BIBLICAL ANALYSIS

Vincent Pham
Analyzing Matthew 5:3: ​The Beatitudes

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

Exegesis

(unless noted, points are based on that of Oxford’s Catholic Study Bible (3rd Edition))
● “Blessed are” -​ ​Oxford Catholic Study Bible’s​ commentary notes that these terms
are used frequently in the Old Testament, especially in Wisdom Literature and in
particular, the Psalms. A parallel of the Beatitudes is also found in Luke’s Gospel.
“Blessed are (is)” seems to have been terms used in the literature of the time of
Jesus.
● “poor in spirit”​ - Using a software developed by the Vatican’s Congregation for
the Clergy called ​Biblia Clerus,​ I was able to find references of Matthew 5 in
various Church Documents. In the Church’s compiled book of Dogmatic called
the ​Denzinger​, the Church made reference to Matthew 5:3 saying, “Finally, she
[the Church] especially refreshes and consoles the souls of the poor either by
presenting the example of Christ who, "although he was rich, became poor for
our sakes" (cf. 2CO 8,9), or by recalling the words, by which He addressed the
poor as "blessed" (cf. Mt 5,3), and bade them hope for the rewards of eternal
blessedness.” Taking this context into mind, several Biblical commentaries
expanded on the definition, “poor in spirit”. ​Oxford’s Catholic Study Bible s​ ays. “In
the Old Testament, the poor are those who are without material possessions and
whose confidence is in God.” ​Agape Bible Study says, ​“We are "poor" in spirit
because we acknowledge that we are not self-sufficient and that we need God in
our lives. We come to Him in childlike faith, knowing that we cannot make it on
our own without Him.” ​Credo Bible Study ​says, that this “signifies the humble of
mind and heart [...] That is, the humble; and they whose spirit is not set upon
riches.” On a historical context, St. Matthew added “in spirit” to this beatitude, so
to extend the audience of the Beatitude to people of all classes, not just those
who are in poverty.
● “​Kingdom of heaven​” - The people of the Old Testament were awaiting liberation
from Egypt to head to the Promised Land and one day see the Messiah come
and save them. The people of Jesus’ time, called then, the people of the “new
age”, were still awaiting the Messiah. They strictly observed the laws in order to
gain the Kingdom of Heaven. Yet, Jesus clarifies that the Kingdom only belongs
to the humble of heart (the poor, the children…). Jesus in now way excludes the
 rich from entering the Kingdom of heaven, but encourages everyone to be
humble of heart, to be “poor in spirit” in order to gain that reward of the Kingdom
of heaven where they would eventually see God face to face one day.
● Oxford’s Catholic Study Bible ​reading guide mentions that Matthew evokes the
theme of “Jesus’ identification with the “least”. Jesus not only preaches people to
be “poor in spirit”, but he himself reflect that. Even in the Christmas story,
Matthew depicts Jesus as one who is poor, an immigrant family threatened with
death by a tyrant, forced into exile and unable to go back to Bethlehem, but
displaced in Nazareth.
Jesus wants to say in this Beatitude that the Kingdom of Heaven is only for those who
totally place their trust in God. Those who are attached to earthly possess will not and
intentionally believe that the Kingdom of Heaven is necessary to them. The Kingdom of
Heaven is for those who are “poor in spirit,” meaning unattached to the things of this
world, but devoted in all that they do in their everyday lives.

Hermeneutics

Many Catholics in this day and age fail to attend weekly Mass on Sundays. Yet, while
we may say, “I’m too busy,” or “I need to sleep in,” or “I need to finish off level 10 of
Fortnite”. By doing so, we are placing ourselves in front of God, placing our earthly
possessions in front of him. When we fail to place God as a priority then we lose trust in
him and start turning to earthly things to find comfort. Yet, only the Kingdom of God will
fill the desire of our hearts because God is there.
St. Thomas Aquinas, an important Philosopher and Theologian of the Catholic Church,
was asked by the Lord what he wanted as a reward for his work in glorifying the Lord,
and he replied (in the words of now, Bishop Robert Barron’s episcopal motto), “Non nisi
te, Domine” (Nothing but You, Lord). That is the spirit of this Beatitude. It is when we
forget about ourselves, our earthly possessions, our earthly worries, but rather
concerned about our spiritual life, concerned about our salvation - that is when we can
truly be “poor in spirit”. The Kingdom of God can only be open to those who strive to
seek and trust God.
Does this Beatitude exclude the rich like Bill Gates? No. Those who are rich can still be
“poor in spirit”. Even if you are a billionaire, but have no care for your possessions, but
use them for charitable works, for the glory of God then you are achieving what this
Beatitude is asking of you. In today’s terms, to be “poor in spirit” is to put God in front of
yourself, and to do so means totally trusting in him and living out his commands in a
spirit of obedience and charity.
Analyzing Matthew 5:17-20: ​The Law and the Prophets

“‘Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to
abolish but to fulfill. 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. Therefore,
whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the
same, will be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does them and
teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your
righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the
kingdom of heaven.”

Exegesis

(unless noted, points are based on that of Oxford’s Catholic Study Bible (3rd Edition))
● The passage discusses Jesus’ position concerning the Mosaic Law.
● “I have come not to abolish but to fulfill”​ - Jesus came not to change the law. It is
important to remember that the mosaic law was given by God on Mt. Sinai, and
that the laws in Leviticus were commanded by God. Jesus comes in not to revise
or abolish the law, but rather, bring it to fulfillment, meaning to show that yes,
there is the law, but it should be executed in the spirit of love. Now, the Scribes
and Pharisees were strict observers of the law, and was jealous (in a negative
sense) with anybody who went in their way to change anything of the law. It
meant a change in their daily routine, their lifestyle and changes to their spiritual
life (based on points from Credo Bible Study, ​www.credobiblestudy.com​).
● To fulfill​ the law concerns also in a literal enforcement of the law, in the least
detail.
● “...until heaven and earth pass away” - I​ t is an apocalyptic image, which traces its
reference to that in the book of Isaiah chapter 65-66, and also in the book of
Revelation. Oxford’s Catholic Study Bible commentary says, “The ‘turning of
ages’ comes with the apocalyptic event of Jesus’ death and resurrection, and
those to whom this gospel is addressing, are living in the new and final age,
prophesied by Isaiah as the time of ‘new heavens and a new earth’. Meanwhile,
during Jesus’ Ministry when the kingdom is already breaking in, his mission
remains with the framework of the law, though with significant ​anticipation​ of the
age to come.” (emphasis added)
● “​least of these commandments” -​ refers to the Mosaic law
● In general, Matthew 5:17-20 serve as a prologue to what is called, the
“antitheses”, in which Jesus makes reference to Mosaic Law. He does not reject
it, but rather, strives to “extend or deepen it”.
In this passage Jesus was being criticized by the scribes and Pharisees for not
observing the law (this is very evident throughout Jesus’ ministry in the Gospels)
according to their standards. Jesus criticizes the scribes and Pharisees for not exerting
virtue while strictly observing the law. They observe the law so to enforce it on people
and criticize others, not out of love or care of members of society. Jesus emphasizes
that he is not abolishing the law, but rather bringing it to fulfillment, pointing to the fact
that the law of love is the ultimate law and that those who keeps the commandments in
the spirit of love and compassion to God and neighbour, they would be looked on with
favour.

Hermeneutics

This passage fits very well with John 8:1-11, the story of the woman who was to be
stoned to death for committing adultery. While the law of Moses required that one who
committed adultery be stoned to death, Jesus knew in the hearts of the scribes and
Pharisees (who were strict observers of the law), that they were condemning the
woman not out of love or care, but merely for the fact that, “the book said so” and so
that they be seen as heroes at the end of the day. The scribes and Pharisees also
brought the condemned woman to Jesus in order to find trap him, and use his sayings
against him, in order to condemn him to death. Therefore, while the scribes and
Pharisees were a strict observers of the law, they did not do so out of love for God and
neighbour, which is what Jesus was striving to fulfill. The law is not meant to be
something tiresome of observance, but it should be a guide to help us love God and
neighbour - that is the intention of the law.
This fits into the modern world very well. There are laws within society and all are
expected to follow the law. We have the obligation to report those those who do not
follow the law, for example, report one who has committed murder, even if they may be
a friend. Yet, what is the intention of reporting them? Deep down, our intention should
not be for our own glory, but rather, out of love for neighbour, in order to protect them - it
is our responsibility, our duty. However, some scenarios require an exception with the
law. For example, a terrorist is approaching a church building, but security guards shoot
him down in order to protect everyone inside the church. While some may condemn the
security guard, the scenario required him to do so. At the end of the day, the law of love
conquers everything.
Analyzing Matthew 7:13-20: ​The Narrow Gate

“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to
destruction, and there are many who take it. For the gate is narrow and the road is hard
that leads to life, and there are few who find it. “Beware of false prophets, who come to
you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their
fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles? In the same way, every
good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad
fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut
down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will know them by their fruits.”

Exegesis

(unless noted, points are based on that of Oxford’s Catholic Study Bible (3rd Edition))
● The narrow gate vs the wide gate​ - According to the commentary in ​Oxford’s
Catholic Study Bible,​ this metaphor was common in both pagan philosophy and
the Old Testament. In the Christian tradition, it is found in the ​Didache (​ the
teachings of the Apostles) and the ​Epistle of Barnabas​, which are not part of the
Bible, but are examples of Christian literature. ​Credo Bible Study’​ s commentary
says that this metaphor is self explanatory and therefore, needs no commentary.
However, ​Credo’​ s commentary makes note of it, saying that it “deserves serious
attention”.
● “Beware of false prophets” - ​Those who “speak in the name of God are called
prophets”. They seem to have been an important group within the church of St.
Matthew (his community). How could one recognize a true or false prophet? “The
difference could be recognized by the quality of their deeds and their fruits”.
● “...​come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves” - ​Jesus
gives the audience a metaphor here - he compares the false prophets in this
passage. This image of sheep vs wolves is used very frequently within the Old
and New Testament because a lambs and sheep were very common animals in
the time and culture of Jesus. The were many shepherds during that time, and
many could have been part of the audience Jesus was speaking to. Shepherds
strived to take good care of their sheep because sheep were a food source, it
meant money, their possessions… a flock of sheep could have meant their whole
life. Having spoken earlier about the hypocrites who put on a false facade (ref.
Chapter 6) of prayer, fasting and almsgiving, Jesus warns the people of the false
prophets’ doctrine and “appearance of sanctity”, as mentioned in​ Credo’s
commentary.
 ● “Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles?”​ - The thorns and thistles
refers to the bad trees, trees that do not produce the best of fruits. ​Agape Bible
Study (agapebiblestudy.com) m ​ entions the fact that in the fall of man, God
casted man to the ground, “Thorns and thistles shall it bring forth to you, as you
eat of the plants of the field, by the sweat of your face” (Gen 3:18). In other
words, thorns and thistles are a pain, and gardeners certainly do not want them
part of the crop.
● Fruits​ - The Oxford’s Biblical commentary states, “The mention of fruits leads to
the comparison with trees, some producing good fruits, others bad.”
● Jesus contrasts the true prophet versus the false prophet ask follows:

True Prophet False Prophet

Grapes Thorn bushes

Figs Thistles

Good tree / Good fruit Rotten tree / Rotten fruit

Source: agapebiblestudy.com
In other words, Jesus is educating the people about the way to get into the kingdom of
heaven. This passage contains two parts: (1) Jesus teaches that the easy way is not
always the way to heaven, (2) The false prophets will lead you astray and will cost your
salvation. Putting the two concepts together, we can extract the fact that, even though
the way of the false prophets may be easy, it does not bear good “fruit”, and only leads
one astray from the path of salvation.

Hermeneutics

This 21st century is not moving along without false prophets. Unfortunately, false
prophets are everywhere, and these prophets are convincing people that the narrow
path that Jesus advises us not to take in the passage above, is the ideal path.

Let us take a look at the case of moral relativism - the philosophy that every decision,
including those dealing with morality is subjective to oneself. Those who promote
relativism in society would classify as the “false prophets” that Jesus mentions here. Not
only so, relativism is the “wide door” that Jesus asks the people to stray away from.

Let us take the example of the legalization of euthanasia as an example. In many

countries in the world, euthanasia has been legalized and it is a result of these false
prophets promoting such a philosophy. Relativism is an easy way to take because
honestly, it takes no thinking but based on one’s own feelings. In a relativistic society,
euthanasia is an option because life is left in the hands of the individual, not God. It
becomes an attractive alternative to cease pain. But Jesus never said that going
through the narrow door would be easy. It is tough, and not all will take that route.
However, to gain the reward (salvation), one must take it the hard way sometimes.
Jesus proved to us that the cross, the way of pain and suffering is not at all easy. Yet, it
is only through the cross that we see the resurrection, it is through the narrow door that
we will gain the prize, it is through pain and suffering that we will see God face to face.
Therefore, while taking the easier way may give one temporary joy or relief, the harder
way is most of the time rewarding long term.

Sources:
● Oxford’s Catholic Study Bible, 3rd edition
● Agape Bible Study (agapebiblestudy.com)
● Credo Bible Study (credobiblestudy.com)