Sermon on the Mount
Context
Matthew 5:1 And seeing the crowds He went up into the mountain, and upon His sitting His students came to Him. 2 And opening His mouth He instructed them, saying:
All of these words are instructions for “His students”. It cannot be imagined that they should be applied to His enemies, or to the ungodly. There are other scriptures which command His students concerning the ungodly, to have nothing to do with them.
Beatitudes
Poor in Spirit
Matthew 5:3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, because theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit”, and Christ quoted from Isaiah during the announcement of His ministry that He was sent to “preach the gospel to the poor”, meaning the dispersion of Israel. Isaiah 66:1 says:
“Thus saith the LORD, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest? 2 For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the LORD: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.”
This message is to those of a “poor and of a contrite spirit” of the children of Israel.
Mourning
Matthew 5:4 Blessed are those who are mourning, because they shall be comforted
Meek
Matthew 5:5 Blessed are the meek, because they shall inherit the earth.
Old Testament Foundations
Isaiah 49 contains many similar statements to those found in the Sermon on the Mount