Matthew 5 explained: The Sermon on the Mount Begins

Who is truly blessed (vv. 1-12)

Jesus calls people fortunate whom the world overlooks: those who know their need, the grieving, the gentle, the merciful, peacemakers and those mistreated for doing right. He promises them 'the kingdom of heaven,' Matthew's phrase for God's rule, and readers differ on whether these are qualities to aim for or good news for people already in those situations.

Salt, light and the Law (vv. 13-20)

Like salt that preserves food or a lamp set on a stand, his followers are meant to make a visible difference, so that people give the credit to God. He says he came not to cancel the Jewish Scriptures but to 'fulfill' them, which Christians read as obeying, completing or revealing their full intent, and he asks for a goodness deeper than that of the Pharisees, a respected movement known for carefully keeping the law.

Anger and lust (vv. 21-30)

Jesus takes the commands against murder and adultery to the heart: contempt and lustful looking already break them, and making things right with someone you have wronged comes even before bringing a gift to God's altar. 'Hell' translates Gehenna, a valley outside Jerusalem used as a picture of final judgment, and tearing out an eye or cutting off a hand is widely read as deliberate exaggeration, not a literal command.

Divorce and remarriage (vv. 31-32)

The Law let a husband divorce his wife with a written notice and teachers argued over which reasons counted, but Jesus names only sexual unfaithfulness, a line many see as protecting wives left vulnerable by easy divorce. Translations differ on whether such a husband 'makes her an adulteress' or 'the victim of adultery,' and churches differ on remarriage: Catholics do not allow it after a valid marriage, while Orthodox and most Protestants permit it in some cases.

Oaths and revenge (vv. 33-42)

Jesus asks for a plain 'yes' or 'no' instead of oaths, and though 'eye for eye' was a court rule keeping punishment in proportion, he tells his followers not to pay back harm: turn the other cheek, give the coat too, go a second mile when a soldier forces you to carry his load. Quakers and Mennonites take this literally and refuse oaths and violence, while most churches read it as ruling out careless swearing and personal revenge, not all oaths, courts or self defense.

Love for enemies (vv. 43-48)

'Hate your enemy' is not a command in the Hebrew Bible; scholars think Jesus is quoting a common way of narrowing who counts as a neighbor. He answers by pointing to God, who sends sun and rain on good and bad alike, and 'be perfect' probably means being complete in love as God is, leaving no one out.

Key verse: Matthew 5:44

Where Christians differ

Christians differ on how these demands are meant to work: Mennonites and other Anabaptist traditions take them as a literal way of life for every follower, some Lutheran readings stress that their impossibly high bar shows people their need for God's grace, and many Catholic, Orthodox and other Protestant readers see them as a real goal to grow toward over a lifetime.

Something to think about

Do you think it is possible to love someone who has truly wronged you, and if so, what would that look like in practice?