Matthew Chapter 5 verse 41 Holy Bible

ASV Matthew 5:41

And whosoever shall compel thee to go one mile, go with him two.
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BBE Matthew 5:41

And whoever makes you go one mile, go with him two.
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DARBY Matthew 5:41

And whoever will compel thee to go one mile, go with him two.
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KJV Matthew 5:41

And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.
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WBT Matthew 5:41


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WEB Matthew 5:41

Whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two.
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YLT Matthew 5:41

`And whoever shall impress thee one mile, go with him two,
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Pulpit Commentary

Pulpit CommentaryVerse 41. - Matthew only. Shall compel thee to go; Revised Version margin, "Gr. impress" (ἀγγαρεύσει). From the Persian. Hatch ('Essays,' p. 37) shows that while the classical usage strictly refers to the Persian system or' mounted couriers (described in Herod., 8:98; Xen., 'Cyr.,' 8:6. 17), the post-classical usage refers to the later development of a system, not of postal service, but of the forced transport of military baggage. It thus indicates, not merely forced attendance, but forced carrying. Hence it is used in Matthew 27:32 and Mark 15:21 of Simon the Cyrenian, "who was pressed by the Roman soldiers who were escorting our Lord not merely to accompany them but also to carry a load." Thus here also the thought is doubtless that of being compelled to carry baggage. There may also be a reference, as Hatch suggests, to the oppressive conduct of the Roman soldiers (cf. Luke 3:14). (For the spirit of our Lord's saying, vide also 'Aboth,' 3:18 (Taylor), where the probable translation is, "Rabbi Ishmael said, Be pliant of disposition and yielding to impressment.") A mile; Revised Version, one mile; but see Matthew 8:19, note. A Roman mile of a thousand paces.

Ellicott's Commentary

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(41) Whosoever shall compel thee.--The Greek word implies the special compulsion of forced service as courier or messenger under Government, and was imported from the Persian postal system, organised on the plan of employing men thus impressed to convey Government dispatches from stage to stage (Herod. viii. 98). The use of the illustration here would seem to imply the adoption of the same system by the Roman Government under the empire. Roman soldiers and their horses were billeted on Jewish householders. Others were impressed for service of longer or shorter duration.A mile.--The influence of Rome is shown by the use of the Latin word (slightly altered) for the mille passuum, the thousand paces which made up a Roman mile--about 142 yards short of an English statute mile. It is interesting to note a like illustration of the temper that yields to compulsion of this kind, rather than struggle or resist, in the teaching of the Stoic Epictetus--"Should there be a forced service, and a soldier should lay hold on thee, let him work his will; do not resist or murmur" (Diss. iv., i. 79).