Difficult Questions: Did Jesus Tell Us to Pluck Our Eye Out?

From time to time, we dig into Scripture and seek answers to difficult questions from the Bible. Today, we are asking the question: “Did Jesus tell us to pluck our eye out?”

And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. Matthew 5:29 (KJV)

Let me be very clear about this from the start: Jesus does not instruct us to literally pluck our eye out. In order to understand this verse, we have to view it in the proper context. We can get into serious error when we pull Scripture out of context. Let’s look at the verses before and after to get the background of what the discussion was about.

Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart. And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. Matthew 5:27-30 (KJV)

Jesus was talking about the sin of adultery and the fact that the sin of adultery is entertained in the heart before it ever becomes a physical act. He explained that a man commits adultery with a woman by lusting after her without ever touching her. He is really addressing a heart issue. Think about it; adultery does not start in the eyes; it begins in the heart, as do all other sins. Jesus is saying that just as you would cut off a member of your body if it was the real source of sin (which it is not), you should cut off anything that leads you to sin.

Jesus is talking figuratively. He knows sin is a heart issue before it becomes a body issue. We first conceive sin in our hearts before we ever commit it with our bodies. But, Jesus is making a point by saying that if the eye was the culprit, then we should cut it out, or if the hand was the problem, then we should cut it off in order to avoid sinning. Since those things do not cause sin, we do not cut them off. We cut everything off that would entice our hearts to sin.

As painful as it may be to cut out what we might call our pet sins- those sins we have become accustomed to and that our flesh enjoys- we must do so in order to keep ourselves out of hell. Sinful pleasures, like lusting after a woman or man in your heart, must be removed from our hearts and lives. We are to guard and protect the entrance to our hearts. In this case, it means watching your “eye gate” and what you allow yourself to gaze upon. It means watching what you’re watching. There are access points to our heart, and the eye gate is just one of them.

Instead of looking at someone in order to lust, keep your thoughts on Jesus. When we focus our hearts on Jesus, we leave no room for anything else to get into our hearts. All the enemy’s traps are set to draw us away from Jesus. We must love Jesus more than sinful desires that lead to sinful actions. We must cut those desires out of our lives so they won’t lead to sin that would cut Jesus out of our lives. It might be painful to cut certain sins out of our lives at first, espcially if we have become accustomed to them. But, it is much more painful to be cast into hell to suffer the penalty for unrepented sins.

Jesus is not telling us to physically cut out or cut off parts of our bodies. He is telling us that whatever situation, relationship, or circumstance causes you to sin, cut it out of your life so you can escape the punishment of hell. He is giving instruction on how to get victory over anything that would cause us to stumble. And I would add, once you cut something out of your life, replace it with the things of God, so there is no chance of it ever coming back. Fill it with the Word, prayer, fellowship, and so on.