remembered, carries greaterevidence to
the conscience thanany other rule of virtue, includes a powerful motive, will
secure our neighbour from injury and us from guilt, as fitted to awaken
repentance as to direct to duty, suits all stations, etc., includes all actions and
duties, a rule of the highestprudence, and fitted to make the whole world
happy.
IV. REFLECTIONS. HOW compendious the Saviour's method of providing
for the practice of all the moral duties enjoined by Mosesand the prophets!
What Divine wisdom to make the goldenrule a fundamental law in both the
Jewishand Christian systems.
(Dr. Watts.)Concerning this rule or principle note the following facts:
I. It is a goldenrule. It is sound throughout and very precious.
II. This is our Saviour's golden rule.
III. It is a revolutionary rule.
IV. It is a very stringent rule.
V. It is an evangelicalrule. Whoeverthinks about it cannot fail to see two
things. His need of God's forgiveness and God's grace.

VI. Following the golden rule we shall be led to our duty and therefore to
blessedness.
(Anon.)
The goldenrule of gospelequity
D. Moore, M. A.
I. THE PRECEPT ITSELF AND THE LIMITATIONS WITH WHICH IT IS
TO BE UNDERSTOOD. We must not make what we expect others would do
in our circumstances the rule of conduct; because we expectselfishness, we
must not be selfish; this is retaliation. The rule of the text does not apply when
what we would is inconsistentwith the well-being of society;a creditor need
not forego a just debt. So this rule has equity and right reasonas a limit. We
must not take too favourable views of our individual case andform an
exaggeratedestimate ofwhat we are entitled to at the hands of a neighbour.
Anger may be justified.
II. The EXCELLENCYOF this rule, and the grounds on which we claim for
it the respectof mankind.
1. Its reasonableness, as founded on the original equality of all men.
2. Its capability of easyand immediate application.
3. The beneficence of such a rule in relation to ourselves. Godseems to let us
make our own laws.
III. A few practicalILLUSTRATIONS OF THE WAY IN WHICH THIS
RULE MAY BE APPLIED.
1. Let the rule be applied to the civilities of socialintercourse.
2. To the practice of neighhourly charities and compassions."Ye were
strangers in the land of Egypt."
3. To the rights, properties, and goodname of all around us.

4. To the social duties falling under no specialname, regard for the opinions
of others.
5. The connectionof these severalduties with the sinner's acceptancewith
God.
(D. Moore, M. A.)
The goldenrule
J. E. Good.
I. The RIGHTEOUS RULE OF CONDUCT HERE LAID DOWN.
1. In order to the performance of this duty there must be a sameness of
circumstances. There is a diversity in the station and characterof men; this
requires diversity of duty towards them.
2. We must carefully observe the measure by which we are to regulate our
conduct towards others. It is not what they actually do, but what we would
desire they should do, which is to be our rule.
3. This rule must be takenwith certain modifications, not absolutely; we
might wish others to do things unreasonable and sinful; it must recognize the
law of God.
II. ITS EXCELLENCE.
1. Its brevity.
2. Its comprehensiveness — "All things."
3. Its perfect justice.
III. A FEW CONSIDERATIONS TO ENFORCEOBEDIENCETO IT.
1. The argument exhibited by our Lord — "Forthis is the law and the
prophets."
2. The injunction of our Lord on this subject.

3. The powerful recommendationsuch u course would prove to the gospelof
our Lord.
4. It is enforcedby the benevolent .and righteous example of Him who gave
it.Learn:
1. It presents a most invaluable testimony to the truth of Christianity.
2. How happy will be the world when the religion of Jesus Christ shall be
universally diffused.
(J. E. Good.)
The goldenrule a fundamental law
D. Swing.
Nature's greatlaw that matter attracts matter; that a vast centralworld will
attract planets from a straight line into a circle;that an earth will draw a
falling apple to itself, and hold its liquid sea and liquid air close to itself, and
will hold the seas under the air and the land under the sea, is not more
fundamental in the material world than the golden rule is in the world of duty
and happiness. Take awaythe single principle discoveredby Newton, and the
organized universe-is at once dissolved;air and water and land mingle; our
globe would become a fluid, and fill its orbit with a floating debris of itself.
The goldenrule underlies our public and private justice, our society, our
charity, our education, our religion; and the sorrows of bad government, of
famine, of war, of caste, ofslavery, have come from contempt of this principle.
(D. Swing.)
Christ did not originate the goldenrule
D. Swing.
To find the glory, therefore, of a truth you must not pause with the man who
may have first announced it, for he may have had no conceptionof its worth,

and may have given it little love, like the Sibyl who wrote prophecies which
she did not herselfunderstand, and which, written upon leaves, she permitted
the winds to carry about never to be seenor earedfor again. In order to locate
the glory of discoveryyou must measure the heart and mind that first took
hold of the idea or taw in its infancy or later life. You will find the word
liberty in Caesar'shistory and in Cicero's ethics, but they knew nothing of the
idea as compared with that conceptionof the word in the mind of a
Wilberforce or a Polish exile.
(D. Swing.)
The goldenrule a portable law
U. R. Thomas.
By that I mean it is always at hand, always ready to be appealed. to. It is like
the " two-footrule " which the skilful artizan always carries with him ready
to take the measurementof any work to which he is called; a rule is his that
can measure the brick that is but of few inches length, or that could compute
the height of the pyramids. So is it with this law. Other socialregulations, such
as those of professionaletiquette, of trade customs, and evenof national
statutes, are continually failing men according to the class orcountry in which
they are found. But this is ever at hand.
(U. R. Thomas.)
The goldenrule should be remembered in the infliction of punishment
The Emperor Alexander Severus was so charmed by the excellence ofthis
"goldenrule," that he obliged a crier to repeat it wheneverhe had occasionto
punish any person; and causedit to be inscribed in the most noted parts of his
palace, and on many of the public buildings: he also professedso high a
regard for Christ, as having been the author of so excellenta rule, that he
desired to have Him enrolled among the deities.

COMMENTARIES
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
(12) Therefore . . . whatsoever.—The sequenceofthought requires, perhaps,
some explanation. God gives His goodthings in answerto our wishes, if only
what we wish for is really for our good. It is man’s highest blessednessto be
like God, to “be perfect as our Fatherin heavenis perfect,” and therefore in
this respecttoo he must strive to resemble Him. The ground thus taken gives a
new characterto that which otherwise had already become almostone of the
“common-places”ofJewishand heathen ethics. Perhaps the most interesting
illustration of the former is the well-knownstory of the Gentile inquirer who
went to Shammai, the greatscribe, and askedto be taught the law, in a few
brief words, while he stoodon one foot. The Rabbi turned away in anger. The
questioner then went to Hillel, and made the same demand; and the sage
turned and said, “Whatsoeverthou wouldest that men should not do to thee,
that do not thou to them. All our law is summed up in that.” And so the
Gentile became a proselyte. A like negative rule is quoted by Gibbon (Decl.
and Fall, c. liv., note 2) from Isocrates, notwithout a sneer, as if it anticipated
the teaching of the Christ. The nearestapproach to our Lord’s rule is,
however, found in the saying ascribed to Aristotle, who, when askedhow we
should acttowards our friends, replied, “As we would they should actto us”
(Diog. Laert., v. 1, § 21). All these, however, though we may welcome them as
instances of the testimonium animæ naturaliter Christianæ (as Tertullian calls
it), are yet wanting in the completeness ofour Lord’s precept, and still more
do they fall below it in regardof the ground on which the precept rests, and
the powergiven to perform it. Yet even here, too, there is, of necessity, an
implied limitation. We cannotcomply with all men’s desires, nor ought we to
wish that they should comply with ours, for those desires may be foolish and
frivolous, or may involve the indulgence of lust or passion. The rule is only
safe when our own will has been first purified, so that we wish only from

others that which is really good. Reciprocityin evil or in folly is obviously
altogetheralien from the mind of Christ.
BensonCommentary
Matthew 7:12. Therefore all things, &c. — As if he had said, But it is only on
this condition that he will give, and continue to give them, viz., that ye follow
the example of his equity and benevolence, thatyou imitate the God of love;
that, being “animatedby his goodness, youstudy to express your gratitude for
it by your integrity and kindness to your fellow-creatures, treating them, in
every instance, as you would think it reasonable to be treated by them, if you
were in their circumstances and they in yours: for this is, in effect, a summary
and abstractof all the human and socialvirtues recommended in the moral
precepts of the law and the prophets, and it was one of the greatestends of
both to bring men to this equitable and amiable temper. I say, one of the
greatest, thatthis may be reconciledwith our Lord’s declaring the love of God
to be the first and greatcommandment, Matthew 22:38. And, indeed, it is a
most absurd and fatal error to imagine, that the regulation of sociallife is the
only end of religion.” — Doddridge. Thus far proceeds the doctrinal part of
this sermon. In the next verse begins the exhortation to practise it.
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary
7:12-14 Christ came to teachus, not only what we are to know and believe,
but what we are to do; not only toward God, but toward men; not only toward
those of our party and persuasion, but toward men in general, all with whom
we have to do. We must do that to our neighbour which we ourselves
acknowledge to be fit and reasonable. We must, in our dealings with men,
suppose ourselves in the same case and circumstances with those we have to
do with, and actaccordingly. There are but two ways right and wrong, good
and evil; the way to heaven and the way to hell; in the one or other of these all
are walking:there is no middle place hereafter, no middle way now. All the
children of men are saints or sinners, godly or ungodly. See concerning the
way of sin and sinners, that the gate is wide, and stands open. You may go in
at this gate with all your lusts about you; it gives no check to appetites or

passions. It is a broad way; there are many paths in it; there is choice ofsinful
ways. There is a large company in this way. But what profit is there in being
willing to go to hell with others, because they will not go to heaven with us?
The way to eternal life is narrow. We are not in heavenas soonas we are got
through the strait gate. Selfmust be denied, the body kept under, and
corruptions mortified. Daily temptations must be resisted;duties must be
done. We must watch in all things, and walk with care; and we must go
through much tribulation. And yet this way should invite us all; it leads to life:
to present comfort in the favour of God, which is the life of the soul; to eternal
bliss, the hope of which at the end of our way, should make all the difficulties
of the road easyto us. This plain declarationof Christ has been disregarded
by many who have takenpains to explain it away; but in all ages the real
disciple of Christ has been lookedon as a singular, unfashionable character;
and all that have sided with the greaternumber, have gone on in the broad
road to destruction. If we would serve God, we must be firm in our religion.
Can we often hear of the strait gate and the narrow way, and how few there
are that find it, without being in pain for ourselves, orconsidering whether we
are enteredon the narrow way, and what progress we are making in it?
Barnes'Notes on the Bible
All things whatsoever... - This command has been usually called the
"Saviour's goldenrule," a name given to it on accountof its greatvalue. All
that you "expect" or"desire" ofothers in similar circumstances, do to them.
Act not from selfishness orinjustice, but put yourself in the place of the other,
and ask what you would expectof him. This would make you impartial,
candid, and just. It would destroy avarice, envy, treachery, unkindness,
slander, theft, adultery, and murder. It has been well said that this law is what
the balance-wheelis to machinery. It would prevent all irregularity of
movement in the moral world, as that does in a steam-engine. It is easily
applied, its justice is seenby all people, and all must acknowledgeits force and
value.
This is the law and the prophets - That is, this is the sum or substance of the
Old Testament. It is nowhere found in so many words, but if is a summary
expressionof all that the law required. The sentiment was in use among the

Jews. Hillel, an ancient Rabbi, said to a man who wished to become a
proselyte, and who askedhim to teachhim the whole law, "Whateveris
hateful to you, do not do to another." Something of the same sentiment was
found among the ancientGreeks and Romans, and is found in the writings of
Confucius.
Jamieson-Fausset-BrownBible Commentary
12. Therefore—to sayall in one word.
all things whatsoeverye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to
them—the same thing and in the same way.
for this is the law and the prophets—"This is the substance of all relative
duty; all Scripture in a nutshell." Incomparable summary! How wellcalled
"the royal law!" (Jas 2:8; compare Ro 13:9). It is true that similar maxims are
found floating in the writings of the cultivated Greeks and Romans, and
naturally enough in the Rabbinical writings. But so expressedas it is here—in
immediate connectionwith, and as the sum of such duties as has been just
enjoined, and such principles as had been before taught—it is to be found
nowhere else. And the best commentary upon this fact is, that never till our
Lord came down thus to teachdid men effectually and widely exemplify it in
their practice. The precise sense of the maxim is best referred to common
sense. It is not, of course, what—inour wayward, capricious, gasping
moods—we should wish that men would do to us, that we are to hold ourselves
bound to do to them; but only what—in the exercise ofan impartial judgment,
and putting ourselves in their place—we considerit reasonable that they
should do to us, that we are to do to them.
Matthew Poole's Commentary
Mostinterpreters think the term therefore here redundant, as some such little
particles often are in holy writ, for it is hard to make out this to be a proper
inference from the premises. This precept containethin it the substance of all
that is to be found in the books ofthe law and the prophets which concerneth
us in reference to others, the sum of the secondtable, which requireth only
justice and charity. Christ doth not say, this is all the law and the prophets,

but this is the law and the prophets. There is no man but would have others
deal justly with him in giving him what is his own, whether honour, or tribute,
or estate, &c., neither taking nor withholding his own from him. Nor is there
any but, if he stood in need of it, would desire the charitable help of another,
or a charitable remissionfrom him of what he might in exact justice require.
Do ye (saith our Saviour) the same unto them. And indeed this is but a
confirmation of the light and law of nature, no more than what men would do
if they would hearkento the light within them. And without this in vain do
men pretend to religion, as our Saviourteacheth, Mark 7:9-13;which makes
some think that our Saviour by this reflects upon the Pharisees, who laid all
their religion upon ceremonies, andsome ritual performances in observance
of their traditions, and omitted the weightierthings of the law, judgment,
mercy, and faith, Matthew 23:23.
Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible
Therefore all things whatsoever,.... Thesewords are the epilogue, or
conclusionof our Lord's discourse;the sum of what he had delivered in the
two preceding chapters, and in this hitherto, is containedin these words; for
they not only respectthe exhortation about judging and reproving; but every
duty respecting our neighbour; it is a summary of the whole. It is a golden
rule, here delivered, and ought to be observedby all mankind, Jews and
Gentiles. So the Karaite Jews (l) say,
"all things that a man would not take to himself, , "it is not fit to do them to
his brethren".''
And Maimonides (m) has expressedit much in the same words our Lord here
does;
"all things whatsoeverye would that others should do to you, (says he,) do you
the same to your brethren, in the law, and in the commandments:''
only there seems to be a restriction in the word "brethren"; the Jews,
perhaps, meaning no other than Israelites;whereas our Lord's rule reaches to
all without exception, "all things whatsoever"

ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: let them be who
they will, whether brethren, or kinsmen, according to the flesh, or what not;
"for this is the law and the prophets": the sum of the law and the prophets;
not the whole sum of them, or the sum of the whole law: but of that part of it
which respects our neighbours. Remarkable is the advice given by Hillell (n)
to one who came to be made a proselyte by him;
"whatsoeveris hateful to thee, that do not thou to thy neighbour; , "this is all
the whole law", and the rest is an explication of it, go and be perfect:''
yea, this rule is not only agreeable to the law of Moses, and the prophets, but
even to the law and light of nature. Aristotle being asked, how we ought to
carry ourselves to our friends, answered(o), as we would wish they would
carry it to us. Alexander Severus, a Heathen emperor, so greatly admired this
rule of Christ's, that he ordered it to be written on the walls of his closet.
(l) R. Eliahu Addaret, c. 3. apud Trigland de sect. Karaeorum, c. 10. p. 166.
Vid. Tzeror Hammor, fol. 146. 4. (m) Hilch. Ebel. c. 14. sect. 1.((n) T. Bab.
Sabbat, fol. 31. 1. Maimon. in Misn. Peah, c. 1. sect. 1.((o)Diog. Laert. in Vit.
Aristotel. l. 5.
Geneva Study Bible
{4} Therefore all things whatsoeverye would that men should do to you, do ye
even so to them: for this is the {b} law and the prophets.
(4) An explanation of the meaning of the secondtable.
(b) That is to say, The doctrine of the law and prophets.
EXEGETICAL(ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)
Meyer's NT Commentary
Matthew 7:12. At this point Jesus takes a retrospective glance atall that He
has been saying since Matthew 5:17,—beginning with Mosesand the
prophets,—concerning our duty to our neighbour, but introducing, indeed,
many other instructions and exhortations. But putting out of view such
matters as are foreignto His discourse, He now recapitulates allthat has been

said on the duties we owe to our neighbour, so that οὖν points back to
Matthew 5:17. The correctnessofthis view is evident from the following:
οὗτος γάρἐστιν ὁ νόμος, etc., from which it further appears that οὖν does not
merely refer back to Matthew 5:1-5 (Kuinoel, Neander, Baumgarten-Crusius).
As Luther well observes:“With those words He concludes the instructions
containedin those three chapters, and gathers them all into one little bundle.”
Fritzsche is somewhatillogicalwhen he says that οὖν generalizes the
conclusionfrom οἴδατε δόματα… τέκνοις ὑμῶν, which proposition, however,
was a mere lemma. Ewald thinks that Matthew 7:12 is here in its wrong place,
that its original position was somewhere before ἀγαπᾶτε, Matthew 5:44, and
might still be repeated after Matthew 5:48; according to Bleek and
Holtzmann, founding on Luke 6:31, its original position was after Matthew
5:42. But it is preciselyits significant position as a concluding sentence, along
with its reference to the law and the prophets, that Luke has takenawayfrom
it. Comp. Weiss. Onθέλειν ἵνα, see note on Luke 6:31.
οὕτω]not for ταῦτα, as if the matter were merged in the manner (de Wette),
but in such a manner, in this way, corresponding, that is, to this your θέλειν.
The truth of this Christian maxim lies in this, that the words ὅσα ἂν θέλητε,
etc., as spokenby Jesus, and, on the ground of His fulfilment of the law (οὖν),
which presupposes faith in Him, canonly mean a willing of a truly moral
kind, and not that of a self-seekingnature, such as the desire for flattery.
οὗτος, etc.]for this is the sum of moral duty, and so on.
For parallels from profane writers, see Wetstein;Bab. Schabb. f. 31. 1 :
“Quod tibi ipsi odiosum est, proximo ne facias;nam haec est tota lex.” But
being all of a negative character, like Tob 4:15, they are essentiallydifferent

from the present passage.Forcoincidencesofa more meagre kind from
Greek writers, see Spiess, LogosSpermat. p. 24.
Expositor's Greek Testament
Matthew 7:12. The goldenrule. οὖν here probably because in the source, cf.
καὶ in quotation in Hebrews 1:6. The connectionmust be a matter of
conjecture—withMatthew 7:11, a, “Extend your goodness from children to
all,” Fritzsche; with Matthew 7:11, b, “Imitate the divine goodness,”Bengel;
with Matthew 7:1-5; Matthew 7:6-11 being an interpolation, Weiss and Holtz.
(H.C.). Luke 6:31 places it after the precept contained in Matthew 5:42, and
Wendt, in his reconstructionof the logia (L. J., i. 61), follows that clue. The
thought is certainly in sympathy with the teaching of Matthew 5:38-48, and
might very well be expounded in that connection. But the meaning is not
dependent on connection. The sentence is a worthy close to the discourse
beginning at Matthew 5:17. “Respondentultima primis,” Beng. Here as there
“law and prophets”.—ἵνα with subjunctive after θέλητε, insteadof
infinitive.—πάντα οὖν … ποιεῖτε αὐτοῖς. The law of nature, says Rosenmüller.
Not quite. Wetstein, indeed, gives copious instances ofsomething similar in
Greek and Roman writers and Rabbinical sources, and the modern science of
comparative religion enables us to multiply them. But recent commentators
(including Holtz., H.C.) have remarked that, in these instances, the rule is
statedin negative terms. So, e.g., in Tob 4:15, ὃ μισεῖς, μηδενὶ ποιήσῃς, quoted
by Hillel in reply to one who askedhim to teachthe whole law while he stood
on one leg. So also in the saying of Confucius: “Do not to others what you
would not wish done to yourself,” Legge, Chinese Classics,i. 191 f. The
negative confines us to the region of justice; the positive takes us into the
regionof generosityor grace, andso embraces both law and prophets. We
wish much more than we can claim—to be helped in need, encouragedin
struggles, defendedwhen misrepresented, and befriended when our back is at
the wall. Christ would have us do all that in a magnanimous, benignant way;
to be not merely δίκαιος but ἀγαθός.—νόμος καὶ προφῆται:perhaps to a
certain extent a current phrase = all that is necessary, but, no doubt, seriously
meant; therefore, may help us to understand the statementin Matthew 5:17,
“I came not to destroy, but to fulfil”. The golden rule was Law and Prophets

only in an ideal sense, andin the same sense only was Christ a fulfiller.—vide
Wendt, L. J., ii. 341.
Cambridge Bible for Schools andColleges
12. Therefore]The practicalresult of what has been said both in regard to
judgment and to prayer is mutual charity. The thought of the divine judgment
teaches forbearance;the thought of the divine goodnessteacheskindness.
Bengel's Gnomen
Matthew 7:12. Οὖν, therefore)The sum of all that has been said from the
beginning of the chapter. He concludes [this portion of the discourse], and at
the same time returns to ch. Matthew 5:17. The conclusioncorresponds with
the commencement. And we ought to imitate the Divine goodness,mentioned
in Matthew 7:11.—θέλητε ἵνα ποιῶσιν, ye would that they should do) “Ye
would:” this is pointedly said (notanter): for men often do otherwise [than
what ye would that they should do]. We are not to follow their example. Sc. by
benefiting, not injuring.—οἱ ἄνθρωποι, men) The indefinite appellationof
men, frequently employed by the Saviour, already alludes to the future
propagationof His teaching throughout the whole human race.—οὓτω,thus)
The same things in the same way: or thus, as I have told you up to this
point.—οὗτος, this) The law and the prophets enjoin many other things, as for
example the love of God: but yet the law and the prophets also tend to this as
their especialscope,viz. whatsoeverye would, etc., and he who performs this,
performs all the rest more easily: see ch. Matthew 19:19.
Pulpit Commentary
Verse 12. - Ver. 12a, parallelpassage:Luke 6:31; Luke 12b, Matthew only. All
things therefore. Therefore. Summing up the lessonof vers. 1-11 (cf. ver. 7,
note). In consequence ofall that I have said about censoriousnessand the
means of overcoming it, let the very opposite feeling rule your conduct
towards others. Let all (emphatic) your dealings with men be conducted in the
same spirit in which you would desire them to deal with you. Even so. Not
"these things" do ye to them; for our Lord carefully avoids any expression
that might lead to a legalenumeration of different details, but "thus" (οὕτως),

referring to the characterof your own wishes. (Forthis "goldenrule," cf.
Tobit 4:15 (negative form); cf. also patristic references inResch, 'Agrapha,'
pp. 95, 135.)On the occasionalsimilarity of pre-Christian writings to the
teaching of our Lord, Augustine (vide Trench, 'Serm.,' in loc.)well says it is
"the glory of the written and spokenlaw, that it is the transcript of that which
was from the first, and not merely as old as this man or that, but as the
Creationitself, a reproduction of that obscured and forgottenlaw written at
the beginning by the finger of God on the hearts of all men. When, therefore,
heathen sagesorpoets proclaimed any part of this, they had not thereby
anticipated Christ; they had only deciphered some fragment of that law,
which he gave from the first, and which, when men, exiles and fugitives from
themselves and from the knowledge oftheir own hearts, had lost the power of
reading, he came in the flesh to read to them anew, and to bring out the well-
nigh obliterated characters afresh."(Compare also BishopLightfoot's essay
on "St. Paul and Seneca,"in his 'Philippians.') For this is the law and the
prophets. For this. This principle of action and mode of life is, in fact, the sum
of all Bible teaching (cf. Leviticus 19:18). Observe:
(1) Our Lord brings out the same thought, but with its necessarylimitation to
the secondtable, in Matthew 22:40 (cf. Romans 13:10).
(2) Our Lord thus returns to the main subject of his sermon, the relation in
which he and his must stand to the Law (Matthew 5:17).
PRECEPTAUSTIN RESOURCES
BRUCE HURT MD

Matthew 7:12 "In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want
them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets. (NASB: Lockman)
Greek:Panta oun osa eanthelete (2PPAS)ina poiosin (3PPAS)humin oi
anthropoi, outos kai umeis poieite (2PPAM)autois; outos gar estin (3SPAI) o
nomos kaioi prophetai.
Amplified: So then, whateveryou desire that others would do to and for you,
even so do also to and for them, for this is (sums up) the Law and the
Prophets. (Amplified Bible - Lockman)
KJV: Therefore all things whatsoeverye would that men should do to you, do
ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.
NLT: Do for others what you would like them to do for you. This is a
summary of all that is taught in the law and the prophets. (NLT - Tyndale
House)
Phillips: Treatother people exactly as you would like to be treatedby them -
this is the essenceofall true religion." (New Testamentin Modern English)
Wuest: Therefore, allthings whateveryou may be desiring men to be doing to
you, in the same manner also, as for you, you be doing to them, for this is the
law and the prophets.
Young's: All things, therefore, whateverye may will that men may be doing to
you, so also do to them, for this is the law and the prophets.
In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat
you, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
Luke 6:31
Mt 22:39,40;Leviticus 19:18;Isaiah 1:17,18;Jeremiah7:5,6; Ezekiel
18:7,8,21;Amos 5:14,15;Micah 6:8; Zechariah7:7, 8, 9, 10;8:16,17;Malachi
3:5; Mark 12:29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34; Romans 13:8, 9, 10;Galatians 5:13,14;
1Timothy 1:5; James 2:10, 11, 12, 13

Matthew 7 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries
Spurgeonwrites...
&“&The law and the prophets&” are here condensedinto a single sentence.
This is the goldenrule, a handy rule, a perpetually-applicable rule, useful in
every condition, and it never makes a mistake.
Wonderful condensationof the two tables off the law! God help us to
remember it. This is a golden rule, and he that follows that shall lead a golden
life.
J C Ryle comments that in "In this part of the sermon on the mount (Mt 7:12-
20) our Lord begins to draw His discourse to a conclusion. The lessons He
here enforces onour notice, are broad, general, and full of the deepest
wisdom. Let us mark them in succession. He lays down a generalprinciple for
our guidance in all doubtful questions betweenman and man. We are "to do
to others as we would have others do to us." We are not to deal with others as
others deal with us. This is mere selfishness and heathenism. We are to deal
with others as we would like others to deal with us. This is real Christianity.
This is a golden rule indeed! It does not merely forbid all petty malice and
revenge, all cheating and over-reaching. It does much more. It settles a
hundred difficult points, which in a world like this are continually arising
betweenman and man. It prevents the necessityof laying down endless little
rules for our conduct in specific cases.It sweeps the whole debatable ground
with one mighty principle. It shows us a balance and measure, by which every
one may see atonce what is his duty. Is there a thing we would not like our
neighbor to do to us? Then let us always remember, that this is the thing we
ought not to do to him. Is there a thing we would like him to do to us? Then
this is the very thing we ought to do to him. How many intricate questions
would be decided at once, if this rule were honestly used! (J. C. Ryle.
Expository Thoughts)
This is what we often hear referred to as "the Golden Rule" (the principle of
reciprocity = the practice of exchanging things with others for mutual benefit)
which is a summation of Jesus'ethicalteaching regarding our treatment of
others.

All things, therefore, whateverye may will that men may be doing to you, so
also do to them, for this is the law and the prophets.
The Golden Rule is like a "pocketknife" alwaysreadyto be used, even when
there is no time to ask for advice. Treatthem like you would like to be treated
Jesus says!Jesus thus provides a rule we can use in thousands of specific cases
to determine what righteousness lookslike. Doing to others what we would
want them to do to us is what the Law and the Prophets taught. This behavior
fulfills them (cf. Mt 5:17). This behavior is the will of God, and Jesus’disciples
should do it.
Jesus had made similar statements earlierin His sermon...
"Give to him who asks ofyou, and do not turn awayfrom him who wants to
borrow from you." (notes Matthew 5:42)
"I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you."
(notes Matthew 5:44)
Versions of the “GoldenRule” existed before Christ, in the rabbinic writings
and even in Hinduism and Buddhism. All of them castthe rule as a negative
command, such as Rabbi Hillel’s version,
“What is hateful to yourself do not to someone else.”
Jesus puts this command in the positive, and says that we should do unto
others what we want them to do unto us.
Jameison, F, B writes that...
“This is the substance of all relative duty; all Scripture in a nutshell.”
Incomparable summary! How well called “the royal law!” (Jas 2:8; Ro 13:9-
note). It is true that similar maxims are found floating in the writings of the
cultivated Greeks andRomans, and naturally enough in the Rabbinical
writings. But so expressedas it is here—in immediate connectionwith, and as
the sum of such duties as has been just enjoined, and such principles as had
been before taught—it is to be found nowhere else. And the best commentary
upon this fact is, that never till our Lord came down thus to teach did men
effectually and widely exemplify it in their practice. The precise sense ofthe

maxim is best referred to common sense. It is not, of course, what—inour
wayward, capricious, gasping moods—we shouldwish that men would do to
us, that we are to hold ourselves bound to do to them; but only what—in the
exercise ofan impartial judgment, and putting ourselves in their place—we
considerit reasonable that they should do to us, that we are to do to them.&
(Matthew 7)
MacArthur comments that...
How we treat others is not to be determined by how we expectthem to treat us
or by how we think they should treat us, but by how we want them to treat us.
Herein is the heart of the principle, an aspectofthe generaltruth that is not
found in similar expressions in other religions and philosophies. Formany
years the basic instrument of music was the harpsichord. As its keys are
depressed, a given string is plucked to create the desired note, much as a
guitar string is plucked with a pick. But the tone made in that way is not pure,
and the mechanism is relatively slow and limiting. Sometime during the last
quarter of the eighteenthcentury, during Beethoven’s lifetime, an unknown
musician modified the harpsichord so that the keys activatedhammers that
struck, rather than plucked, the strings. With that minor change, a major
improvement was made that would henceforth radically enhance the entire
musical world, giving a grandeur and breadth never before known. That is
the sortof revolutionary change Jesus gives in the golden rule. Every other
form of this basic principle had been given in purely negative terms, and is
found in the literature of almostevery major religion and philosophical
system... The motivation is basically selfish-refraining from harming others in
order that they will not harm us. Those negative forms of the rule are not
golden, because they are primarily utilitarian and motivated by fear and self-
preservation...
Selfless love does not serve in order to prevent its own harm or to insure its
own welfare. It serves for the sake ofthe one being served, and serves in the
way it likes being served-whetherit ever receives suchservice or not. That
level of love is the divine level, and canbe achievedonly by divine help. Only
God’s children can have right relations with others, because theypossessthe
motivation and the resource to refrain from self-righteouslycondemning

others and to love in an utterly selfless way. (MacArthur, J: Matthew 1-7
Macarthur New TestamentCommentary Chicago:Moody Press)
Therefore (3767)(oun) is a term of conclusion, but the question then arises as
to what specificallythat Jesus has previously discussedis now being concluded
in this summary statement. In so doing, Jesus makes the command much
broader. It is the difference betweennot breaking traffic laws and doing
something positive like helping a stranded motorist. This especiallyapplies to
Christian fellowship. If we would experience love and have people reachout to
us, we must love and reachout to others.
Expositor's has a goodsummary of the possibilities writing that...
The oun ("therefore")might refer to Mt 7-11 (i.e., because Godgives good
gifts, therefore Jesus'disciples should live by this rule as a function of
gratitude) or to Mt 7:1-6 (i.e., instead of judging others, we should treat them
as we ourselves wouldwant to be treated).
But more probably it refers to the entire body of the sermon(Mt 5:17-7:12),
for here there is a secondreference to "the Law and the Prophets";and this
appears to form an envelope with Mt 5:17-20. (Ed note: This is a figure of
speechwhich goes by the Latin term "inclusio" for "inclusion" in which the
same phrase ["Law and Prophets"]is repeatedat the beginning of Jesus'
exposition of what constitutes a surpassing degree ofrighteousness and again
here at the end, which is marked as the end also by the fact that He then
proceeds to call for a decisionfrom His hearers in Mt 7:13-14. Bullinger adds
that "When this figure is used, it marks what is said as being comprisedin one
complete circle, thus calling our attention to its solemnity; giving completeness
of the statementthat is made, or to the truth enumerated, thus marking and
emphasizing its importance." Figures of SpeechUsedin the Bible)
"Therefore,"in the light of all I have taught about the true direction in which
the OT law points, obey the GoldenRule; for this is (NIV "sums up") the Law
and the Prophets (cf. Ro 13:9).

This way of putting it provides a powerful yet flexible maxim that helps us
decide moral issues in a thousand caseswithout the need for multiplied case
law. The rule is not arbitrary, without rational support, as in radical
humanism; in Jesus'mind its rationale ("for") lies in its connectionwith
revealedtruth recordedin "the Law and the Prophets." The rule embraces
quantity ("in everything") and quality ("[do] even so"). And in the context of
fulfilling the Scriptures, the rule provides a handy summary of the
righteousness to be displayed in the kingdom. (Ed note: by kingdom citizens)
(Expositor's Bible Commentary) (Bolding and italics added)
McGee feels that“Therefore” is the most important word in the Golden Rule.
It relates the Golden Rule to that which precedes it. That is, it postulates it on
prayer. It all comes togetherin one package.Don’tlift out the Golden Rule
and saythat you live by it. Understand what the Lord is talking about. Only
as we “ask, seek,and knock” are we able to live in the light of the Golden
Rule. (McGee, J V: Thru the Bible Commentary: Nashville: Thomas Nelson)
This Golden Rule of conduct is not a prerequisite for salvation, for no person
(except Christ) could possibly obey it perfectly. Jesus is commanding those
who are already citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven to seek to order their
personallives by this standard, which in its essencefarsurpasses the
righteousness ofthe scribes and Pharisees!In other words, the command of
Jesus demands a standard of conduct that surpasses whatis normally
expected, a command that can only be fulfilled by those who possess the gift of
God's Spirit. The perfect love of the heavenly Father is most reflected in His
children when they treat others as they themselves wish to be treated.
Beginto apply (in the powerof the Spirit) the "GoldenRule Test" - Ask
yourself whether the actionyou think is beneficial to others is actually one you
would want to receive yourself! Such actions might just change your
interactions for the better and for God's glory!
McNeile writes that
“The Golden Rule is the distilled essence ofthat ‘fulfilment’ (that which Jesus
describedin Mt 5:17 "Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the
Prophets;I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill.")

"The law and the Prophets" is further explained by Jesus in Matthew 22
when asked...
"Teacher, whichis the greatcommandment in the Law?" And He said to him,
"'YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR
HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.'
This is the greatand foremostcommandment. The secondis like it, 'YOU
SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.'On these two
commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets." (Mt 22:36-40)
There is also a negative form of Jesus positive command in the Apocrypha
(caveat)...
And what you hate, do not do to any one. Do not drink wine to excessorlet
drunkenness go with you on your way (Tobit 4:15)
Jesus, in contrastto the Jewishrabbis and the Apocrypha, made it a positive
command (present imperative), enriching its meaning going beyond passive
restraint to active benevolence. Christianity is not simply a matter of
abstinence from sin but is positive goodness inaction. This command nicely
summarizes the whole gist of the ethical principles containedin the Law and
the Prophets and the surpassing righteousness describedfrom Mt 5:22-7:11.
How can we put the Golden Rule into actionin our workplace? The storyis
told of a ownertalking with one of his managers aboutan employee stealing
from the firm. The owner, who was a followerof Christ, asked, "Whatdo you
think we should do about him?" to which the managerresponded "Give him
the ax!" The Christian applying Jesus'teaching asked"Suppose he admits his
wrongdoing and agrees to pay for what he's stolen? Why don't we let him
keephis job? Isn't that how you would want to be treated?" The manager
replied "Sure, but that's just not the realworld!" Jesus'point is that His
disciples are in fact citizens of another world, the Kingdom of Heaven and as
such we are committed to follow the King's decrees,whichdemand integrity,
responsibility, and accountability. When they are practiced, employees
become more dependable and fulfilled. And when the employer makes the
workers'welfare as important as making a profit, more people stayoff
welfare rolls and out of unemployment lines. Sure believers are living in "the

real world" but living in the real world but they are not to follow its rules but
the rules which Jesus laid down in the Sermon on the Mount. When we put
Christ's righteousness into practice, our light shines and the Father in heaven
gets the glory.
THE REAL WORLD - The ownerof a company was talking with one of his
managers about an employee who was stealing from the firm. The owner, who
was a followerof Christ, asked, "Whatdo you think we should do about
him?"
"Give him the ax!" replied the manager.
"Suppose he admits his wrong-doing and agrees to pay for what he's stolen,"
said the owner, "Why not let him keephis job" Isn't that how you
would want to be treated?"
"Well, yeah," said the manager, "but that's not the real world."
Jesus calls us to follow the rules of HIS world, which IS the real world. His
rules demand our integrity, responsibility, and accountability. When they are
practiced, employees become more dependable and fulfilled. And employers
make their workers'welfare as important as making a profit. The result?
More people stay off welfare rolls and out of unemployment lines.
Paul had some advice for workers and employers. He urged workers to carry
out their duties "as bondservants of Christ,...as to the Lord, and not
to men" (Eph 6:6, 7-see notes Ep 6:6; 6:7). And he instructed masters not to
threaten their servants, reminding them that their Mastershows no partiality
(Eph 6:9-note).
What about us? Are we living in the realworld by the rules Jesus gave us? --
Dennis J. De Haan (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand
Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)
THINKING IT THROUGH

What principle does the golden rule (Mt. 7:12)
give us for serving others? How does it apply in the workplace?
The reward for honest labor
is always greaterthan the wages received.
J R Miller (Who Is He?) - Our Duty to Others
“All things whatsoeverye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to
them.” Matthew 7:12
This is a wonderfully comprehensive rule of action. It bids us considerthe
interests of others as well as our own. It bids us setour neighbour alongside of
ourself, and think of him as having the same rights as we have, and requiring
from us the same treatment that we give to ourself. It gives us a standard by
which to testall our motives and all our conduct bearing on others. We are at
once in thought to change places with the person towardwhom duty is to be
determined, and ask, “if he were where I am, and I were where He is, how
should I want him to treat me in this case?”the application of this rule would
instantly put a stop to all rash, hasty actions;for it commands us to consider
our neighbour and question our own heart before doing anything. It would
slay all selfishness;for it compels us to regard our neighbours interests as
preciselyequal to our own. It would leadus to honour others;for it puts us
and them on the same platform.
The application of this rule would put a stop to all injustice and wrong; for
none of us would do injustice or wrong to ourselves, andwe are to treat our
neighbour as if he were ourself. It would lead us to seek the highest goodof all
other men, even the lowliest;for we surely want all men to seek our good. The
thorough applying of this GoldenRule would end all conflict betweencapital
and labour; for it would give the employer a deep, loving interestin the men
he employs, and lead him to think of their goodin all ways. It would also give
to every employee a desire for the prosperity of his employer and an interest
in his business. It would end all strife in families, in communities, among

nations. The perfect working of this rule everywhere would make heaven; for
the will of Godwould then “be done on earth, as it is in heaven.”
THE DOING
AS WE WOULD
BE DONE UNTO
Matt 7:12
Charles Simeon
GOD is graciouslypleasedon some occasions to take those things which are
goodin men, for the purpose of illustrating his ownineffable and unbounded
goodness.There is scarcelyto be found a mother so destitute of feeling as to
“forgether sucking child, and not to have compassiononthe sonof her
womb.” ‘Such a monster,’ says God, ‘may be found: “yet will not I forget
thee&&.” ’ So, in the words before the text, we are told, that, “evil” as men
are, there exists not a father so cruel as to give his child a stone or a serpent,
when importuned by him for the food that is necessaryforhis subsistence:
from whence this inference is made; “How much more shall your heavenly
Father give goodthings unto them that ask him.” Such inferences are just and
legitimate to a certainextent: but they must not be pressedtoo far. We must
not presume to argue, as many infidels have done, “that because a benevolent
man would not punish his enemy to all eternity, therefore God will not:” for
there is no parallel betweenthe cases;nor are God’s actions to be measured
by such a standard: his written word will be the rule of his procedure;and all
conclusions that contradictthat, will prove delusive at the last. But though we
cannot always argue from what man would do to what we may expect from
God, we may safely, and in all cases,infer, from the superabundant goodness
of God to us, the obligation which lies on us to exercise all possible degrees of
kindness to our fellow-creatures.To this thought we are led by the connexion
in which our text stands with the preceding verses. The words we have just
read to you are an exhortation founded on the preceding representationof the
Divine goodness:and certainly the argument is exceeding strong:for, if God
in any case condescends to make our goodactions a rule of conduct to himself,

much more should we make the unbiassed convictions of our own minds the
rule of our conduct towards all.
The direction that is here given us, is as important as any in the whole sacred
volume. We shall endeavour to point out,
I. Its import—
It is almost dangerous to attempt an elucidation of so plain a command, lest
we only obscure, whilst we endeavour to explain it. But it is obvious that
something must be supplied, in order to guard againstthe misconstructions
which a caviller might put upon the words. The fact is, that all people do of
themselves supply what is wanting in them, without being conscious thatthe
sense which they affix to the words is the result of their own judgment, and
not the strict meaning of the words themselves. I say there are two limitations
which all people do, though unconsciously, assignto the words, and without
which they would not be a just rule of conduct to any man: and these are,
1. That we must exchange situations, as it were, with the person towards
whom we are about to act—
[It would be absurd to say, that we must actually conduct ourselves towards
all people preciselyas we would wish them to acttowards us. There are a
thousand menial services, whichthe more opulent part of the community
must have done for them, and which it would be folly and madness in them to
go and do for others&&. Besides, there are duties arising out of the very
situations we hold; and which are not duties to any, exceptto persons who are
so circumstanced. Those, forinstance, who are in authority, as rulers, or
parents, or masters, are not calledto obey their inferiors, because they desire
to be obeyedby them. Were we therefore to construe the command without
any limitation, we must break down all the distinctions in society, and set
aside all the duties which God himself has connectedwith them. To prevent
this, we must suppose the personto be in our situation, and ourselves in his;
and then consider, what we should desire and expectfrom him. If, for
instance, we be in authority, we should ask ourselves whattreatment we
should desire and expect, if we were in the place of our inferiors; and then we

should actwith all the kindness and condescensiontowards them, that we, in a
change of circumstances, shouldexpectat their hands.]
2. That we must make, not our inclination, but our judgment, the rule of our
conduct—
[It is not sufficient to change places with the person towards whom we are
about to act. For, if we put ourselves in the situation of a poor man, we might
wish our rich neighbour to divide his property with us: but this is no reason
why we should go and act thus: the thing is unreasonable in itself: and,
howeverwe might wish it, we should not for a moment think that justice or
equity required it. So, if we were to put ourselves in the place of a convicted
felon, we might wish the judge not to put the laws in force againstus: but that
is no reasonwhy we, if sitting in the place of judgment, should not enforce and
execute the laws againstothers. We must not considerso much what we might
wish in such circumstances, as whatwe should, after full and impartial
consideration, think right. We should think it right that the judge should
investigate our cause with care, and make his decisionwith equity; and, on the
whole, should lean to the side of mercy rather than of severity: but we could
never persuade ourselves that felons should be permitted to violate the laws
with impunity; because that would render the peacefulmembers of societya
prey to every daring ruffian. It is evident then that we must callin the aid of
judgment, and regulate our conduct according to its deliberate and unbiassed
dictates.
With the help of these two remarks, we shall be in no danger of
misinterpreting the rule before us. Indeed these limitations are so obvious,
that, as we said before, they are unconsciouslysupplied even by the most
ignorant of mankind: so that we might have wavedall mention of them, if it
had not been expedient to mark with precision the limits, which, though
generallyacknowledged, are but indistinctly seen. In a word, the rule is this:
We must considerin all cases whatwe, under a change of circumstances,
should think it right for anotherto do unto us; and that must be the rule of
our conduct towards him.]
Having thus consideredthe import of the rule, we proceedto shew,

II. Its excellence—
A greaterencomium cannotbe passedupon it than is in the words before us:
“This is the law and the prophets.” But what is implied in this commendation?
and what are those particular excellencies whichit holds up to our view? It
intimates, that the rule is eminently distinguished for the following properties:
1. It is concise—
[“The law and the prophets” constitute a very large volume; to become well
acquainted with which in all its parts, requires no little expense, both of time
and labour. But, vast as its circumference is, its lines all meet in this rule, as in
their common centre. We speak not indeed of the doctrinal part of this
volume, but of the preceptive. This limitation, like those before mentioned, is
necessarilyimplied, though not expressed:and, if we do not bear it in mind,
we shall pervert this best of principles into an occasionofthe most destructive
error. “The law and the prophets” have a twofolduse; first, to testify of Christ
as the ground of our hopes&&;and next, to state the law as the rule and
measure of our duties&&. To understand the commendation given to this rule
as extending to the law and the prophets in the former sense, would annihilate
the whole Gospel, and make the death of Christ of no avail. We must
therefore understand our Lord as speaking of the law and the prophets only
so far as they contain a rule of life. Moreover, whenspeaking of them
expresslyin this view, he comprehends the law under two great
commandments, The love of God, and The love of our neighbour; and then he
adds, “On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets&&.”
But it is only to this secondcommandment that the rule in our text refers; and
consequently, when we speak ofthe rule as comprehending the law and the
prophets, we must be consideredas limiting our assertionnot only to the
preceptive part of the law, in opposition to the doctrinal, but to that part of
the preceptive code which contains our duty to our neighbour. Let it be
remembered, however, that there is not a page of the sacredvolume which is
not replete with instruction upon this point; and that this short sentence in my
text is a summary of the whole.

Now if, on every occasion, we had to searchthe sacredvolume for some
precept directly to our point, the opportunities of acting would be passed
before we had found such a direction as would be satisfactoryto our minds.
This would be the case evenwith those who were most conversantwith the
sacredwritings, and much more with those whose time is almost entirely
occupiedwith temporal concerns. But behold, here is a summary, so short,
that it is easilyremembered; so simple, that it is easily understood; so suited to
all occasions, thatit is easily applied, by any person, and at any time.
Methinks this rule, to a Christian, is like the compass to a mariner. Were the
master of a ship destitute of any means of directing his vessel, exceptthose
afforded him by the heavenly bodies, he might often be steering a very
different course from that which he designed to take:but, by the help of the
compass, the most illiterate sailor may know which way to steer: that little
portable contrivance will direct him, whether by day or night, whether in a
calm or tempest, and that too in every climate under heaven. Preciselythus it
is with the Christian: there would be many times and occasions, when, if
destitute of this rule, he would not know how to conduct himself aright: but,
by the help of this, the most ignorant cannot lose his way: his path in every
situation is made plain by it; and the “way-faring man, though a fool, shall not
err therein&&.”]
2. It is comprehensive—
[“The law and the prophets” contain directions proper for every person, in
every rank, under every situation and circumstance in which he can possibly
be placed. Noris this rule at all less extensive:it will direct the king on his
throne no less than the meanestsubject in his dominions. There is not any
single act, relating either to justice and equity, or to kindness and charity, or
even to common decencyand civility, which it does not equally embrace, and
for which it does not provide a sufficient directory.
Under the Jewishdispensation, the high-priest had an opportunity of
ascertaining the mind and will of God by means of his breast-plate. What the
Urim and Thummim was, orhow it conveyed information to the high-priest,
is not positively known: but that Goddid make use of it in some wayto convey
to him the knowledge ofhis will, is certain:nor was there any subject whereon

God would not have given him instruction, if he had soughtit in a becoming
manner. Now we are repeatedlytold in the New Testament, that all true
Christians are both “kings and priests unto God:” and one of the most
distinguished privileges which, as Christians, we enjoy, is a liberty of access to
God, every one of us for ourselves, withoutthe intervention of any human
being; and a permission to seek directionfrom him on every occasion. And
has not God furnished us with the Urim and Thummim? Yes, he has: this very
rule he has given us to carry, as it were, upon our breasts, that it may instruct
us in every part of our duty. We may sayrespecting it, as Moses says ofthe
Gospelsalvation, “we neednot go up to heaven, to bring it down from above,
nor descendinto the deep, to bring it up from beneath; but the word is nigh
us, even in our mouth and in our hearts&&.” Whereverwe are, we need only
setourselves in the presence ofGod, and, with humble supplications to him,
inspect our own bosoms, to see what light this rule will afford us; and we shall
assuredlybe guided in the right way. Whether we be rich or poor, learnedor
unlearned, and whether the subjectbe more or less important, no difference
shall be made: if the point relate to states and kingdoms, or if it concernonly
the smallestbranch of moral duty to an individual, it shall equally be made
known to us: and if, after that, we err, the error will not proceedfrom any
defectin the rule itself, but from a want of a more perfect discernment of it, or
a more just application of it to the point before us.]
3. It is complete—
[What canbe added to “the law and the prophets” to make them more
complete? Vain would be the attempt either of men or angels to find in them
one single flaw or defect: for whilst they comprehend every species ofduty,
they supply at the same time every motive for the performance of it: “The
word of the Lord is perfect.” The same may be said also of the rule before us.
No createdwisdom can improve it: no man canfind in it any thing either
superfluous or defective. Its comprehensivenessand concisenesswe have
before spokenof: and we may now notice, what indeed still more clearly
displays its excellence, its singular operationon the human mind, not merely
as a light to direct us in the path we should go, but as an incentive to us to
walk in it.

Jesus was the author of the golden rule

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