*Scripture verses covered in this section's commentary are noted in italics

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Matthew 5:3-10 meaning

Jesus begins the “Sermon on the Mount” with a chiasm commonly known as the Beatitudes. To describe the citizens of His Kingdom, Jesus repeats the word “Blessed” (Makarios) – a total sense of fulfillment. The central characteristic of these citizens are righteousness (social harmony) and mercy (compassionate generosity).

The parallel account of this teaching is found in Luke 6:20-24.

Jesus begins speaking to His disciples with a series of statements describing the Good Life (Blessed Life) as it is understood in His Kingdom.

The statements are organized into a “chiasm.” A chiasm is a poetic pattern of statements or ideas whose arrangement resembles the left half of the form of the Greek letter “Chi” which looks like the English letter “X.” Chiasms are a mirrored pattern that follow an A-B-C…C’-B’-A’ format. The main idea of chiasms is located in their center so that as they narrow, chiasms get closer in proximity and significance of their most important statement, before they unwind. Chiasms are found throughout scripture. They were a common thought form that Jews used to express their thoughts.

Jesus shares eight distinct ideas about the Blessed Life over the course of nine statements. The chiasm is expressed in the first eight “Beatitudes.” (The ninth statement repeats and expands the eighth.)

The chiasm is as follows:

A. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

   B. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

   C. Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.

          D. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

          D’. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

      C’. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

B’. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

A’. Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew’s use of verb tense and voice throughout this chiasm suggests both a present and a future aspect within the Kingdom of Heaven.

A and A’ use the present active verbs—for theirs is—to describe the present reality for those who are Blessed.
B and B’ use the future passive tense—for they shall be—to describe what God will do one day for the Blessed.
C and C’ use the future active tense—for they shall—to describe what the Blessed will one day have or do.
D and D’ use the future passive tense—for they shall be/receive—to describe what God will one day give the Blessed.

The heart of Jesus’s chiasm centers on righteousness (social harmony) and mercy (compassion) both of which are major themes throughout the Sermon on the Mount and all of Jesus’s teaching. They are also the main point of the Jewish Law, and the covenant God made with Israel as reflected in Deuteronomy.

In English each statement of this chiasm begins with the word Blessed. The Greek word translated Blessed is Makarios (G3107). Makarios describes a complete and total fulfillment in life. It does not refer to a passing happiness or good fortune. It is an enduring state or condition that is unassailable.

Makarios is an interesting word choice to describe Christ’s Kingdom amidst the multi-cultural setting of the Sea of Galilee. The world in which Jesus’ disciples and Matthew’s audience inhabited was predominantly a Jewish subculture within a Roman and Greek world. The Romans supplanted the Greeks, but absorbed substantial Greek influence. Judea was under Greek rule for over a century and a half, spanning from the time of Alexander the Great’s conquests (332 B.C.) until the Maccabean revolt (167-160 B.C.) When the Roman general Pompey first incorporated Judea as a province of the Roman Empire in 63 B.C., he reintroduced the Greek culture and worldview that Rome had assimilated. A major figure with the Greek worldview was Alexander the Great’s teacher—Aristotle.

Aristotle begins one of his most famous books, “Ethics,” asking the question “Can virtue (good habits) make one happy?” In other words, “Does living a moral life and being morally good lead to the good life?” Aristotle concludes that virtue does make one happy (Greek word: Eudaimonia) but it cannot make one blessed (Makarios.) According to Aristotle, Makarios is only possible by the combination of one’s virtue and circumstantial bliss. The worldview of Aristotle assumed Makarios was external. But in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus says the opposite of Aristotle. Jesus taught that Makarios comes from the inside out. It cannot be extracted from earthly circumstances.

As we consider the assumptions of the different perspectives represented by the towns lining the Sea of Galilee, we find that they all aligned with Aristotle’s position. The Herodians and Sadducees dining in the halls of Tiberias, on the western shore, would have said Makarios comes from enjoying the circumstances of luxury and power at the expense of others. The Roman soldiers garrisoned in the Decapolis on Galilee’s eastern shore would have said the same thing.

The Zealots in Gamala, who bitterly hated those Romans with all their heart, would have said Makarios would come when they were in power and the Romans were no more, i.e. if their external circumstances were changed. And the Pharisees, teaching along the cities and towns of Galilee’s northern shore would have believed Makarios was having a righteous reputation in the community, even as they lived like gluttonous Romans by devouring widows’ houses (Matthew 23:14).

Jesus rejected the fake, earthly, and elusive Makarios assumed by Aristotle and many others. The Makarios that Jesus taught was real, heavenly, and available. The kingdoms of the earth had missed the good life in their efforts to rule or overthrow. Those who inhabit the Kingdom of Heaven would find the good life through humbly serving one another in love.

Biblical Text

³ Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
⁴ Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
⁵ Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.
⁶Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
⁷ Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
⁸ Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
⁹ Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
¹⁰ Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

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Additional Resources

Book Theme

The Gospel of Matthew was written to demonstrate to the Jews of Jesus, the Messiah’s generation that He was indeed the Christ. Matthew thematically substantiates the Messianic identity of Jesus beginning with the genealogy of Jesus, which ran from Abraham, the father of Israel’s people through King David who was promised to have a son who would be on Israel’s throne forever. Throughout his Gospel account Matthew makes use of numerous prophecies both explicitly stated and by way of subtle allusion to support his thesis. Matthew further makes use of parallel events in Jesus’s life to those of Messianic figures from the Old Testament (Moses, Joseph, David, etc.) to bolster his argument.

Jesus came to offer the Jews the chance to participate in the inauguration of the Messianic Kingdom. To do this, they would have to receive and follow Him as their Messiah. Jesus’s message was “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17). Ultimately, they rejected Him as their Messiah and condemned Jesus to death by crucifixion. The Jews’ rejection of the Messiah opened the door for Gentiles to enter the kingdom (Matthew 8:11-12, 22:1-10). Matthew’s Gospel is therefore a call for the Jews repent of their murder of Jesus and to embrace Him for the divine Messiah He is.

Matthew shows how their rejection of Him and His brutal death was predicted not only by Jesus Himself, but also was foretold in the Jewish scriptures of the Messiah.

The main proof that Jesus was the Messiah was “the sign of Jonah” (Matthew 12:39, 16:4). This was Jesus’s death and resurrection from the dead. “Just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth” (Matthew 12:40).

Because Matthew’s Gospel was written to people who were already members of God’s eternal family by virtue of their faith in God’s promise to send the Messiah, Matthew emphasizes the “reward of eternal life” (aka “The Prize of Eternal Life”) rather than “the Gift of Eternal Life”. In other words, Matthew’s Gospel focuses on how to “enter the kingdom” rather than how to “be born again”.

Matthew’s Gospel demonstrates how Jesus came to fulfill the law and open a way for God’s people to participate in the Messianic kingdom if they would follow His example of worshiping God from the heart by forgiving and serving others.

For “the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28). If we have faith to follow the example set forth by the resurrected Messiah, whom all authority on heaven and earth has been granted (Matthew 28:18) and take up our cross for His sake (Matthew 16:24-25), then we will become great in His kingdom (Matthew 20:26).

Finally, Matthew provides extensive samples of Jesus’s teachings including “the Sermon on the Mount”, “the Little Commission”, and “the Olivet Discourse” and many parables, alongside accounts of numerous miracles and wonders, personal moments with His twelve disciples, interactions with seekers, and increasingly as his Gospel account progresses: challenges and confrontations with His adversaries – the Pharisees, Scribes, and Priests.

Chapter Context

Chapters 5-7 form the “Sermon on the Mount.” Jesus withdraws from the large crowds and focuses on teaching His disciples. This is Jesus’ kingdom platform. Jesus is the second Moses prophesied by Moses, giving a new word from God from a different mountain. Jesus’s sermon has the same purpose as the word from God on Mount Sinai—it shows humans how to live constructively in fellowship with God and one another. Jesus’s emphasis is on the spirit behind the law. Without a change of heart, rules don’t work. Jesus initiated a new covenant, where the law was written on the heart (Jeremiah 31:31; Matthew 25:28).

The Sermon on the Mount transitions from Jesus speaking to “large crowds” to speaking to a “crowd” that consists of His disciples. The “large crowds” included Gentiles from the surrounding nations who had come to be healed of physical illnesses. It is likely Jesus would have spoken Greek to the “large crowds” as that was the language of commerce of that time. It is widely held that Jesus typically taught in Aramaic when speaking to Jews. It was the street language spoken by the Jews after they returned from Exile in Babylon.

But Jesus, like most Jews of His day would also have been multilingual. He would certainly have been able to read and speak from the Hebrew scriptures. And, as mentioned, He also would most certainly have known Greek, the common language of the Ancient world. It is likely that his adoptive father Joseph would have had work as a tradesman in the nearby Roman city of Sepphoris, which would have required knowing some Greek.

He might have also learned some Latin, the official language of the Roman government. Matthew may have originally written all or part of his Gospel narrative of Jesus the Messiah in Aramaic, Hebrew, or Greek. But regardless of which language He originally wrote in, his gospel was preserved in Greek. It is from Greek manuscripts that all our translations are ultimately based.

Matthew 5:3-10 meaning

Check out our other commentaries:

Revelation 3:9-11 meaning

Genesis 2:4-6 meaning

Matthew 5:7 meaning

Exodus 26:1-6 meaning

Exodus 40:1-16 meaning

Additional Resources

Book Theme

Chapter Context

Maps and Charts

Videos

The Bible Project - Matthew Summary Pt. 1

The Bible Project - Matthew Summary Pt. 2

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