"And behold, it is written, an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth;
But I say unto you, that ye shall not resist evil, but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also;
And if any man will sue thee at the law and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also;
And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.
Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn thou not away.
And behold it is written also, that thou shalt love thy neighbor and hate thine enemy;
But behold I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them who despitefully use you and persecute you;
That ye may be the children of your Father who is in heaven; for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good."
3 Nephi 12: 38-45
I've read this many times, but I think that usually I interpret it with some sarcasm... and today I think that I see it differently. This seems to be a way to avoid being cruelly used and hurt... because if you go with it, instead of trying to fight it, then you don't have all of that pent-up resentment about evil, and if we would seriously show love to the people that are doing evil to us, then maybe they would get out of the habit a little... there still seem to be some down sides to me, but I think they mostly have to do with my personal pride. :) I want the evil people to know that they are wrong and I am right... which, you know, in itself is kind of evil. :) So, today, let's work on returning good to everyone around us, no matter what we receive.
But I say unto you, that ye shall not resist evil, but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also;
And if any man will sue thee at the law and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also;
And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.
Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn thou not away.
And behold it is written also, that thou shalt love thy neighbor and hate thine enemy;
But behold I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them who despitefully use you and persecute you;
That ye may be the children of your Father who is in heaven; for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good."
3 Nephi 12: 38-45
I've read this many times, but I think that usually I interpret it with some sarcasm... and today I think that I see it differently. This seems to be a way to avoid being cruelly used and hurt... because if you go with it, instead of trying to fight it, then you don't have all of that pent-up resentment about evil, and if we would seriously show love to the people that are doing evil to us, then maybe they would get out of the habit a little... there still seem to be some down sides to me, but I think they mostly have to do with my personal pride. :) I want the evil people to know that they are wrong and I am right... which, you know, in itself is kind of evil. :) So, today, let's work on returning good to everyone around us, no matter what we receive.
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