Mt 7:6, 12-14
[Jesus said to his disciples,] 6“Do not give what is holy to dogs, or throw your pearls before swine, lest they trample them underfoot, and turn and tear you to pieces.
12“Do to others whatever you would have them do to you. This is the law and the prophets.
13“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and those who enter through it are many. 14How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life. And those who find it are few.”
THE GODLEN RULE: Jesus’ saying, “Do to others whatever you would have them do to you,” has been known as the Golden Rule since the 18th century. The rule, in essence, encapsulates the Law and the Prophets. This is not distinctly Christian as in antiquity there were many variations of this saying, although in the negative form. Rabbi Hillel, a contemporary of Jesus, is reported to have said, “What is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow creatures.” Jesus says that the commandment of love of God and neighbor is the first and the sum of all the commandments (Mk 12:30-31). And the apostle Paul declares, “Love does no evil to the neighbor; hence, love is the fulfillment of the Law” (Rom 13:10).
The cultural value behind the Golden Rule is reciprocity, a give-and-take exchange between individuals and groups. The first kind of reciprocity is sharing without expecting something in return. In the family, parents provide for their children, to be repaid perhaps only by love and gratitude. The second kind is doing good in the hope of being reciprocated. Thus a man invites his neighbor to a meal in the hope of being invited in the future, or lends to his neighbor to be able to borrow. The third kind of reciprocity is to do good to a stranger, expecting no return. This is the basis of the Middle-Eastern custom, even the sacred duty, of providing hospitality to strangers (see Gn 19:5).
Jesus tells his disciples to behave towards strangers the way they would behave towards members of their own household. Ordinary people love their family and friends. The disciples are to surpass this by loving “strangers,” by not having recourse to generalizing or stereotyping. People do not want to be labeled but to be known for their individuality and personality. The Golden Rule tells us to refrain from doing to others what displeases us, and to do good things to them out of the goodness of our hearts.