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Chapter Level Commentary:
READING CYCLE THREE (from "hyperlink")
FOLLOWING THE ORIGINAL AUTHOR'S INTENT AT THE PARAGRAPH LEVEL
This is a study guide commentary which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.
Read the chapter in one sitting. Identify the subjects. Compare your subject divisions with the five translations above. Paragraphing is not inspired, but it is the key to following the original author's intent, which is the heart of interpretation. Every paragraph has one and only one subject.
1. First paragraph
2. Second paragraph
3. Third paragraph
4. Etc.
CONTEXTUAL INSIGHTS TO CHAPTERS 5-7
A. This sermon has been called
1. "The Ordination Address to the Twelve"
2. "The Compendium of Christian Doctrine"
3. "The Magna Carta of the Kingdom"
4. "The Manifesto of the King"
The term "Sermon on the Mount" was first used by Augustine (a.d. 354-430) in his Latin Commentary on Matthew. This title came into our English Bibles through the Coverdale Bible of a.d. 1535.
B. "The Sermon on the Mount" in Matthew 5-7 is possibly the same as "the Sermon on the Plain" in Luke 6. The difference in the contents can be explained by comparing the target audiences of the Gospels writers; Matthew's readers were Palestinian Jews and Luke's were Gentiles. However, because the differences are so great, many believe they are not the same sermon. They may be examples of often repeated themes used by Jesus in many places with differing audiences. An example of this is the parable of the lost sheep. In Matthew 18 it was directed to disciples, but in Luke 15 to sinners.
C. Under God's inspiration, the Gospel writers were free to select from Jesus' teachings and actions and to combine them in non-chronological ways to communicate theological truth. See Fee and Stuart's How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth, pp. 127-148. The Gospels are not biographies-they are evangelistic tracts and discipleship manuals. Matthew combines Jesus' teachings and miracles into thematic units, while Luke records these same teachings in different contexts throughout his Gospel.
D. The structure of Matthew's first (of five, i.e., 5-7; 10-13; 18; 24-25) and longest discourse of Jesus is very Jewish, possibly a conscious structural parallel to the Ten Commandments. The statements are pointed gnomic sentences, often paradoxical, which attempt to summarize truth and aid memory. Thematically they are loosely related but grammatically separate.
E. These teachings are the ultimate kingdom ethic meant to convict the lost and motivate the saved. The audience was comprised of several different groups: the disciples, the curious, the sick, the skeptical and the religious elite. Different texts were intended for the differing groups.
F. These teachings are basically an attitude toward life or a " worldview" which is radically reoriented toward faith and obedience to God. There is an obvious play on Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5.
G. A good book which describes Jesus' teaching and preaching methods is Robert H. Stein's, The Methods and Message of Jesus' Teaching, Westminister Press, 1978, ISBN 0-664-24216-2.
H. The purpose is not to show the lost how to be saved, but how God expects the saved to live. The new kingdom ethic is so radical that even the most committed self-righteous legalists feel inadequate. Grace is the only hope for salvation (i.e., Isa_55:1-3) and the Spirit's power the only hope for kingdom living (i.e., Isa_55:6-7).
CONTEXTUAL INSIGHTS TO Mat_5:3-12 (the BEATITUDES)
A. The Beatitudes form a spiritual ladder (1) from salvation to Christlikeness or (2) from mankind's sense of spiritual need to mankind's new life in Christ.
B. Their number has been understood differently as 7, 8, 9, and even 10.
C. The Beatitudes demand a response from the reader/hearer! They are not informational but motivational!
D. Three helpful quotes:
1. Every moral system is a road which by self-denial, discipline, and effort, men seek to reach the goal. Christ begins with this goal, and places His disciples at once in the position to which all other teachers point as the end. . .They began by commanding, He by bestowing: because He brings good tidings of forgiveness and mercy." The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah by Alfred Edersheim, p. 528-529.
2. "The Sermon on the Mount is neither an impractical ideal nor a set of fixed legal regulations. It is, instead, a statement of the principles of life essential in a normal society. . .Many of the sayings of the Sermon are metaphorical or proverbial statements and are not to be understood in a literal or legal sense. In them, Jesus was illustrating principles in concrete terms." The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. vol. 4 p. 2735.
3. "Basic Principles:
a. Character is the secret of happiness.
b. Righteousness is grounded in the inner life. Character is not something imposed from without, but a life that unfolds from within.
c. The inner life is a unity.
d. Universal love is the fundamental social law.
e. Character and life exist in and for fellowship with the Father. All worship and conduct look toward God.
f. Fulfillment is the final test of life.
g. Deeds and character are the only things that abide and endurance is the final test."
The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. vol. 4 p. 2735.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
This is a study guide commentary which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.
These discussion questions are provided to help you think through the major issues of this section of the book. They are meant to be thought provoking, not definitive.
1. Did Jesus reinterpret the OT or change it?
2. What does "fulfill" mean in Mat_5:17-18?
3. Can one lose his salvation for calling another person a derogatory name (v.22)?
4. What do Mat_5:23-24 say to our modern worship practices?
5. Is remarriage adultery?
6. Is swearing in court a sin?
7. Explain how Mat_5:17-20; Mat_5:48 frame the rest of the verses.