Notice that there is no adjective in front of “neighbor” (7453). In the next verse it has the phrase “without cause”. That qualification is not here. We are familiar with Jesus saying we were to love our neighbor as ourselves. We ignore the fact that Jesus was just quoting from the law,
(Leviticus 19:18 KJV) Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the LORD.You can’t get much more into the law than Leviticus. Solomon knew this verse. Israel knew this verse.
But people do all they can to ignore simple truth. Jesus was asked, “Who is my neighbor?” He responded with the parable of the Good Samaritan. The Samaritans and the Jews hated each other. The idea is that we are to treat everyone properly. It is the foundation for the courtesy and polite behavior that is expected in well raised Americans. It is more of that “middle class morality” that is so vilified today.
So? It doesn’t matter if your neighbor’s dog barks all night and leaves greetings on your lawn. You are to demonstrate the love of God to them anyway. Hard? Of course. But it is also hard for a rich man to get into heaven and Americans are rich by the standards of history and the world.
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