THE GOSPELS: LESSON 21: THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT, PART ONE

TEXT: MATT. 5:1 TO 7: 29 IS THE WHOLE “SERMON.”

THIS WEEK’S TEXT IS MATT. 5: 1- 10

Figure 1 On this ridge overlooking the Sea of Galilee, Jesus supposedly gave his “Sermon on the Mount.”

          In this passage (Matthew 5 - 7) is recorded the longest and most detailed explanation of the “kingdom of God.” It has been said that the “sermon on the Mount” is to Christianity what the Ten Commandments was to Judaism. However, that is understating the case somewhat, for the Sermon on the Mount is much more than a dry list of “thou shalts” and “thou shalt nots.” Here is truly revealed – by the very mouth of Jesus himself – the heart and soul of what Christianity is to be and how it differs from the Old Covenant.

SETTING: The exact location of the “Sermon on the Mount” is not revealed. It was somewhere near Capernaum. One tradition says that Jesus was at a place called the Horns of Hattin, seven miles west of the Sea. A more reasonable tradition places the “mount” very near Capernaum, at the northwest corner of the Sea of Galilee. Remember that the word “mountain” means a piece of ground which rises above the area around it. It can be anything from a true mountain (Mount Hermon) to a hill (Mount of Olives) to a raised ridge (as the preferred site of the Sermon on the Mount is).

MATTHEW 5: 1 - 10: THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT BEGINS.

VERSE 1: “Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down his disciples came to him.” Since there were obviously many people following him about (see Matt. 4: 25), Jesus had to go up the hillside so he could speak to them properly. The site illustrated above can accommodate 100,000 people (where the groves are now planted).J. R. Dummelow notes that "in the early church, the preacher sat, and the congregation, including the emperor, stood." [J. R. Dummelow, One Volume Commentary (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1931), p. 638.]

Most likely this was what took place here at the “Mount of Beatitudes.”

VERSE 2: The words of this great oration follow for three full chapters of Matthew.

VERSES 3 - 10: THE “BEATITUDES.”

          The word “beatitude” is from a Latin word meaning “state of blessedness” (beatitudo). All the beatitudes begin with a certain type of person, and then finish with the result of or the reward for their actions; “for they shall . . .” There are seven types of people blessed, and a final eighth beatitude which could include any or all of the previous seven.

VERSE 3: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Blessed is the Greek makariŏs which means “blessed by God” or “fortunate or well off.” “Poor in spirit” is the Greek ptōchŏs, meaning “one in distressed or straitened circumstances.” The word is sometimes translated beggar, and denotes someone in trouble too bad for him to resolve by himself. Obviously, as stated, these are “spiritual beggars.” The phrase “for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” is better translated as “because of them is the kingdom of heaven.” In other words, this is why Jesus came preaching the gospel of the kingdom of heaven, to grant relief to the poor beggars like us who could never save ourselves. We have such a person described by Jesus in Luke 18: 10 - 14. Here is a good rendition of this verse: “How fortunate are those who are spiritually destitute (lost) for the kingdom of heaven is being delivered to help just such people.”

VERSE 4: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” See Isaiah 61: 1 - 3.

Those who now weep are very fortunate, for they shall be comforted. Comforted how? By Jesus’ great message of redemption; by the appearance of the Messiah and the everlasting life he promised; by the presence of the Holy Spirit now abiding with faithful men.

VERSE 5: “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” See Psalm 37: 11.

The word meek does not have a direct counterpart in English, so is often misunderstood. It is more than just humility, which can follow from weakness. Meekness, however, is the result of a great inner strength. Here is what Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words has to say:

“It is that temper of spirit in which we accept His dealings with us as good, and therefore without disputing or resisting; it is closely linked with the word tapeinophrosune [humility], and follows directly upon it, Eph. 4:2; Col. 3:12; cp. the adjectives in the Sept. of Zeph. 3:12, "meek and lowly;" ... it is only the humble heart which is also the meek, and which, as such, does not fight against God and more or less struggle and contend with Him.”

“Inherit the earth” – This is probably the hardest part of this whole Sermon on the Mount. It can be understood in at least two ways.

1. Physical: The meek would literally inherit the land, for they would survive the great destruction of the Jews and the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. (Matthew 24: 16; Mark 13: 14; Luke 21: 21)

2. Spiritual: The meek will inherit the kingdom of God and heaven, the “new Earth” promised to the faithful. (II Peter 3: 13)

VERSE 6: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”

Not those who only want to satisfy their senses, but those with a deep burning desire to know and do the will of God. Jesus is delivering the message whereby their quest for spiritual fulfillment will be satisfied.

“If I say, ‘I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name,’ there is in my heart as it were a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot.” Jer. 20: 9

VERSE 7: “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.”

“Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.” Gal 6: 7

VERSE 8: “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”

“Pure in heart” – means having a clean or undefiled mind (especially the emotional aspect of the mind).

Only those who are clean-minded (not wicked and defiled) will ever get to see God. The filthy-minded ones shall be cast into the outer darkness (Matt. 25: 30).

VERSE 9: “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.”

This means that those who strive for peace in the kingdom of God shall be named (by God) as his children. Those who cause strife and dissension are NOT God’s true children. (Rom. 14: 19; Gal 5: 11 - 26)

VERSE 10: “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Persecuted literally means “pursued.” Those who are chased, tortured, made to suffer, for the cause of Christ. Not just those made uncomfortable, but those who are actively made to suffer. NOT the ones in Matthew 13: 21. See also Acts 8: 1; Rom. 8: 35; II Tim. 3: 12.

ALL THESE BEATITUDES ARE TO TEACH US THIS: If we want to be saved (part of God’s kingdom) then we must be:

1. Poor in spirit (realize our own inability to save ourselves)

2. Mournful (sorry for our sins)

3. Meek (trust God completely)

4. Hunger and thirst for righteousness

5. Merciful

6. Pure in heart (not wicked or nasty minded)

7. Peacemakers (Not troublemakers or schismatic)

8. Persecuted (if you have never suffered as a Christian, you are not one – 2 Tim. 3: 12).

Return to Gospels Main Selection Page