Matthew Chapter 5 (Part Three)

A Brief Interlude
As we look at the Beatitudes, I want to suggest these are being given to be interpreted on multiple levels. There is the plain meaning and then there is a deeper meaning which has a broader application. Christianity has a very minted view of Scripture. The general teaching is that one way of interpreting the text is correct. All other views are then deemed incorrect. This is due to our Greek mindset in which there is only one solution to a problem. Everything is linear.

In an Eastern/Hebraic mindset, there are multiple answers to a question. They see Scripture as having layers. This is the plain meaning of the text. Then there is a deeper level, a level which is hinted at. Then there are two more levels which find deeper and more spiritual meanings to the text. In Judaism, there are many, many interpretations of Scripture. The interpretations are studied and considered as a person reads the Bible text. I feel most Christian often cannot appreciate the depth and richness of our Bible since they believe things only have one meaning.

It is important to note, everything in the Bible has at least two meanings. One is the immediate plain meaning. The words are meant for Jesus’ audience at that time in history. There is also a deeper meaning, one which is broader and is meant for generations past, present and future. Let’s try to look at the Beatitudes and analyze how thee texts applies specifically for Jesus’ audience and also how it may apply to us now.

In the first Beatitude, Jesus speaks of the poor in spirit. This is a reference to the people in the crowd who had the honor title among the sect of the Essenes. If we look a bit deeper, the poor in spirit among the Essenes (by their definition) received the Holy Spirit. In a later sense, all who truly receive the Holy Spirit can be considered as included among the poor in spirit. And thus they can be made happy and joyful (blessed) now and eternally.

In the second Beatitude, those who mourn will be comforted. For the plain meaning, the mourners are grieving over the destruction of the Holy Land, the Temple and the oppression of the Israelites by foreign enemies such as the Assyrians, Babylonians, Romans, etc. The comforting is that even in this they can have personal peace because there is hope that God will remove the pagan occupiers. At a deeper level, the mourners are those worshiper of God who are mourning over the detraction of the entire earth due to being disobedient to God, wickedness and unfaithfulness. The mourners are the righteous and all them can look forward to being comforted when the LORD comes in power and glory to destroy evil and rule with justice and mercy over all the earth.

In the third Beatitude, the meek will inherit the earth. On the surface, it is the Israelites in the audience who are powerless before the occupation of Rome. They are being told they will receive the inheritance God promised to them before their ancestors left Egypt. At a deeper level, the powerless follower of Jesus, will together receive the event larger inheritance promised by God to be co-rulers along with Jesus over all the earth’s inhabitants. This co-rulership is the fulfillment of the promise of the first Beatitude that the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.

Back to the Beatitudes
Verse 6: The fourth Beatitude is “How blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” The idea of hunger and thirsting after righteousness is not about food and drink. It is a spiritual longing. But this longing is not one of passivity: it speaks of an active search and work to find it. The question to be answered about this Beatitude it: whose righteousness is being sought? What kind of righteousness is being thirsted for? Is it a human righteousness? That is, is it something that is accomplished by means of our good work and deeds?

The answer is, the righteousness Jesus is referring to is God’s righteousness. He is borrowing from a Psalm of David. Psalm 107:2-9
2The redeemed of the LORD shall say so,
Those whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy
3And gathered from the lands,
From the east and from the west,
From the north and from the south.

4They wandered in the wilderness in a desert region;
They did not find a way to an inhabited city.
5They were hungry and thirsty;
Their souls felt weak within them.
6Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble;
He saved them from their distresses.
7He also had them walk on a straight way,
To go to an inhabited city.
8They shall give thanks to the LORD for His mercy,
And for His wonders to the sons of mankind!
9For He has satisfied the thirsty soul,
And He has filled the hungry soul with what is good.

Notice that it is God’s redeemed who are being addressed. From the surface, the redeemed represent all the Israelites (because 1400 years earlier all the tribes of Israel were redeemed from Egypt). The wandering in the desert recalls the wilderness journey of the Exodus. God rescued them and then they were finally prepared, He took them to a city where they could live. That city was Jerusalem. God also satisfied the hungry Israelites by giving them manna to eat, the entire time they were wandering. He provided them with water as needed, often in miraculous ways.

At a deeper meaning, the redeemed are all the people who have been redeemed from their sins by placing their trust In God and Jesus. Before we did that, we were wandering aimlessly in a desert of sin and purposelessness. We were hungry and thirsty for deliverance from out emptiness and from eternal death. But God has satisfied the thirst and satisfied the hunger of our souls, and had given us life eternal with Him.

The metaphor of hunger and thirst represents a deep down seeking of God. To understand what God’s righteousness is, let’s read Isaiah 32, which gives us a deeper understanding.

1Behold, a king will reign righteously,
And officials will rule justly.
2Each will be like a refuge from the wind
And a shelter from the storm,
Like streams of water in a dry country,
Like the shade of a huge rock in an exhausted land.
3Then the eyes of those who see will not be blinded,
And the ears of those who hear will listen.
4The mind of the rash will discern the truth,
And the tongue of the stammerers will hurry to speak clearly.

5No longer will the fool be called noble,
Or the rogue be spoken of as generous.
6For a fool speaks nonsense,
And his heart inclines toward wickedness:
To practice ungodliness and to speak error against the LORD,
To keep the hungry person unsatisfied
And to withhold drink from the thirsty.

7As for a rogue, his weapons are evil;
He devises wicked schemes
To destroy the poor with slander,
Even though the needy one speaks what is right.
8But the noble person devises noble plans;
And by noble plans he stands.

9Rise up, you women who are at ease,
And hear my voice;
Listen to my word,
You complacent daughters.

10Within a year and a few days
You will be troubled, you complacent daughters;
For the vintage is ended,
And the fruit gathering will not come.
11Tremble, you women who are at ease;
Be troubled, you complacent daughters;
Strip, undress, and put sackcloth on your waist,
12Beat your breasts for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine,
13For the land of my people in which thorns and briars will come up;
Indeed, for all the joyful houses and for the jubilant city.

14For the palace has been neglected, the populated city abandoned.
Hill and watch-tower have become caves forever,
A delight for wild donkeys, a pasture for flocks,
15Until the Spirit is poured out upon us from on high,
And the wilderness becomes a fertile field,
And the fertile field is considered as a forest.

16Then justice will dwell in the wilderness,
And righteousness will remain in the fertile field.
17And the work of righteousness will be peace,
And the service of righteousness, quietness and confidence forever.
18Then my people will live in a peaceful settlement,
In secure dwellings, and in undisturbed resting places;
19And it will hail when the forest comes down,
And the city will be utterly laid low.
20How blessed will you be, you who sow beside all waters,
Who let the ox and the donkey out freely.

Matthew Chapter 5 (Part Two)

Verse 4: The next Beatitude is in verse four. It says, “Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted.” The premise is that those who mourn will experience some kind of religious joy (be blessed). One must ask what mourning has to do with it? And does it mean those who mourn the dead, such as a dear departed family member? And since Jesus is referring in a rather general way to certain of His large audience, is the dead what the mourners are grieving over?

It is very likely not. This is most likely a reference to the Prophet Isaiah chapter 61:1-4
1The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,
Because the LORD anointed me
To bring good news to the humble;
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
To proclaim release to captives
And freedom to prisoners;
2To proclaim the favorable year of the LORD
And the day of vengeance of our God;
To comfort all who mourn,
3To grant those who mourn in Zion,
Giving them a garland instead of ashes,
The oil of gladness instead of mourning,
The cloak of praise instead of a disheartened spirit.
So they will be called oaks of righteousness,
The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.

4Then they will rebuild the ancient ruins,
They will raise up the former devastations;
And they will repair the ruined cities,
The desolations of many generations.

This is a Messianic prophecy in Isaiah. The general condition of mourning Jesus is speaking about probably does not have to anything with the death but rather is it mourning over the destruction of Israel—its cities and the Temple. This was the result of Israel ’s unfaithfulness. Although at this time in history, the Second Temple stood, it soon would be destroyed. The day both Temples were destroyed is on the 9th of Av also known as Tisha b’Av. It is tradition on this day that Jews sit on low chairs, fast and grieve over the destruction of the Holy Temple. The Book of Lamentations is often read in synagogues to commemorate this day.

In the Book of Zechariah, the fast of the month of Av (the fifth month) is referenced:
18Then the word of the LORD of armies came to me, saying, 19“The LORD of armies says this: ‘The fast of the fourth, the fast of the fifth, the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth months will become joy, jubilation, and cheerful festivals for the house of Judah; so love truth and peace.’ (Zechariah 8:18-19)
We see that the LORD promises to turn these days of mourning into times of rejoicing. For reference, the four fast days mentioned are as follows: the fourth month commemorates the fall of Jerusalem to Babylon. The fifth month recognizes the destruction of the first and second Temple. The seventh month honors the day Gedaliah was slaughtered. The tenth month recognizes the day Nebuchadnezzar sieges Jerusalem.


Additionally, the mourning Jesus is speaking most likely is as referencing Israel crying over the suffering and oppression the children of Israel endured via the hands of foreign conquerors. Remember back to Matthew chapter 2 in which Matthew quotes Jeremiah 31:15

15This is what the LORD says:
“A voice is heard in Ramah,
Lamenting and bitter weeping.
Rachel is weeping for her children;
She refuses to be comforted for her children,
Because they are no more.”

This verse is one quoted frequently by Jewish scholars and rabbis. The children of Israel had been scattered to the four corners of the earth. But, there is always hope. In Isaiah 61, we see how the Israelites will be granted favor and will enjoy being called oaks of righteousness that the LORD may be glorified (61:3). The mourners will be comforted and Israel will be delivered and restored. This may be what Jesus is talking about when He says the mourners will be comforted. This comforting will be a future event. This is in contrast to the first Beatitude in which the blessing is bestow upon the person immediately. In summary, the second Beatitude is addressing the mourners among the crowd because they are sorry frothier sin, and the sins of their ancestors, which has led them to being under the control of Romans and other oppressors.

Verse 5: The third Beatitude is “how blessed are the meek for they will inherit the earth”. We need to first identify who the meek are. 

The backdrop of this Beatitude is Psalm 37:1-13

1Do not get upset because of evildoers,
Do not be envious of wrongdoers.
2For they will wither quickly like the grass,
And decay like the green plants.
3Trust in the LORD and do good;
Live in the land and cultivate faithfulness.
4Delight yourself in the LORD;
And He will give you the desires of your heart.
5Commit your way to the LORD,
Trust also in Him, and He will do it.
6He will bring out your righteousness as the light,
And your judgment as the noonday.

7Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him;
Do not get upset because of one who is successful in his way,
Because of the person who carries out wicked schemes.
8Cease from anger and abandon wrath;
Do not get upset; it leads only to evildoing.
9For evildoers will be eliminated,
But those who wait for the LORD, they will inherit the land.
10Yet a little while and the wicked person will be no more;
And you will look carefully for his place and he will not be there.
11But the humble will inherit the land
And will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.

12The wicked plots against the righteous,
And gnashes at him with his teeth.
13The Lord laughs at him,
For He sees that his day is coming.

This is a Messianic Psalm of David which speaks of a future time when the “meek” inherit the land (with the land being a reference to Israel). Meek is another word in the Bible whose definition is not necessarily agreed upon and seems to be used differently in different settings. Often it carries the obvious meaning of gentleness and mildness. But here in Psalm 37:11, the word is probably better understood as powerless because the righteous are being oppressed by the wicked.

Since Jesus is making reference to Psalm 37 in this Beatitude, then His use of the term “meek” means the same as powerless. Further in Psalm 37, the Hebrew word for what it is that the meek should inherit is eretz. Eretz can mean land or earth. However, we must not think of earth as meaning the formal name of our planet such as planet Earth. Rather, Biblically, earth is another way of saying the dry land—places which can be inhabited.

David’s audience for his Psalm was the Israelites. Jesus’ audience for His Sermon was the Israelites. Therefore, “the meek” in both cases are Israelites, and the inheritance of the Israelites is the land of Israel. Therefore, the phrase “the meek shall inherit the earth/land” is that the powerless Israelites shall, at some point, permanently inherit the land of Israel such that they will no longer be oppressed by a foreign power (aka, wickedness).

Matthew Chapter 5 (Part One)

Chapter five is the beginning of Matthew’s three chapter long on what Jesus said in His hilltop speech in Galilee was addressed to a wide spectrum of Jews. This long speech is often coined The Sermon on the Mount. This speech represents the most consequential and panoramic expression of what it means to be a Believer and follower of Jesus. These instructions come directly from Jesus’ mouth, and Matthew must have grasped the importance of these words since he devotes three chapters in his Gospel to this speech.

It is curious that Matthew is the only Gospel of the four which records the Sermon on the Mount. Luke chapter 6 contains something similar, but they are not the same. The sermon which begins at Luke 6:17 and goes to the end of the chapter is often called The Sermon on the Plain. It occurs at a different location than the Sermon on the Mount. Let’s look at Luke chapter 6.

The introductory words to the Sermon of the Mount in Matthew 5 are: “Seeing the crowds, Jesus walked up the hill.” But in Luke 6, we read: “Then he came down with them (meaning His disciples) and stood on a level place.” The KJV reads: “And he came down with them, and stood in the plain.”

What follows in Luke is something similar to the words of the Beatitudes, but they are different and fewer. There are a few sayings, a parable and a few other sayings which are similar to the Sermon on the Mount. It seems the purpose of the sermon in Luke 6, the description of the make-up of the people who were there, the geography of where the speech was given and the timing of it make it another speech which is different from the one given in Matthew.

Remember, Jesus had a ministry which lasted several years. It is not uncommon, even today, for a teacher to repeat a message to a different group of people. The speech is often tailored to the audience and may change depending on what the audience needs to hear. Many commentators neglect this. They believe at every encounter, Jesus said something new and fresh. In the age of internet and television, politicians (for instance) will use the same core message in a number of different settings, slightly modifying each message to suit a particular audience.

One important thing to note, Matthew carefully chooses what he includes in his Gospel to paint an overall picture. For Jesus, Matthew is trying to depict Jesus as a second Moses. Notice that the Sermon on the Mount just as Moses went up to the top of a mountain (Mount Sinai) to obtain God’s instructions and then came down to the side of the mountain to instruct the Israelites, so too in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus went up a mountain (a hill) to address Israel and instruct them in a deeper understanding of God’s Word.

Verse 1: Matthew says that Jesus went up a hill in order to make a speech to a large crowd of Israelites. This crowd consisted mostly of people from the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. People from these tribes are often referred to as Jews. There were also probably some individuals from some of the other tribes of Israel and some gentiles may also have been present.

To know who all were present at the Sermon on the Mount, we need to back up and re-read the ending of chapter 4. Remember, when Matthew was writing this, he wrote it as one continuous book. It was not broken up into chapters. Chapters are wonderful additions, which were added about 1,000 years ago; however, we can sometimes lose context when we simply start and end our reading with the chapter breaks.

Starting in Matthew 4:23-5:2:
23Jesus was going about in all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness among the people.
24And the news about Him spread throughout Syria; and they brought to Him all who were ill, those suffering with various diseases and severe pain, demon-possessed, people with epilepsy, and people who were paralyzed; and He healed them. 25Large crowds followed Him from Galilee and the Decapolis, and Jerusalem, and Judea, and from beyond the Jordan.

1Now when Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. 2And He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying, (Matthew 4:23-5:2)
 

We learn the primary reason this enormous group of people came from many likes was for healing of all kinds of maladies. They came because of Jesus’ growing reputation as a tzaddik, a holy man. Remember tzaddik were considered men of God who had power to heal and were also known for their miracles. They taught in addition to being able to heal. It was common for Jesus to draw large crowds for the purpose of miracle healing, but also He could speak profound truths. As of this time, the Jews did not suspect Jesus was the Messiah, and Jesus had not publicly proclaimed who he was.

Verse 3: Verse three begins what for centuries has been called the Beatitudes. We got this strange English word from the Latin version of the Bible, where the word beatus is used to translate the Greek word makarios.

The first beatitude is: “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” This beatitude has had a number of opinions about its meaning. Let’s try to decipher it by understanding what the word “blessed” means.

Assuming Jesus spoke in Hebrew, the language of the region, then likely what we have is a Greek translation of the Hebrew word “berakhah”.”Berakhah” (and its Greek counterpart makarios) mean to be favored, fortunate, or happy.

Second, we need to examine what it means to be poor in spirit. I have heard a number of sermons over my lifetime on what it means to be poor in spirit, and I am not sure any two agree on the meaning. If being poor in spirit is supposed to be a positive and desirable trait, then what about being poor in spirit makes a person happy or fortunate?

To explain this, let’s look to Dr. Flusser, who is a legend among scholars. He believes that the first three beatitudes are more of a description of the people who constitute the crowd which followed Jesus up the hill in the Galilee. Here is his conclusion about the meaning and intent of the term “poor in spirit”:

“Now for the first time, because of the Dead Sea scrolls, we can understand the phrase ‘poor in spirit’. It was a title of honor among the Essenes. These are the poor to whom the Holy Spirit is given.”

In another, but separate quote, Dr Flusser further explains that among the Essenes this term referred to a person who was living in a spirit of “poverty, humility, purity and simplicity”. Just as today a good orator will acknowledge those who make up his audience, so it was in Jesus’ day.

Assuming that what Dr. Flusser says concerning the clarification about this strange phrase that the Dead Sea scrolls provides for us is correct, we can gather rather confidently that it was the Essenes (and perhaps those who lived on the fringes of the Essenes purity movement) that Jesus was acknowledging. Since we are told that many of His audience came from Judah, in the south, where the Essenes had their desert enclave next to the Dead Sea, and from Syria in the north, where it is known that a substantial Essenes community lived in the city of Damascus, then it makes sense that many members of the Essenes community might have attended Jesus’ sermon.

But what is the intent of including the statement that for certain members of the Essenes, the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs? Remember, the Kingdom of God is not a place, but it is a spiritual condition. When one repents of sinning and trust in Jesus, then they receive the Holy Spirit. As a result, the Kingdom of Heaven now lives within them. Notice the grammar. It is not some time in the future that the Kingdom of Heaven will be theirs, but rather it is that when they receive the Holy Spirit the Kingdom became theirs.

Schools in First Century Galilee

Schools in First Century Galilee
Schools were associated with the local synagogue in first century Galilee. Apparently each community would hire a teacher (respectfully called "rabbi") for the school. While this teacher was responsible for the education of the village he had no special authority in the synagogue itself. Children began their study at age 4-5 in Beth Sefer (elementary school). Most scholars believe both boys and girls attended the class in the synagogue. The teaching focused primarily on the Torah, emphasizing both reading and writing Scripture. Large portions were memorized and it is likely that many students knew the entire Torah by memory by the time this level of education was finished. At this point most students (and certainly the girls) stayed at home to help with the family and in the case of boys to learn the family trade. It is at this point that a boy would participate in his first Passover in Jerusalem (a ceremony that probably forms the background of today's bar mitzvah in orthodox Jewish families today.) Jesus' excellent questions for the teachers in the temple at his first Passover indicate the study he had done.

 

 

1st Century Synagogue

The best students continued their study (while learning a trade) in Beth Midrash (secondary school) also taught by a rabbi of the community. Here they (along with the adults in the town) studied the prophets and the writings (3) in addition to Torah and began to learn the interpretations of the Oral Torah (4) to learn how to make their own applications and interpretations much like a catechism class might in some Churches today. Memorization continued to be important because most people did not have their own copy of the Scripture so they either had to know it by heart or go to the synagogue to consult the village scroll. Memory was enhanced by reciting aloud, a practice still widely used in Middle Eastern education both Jewish and Muslim. Constant repetition was considered to be an essential element of learning.
 

A few (very few) of the most outstanding Beth Midrash students sought permission to study with a famous rabbi often leaving home to travel with him for a lengthy period of time. These students were called talmidim (talmid, s.) in Hebrew, which is translated disciple. There is much more to a talmid than what we call student. A student wants to know what the teacher knows for the grade, to complete the class or the degree or even out of respect for the teacher. A talmid wants to be like the teacher, that is to become what the teacher is. That meant that students were passionately devoted to their rabbi and noted everything he did or said. This meant the rabbi-talmid relationship was a very intense and personal system of education. As the rabbi lived and taught his understanding of the Scripture his students (talmidim) listened and watched and imitated so as to become like him. Eventually they would become teachers passing on a lifestyle to their talmidim.

As a result, Galilee was a place of intense study of Scripture. People were knowledgeable about its content and the various applications made by their tradition. They were determined to live by it and to pass their faith and knowledge and lifestyle on to their children. It was into this world that Jesus came as a child and eventually a rabbi.


Setting the Stage
Jesus was born, grew up and spent his ministry among people who knew Scripture by memory, who debated its application with enthusiasm, and who loved God with all their hearts, all theirs souls and with all their might (Deuteronomy 6:5). God carefully prepared this environment so that Jesus would have the stage set for Him to deliver his message “The Kingdom of Heaven”. People would understand His teachings and would become followers.

Knowing all these details helps us understand the great faith and courage His followers had who left Galilee and went out into the world. Their courage, the methods they used and their complete devotion to God and his Word were born in the religious communities in Galilee.


11 of Jesus’ Disciples are from Galilee
If you examine Scripture, you will find 11 out of the 12 disciplines are from Galilee. The only disciple not from Galilee is Judas Ischariot. He is from Judea.
Andrew (the brother of Peter) was from Bethsaida and Capernaum (Galilee)
Bartholomew (aka Nathaniel) lived in Canan in Galilee.
James the son of Zebedee lived in Bethsaida and Capernaum (Galilee).
Jame the son of Alpheus lived in Galilee
John the son of Zebedee lived in Bethsaida and Capernaum (Galilee).
Jude (aka Thaddeus) lived in Galilee.
Matthew lived in Capernaum (Galilee).
Simeon Peter lived in Bethsaida and Capernaum (Galilee).
Phillip lived in Bethsaida (Galilee).
Simeon the Zealot lived in Galilee.
Thomas the Twin lived in Galilee.

Why is it important they are from Galilee? They would have been well versed in Scripture since they were small children. They would have easily known what Jesus was talking about and would have had all the Scriptures memorized. It would have been easy fro Jesus to say one verse of Scripture and for the disciples to have known the context around the piece of Scripture.