Matthew 5:1 - 5:48

1 And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him:

2 Matthew Chapter 5

3 Blessed [are] the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 Blessed [are] they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.

5 Blessed [are] the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.

6 Blessed [are] they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

7 Blessed [are] the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

8 Blessed [are] the pure in heart: for they shall see God.

9 Blessed [are] the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.

10 Blessed [are] they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 Blessed are ye, when [men] shall revile you, and persecute [you], and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.

12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great [is] your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

13 Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.

14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.

15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.

16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.

18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.

19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach [them], the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed [the righteousness] of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.

21 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment:

22 But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.

23 Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee;

24 Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.

25 Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison.

26 Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.

27 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:

28 But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.

29 And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast [it] from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not [that] thy whole body should be cast into hell.

30 And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast [it] from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not [that] thy whole body should be cast into hell.

31 It hath been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement:

32 But I say unto you, That whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced committeth adultery.

33 Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths:

34 But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne:

35 Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King.

36 Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black.

37 But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.

38 Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth:

39 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.

40 And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have [thy] cloke also.

41 And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.

42 Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.

43 Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.

44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?

47 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more [than others]? do not even the publicans so?

48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

The word Beatitude is not found in your Bible. It simply means blessing and comes from the Latin word Blessed. There is a definite progression in theses verses. They show how the person begins with his or her own sense of sin, and finally becomes a child of God and the results that then follow. Note that these verses deal with attitudes - what we think in our heart, our outlook on life. Beatitudes – the The word Beatitude is not found in your Bible. It simply means blessing and comes from the Latin word Blessed. There is a definite progression in theses verses. They show how the person begins with his or her own sense of sin, and finally becomes a child of God and the results that then follow. Note that these verses deal with attitudes - what we think in our heart, our outlook on life. Beatitudes - the attitudes that ought to be in our lives if we are true Christians. We are on this account, to exhibit them to others. The conclusion is that we shall be able to do this only! as our lives are yielded to our Lord.

"Poor in Spirit" (V.3)

We must be empty before we can be full. The opposite of this self-sufficiency. Our sufficiency is not of ourselves (2 Corinthians 3:5) The world promotes self-sufficiency, yet God dwells with the person whose hart is broken (Isaiah. 57:15). This does not mean false humility or cowardice; it means a proper attitude towards self, realizing how weak and sinful we are apart from Christ. Compare the two men in  Luke 18:9-14.

"Mourn" (V.4)
This is sincere sorrow for sin! our sin, and the sins of others. How careless we are about sin! We excuse it, yet god hates it, and sin breaks Gods heart. Beware of the sorrow of this world (2 Corinthians. 7:8-10). Peter mourned with Godly sorrow and was forgiven; Judas had remorse - the sorrow of this world - and he took his life.

"Meek" (V.5)

Meekness is not weakness! Jesus was meek (Matthew 11:29), yet he drove the changers from the temple. Moses was meek (Numbers 12:3), yet he judged sinners and even faced Aaron with his sin. Meekness means not asserting my own rights, but living for the glory of God. Christians are to show meekness (Ephesians. 4:1-2; Titus 3:2). We are prone to be self-willed.

"Hunger And Thirst" (V.6)

A true Christian has an appetite for spiritual things. Ask people what they desire and you will know what they are like.

"Merciful" (V.7)

This is not legalism, but mearly the working of the Biblical principal of sowing and reaping. If we show mercy, because Christ has been merciful to us, then mercy will come back to us (Luke 16:1-13; James 2:13; Proverbs 11:17). We do not earn mercy, but we must have hearts prepared to receive it.

"Pure In Heart" (V.8)

Not sinlessness (1 John 1:8) but the truth within (Psalms 51:6). It means a single heart, not divided between God and the world.

"Peacemakers" (V.9)

Titus 3:3  describes this world at war, Christians have the Gospel of peace on their feet (Ephesians. 6:1-5), so that wherever they go, they bring peace, This is not "Peace at any price", for holiness is more important than peace based on sin (James 3:7-13; Heb. 12:14). Compromise is not peace, but Christians should not be contentious as they contend for the faith.

"Persecuted" (V.10 - 11)

Not that we should be accused "Falsely". We should never be guilty of deliberately asking for persecution. If we live Godly lives, suffering will come! notice the rewards: We are in the same company as Christ and the Prophets, and we shall be rewarded in Heaven.  2 Timothy 3:12; 1 Peter 4:15

"Rejoice" (V.12)

"Rejoice, and be exceedingly glad; for great is your reward in Heaven; for so they persecuted the Prophets who were before you".
The world will go on persecuting those who trust, and live their lives for Christ. Men do not like to be reminded, or convicted of their sins, all those who bring the light of Christ into the world do just that. And until Christ returns to judge the world, persecution will follow those who truly believe.

"Closing Thoughts"

Here in the USA we know nothing of persecution, so far! we have been very fortunate. And instead of rejoicing we cry and moan when some small objection, or obstacle falls in out path - as if it shouldn't be. While in other countries of the world, men and woman live under oppressive, and exceedingly evil governments. These people lay down their lives daily because of their faith, and testimony for Christ.
They well know, and understand what persecution is, and what the penalty for their faith could very likely be. But yet they rejoice, and glory in Christ. Should we not be exceedingly ashamed when we moan and cry over small matters, in view of what these folks suffer, "I think so". Please remember them in your prayers, no matter what the nation, language, or color of their skin, they are still your brothers and sisters in Christ.

Posted by rjlo at 9:37 AM EDT

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