Passage

Matthew 5.17-18

Book: Matthew · NASB95 (primary) / ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

"Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished." (Matthew 5:17-18, NASB95)

Jesus' programmatic statement in the Sermon on the Mount on his relation to the Mosaic Law. The verse pair fixes the basic Christian posture toward the Old Testament: not abolition, but fulfillment. The verse is the foundational text for every question about Mosaic-Law continuity, the moral / civil / ceremonial distinction, and the relation between Old and New Covenants.

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV (ASV)

"15. Neither do men light a lamp, and put it under the bushel, but on the stand; and it shineth unto all that are in the house. 16. Even so let your light shine before men; that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven."

"17. Think not that I came to destroy the law or the prophets: I came not to destroy, but to fulfil. 18. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass away from the law, till all things be accomplished."

"19. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20. For I say unto you, that except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5:15-20, ASV)

WEB (WEB)

"15. Neither do you light a lamp, and put it under a measuring basket, but on a stand; and it shines to all who are in the house. 16. Even so, let your light shine before men; that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven."

"17. “Don’t think that I came to destroy the law or the prophets. I didn’t come to destroy, but to fulfill. 18. For most certainly, I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not even one smallest letter or one tiny pen stroke shall in any way pass away from the law, until all things are accomplished."

"19. Whoever, therefore, shall break one of these least commandments, and teach others to do so, shall be called least in the Kingdom of Heaven; but whoever shall do and teach them shall be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. 20. For I tell you that unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, there is no way you will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven." (Matthew 5:15-20, WEB)

KJV (KJV)

"15. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. ^{a bushel: the word in the original signifieth a measure containing about a pint less than a peck} 16. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

"17. Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. 18. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled."

"19. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20. For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5:15-20, KJV)

YLT (YLT)

"15. nor do they light a lamp, and put it under the measure, but on the lamp-stand, and it shineth to all those in the house; 16. so let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works, and may glorify your Father who [is] in the heavens."

"17. 'Do not suppose that I came to throw down the law or the prophets, I did not come to throw down, but to fulfil; 18. for, verily I say to you, till that the heaven and the earth may pass away, one iota or one tittle may not pass away from the law, till that all may come to pass."

"19. 'Whoever therefore may loose one of these commands, the least, and may teach men so, least he shall be called in the reign of the heavens, but whoever may do and may teach [them], he shall be called great in the reign of the heavens. 20. 'For I say to you, that if your righteousness may not abound above that of the scribes and Pharisees, ye may not enter to the reign of the heavens." (Matthew 5:15-20, YLT)

Setting

Speaker: Jesus, in the Sermon on the Mount
Audience: disciples primarily (Matt 5:1-2), with the surrounding crowds
Location: a mountainside in Galilee, traditionally identified near Capernaum
Time period: events c. AD 28-30 (early Galilean ministry); Matthew's Gospel composed c. AD 60-80

Theological reading

The contrast Jesus draws is between two verbs: katalysai (to abolish, dissolve, demolish) and plērōsai (to fulfill, fill up, bring to its intended completion). He denies the first and affirms the second. The Law and the Prophets are not undone; they are brought to their telos. What was anticipatory finds its referent. What was typological finds its antitype. What was provisional finds its fulfillment.

The "smallest letter or stroke" language (Greek iota / keraia, Hebrew yod / serif) emphasizes the smallest visible marks of written Torah: the smallest Hebrew letter and the tiny ornamental strokes distinguishing similar letters. Nothing, even the typographically negligible, passes from the Law until all is accomplished. The duration clause is doubled: "until heaven and earth pass away" and "until all is accomplished." The first is cosmological, the second teleological. Both reinforce the permanence of the Law's place in God's economy until the eschaton.

The hard exegetical question is what plērōsai (fulfill) means operationally. Four major readings:

Christological fulfillment, Jesus is the antitype to which the Law pointed; he fulfills it in his person, work, and righteousness. He fulfills it; we receive his fulfillment.
Ethical intensification, the antitheses that follow ("You have heard... but I say to you") show that fulfillment means pressing the Law's intent deeper, beyond surface compliance into the heart.
Eschatological fulfillment, Jesus brings the eschatological age the prophets foretold; the Law's typological economy finds its fulfillment in the kingdom he inaugurates.
Combined, the readings are not mutually exclusive; Reformed, Catholic, and Lutheran traditions vary in emphasis but typically affirm all three together.

The downstream consequence is the threefold distinction (moral, civil, ceremonial) that became standard in Christian tradition: moral law continues in unchanged force; civil law continues as wisdom for nations though no longer binding in its theocratic form; ceremonial law finds its fulfillment in Christ and is no longer binding as ritual. The distinction is theological rather than exegetical, it does not appear verbatim in scripture, but it is the dominant Christian way of reading the continuity Jesus affirms here.

Apologetic significance

Matthew 5:17-18 is load-bearing for several major apologetic discussions:

"Christians ignore the Old Testament" objection. Critics cite the disregard for ceremonial law (sacrifice, dietary, Sabbath-day) as Christian inconsistency or hypocrisy. The response runs through Matthew 5:17 and Hebrews 7-10: ceremonial law is fulfilled in Christ, not abolished; its observance has reached its telos.
Moral law continuity. The Decalogue and broader moral law continue in force; this is the basis for Christian ethics drawn from the Old Testament.
Old-Testament-violence objections. The civil-law arrangements of theocratic Israel are not normative for Christians or for modern nations; Matthew 5:17 with Hebrews 8:13 supports the redemptive-historical reading that distinguishes covenantal eras.
Marcionism rebutted. The verse decisively refuses to set the Old Testament aside as a sub-Christian remainder; Jesus is emphatic that the Law and the Prophets are fulfilled, not discarded.

Key words

G3551 - nomos, nomos (G3551). "Law"; the term Paul develops extensively in Romans-Galatians.
G1096 - ginomai, ginomai (G1096). "Come to pass"; the verb behind "all is accomplished."
G1520 - heis, heis (G1520). "One"; emphatic with "smallest letter" and "stroke."
G3956 - pas, pas (G3956). "All"; the totality clause in "until all is accomplished."

Theological themes

Continuity and discontinuity. The Old and New Covenants are related by fulfillment, not by replacement-without-remainder or by mere extension.
Christological fulfillment. Christ is the telos of the Law (Romans 10:4); the Law's anticipatory shape finds its referent in him.
Threefold law. Moral, civil, ceremonial distinction in Christian ethical tradition is grounded here.
Anti-Marcionism. The Old Testament is permanent revelation, not a discardable preface.

Cross-references

Galatians 3.24-25, the Law as paidagogos leading to Christ; tutor-and-graduate logic of fulfillment.
Romans 10.4, "Christ is the end (telos) of the Law"; Pauline restatement.
Hebrews 8.13, "When He said, 'A new covenant,' He has made the first obsolete"; the redemptive-historical move.
Hebrews 10.1, the Law had a shadow of good things to come; fulfillment-as-substance.
Luke 24.44, Jesus' own statement of fulfillment of "the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms."

Quoted in

Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.