Jesus and the Law in Matthew
While in Mark we don't have access to a great deal of Jesus' teaching, Mt provides us with a significant amount of information in this regard. In Mt, Jesus' teaching has two main emphases: 1) a demand for higher righteousness (which includes a polemic against scribes and Pharisees), and 2) an apocalyptic expectation.
In Mt, we get five major sermons:
1) The Sermon on the Mount (5.3-7.27)
2) The Mission Sermon (10.5-42)
3) The Sermon in Parables (13.3-52)
4) The Sermon on the Church (18.1-35)
5) The Eschatological Sermon (24.4-25.46)
These five sermons may correspond to the five books of the Pentateuch.
The Sermon on the Mount
In 5.1-2, we read, "When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them…." Jesus then delivers "the "Sermon on the Mount," in which he issues a reinterpretation of the law and a demand for higher righteousness. For Mt's original hearers, this picture of Jesus delivering a reinterpretation of the law while standing on a mountain would likely have brought to mind the image of Moses, the great lawgiver of the Jews, who received the law on Mount Sinai.
The Sermon on the Mount begins with the "Beatitudes" (Mt 5.3-12). Beatitudes are "blessing statements." They are common in Egyptian, Greek, and Jewish literature, and they also show up in other early Christian literature, such as the Gospel of Thomas and The Acts of Paul and Thecla. They were often used to provide "a brief summary of essential doctrine" (EDB, 158). In Jewish literature, beatitudes "name a situation or action in which they declare God's blessing or favor is experienced" (EDB, 158).
In Matthew's beatitudes, we see an emphasis on the poor and lowly of the world. For example, Jesus says, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs in the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth." We also see an emphasis on righteousness. "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness…. Blessed are the merciful…. Blessed are the pure in heart… Blessed are the peacemakers…. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake…." Further, there seems to be an eschatological promise in the beatitudes. Those who are blessed will receive an eschatological reward.
State of blessedness (God's favor)
Eschatological reward
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the poor in spirit,
Blessed are those who mourn,
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will received mercy.
Blessed are the poor in heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.
Rejoice and be glad, for you reward is great in heaven…."
Sources:
Freedman, David Noel, et al, eds.
Brown, Raymond E.
An Introduction to the New Testament.
New York: Doubleday, 1997.
Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible.
Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000.
Mt is writing primarily for Jewish Christians who are in the process of breaking away from the synagogue. Jesus is presented as both the perfect lawgiver (the second Moses) and as the perfectly obedient adherent of the law. In 5.48 we read, "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly father is perfect." By this, Mt doesn't mean that Christians have to be sinless. The word teleios means "whole" or "complete." It is a calling to the whole and complete focus on God's will.
In Mt. 5.17-20, Jesus discusses the law and demands righteousness. "For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished" (5.18) In other words, Mt's original audience is exhorted to uphold the law. Jesus even goes so far as to proclaim, "For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven" (5.20). Jesus has given his audience a seemingly impossible ethical demand. It appears that he is "fulfilling" the law by reinterpreting it so as to demand greater righteousness than even the Pharisees, a group of very pious people who made righteousness a way of life.
Jesus then goes on to offer a series of "antitheses," statements of contrast which are uttered in a formulaic way: "You have heard it said… but I say to you…" (5.21-48). Jesus is contrasting his interpretation of the law with other interpretations. In these antitheses, Jesus "raises the bar" with regard to the ethical demands of the law. For example, he states, "You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, 'You shall not murder'; and 'whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.' But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, 'You fool,' you will be liable to the hell of fire" (5.21-22). We also read, "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart" (5.27-28).
Jesus' reinterpretation of the law
Antitheses