When Jesus was tempted in the desert in Matthew 4, Satan told Jesus to turn the stones into bread. In the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew, Jesus said that when a child asks their father for bread, he will not give his child a stone. Then in Revelation 2:17, we have this: > He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. > To the one who conquers I will give some of the **hidden manna**, and I > will give him a **white stone**, with a new name written on the stone that > no one knows except the one who receives it. Here Jesus is offering bread (manna) and a stone! Is there some special meaning behind the juxtaposition of bread and stone in Revelation 2:17?

Matthew 5:44 KJV >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; In Buddhism, it is taught that you should love your enemies because, at some time in the infinite sequence of rebirths, it was certainly the case that your enemy was once your mother. Therefore, hating your enemy is as irrational as hating your mother. This isn't a true explanation, but it is a rational justification for loving your enemies. But in Christianity, everyone is an atom created by the Creator, completely detached from everyone else. In light of this, **why is it rational to love your enemies?**

In Matthew 5:38-40 Jesus Christ tells us that if someone hit you on the right check that you the other check to him also, does this means as Christians that we are supposed to remain pacifist and that we are not allowed to fight back if somebody attempts to attack us? Because in Matthew 5:38-40 Christ says: > 38 Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a > tooth for a tooth: > > 39 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. > > 40 And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, > let him have thy cloak also.

God tells Jeremiah to preach to people that will not listen: > **Jeremiah 7:2,27 NIV** - Stand at the gate of the Lord’s house and there proclaim this message...[*long message*]...When you tell them all this, they will not listen to you; when you call to them, they will not answer. Later on in biblical history, Jesus, whom Christians believe to be God, tells his crowd to not waste words on people that won't listen: > **Matthew 7:6 NIV** - Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces. What's an overview of Christian responses to how these two things can coexist without contradiction?

As with reference to the verse Matthew 5:13 > 13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. Why did Jesus refer to people as salt? Why it is so important as many more valuables are available in this world?

The context in Matthew 5:30 strongly suggests that Jesus is talking about adultery. Verse 21 starts with "You have heard", starting a section about respecting your neighbor. Again, Verse 27 starts with "You have heard" and starts a section about adultery. The next section after that starts at verse 33 with similar words "Again, you have heard". All these sections concentrate on one issue. Also, the word "again" in verse 33 emphasizes the fact that these are separate sections. Therefore it's quite clear that verses 27-30 are related to adultery, and 31-32 are a continuation of that theme. Also, verse 28 makes it clear that verse 29 is about lusting with the eye. Then verse 30 is very similar to verse 29, only different body part. Given these observations above, it's clear for me that Jesus is banning masturbation. My question is that could "**right hand**" mean something else, also? Remember that Jesus is talking about adultery, or to put in another way, not meeting the sexual needs of your spouse. The spouse is neglected against in both masturbation and adultery with another person (masturbation is kind of adultery, too). So, is there any other possible meaning for the ”**right hand**” in verse 30, considering the context? I’m a fundamentalist protestant, having not found a denomination with perfect theology yet. I just want to know if any Bible-believing Christian has found another explanation (based on Bible and this context) for the **right hand**, other than masturbation. Matthew 5:27-30: 27. “You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY’; 28.but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29.“If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30.“If your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to go into hell.

At Matthew 5:6 (RSVCE), Jesus says: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. The concept of physical hunger and thirst, as we understand today, appears to be far different from that the people of Jesus' time had. If it was spiritual hunger and thirst the Jesus was in deed referring to, the attributes would have been similar. I hope that the Church has explained at length, the deeper meaning of hunger and thirst, as would have been in the mind of Jesus when He spoke on the Mount. I wish to know what the official interpretation of Matthew 6:5 in the specific context of day-to-day life of the time of Jesus, and offered by the Catholic Church is.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says that marrying a divorced woman is a sin. Certainly having sex with a married woman is adultery, but Jesus also calls it adultery to marry a divorced woman. However he says this in the context of the Sermon on the Mount. “You have heard it said X, but I say to you Y” where Y seems to really redefine terms to be much more expansive and broad. No one is really going around gouging their eyes out to prevent looking at married women lustfully. And Jesus says “if your eye offends you” which implies the sin of adultery already took place. However, it ony took place in the heart. Same with being angry with your brother. The sin of murder has taken only place in the heart. But when it comes to divorce, Jesus seems to describe real adultery. It doesn’t make much sense to me when he is quoted as saying that te man commits adultery if he marries another woman. Adultery was ONLY defined as a man sleeping with a married WOMAN, in fact Jewish men had polygamy, and in fact it was commanded to marry your deceased brother’s wife even if you already were married, an example brought to Jesus by the Sadduccees. So, according to Catholicism, how does the definition of adultery and the context of the Sermon on the Mount affect what we should do? No one is plucking their eyes out or cutting off their hands, so was it just meant to shock people? Mentioning adultery, I mean.

In the beautiful sermon of the mount Jesus said (Matthew 6)" None is able to serve two lords, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will hold to the one, and despise the other; ye are not able to serve God and **Mammon**". Who is really Mammon?

What does this mean? > **You must not give that which is holy to dogs.** Do not cast your pearls before swine, or the swine may trample them under foot, and > then turn on you and tear you to pieces. > > *(Matthew 7:6)*

So This is Christ delivering the 'Sermon on the Mount'. And I think he's talking about how to deal with other people because In the same passage, Christ talks about Taking the beam from your own eye, before removing the mote from your brother's eye. The verse directly after: >Do not give dogs what is holy; do not throw your pearls before swine. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces. (Matt 7:6) It seems to say don't preach the Gospel (what is holy, and was is -precious as- pearls) to the Dogs and Swine, which I can only imagine as Sinners. But I don't think that is correct! Because the Lord preached to Sinners, and even said that he came for sinners - and not the righteous. (Luke 5:32) So is the (Holy things/Pearls) not the Gospel? Who are the Dogs/Swine? And How do I know who is the Dog/Swine?

> Matthew 5:14-16 > > 14 “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your **light** shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven. What does Jesus mean by *light*? Talents? Spiritual gifts? God showing through us? Something else? *Update: I have now also asked this at Biblical Hermeneutics , as mentioned in comments below.*

1. How many days Jesus gave sermon on the mount? The last verse of Matthew 4 says, people gathered from various distance places in and around Jerusalem, Galilee etc. 2. How did people have their food during all the days of sermon.? Since, they had come from their distance places, it would be difficult to go their home and come back next day to continue listen the sermon...

(x-post from BH) I ask this as **blessed** can mean many things. Eternal life, financial wealth, health, having kids, having a job, being happy, etc. Blessings seem to be very broad, so I'd like to see if anyone can narrow it down or define the word for better understanding of what Jesus was intending for his audience to understand. 1. Does the blessing that Jesus speaks of mean one *specific* blessing or type of blessing? Also, does the word blessed point to the same specific blessing in each new phrase? 2. Alternatively, does part b of each phrase define the blessing from part a (e.g. the blessing in v.3 is inheriting the kingdom, the blessing in v.4 is comfort)? I guess I'd like to hear a Calvinistic interpretation. Do these words of our Lord indicate then, that all of the elect will be poor in spirit, mournful, meek, etc.? Anybody not demonstrating these qualities would therefore be seen as non-elect? Thank you. > Matthew 5:3–11 (NIV)
> 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, > for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, > for they will be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, > for they will inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, > for they will be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, > for they will be shown mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, > for they will see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, > for they will be called children of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, > for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. > > 11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely > say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be > glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they > persecuted the prophets who were before you.

How does calling someone an "idiot" make one bound for Gehenna? I'm sure there is something of translation, meaning, or ancient culture to be considered here. > ...and whoever says, You cursed fool! [You empty-headed **idiot**!] shall > be liable to and unable to escape the hell (Gehenna) of fire. > > Matthew 5:22 (Amplified Bible) - Is this a point lost in translation? - What point was Jesus making when he said this?

I'd like to know if Jesus' sermon on the mount (Matthew 5-7) is directed at an unbelieving audience or an audience of believers. I'd argue its for unbelievers. At this point in time the disciples weren't truly believers (they wanted Jesus for political reasons, this was made clear when they left him during his final hour). The climax of the sermon Matt 5:48 "Be perfect as I am perfect" denotes condemnation since its impossible for anyone to achieve perfection without Christ. I'm under the impression it's geared towards unbelievers, to show them they are incapable of receiving salvation outside of Christ. Any problems with my thinking?

There are two subjects that could be construed as contradictory in our Lords sermon on the mount. Here is an instance: >1 “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. (Matthew 6:1) > >In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:16) So what is Jesus saying? Should we tell others about the good things we have done, being a role model and example to them, or keep those things secret?