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Verse-by-Verse Commentary

The Book of Matthew

Chapter 5: The Sermon on the Mount Begins

Jesus goes up on a mountain and sits down to teach, and out comes the greatest sermon ever preached. He begins not with commands but with blessings, the Beatitudes, describing the surprising happiness of the poor in spirit, the meek, and the merciful. He calls His people the salt of the earth and the light of the world, shows that He came not to abolish the law but to fulfill it and press it to the heart, and lifts the standard to its height: love your enemies. Matthew 5 unveils the character and calling of the citizens of the kingdom.

About This Commentary

This is a verse-by-verse study of Matthew chapter 5. For each section you will find the KJV text, word studies that sharpen the meaning, plain explanation, and a Gospel Focus. Here the Sermon on the Mount begins, describing the heart and life of the kingdom. Every Scripture quotation is from the King James Version.

Setting the Stage

The Sermon

On the Mountain

Chapters 5 through 7 record the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus' great teaching on the life of the kingdom. It begins here with the Beatitudes and the character of His people.

The Blessings

The Beatitudes

Jesus opens with a series of blessings that turn the world's values upside down, pronouncing happy the poor in spirit, the mourners, the meek, and the merciful.

The Law Fulfilled

Deeper Than the Letter

Jesus says He came to fulfill the law, and presses its commands to the heart: not only murder but anger, not only adultery but lust, not only outward acts but inward reality.

The Big Idea

Kingdom Character

The citizens of the kingdom have a distinct character and calling: blessed in heart, salt and light in the world, and love that reaches even to enemies.

Blessed Are

The Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-6)

Jesus begins with blessing, describing the surprising happiness of kingdom hearts.

Matthew 5:1-15

Poor in Spirit, Hungry for Righteousness

"And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after 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 the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. 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. Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. 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."

Greek Study

Each beatitude opens with makarios -- "blessed," a word meaning deeply happy, favored, flourishing in God's sight. But the ones pronounced happy are the poor in spirit, the mourners, the meek, the hungry -- exactly those the world counts unfortunate. Matthew stacks the word again and again to overturn every ordinary scale of value. Blessedness, Jesus teaches, is not the reward of the strong and self-sufficient but the gift of God to the empty who look to Him.

Explanation

The Beatitudes are the constitution of the kingdom, and they describe a people utterly unlike the world's ideal. The kingdom belongs to the poor in spirit -- those who know their spiritual bankruptcy -- and its comforts fall on those who weep over sin. This is the same order of grace Paul preaches: God "justifieth the ungodly" (Romans 4:5), receives the empty-handed, and fills the hungry. Jesus is not setting entry requirements to be achieved but describing the character His grace produces in those who receive the kingdom.

Gospel Focus

The Beatitudes overturn the world's idea of happiness. The world blesses the rich, the confident, the powerful, and the satisfied; Jesus blesses the "poor in spirit" who know their need, the mourners, the meek, and those who "hunger and thirst for righteousness." These are not achievements to earn God's favor but the marks of a heart that has come to the end of itself and turned to God. The kingdom begins with poverty of spirit, recognizing we have nothing to offer and everything to receive, and it grows in those who long for righteousness more than for comfort. Notice too that each blessing carries a promise: the kingdom, comfort, inheritance, fullness. The way up in God's kingdom is down; the blessed life begins where our self-sufficiency ends.

Salt and Light

Let Your Light Shine (Matthew 5:14-16)

Jesus describes what His people are to be in the world.

Matthew 5:16-43

Let Your Light So Shine

"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. 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. 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. 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. 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: 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. Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift. 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. Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing. Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart. 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. 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. It hath been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement: 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. 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: But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne: Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black. But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil. Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: 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. And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloke also. And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain. Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away. Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy."

Greek Study

The hinge of the Sermon is the verb pleroo -- "I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil" (v. 17): to fill full, to bring to its intended completeness. Jesus does not abolish the law; He fills it up to its true meaning and, in the six "but I say unto you" antitheses, presses it past outward conduct to the heart -- anger beneath murder, lust beneath adultery. His people are meanwhile "the light of the world," called to let their light "so shine" that others glorify God.

Explanation

Jesus speaks as the law's Author, not merely its interpreter -- "but I say unto you" set against "it was said" is a staggering claim of authority. He drives every commandment inward: the law was always aimed at the heart, and He restores its true reach. This is not a heavier legalism but the exposure of sin's true depth that drives the disciple to grace, and the description of the righteousness the indwelling Spirit will write within (Romans 8:4). The light believers shine is not their own goodness but the reflected glory of the God they serve.

Gospel Focus

Jesus calls His people "the salt of the earth" and "the light of the world" (verses 13-14). Salt preserves and gives flavor; light dispels darkness and shows the way. Believers are not to withdraw from the world but to influence it for good, a preserving, illuminating presence. And notice the purpose of our light: "that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven." The goal is not to draw attention to ourselves but to point people to God. A hidden light is useless, and salt that loses its savor is worthless; a faith kept private and powerless fails its calling. We are to live so visibly and distinctly for God that others are drawn to glorify Him. Let your light shine, not for your own praise, but for the glory of your Father.

The Highest Standard

Love Your Enemies (Matthew 5:43-44)

Jesus lifts the law of love to a height only grace can reach.

Matthew 5:44-48

Love Your Enemies

"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; 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. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect."

Greek Study

The climax turns on teleios -- "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect" (v. 48). Teleios means complete, whole, having reached its intended end -- not sinless flawlessness but mature, God-imaging love. The command that provokes it is the hardest: "Love your enemies... pray for them which... persecute you." Such love is teleios because it images the Father, who "maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good" (v. 45).

Explanation

Loving one's enemies is the surest mark that a person has been born of God, for it mirrors the very love that sent Christ to die for enemies (Romans 5:10). The world's ethic is to love friends and hate foes; the kingdom's ethic is impossible without the new birth. Jesus grounds the command not in a rule but in the family likeness: children resemble their Father, and the Father loves the undeserving. This "perfection" is the completeness of love, the whole law summed up, and it can only be lived by those in whom the Father's own Spirit dwells.

Gospel Focus

Throughout the sermon Jesus says, "You have heard that it was said... but I say to you," not overturning the law but pressing it deeper than mere outward keeping, to the heart. Here He reaches the summit: "love your enemies." The world loves those who love it; Jesus calls His people to love, bless, do good to, and pray for even those who hate and persecute them. Why so high a standard? "That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven" (verse 45), who sends rain on the just and the unjust. To love our enemies is to reflect the character of God, who loved us "while we were yet sinners" (Romans 5:8) and even His enemies. This is impossible in our own strength; it is the fruit of a heart transformed by grace and filled with the Spirit. The kingdom's love does not stop at those who deserve it, for God's love did not stop at us.

Chapter 5 in Review

Matthew 5 opens the Sermon on the Mount, unveiling the character and calling of the kingdom's citizens. Jesus begins with the Beatitudes, pronouncing blessed the poor in spirit, the mourners, the meek, and those who hunger for righteousness, overturning the world's idea of happiness. He calls His people to be salt and light, living so that others glorify their Father in heaven. And He shows He came not to abolish the law but to fulfill it, pressing its commands to the heart and lifting the standard to its height: love your enemies, as your Father in heaven loves.

For the Apostolic reader, this chapter describes the transformed life of those who belong to Christ. The blessed life begins in poverty of spirit and a hunger for righteousness, not in self-sufficiency. The kingdom life is not hidden but shines, drawing others to God. And the righteousness Jesus calls for goes far beyond outward rule-keeping to the heart, reaching even to love for enemies. Such a life is beyond our natural power; it is the fruit of grace and the Spirit, the character of God formed in His people, so that the world sees our good works and glorifies our Father.

Key Takeaways
  • The blessed life begins in poverty of spirit and hunger for righteousness, not self-sufficiency.
  • Believers are salt and light, called to shine so others glorify the Father, not themselves.
  • Jesus fulfills the law and presses it to the heart, far beyond outward keeping.
  • Kingdom love reaches even to enemies, reflecting the God who loved us as sinners (Romans 5:8).

Questions for Reflection

  • Do you count blessed the things Jesus calls blessed, or the things the world does?
  • Is your light shining before others so that they glorify God, or is your faith kept hidden?
  • Jesus calls us to love our enemies. Is there someone the Spirit is prompting you to bless and pray for?

References & Sources

Scripture is quoted from the King James Version (KJV). Supporting passages are listed so every claim can be verified in its own setting. If anything here does not look right, a verse, a reference, or a wording, please tell us at info@FruitBearers.net. Thank you for helping us keep Bible Learning error free.

  1. The Beatitudes and kingdom character: Matthew 5:3-12; Luke 6:20-23.
  2. Salt and light for the glory of the Father: Matthew 5:13-16; Philippians 2:15.
  3. Christ fulfilling, not abolishing, the law: Matthew 5:17-20.
  4. Loving enemies as sons of the Father: Matthew 5:43-48; Romans 5:8-10.
  5. The righteousness of the heart: Matthew 5:21-30.
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