Matthew 5:22
21 “You have heard that it was said to an older generation, ‘Do not murder,’ and ‘whoever murders will be subjected to judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that anyone who is angry with a brother will be subjected to judgment. And whoever insults a brother will be brought before the council, and whoever says ‘Fool’ will be sent to fiery hell. 23 So then, if you bring your gift to the altar and there you remember that your brother has something against you,
Taanit 20b
Babylonian TalmudHe happened upon an exceedingly ugly person, who said to him: Greetings to you, my rabbi, but Rabbi Elazar did not return his greeting. Instead, Rabbi Elazar said to him: Worthless [reika] person, how ugly is that man. Are all the people of your city as ugly as you? The man said to him: I do not know, but you should go and say to the Craftsman Who made me: How ugly is the vessel you made. When Rabbi Elazar realized that he had sinned and insulted this man merely on account of his appearance, he descended from his donkey and prostrated himself before him, and he said to the man: I have sinned against you; forgive me. The man said to him: I will not forgive you go until you go to the Craftsman Who made me and say: How ugly is the vessel you made.
Notes and References
"... Here, and in the context of the larger section (Matthew 5:21–26), Jesus discusses anger and, especially between brothers, he “demands an end to anger and hateful speech.” In this passage, insults to one’s brother or sister are deemed equal to murder and deserving of court procedures and hell. Jesus here “appears to accept the legal focus […] only to parody and discredit it as an adequate framework for appreciating the thrust of the commandment.”11 In a parallel literary structure, the Aramaic word אקיר (reqa) and the Greek Μωρέ (mōre) are presented as elaborations on the prohibition to become angry with another person. Scholars have long debated the exact nature of the offense deemed so severe by Jesus. Even if read as an ethical demand rather than an actual legal prohibition,13 why are these insults considered so reprehensible as to be equated to murder? The specific slurs used as examples naturally stand at the heart of the discussion ... To call a brother or a sister a “fool” meant, according to Garlington, condemning him unjustly. Such a condemnation deserves, as stated by Jesus, a trial for murder ... The word used by Matthew, raka, has an equivalent in rabbinic literature as well. It is used in several sources (such as Mekhilta deRabbi Ishmael, Baḥodesh 5; b. Ta’anit 20; b. Berakhot 22a; b. Gittin 58a; Babylonian Talmud, b. Bava Kamma 50b) ..."
Siegal, Michael Bar-Asher Matthew 5:22: The Insult "Fool" and the Interpretation of the Law in Christian and Rabbinic Sources (pp. 5-23) Revue de l'Histoire des Religions, 2017