60｜Why "An Eye for an Eye" Is Forbidden

Scripture records: “If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also.” (Matthew 5:39). This is not a weak ethic, nor is it a compromise with evil; it is a profound spiritual and civilizational principle revealed by Jesus: An eye for an eye only perpetuates suffering; only Love can terminate hatred.

This article aims to explain:

1. Why "mutual retaliation" never brings true justice;
2. Why every party believes themselves to be the victim;
3. Why Love dismantles the chain of violence;
4. Why the ethics of Jesus transcend all civilizational systems.

(1) The Problem with "An Eye for an Eye": Every Side Believes They Are "The Just One"

Behind every conflict, feud, and war in human history, the same script plays out:

• The aggressor feels "I have my reasons";
• The victim feels "I am completely innocent";
• The third party often feels "both sides are at fault." If everyone insists "I am right," the result of "an eye for an eye" is inevitably a cycle of retaliation with no end. Jesus intended to break this perpetual structure of revenge.

(2) The Retaliation Chain Has No End: 100% Justice is Impossible in Human Hands

Even if one side were completely innocent at the start, once revenge begins:

• The other side feels harmed anew and retaliates again;
• Then the first side strikes back once more... The final outcome is that almost no one retains their eyes or teeth. Civilized society introduces third-party legal judgment, yet even so:
• Judgments cannot be entirely infallible;
• The parties involved often remain unsatisfied;
• The chain of retaliation continues in the heart. Jesus, therefore, proposed an ethic of a higher order than law—not the continuation of revenge, but its termination.

(3) When Others Harm You Without Reason: It Is Simply an Outbreak of Their Ego’s Superiority

In reality, cases often arise where others humiliate or strike you without cause. In the spiritual structure, this means: the other needs to prove they are "higher" than you. In a dualistic system of comparison, "reasonless harm" is the most direct way for an aggressor to declare superiority. Jesus’ method is subversive: “Turn the other cheek.” This does not mean passive submission, but rather: Do not enter his game. Use love to terminate his superiority mechanism. This is a strategy of reverse dismantlement:

• Do not compete for position;
• Do not participate in his dualistic game;
• Do not provide fuel for his Ego;
• Let the violence lose its echo within you. In the spiritual dimension, this is supreme wisdom: the more you refuse to respond according to his logic, the more his Ego finds nowhere to settle.

(4) The Aggressor is Fundamentally a Wounded Soul: Love Heals, while Violence Only Breeds More Violence

Contemporary traumatology points out that aggressors are almost always deeply wounded people. They:

• Lacked love in childhood;
• Were humiliated and trampled in youth;
• Lived long in scarcity, fear, and comparison;
• Are profoundly insecure. They can only regain a sense of control and self-esteem through violence. In this structure:
• Striking back with violence only deepens the wound in their heart;
• The deeper the wound, the more they must harm others;
• More aggressors will emerge in the future. Only Love, forgiveness, acceptance, and sincere boundaries mixed with mercy can awaken a person from this cycle. This is what Jesus revealed on the Cross: not through greater violence, but through Greater Love to terminate the history of violence.

(5) The Ethic of Love is Not Weakness, but the Only Way to End Hate

"An Eye for an Eye":

• Perpetuates hate;
• Amplifies harm;
• Keeps history recorded in blood feuds. But "Love for Hate":
• Makes hate lose its effect on you;
• Prevents violence from replicating itself;
• Causes the other’s Ego to dismantle within your uncooperative love. Jesus did not propose cowardly retreat, but the most powerful counter-measure against evil: making evil unable to continue, leaving hate nowhere to land, and causing violence to be interrupted at your doorstep. This is the logic of the Kingdom: Do not fight darkness with greater darkness, but light a lamp.

Summary｜Original Doctrine 60

1. An eye for an eye cannot bring true justice; it only creates an endless cycle.
2. Everyone identifies as a victim, thus revenge never truly ends.
3. Aggressors are fundamentally deeply wounded souls; love changes hearts more than retaliation.
4. Jesus’ ethics transcend all civilizational systems: Love is the only power to terminate the chain of violence.
5. "Turning the other cheek" is not submission, but the highest wisdom to dismantle the structure of violence.

In one sentence: "An eye for an eye" keeps human history spinning in darkness; "Love for hate" is the light brought by Jesus.