Has the Biblical Law been Abolished? (Matthew 5:17)

Matthew 5:17 ESV Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them.

It is sometimes argued that since Jesus had already fulfilled the law, then we no longer need to keep the law! However, this requires taking Matthew 5:17 out of its context, and ignoring the rest of what Jesus said in the same passage.

Let us take a look at what Jesus says in the very next verses:

Matthew 5:18–19 ESV For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

Verse 19 starts with the word “Therefore,” which draws a conclusion from what comes before it. Earlier on in verse 17, Jesus had said that he “did not come to abolish them but to fulfil them.” Why is that the case? “For,” Jesus explains in verse 18, “truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished”—which has obviously not happened yet. Thus, according to Jesus’ own words, the law remains valid in its entirety even to this day.

“Therefore,” Jesus concludes in verse 19, “whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” People will continue to be held accountable according to the biblical law. This would not make sense if the biblical law is abolished, since people cannot be held accountable according to a law which is no longer valid.

When we read Matthew 5:17 in its entirety and in context, it is clear that Jesus did not fulfil the biblical law such that we no longer have to keep it today. Rather, he affirmed that the biblical law would continue to be valid even after his coming.