by David Flatt
Synopsis: In his continuing study of the Sermon on the Mount, David examines the "strange sayings" of Jesus regarding dogs, pigs, and pearls—providing guidance for proper application.
Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you (Matt. 7:6).
Jesus begins the last third of the Sermon on the Mount by warning against passing judgment without mercy (Matt. 7:1-5). He is nearing the point where He will command us to treat others in a manner that we would want to be treated (Matt. 7:12). Between these two bookends, Jesus teaches us not to give what is holy to the dogs nor to cast our pearls before swine.
What a strange and unusual expression! How does such a seemingly harsh statement fit between sayings of justice and love? Some mistakenly think of Jesus as a mild-mannered push-over. Nothing could be further from the truth. Jesus was wise and realistic to the world in which He lived. While He loved the world, Jesus understood that not everyone in the world would love Him. Likewise, He knew that not everyone would love His disciples or the message they would live and teach.
For example, not long after this sermon, Jesus sent the apostles to preach the gospel of the kingdom throughout Israel. He said,
Whatever town or village you enter, find out who is worthy in it and stay there until you depart. As you enter the house, greet it. And if the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it, but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. And if anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town… (Matt. 10:11-14).
How would the apostles know who was worthy and unworthy in a village? Would they know by how the people dressed? Would they perceive this by an accent in their speech? Would they know by the kind of house in which they lived? Would they know by the type of profession they practiced? Would they carry a preconceived checklist to apply to a city in determining who was worthy of the gospel? No. All such criteria are superficial. Making determinations according to superficial criteria is prejudicial.
Prejudice is defined as "an unfavorable opinion or feeling formed beforehand or without knowledge, thought, or reason; unreasonable feelings, opinions, or attitudes, especially of a hostile nature, regarding an ethnic, racial, social, or religious group" (dictionary.com). Arising from a false sense of superiority, prejudice produces hatred, and leads to division.
The apostles would determine who was worthy and unworthy by an individual's reaction to their preaching. Jesus did not tell the apostles to go into a city, and if the people seemed like potential citizens of the kingdom, teach them. Rather, they were to teach them before making a judgment: "If anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town" (Matt. 10:14).
If we are not careful, we may evidence prejudice in our teaching. Have you ever looked at a person or a group of people and decided, before uttering a word, that they would never obey the gospel? If we are honest with ourselves, we likely will admit we have done this at some point. If you ever made such a determination based on how people looked, where they lived, or due to the mess they had made in their lives, how did you justify your prejudicial determination? Somewhere in your deliberation process, you likely thought of this saying of Jesus. Did you think, "They will never be interested in the gospel. After all, the Lord said, 'Don't cast your pearls before swine.'" While this may be difficult to acknowledge, this line of prejudicial reasoning is common.
Whatever Jesus means by this teaching, He is not condoning prejudice. Prejudice is condemned throughout the Bible. First, consider the simple instruction to Israel regarding their treatment of foreigners:
When a stranger sojourns with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong. You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God (Exod. 19:33-34).
This passage sounds like it could have been taken from the Sermon on the Mount. Israelites were to treat foreigners with love. As far as God was concerned, foreigners were neighbors. Therefore, Israelites were to love them as they loved themselves. To treat foreigners as "other" or "less than" was an unacceptable violation of the foundation of the law: love. This is a timely message for our society.
Secondly, notice Jesus' treatment of the Samaritans. The ethnic hatred between the Jews and Samaritans went back centuries to the time of Israel's captivity by the Babylonians. Despite this prejudice, Jesus went to the Samaritans (John 4). Later, the Samaritans did not want Jesus and the apostles to spend the night in their town. James and John wanted to rain down fire from heaven on them; however, Jesus desired their salvation (Luke 9:52-56). He did not cave to the racial prejudice of His day. Neither must we.
Thirdly, consider that the gospel was offered to the Gentiles. After the Lord revealed to Peter that the Gentiles were not to be viewed as unclean, he preached the gospel to the house of Cornelius. As he began his sermon, Peter declared, "Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation, anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him" (Acts 10:34-35).
Later, Peter continued to struggle with the implication of God's impartiality—clinging to prejudice which led to hypocrisy. Paul rebuked his prejudice and hypocrisy, and rightfully so (Gal. 2:11-21). The example of Peter demonstrates that nothing good comes from prejudice. Such a worldview is against God's will for humanity.
In summary, the Bible condemns prejudice for the simple reason that God wants everyone to be saved (2 Pet. 3:9). The gospel is for all (Rom. 1:16-17). God loves everyone in the family of man and wants everyone to become part of His family. God's desire to bring humanity into His family is made possible through the cross of Jesus. Only the cross of Jesus can offer peace where we have built barriers (Eph. 2:11-22). The redemption God offers through Jesus is about uniting humanity. The cross must shape the way we view people in the world who are different from us. So long as we view the world through prejudicial constructs, we will hinder the gospel in our lives and the lives of others. If prejudice is not transformed by redeeming love, one day we will find ourselves on the outside of God's kingdom.
If He is not condoning prejudice, what is He teaching? Jesus instructs us to be wise as serpents toward the reality of people rejecting the gospel. While the gospel is for everyone, not everyone wants the gospel. As valuable and precious as the gospel is, some will react with ingratitude, hatred, and even violence toward those who preach its message.
In Jewish culture, dogs and pigs were symbols of senselessness, viciousness, and moral depravity. Irvin Himmel once wrote,
Jesus mentioned dogs and hogs to illustrate the thought that some people are vile and vicious. Like dogs, some men snarl, snap, bite, and devour. They are morally filthy and given to brutality. Like the pig that wallows in the mire, they wallow in sin and feed on filth. Having no desire to escape sin, they will "tear into" anyone who makes an attempt to help them ("Pearls & Pigs," pp. 5-6).
Sadly, some are so mired in sin that they are beyond help. For example, Paul described idolaters who were given to wrong thinking and darkened hearts (Rom. 1:21). They actively worked to suppress the truth. As they progressed in their idolatry, they drifted further and further away from God. In time, they were given up by God. They were so thoughtless and hardened by sin that the knowledge of their coming destruction did not affect them (Rom. 1:32). These are the dogs and pigs of the Sermon on the Mount.
Yes, such people need the gospel, but they do not want it. Often, they will attempt to harm those who teach the gospel. Jesus warned the apostles of the persecution they would face in response to the gospel message (Matt. 10). The apostles and other disciples experienced violent opposition to their proclamation of the truth. Peter and John were arrested. Stephen was stoned to death. Christians were expelled from Jerusalem. James was murdered. For many years, Paul was followed by a group of Judaizing teachers who attempted to discredit him. The inspired apostle described them as dogs (Phil. 3:2). Yes, hostility toward the gospel and those who preach the gospel is a reality which we must wisely acknowledge.
How are we to react to dogs and pigs? What are we to do when someone reacts with hostile opposition to us and our message? We may be tempted to react by pride. We may try to engage a person to win an argument and/or humiliate them. Jesus warns against further engagement with someone who is hostile toward the gospel. Servants of the Lord must never fuel contention by arguing merely for the sake of arguing (2 Tim. 2:24-26).
There is danger in further engaging dogs and pigs. We could get dirty or bitten. We could be attacked. Such individuals could harm us physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Solomon warned about the danger a wicked man could bring to the reputation of a godly man. He wrote, "Whoever corrects a scoffer gets himself abuse, and he who reproves a wicked man incurs injury. Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you; reprove a wise man, and he will love you" (Prov. 9:7-8). Jesus instructs us how we can protect ourselves.
The apostle Paul practiced this teaching in his work. While in Antioch of Pisidia, Paul and Barnabas were given an opportunity to preach the gospel in the local synagogue (Acts 13). Paul's sermon prompted great interest among the Jews. In the week that followed, there was much discussion regarding Jesus of Nazareth being the Messiah. The next Sabbath, most of the city gathered to hear Paul preach, but some of the Jews began to argue with him. The Bible says,
The next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began to contradict what was spoken by Paul, reviling him (Acts 13:44-45).
Rather than trying to argue or fight with the opposition, Paul and Barnabas left the city:
Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, saying, "It was necessary that the word of God be spoken first to you. Since you thrust it aside and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles…" But the Jews incited the devout women of high standing and the leading men of the city, stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of their district. But they shook off the dust from their feet against them and went to Iconium (Acts 13:46, 50-51).
Paul and Barnabas had spent a week preaching and teaching the gospel in this city. The people had time and opportunity to ask questions and seek a clear understanding of the gospel. Evidently, some of them had made their minds up about the messengers and the message. Some sought to harm Paul and Barnabas. As far as Paul and Barnabas were concerned, there was no good reason to continue to wrangle with the opposition. After being driven out of the city, they did not try to return to get even or set anyone straight. Instead, they wisely determined to look for better opportunities elsewhere among the Gentiles.
Yes, not giving what is holy to the dogs and not casting pearls before swine is a strange and unusual saying of Jesus. If we are careless, we can misinterpret this command, and use this statement to justify prejudice. Prejudice has no place in the kingdom of God or in the heart of a citizen of God's kingdom. If we have been using this principle as justification for withholding the gospel from an individual or some group, we have done wrong, and repentance is in order.
Our Creator is a wise God. Therefore, as His people, we must seek wisdom. Wisdom is demonstrated through the discerning use of the gospel, our time, and abilities. While not always easy, we must not waste the precious gifts that God has given us with people who have proven they have no aspirations for holiness.
Instead, we must be looking for people who are like what Jesus described earlier in this sermon. We need to be looking for the poor in spirit, the meek, and the grieving. When we find them, we must invest our time and energy in their salvation. After all, Jesus wants to enrich the lives of the poor and brokenhearted with pearls. If we cast pearls at those who are spiritually impoverished, desperate, and broken, we may find that they will snatch them up and pull them tightly into their hearts.
"Prejudice." Dictionary.com. https://www.dictionary.com/browse/prejudice.
Himmel, Irvin. "Pearls & Pigs." Truth Magazine. XVI: 47. October 5, 1972.
Author Bio: David and his family have labored with the Thayer Street congregation in Akron, OH since 2008. He can be reached at dflatt85@yahoo.com.
