The principle of 6:1 is now fleshed out for \u201calmsgiving\u201d \u2014 the Jewish practice of compassion on the poor and needy. After the Temple was destroyed, almsgiving was sometimes depicted as a replacement for sacrifices. The word for \u201calmsgiving\u201d in Hebrew is a near-equivalent to \u201crighteousness\u201d: the transition from 6:1 to 6:2 then is verbal as much as chronological. Jesus\u2019 point: do not use acts of mercy to the needy as an opportunity to strengthen your reputation as pious. Our question today: what about us, what do we do that draws attention to our giving and what can we do to make our gifts more anonymous? The principle of 6:1 is now fleshed out for \u201calmsgiving\u201d \u2014 the Jewish practice of compassion on the poor and needy. After the Temple was destroyed, almsgiving was sometimes depicted as a replacement for sacrifices. The word for \u201calmsgiving\u201d in Hebrew is a near-equivalent to \u201crighteousness\u201d: the transition from 6:1 to 6:2 then is verbal […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":197,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1748],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-936","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermon-on-the-mount"],"yoast_head":"\n
\nA couple of comments are in order: first, the \u201ctrumpets\u201d expression (NIV: \u201cdo not announce it with trumpets\u201d) could be a graphic metaphor (\u201cdon\u2019t toot your giving horn\u201d) or a reference to the sophar<\/em> chests into which people tossed coins (they looked like a trumpet), permitting them to \u201cbang the drum\u201d as it were a little harder if they made lots of noise. There is no way to know which is more accurate, nor does it matter.
\nSecond, Jesus attacks the \u201chypocrites\u201d for the sort of behavior he\u2019s against: they love to give in such a way that they are noticed. This term \u201chypocrisy\u201d was important to Jesus, and I blogged on it earlier<\/a>. It transcends a simple \u201cfake them out\u201d image and has to do with both conscious pretense and theological error. You can read that post to see its more complete sense. I agree with Dale Allison, and many others, in affirming that we need today to avoid using Jews as counter-examples of piety \u2014 why? because most of us don\u2019t have a clue what is going on in Jewish worship and piety today. We\u2019ve got plenty of examples within, and it is more to our benefit to work on the problems at home rather than to \u201cother\u201d others.
\nThird, Jesus uses yet another image: don\u2019t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. A graphic image that implies intentional \u201ccover-up\u201d to protect anonymity.
\nJesus, in other words, advocates intentional anonymity<\/em> when it comes to giving. Do what you can, he is saying, to make sure others don\u2019t know what you are giving. Discipline in this way will lead to a life that avoids \u201ctooting the giving horn,\u201d<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"