There are just two passages in the Bible that refer in detail to ‘loving your enemies’, and both passages are difficult to understand and appear impossible to put into practice.
Thus they have often been ignored or been subject to a number of different interpretations which water down its literal meaning. However, how we interpret the whole passage and context will influence our understanding of the details.
That being the case, the author has done well in first setting before the reader such fundamentals of interpretation as:
- To whom did Jesus address His words?
- To what time did His words relate?
- Why did He say them?