Turn the other cheek

Cultural  

1. An adaptation of a command of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount: “Ye have heard that it hath been said, “An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth”; but I say unto you, that ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.”

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turn the other cheek Idioms  

1. Respond meekly or mildly to insult or injury without retaliating. For example, There's no point in arguing with that unreasonable supervisor; just turn the other cheek. This expression comes from the New Testament, in which Jesus tells his followers to love their enemies and offer their other cheek to those who have struck one cheek (Luke 6:29).

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To “turn the other cheek” is thus to accept injuries and not to seek revenge.

Example Sentences

Others emphasized the “compassionate Christ” who urged that we “turn the other cheek,” who mingled among lepers and saw the poor and sick as being God’s children: that “those who are ‘first’ in this world — prominent and powerful — may find themselves last in God’s kingdom.”

From Los Angeles Times

And Food Forward was my way to turn the other cheek.”

From Los Angeles Times

The British foreign secretary, David Cameron, acknowledged just before meeting with the prime minister that Israel was unlikely to heed pleas to turn the other cheek.

From New York Times

“If they had just trained them on how to turn the other cheek and not be retaliatory, which they were with me, with the summons, I thought this guy might still be alive. So it troubled me.”

From Seattle Times

“It’s a constant thing,” said Gude, who said that he instructs protesters to turn the other cheek.

From Los Angeles Times