Turning the Other Cheek
W. Baxendale. Luke 6:27-30 But I say to you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you,… — A Swiss colporteur entered a three-story house, in which, according to the custom of the country, three different families lived. He began with the highest story, and sold copies of the Scriptures in this and in the next. On inquiring about the family on the ground-floor, he was warned not to enter, but he did enter. He found both the man and his wife at home. He offered his Bibles; his offer was replied to with abuse, and a positive order to leave the house instantaneously; he, however, stayed, urging them to buy and read God's holy Word. The man then rose in a violent rage, and struck him a severe blow on the cheek. Up to this moment the colporteur stood quietly with his knapsack on his back. He now deliberately unstrapped it, laid it on the table, and turned up the sleeve of his right arm, all the while steadily looking his opponent in the face. The colporteur was a very strong man. Addressing his opponent he said, " Look at my hand — its furrows show that I have worked; feel my muscles — they show that I am fit for work. Look me straight in the face; do I quail before you? Judge, then, for yourself if it is fear that moves me to do what I am about to do. In this Book my Master says, When they smite you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. You have smitten me on one cheek; here is the other! Smite I I will not return the blow." The man was thunderstruck. He did not smite, but bought the Book which, under the influence of God's Spirit, works marvels in the human heart. (W. Baxendale.) Parallel Verses KJV: But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you, WEB: "But I tell you who hear: love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,