Matthew 7:12
New Testament
7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened for you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. 9 Is there anyone among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you then, although you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! 12 In everything, treat others as you would want them to treat you, for this fulfills the law and the prophets.
Date: 70-90 C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
Source
Shabbat 31a
Babylonian Talmud
Rabbinic
There was another incident involving one gentile who came before Shammai and said to Shammai: Convert me on condition that you teach me the entire Torah while I am standing on one foot. Shammai pushed him away with the builder’s cubit in his hand. This was a common measuring stick and Shammai was a builder by trade. The same gentile came before Hillel. He converted him and said to him: That which is hateful to you do not do to another; that is the entire Torah, and the rest is its interpretation. Go study.
Date: 450-550 C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
Source
Tags:
Search:
Texts in Conversation
Matthew 7 and tractate Shabbat in the Babylonian Talmud both express the saying known as the Golden Rule, a short, well-known saying found throughout the world's literature. Tractate Shabbat records it in a negative form, avoiding harm, and Matthew presents it positively, encouraging active good.
Notes and References
"... Although this maxim was found throughout the ancient world (see Moore 1996: 178–180), this most probably reflects the teachings of Hillel B. Shabb. 31a, who called this maxim the “whole Law.” [The Gospels] turns the phrase around to the positive, “Do to others as you would have them do to you.” The negative rendering means “avoid doing harm to others,” and that harm is defined by what you would not want done to you. The positive statement implies the active practice of good deeds, and those good deeds are defined as what you would want done to you ..."
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
Your Feedback:
User Comments
Anonymous comments are welcome. All comments are subject to moderation.