Well what makes you think turn the other cheek means if someone hits you to turn your cheek do they can hit the other? What makes it mean that and not turn away from them and don’t pursue it?
Leviticus 24:17-23
Leviticus 24:17-23
New American Standard Bible
An Eye for an Eye
17 ‘Now (A)if someone [a]takes any human life, he must be put to death. 18 But (B)the one who [b]takes the life of an animal shall make restitution, life for life. 19 If someone injures his neighbor, just as he has done, so shall it be done to him: 20 (C)fracture for fracture, (D)eye for eye, tooth for tooth; just as he has injured a person, so shall it be [c]inflicted on him. 21 So the one who [d]kills an animal shall make restitution, but (E)the one who [e]kills a person shall be put to death. 22 There shall be only (F)one [f]standard for you; it shall be for the stranger as well as the native, for I am the Lord your God.’” 23 Then Moses spoke to the sons of Israel, and they brought the one who had cursed outside the camp, and stoned him with stones. So the sons of Israel did just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
Deuteronomy 19:14-21
New American Standard Bible
Laws of Landmark and Testimony
14 “You shall not displace your neighbor’s boundary marker, which the ancestors have set, in your inheritance which you will inherit in the land that the Lord your God is giving you to [a]possess.
15 “A single witness shall not rise up against a person regarding any wrongdoing or any sin [b]that he commits; on the [c]testimony of two or three witnesses a matter shall be confirmed. 16 If a malicious witness rises up against a person to testify against him of wrongdoing, 17 then both people who have the dispute shall stand before the Lord, before the priests and the judges who will be in office in those days. 18 And the judges shall investigate thoroughly, and if the witness is a false witness and he has testified against his brother falsely, 19 then you shall do to him just as he had planned to do to his brother. So you shall eliminate the evil from among you. 20 And the rest of the people will hear and be afraid, and will never again do such an evil thing among you. 21 So [d]you shall not show pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, and foot for foot.
These verses show that eye for an eye was part of their judicial system. It’s a snapshot of some of their legal approaches to wrong doing. It’s all about a victim getting revenge through their court system. What Jesus was talking about was a direct reference back to how should a Christian seek justice against someone who done them wrong. Jesus response was to turn away. Turn your other cheek. Don’t seek out revenge but forgive them. Don’t pay back suffering with suffering. None of it was about self defense. Jesus was very clear. The misunderstanding does not come from what Jesus said, but from those who don’t understand what was being said because they don’t understand what he’s actually quoting. Jesus was talking to be about green up understanding the Torah. Jesus was talking to Jews. Not modern western people. It was a sort of coined phrase understood by everyone.
It’s like if we said “ you’ve heard if you are feeling froggy then leap but I say keep your feet on the ground”. Assuming you understand that phrase you know leaping in that sense means taking the first action. It’s someone telling you if you want to fight then make the first move. By saying keep your feet on the ground I’m implying don’t move to attack them. It does not actually mean freeze up and do nothing. It’s not satin on don’t leave the drama and walk away…. It’s clear to us becsuse we understand it. But someone 300 years from now may not have any idea what that was supposed to mean and interpret it as don’t move and allow someone to harm you and they would be wrong.
So none of the Jewish people would have heard what Jesus said and confused it for self defense. There was no need to mention self defense. It’s unrelated and there is plenty of evidence in the Bible of people defending their nations, family and ect… so it’s not confusing .