Bible verses about "self-defense" | RKJNT

¹ Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. ² And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. ³ And when the tempter came to him, he said, If you are the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. ⁴ But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. ⁵ Then the devil took him up into the holy city, and set him on a pinnacle of the temple, ⁶ And said to him, If you are the Son of God, cast yourself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning you: and on their hands they shall bear you up, lest at any time you dash your foot against a stone. ⁷ Jesus said to him, Again it is written, You shall not tempt the Lord your God. ⁸ Again, the devil took him to an exceedingly high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; ⁹ And said to him, All these things will I give you, if you will fall down and worship me. ¹⁰ Then Jesus said to him, Begone, Satan: for it is written, You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve. ¹¹ Then the devil left him, and, behold, angels came and ministered to him. ¹² Now when Jesus heard that John had been cast into prison, he departed into Galilee; ¹³ And leaving Nazareth, he came and lived in Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali: ¹⁴ That what was spoken by Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, ¹⁵ The land of Zebulun, and the land of Naphtali, by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles; ¹⁶ The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light; and to those who sat in the region and shadow of death, a light has sprung up. ¹⁷ From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. ¹⁸ And walking by the sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishermen. ¹⁹ And he said to them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. ²⁰ And they immediately left their nets, and followed him. ²¹ And going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them. ²² And they immediately left the boat and their father, and followed him. ²³ And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of infirmity among the people. ²⁴ And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought to him all sick people who were taken with various diseases and torments, those who were possessed by devils, and those who were epileptic, and paralytics; and he healed them. ²⁵ And great multitudes of people followed him from Galilee, and from Decapolis, and from Jerusalem, and from Judaea, and from beyond the Jordan.

¹ And seeing the multitudes, he went up on the mountain: and when he sat down, his disciples came to him: ² And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, ³ Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ⁴ Blessed are those who mourn: for they shall be comforted. ⁵ Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. ⁶ Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness: for they shall be filled. ⁷ Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. ⁸ Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. ⁹ Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called sons of God. ¹⁰ Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ¹¹ Blessed are you, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. ¹² Rejoice, and be exceedingly glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. ¹³ You are the salt of the earth: but if the salt has lost its taste, with what shall it be salted? it is no longer good for anything, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot by men. ¹⁴ You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Nor do men light a lamp, and put it under a bushel, but on a lampstand; and it gives light to all who are in the house. ¹⁶ Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. ¹⁷ Do not think that I have come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I have not come to destroy, but to fulfill. ¹⁸ For truly I say to you, Until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke, shall by any means pass away from the law, until all is fulfilled. ¹⁹ Therefore, whoever shall break one of the least commandments, and shall so teach men to do, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. ²⁰ For I say to you, That unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall never enter into the kingdom of heaven. ²¹ You have heard that it was said to them of old, You shall not kill; and whoever shall kill shall be subject to judgment: ²² But I say to you, That whoever is angry with his brother shall be in danger of judgment: and whoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whoever shall say, You fool, shall be in danger of the hell of fire. ²³ Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you; ²⁴ Leave your gift before the altar, and go your way; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. ²⁵ Come to terms with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him; lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, and the judge deliver you to the officer, and you be cast into prison. ²⁶ Truly I say to you, You shall by no means come out of there, until you have paid the last farthing. ²⁷ You have heard that it was said, You shall not commit adultery: ²⁸ But I say to you, That whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. ²⁹ And if your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out, and cast it from you: for it is better for you that one of your members should perish, than that your whole body should be cast into hell. ³⁰ And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off, and cast it from you: for it is better for you that one of your members should perish, than that your whole body should be cast into hell. ³¹ It has been said, Whoever shall divorce his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce: ³² But I say to you, That whoever shall divorce his wife, except for the cause of unchastity, causes her to commit adultery: and whoever shall marry a woman who has been divorced commits adultery. ³³ Again, you have heard that it has been said to them of old, You shall not swear falsely, but shall fulfill your oaths to the Lord: ³⁴ But I say to you, Do not swear at all; either by heaven; for it is God's throne: ³⁵ Or by the earth; for it is his footstool: or by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King. ³⁶ Nor shall you swear by your head, because you can not make one hair white or black. ³⁷ But let your statements be, Yes for yes; No for no: for whatever is more than these comes from the evil one. ³⁸ You have heard that it has been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: ³⁹ But I say to you, Do not resist evil: but whoever shall strike you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also. ⁴⁰ And if any man wants to sue you, and take away your shirt, let him have your coat also. ⁴¹ And whoever shall compel you to go one mile, go with him two. ⁴² Give to him who asks from you, and do not turn away from him who would borrow from you. ⁴³ You have heard that it has been said, You shall love your neighbour, and hate your enemy. ⁴⁴ But I say to you, Love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you; ⁴⁵ That you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven: for he makes his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. ⁴⁶ For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? do not even the tax gatherers do the same? ⁴⁷ And if you greet your brethren only, what are you doing more than others? do not even the Gentiles do the same? ⁴⁸ Therefore be perfect, as your Father who is in heaven is perfect.

⁵² Then Jesus said to him, Put your sword back in its place: for all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword. ⁵³ Do you think that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall at once give me more than twelve legions of angels? ⁵⁴ But how then shall the scriptures be fulfilled, that say it must happen this way?

³⁸ You have heard that it has been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: ³⁹ But I say to you, Do not resist evil: but whoever shall strike you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also.

³⁶ Then he said to them, But now, he who has a purse, let him take it, and likewise a bag: and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one.

⁴ For he is a minister of God for your good. But if you do that which is evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain: for he is a minister of God to execute wrath upon the one who does evil.

⁸ But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his own household, he has denied the faith, and is worse than an unbeliever.