However acute the tension between two different witnesses may appear, it must not be resolved through exegetical distortion of the texts. The individual witnesses must be allowed their own voices. A classic example of such distortion is the reading of Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount through Pauline lenses (or, rather, Pauline lenses as interpreted by the Reformation): in such a reading, the rigorous demands of the Sermon on the Mount are treated as impossible commandments designed to drive sinners to recognize their absolute need of grace. In such a reading, Matthew’s voice is suppressed, and
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