The Sermon on the Mount
and He began to teach them, saying: Matthew 5:2 · Berean Standard Bible
Jesus began to teach them. What follows is the most famous sermon ever preached, a blueprint for how to live in God's kingdom.
These aren't suggestions or nice ideas. Jesus is laying out the foundation for everything His followers would become.
Matthew transitions into Jesus's words.
The Sermon on the Mount is the heart of Jesus's teaching. If you want to know what He cared about most, start here.
The phrase 'opened His mouth' (anoixas to stoma autou) is a Semitic expression indicating solemn, authoritative speech. The teaching is directed primarily to His disciples (mathetas), though the crowds also listen (7:28).
This formal introduction signals that what follows is not casual conversation but definitive instruction on kingdom ethics and the nature of true righteousness.
Matthew, introducing Jesus's teaching.
The Sermon on the Mount (chapters 5-7) constitutes the first of five major teaching blocks in Matthew, structurally paralleling the five books of Moses.
1When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain and sat down. His disciples came to Him,
2and He began to teach them, saying:
3“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Read all of Matthew 5 — Jesus turns the world's values upside down. The blessed aren't the powerful — they're the poor in spirit, the grieving, the meek.
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