The remedy is radical: cut off such limbs. That is better than experiencing the covenant wrath of the Lord, about which Isaiah already warningly prophesied when he spoke of a worm that will not die and a fire that will never be quenched (Isa. 66:24). The cutting off of limbs belonged to the old criminal law. The images are less extraordinary in Jesus’ time than in our century. What is extraordinary, however, is that Jesus speaks of a punishment that in normal jurisdiction is necessarily imposed by others, while now it must be applied voluntarily and by the person him- or herself. In short, “Be unconditionally strict for yourself and for every part of your body and spirit!”1
43 And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to hell,to the unquenchable fire.