| Geneva Study Bible And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also. People's New Testament 5:40 If any man will sue. That is, is about to sue thee. Take away thy coat. The inner garment, the tunic or shirt. Cloke. The outer garment, the covering at night. It could not be held by a creditor (Ex 22:26-27). Better to give it up, too, than to engage in litigation. Many a poor soul has realized this when it was too late, and the lawyers had divided his property. Avoid lawsuits. Wesley's Notes 5:40-41 Where the damage is not great, choose rather to suffer it, though possibly it may on that account be repeated, than to demand an eye for an eye, to enter into a rigorous prosecution of the offender. The meaning of the whole passage seems to be, rather than return evil for evil, when the wrong is purely personal, submit to one bodily wrong after another, give up one part of your goods after another, submit to one instance of compulsion after another. That the words are not literally to be understood, appears from the behaviour of our Lord himself, John 18:22,23. Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary 40. And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat-the inner garment; in pledge for a debt (Ex 22:26, 27). let him have thy cloak also-the outer and more costly garment. This overcoat was not allowed to be retained over night as a pledge from the poor because they used it for a bed covering. Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary 5:38-42 The plain instruction is, Suffer any injury that can be borne, for the sake of peace, committing your concerns to the Lord's keeping. And the sum of all is, that Christians must avoid disputing and striving. If any say, Flesh and blood cannot pass by such an affront, let them remember, that flesh and blood shall not inherit the kingdom of God; and those who act upon right principles will have most peace and comfort. | 
