Matthew 5 (WEB)

Matthew 5:1–12

The Beatitudes

Seeing the multitudes, he went up onto the mountain. When he had sat down, his disciples came to him. He opened his mouth and taught them, saying, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God. Blessed are those who have been persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.

“Blessed are you when people reproach you, persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven. For that is how they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Seeing the crowds, Jesus goes up a mountain, sits down and teaches his disciples. He begins with a series of blessings on the poor in spirit, those who mourn, the gentle, the merciful, peacemakers, the persecuted and others, promising each a share in God's kingdom.

What does this mean?

'Blessed' means fortunate or favoured, especially by God; 'Beatitudes' comes from the Latin for it. 'Poor in spirit' probably means those who know their need of God. 'Meek' (KJV) or 'gentle' (WEB) echoes Psalm 37:11, on the humble inheriting the land. 'Righteousness' covers both right living and God putting things right.

Historical context

Teachers in this period usually sat to teach. A traditional site on a hill above the Sea of Galilee commemorates the sermon, but the text does not name the place.

Why does it matter?

This opens the Sermon on the Mount (chapters 5–7), the first of five long blocks of teaching in Matthew, each closed by a similar formula (7:28; 11:1; 13:53; 19:1; 26:1). Many interpreters see Jesus teaching on a mountain as an echo of Moses at Sinai.

Editorial notes, not scripture.

Told in two Gospels

Luke 6:20–26

The Beatitudes

How Luke tells it

Luke has four blessings, each matched by a woe; Matthew has eight or nine blessings and no woes. Luke speaks directly to the hearers ("you poor") and of hunger "now," where Matthew has "poor in spirit" and hunger "after righteousness." Luke's setting is a level place, not a mountain.

Read Luke’s account in Luke 6

Continue reading in Luke →

How Matthew tells it

Matthew has nine blessings, mostly in the third person ('Blessed are the poor in spirit'), on a mountain. Luke has four, addressed directly ('Blessed are you poor'), on a level place, followed by four matching woes. Matthew's wording often has a more spiritual or ethical focus: 'hunger and thirst for righteousness' where Luke has 'you who hunger now'.

Matthew sets these sayings in the Sermon on the Mount; Luke places a shorter form, with woes, in the Sermon on the Plain.

Matthew 5:13–16

Salt and light

“You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt has lost its flavor, with what will it be salted? It is then good for nothing, but to be cast out and trodden under the feet of men.

“You are the light of the world. A city located on a hill can’t be hidden. Neither do you light a lamp and put it under a measuring basket, but on a stand; and it shines to all who are in the house. Even so, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.

Jesus tells his followers that they are the salt of the earth and the light of the world, and that their good deeds should be seen, so that others give glory to God.

What does this mean?

Salt seasoned and preserved food; 'lost his savour' (KJV) means lost its taste. The KJV's 'candle' and 'bushel' are an oil lamp and a grain-measuring bowl; putting one over a lamp would hide it or put it out.

Historical context

Pure salt cannot lose its saltiness, but salt gathered around the Dead Sea was mixed with other minerals and could become insipid, which may lie behind the image. Towns were often built on hills, and their lights could be seen far off at night.

Why does it matter?

The images follow directly from the blessing on the persecuted: those who may be rejected still have a public role. The call for good works to be seen sits in tension with 6:1–18, which warns against religious acts done to be seen; interpreters usually distinguish showing God's goodness from seeking praise.

Editorial notes, not scripture.

Matthew 5:17–20

Jesus and the Law

“Don’t think that I came to destroy the law or the prophets. I didn’t come to destroy, but to fulfill. For most certainly, I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not even one smallest letter or one tiny pen stroke shall in any way pass away from the law, until all things are accomplished. Therefore, whoever shall break one of these least commandments and teach others to do so, shall be called least in the Kingdom of Heaven; but whoever shall do and teach them shall be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, there is no way you will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.

Jesus says he has not come to abolish the Law or the Prophets but to fulfil them. Not the smallest detail of the Law will pass away, and his followers' righteousness must go beyond that of the scribes and Pharisees.

What does this mean?

'The law and the prophets' meant the Jewish scriptures. A 'jot' (KJV) is yod, the smallest letter of the Hebrew alphabet; a 'tittle' is a tiny stroke that distinguishes one letter from another. To 'fulfil' can mean to bring to completion or to reveal the full meaning.

Historical context

Scribes were experts who copied, taught and interpreted the Law; many were associated with the Pharisees, who were widely respected for their strictness.

Why does it matter?

This short passage is a key to the rest of the Sermon. How Jesus 'fulfils' the Law, and how far its commands still bind his followers, has been discussed since the earliest days of the church and is understood differently across Christian traditions. The six contrasts that follow ('You have heard... but I tell you') show what the greater righteousness looks like.

Editorial notes, not scripture.

Matthew 5:21–26

Anger and reconciliation

“You have heard that it was said to the ancient ones, ‘You shall not murder;’ and ‘Whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ But I tell you that everyone who is angry with his brother without a cause will be in danger of the judgment. Whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’ will be in danger of the council. Whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of Gehenna.

“If therefore you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Agree with your adversary quickly while you are with him on the way; lest perhaps the prosecutor deliver you to the judge, and the judge deliver you to the officer, and you be cast into prison. Most certainly I tell you, you shall by no means get out of there until you have paid the last penny.

Jesus traces the command against murder back to its root in anger and contempt. He tells his hearers to be reconciled with anyone who has a grievance against them, even before offering a gift at the altar, and to settle disputes before they reach court.

Scripture connection · Quotation

Matthew 5:21 quotes Exodus 20:13

“You shall not murder.
Exodus 20:13 · WEB

One of the Ten Commandments. Jesus goes on to address the anger behind violence.

What does this mean?

'Raca' is an Aramaic insult, roughly 'empty-head'. The 'council' is the Sanhedrin, the Jewish ruling council. 'Hell fire' (KJV) is literally 'the Gehenna of fire': Gehenna was the Valley of Hinnom outside Jerusalem, remembered for ancient child sacrifice (Jeremiah 7:31) and used as an image of final judgment. A 'farthing' (KJV) or 'penny' (WEB) was a small coin.

Historical context

The 'gift at the altar' would be a sacrifice brought to the Jerusalem temple. The words 'without a cause', found in both the KJV and WEB, are missing from many early manuscripts.

Why does it matter?

This is the first of six contrasts in which Jesus sets his own teaching alongside what 'was said', speaking with an authority that astonishes his hearers (7:29).

Editorial notes, not scripture.

Matthew 5:27–32

Adultery, desire and divorce

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery;’ but I tell you that everyone who gazes at a woman to lust after her has committed adultery with her already in his heart. If your right eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out and throw it away from you. For it is more profitable for you that one of your members should perish than for your whole body to be cast into Gehenna. If your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off, and throw it away from you. For it is more profitable for you that one of your members should perish, than for your whole body to be cast into Gehenna.

“It was also said, ‘Whoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorce,’ but I tell you that whoever puts away his wife, except for the cause of sexual immorality, makes her an adulteress; and whoever marries her when she is put away commits adultery.

Jesus extends the command against adultery to lustful looking, using the startling image of removing an eye or a hand that causes sin. He then rejects easy divorce: a man who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, makes her an adulteress.

Scripture connection · Quotation

Matthew 5:27 quotes Exodus 20:14

“You shall not commit adultery.
Exodus 20:14 · WEB

One of the Ten Commandments. Jesus extends it to desire in the heart.

What does this mean?

To 'offend' (KJV) or 'cause to stumble' (WEB) means to lead into sin. Most interpreters take the words about eye and hand as deliberate overstatement, not literal instruction. 'Fornication' (KJV) or 'sexual immorality' (WEB) translates porneia, a broad term whose exact sense here is debated.

Historical context

Under the Law a husband could divorce his wife by giving her a written certificate (Deuteronomy 24:1); wives generally could not initiate divorce. According to later rabbinic sources, the school of Shammai allowed divorce only for serious misconduct, while the school of Hillel allowed it for almost any reason. A divorced woman without family support could be left destitute.

Why does it matter?

Only Matthew records the 'except' clause, here and in 19:9; Mark and Luke give the saying without it. Christian churches interpret it differently, and Jesus returns to the subject in 19:3–12.

Editorial notes, not scripture.

Matthew 5:33–37

Oaths

“Again you have heard that it was said to the ancient ones, ‘You shall not make false vows, but shall perform to the Lord your vows,’ but I tell you, don’t swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is the throne of God; nor by the earth, for it is the footstool of his feet; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Neither shall you swear by your head, for you can’t make one hair white or black. But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes’ and your ‘No’ be ‘No.’ Whatever is more than these is of the evil one.

Rather than swearing oaths by heaven, earth, Jerusalem or one's own head, Jesus tells his hearers not to swear at all, but simply to let their yes mean yes and their no mean no.

What does this mean?

'Forswear' (KJV) means swear falsely or break an oath. 'Cometh of evil' (KJV) or 'is of the evil one' (WEB) reflects a Greek phrase that can mean either evil in general or the devil.

Historical context

Oaths were common in everyday dealings. People often swore by things associated with God rather than by God's name, and some reasoned that such oaths were less binding; Jesus attacks that kind of reasoning in 23:16–22. The Law required vows to be kept (Numbers 30:2).

Why does it matter?

The point is truthfulness: if one's ordinary word is reliable, oaths are unnecessary. Christian groups have differed on whether this forbids all oaths; Quakers and some Anabaptist traditions, for example, have refused to swear oaths in court.

Editorial notes, not scripture.

Matthew 5:38–48

Retaliation and love for enemies

“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I tell you, don’t resist him who is evil; but whoever strikes you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also. If anyone sues you to take away your coat, let him have your cloak also. Whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks you, and don’t turn away him who desires to borrow from you.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who mistreat you and persecute you, that you may be children of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Don’t even the tax collectors do the same? If you only greet your friends, what more do you do than others? Don’t even the tax collectors do the same? Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.

Jesus tells his followers not to retaliate against those who wrong them: to turn the other cheek, give up their cloak, go the second mile and give to those who ask. He then commands love for enemies and prayer for persecutors, so that they will be like their Father, who sends sun and rain on good and bad alike.

Scripture connection · Quotation

Matthew 5:38 quotes Exodus 21:24

eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,
Exodus 21:24 · WEB

In the Law this principle limited punishment to fit the offence and was applied by courts. Jesus addresses personal retaliation.
Scripture connection · Quotation

Matthew 5:43 quotes Leviticus 19:18

“‘You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people; but you shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.
Leviticus 19:18 · WEB

'Love thy neighbour' comes from Leviticus 19:18. The words 'hate thine enemy' are not found in the Old Testament; they are usually understood as a popular conclusion Jesus is correcting.

What does this mean?

'Perfect' (Greek teleios) means complete or whole; here it sums up loving without limits, as God does. 'Publicans' (KJV) are tax collectors, widely despised as collaborators and cheats.

Historical context

Many commentators note that a blow on the right cheek from a right hand would be a backhanded slap, an insult more than an attack. The Law required a poor man's cloak, his blanket at night, to be returned by evening (Exodus 22:26–27). Roman soldiers could force civilians to carry their gear for a set distance; the same verb is used when Simon of Cyrene is compelled to carry Jesus' cross (27:32).

Why does it matter?

Whether these sayings rule out all use of force has long been debated, from pacifist Christian traditions to those that apply them to personal conduct rather than to the state.

Editorial notes, not scripture.