Matthew 6 and 7

 SOURCES

“The Setting of the Sermon on the Mount.” Frank F. Judd, Jr. The Life and Teachings of Jesus Christ: From Bethlehem through the Sermon on the Mount. Richard Neitzel Holzapfel and Thomas Wayment

“A Reading of the Sermon the Mount: A Restorative Perspective.” Andrew C. Skinner.  The Life and Teachings of Jesus Christ: From Bethlehem through the Sermon on the Mount. 

Richard Neitzel Holzapfel and Thomas Wayment

“On Earth as in Heaven: Turning the Other Cheek, Going the Second Mile, and the Purpose of Prayer.” Kimberly Matheson. Sperry Symposium 2022.

The New Testament Made Harder by James E. Faulconer pg. 118

The New Testament: A Translation for Latter-day Saints - Thomas A. Wayment

BACKGROUND

Intended as preparation for all disciples - ‘The unity of the Sermon on the Mount is further reinforced if we remember that the Lord was addressing his followers and not a thorn of hecklers, unbelievers, and idly curious folk.” Judd. Footnote 13, pg. 309

Debate over whether the Sermon on the Plain is Luke’s version of the Sermon on the Mount or whether it is a different sermon on a different occasion in which the Savior repeated similar teachings to those in the Sermon on the Mount. Footnote 31 pg. 313

COMPARISONS OF TWO TRANSLATIONS OF THE LORD'S PRAYER

Matthew 6:9-13

The Lord’s Prayer: 

King James Version (KJV)

9 After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.

10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

11 Give us this day our daily bread.

12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

13 And lead us not into temptation (JST: And suffer us not to be led into temptation) but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

Wayment translation:

“Therefore, pray in this manner:

Our Father in heaven, 

let your name be holy,

may your kingdom come,

may your will be done on earth even as

  it is in heaven.

Give us enough bread for today,

and take away our debts, to the extent

  we have forgiven our debtors,

and do not lead us toward temptation, 

  but save us from evil.

Footnote: Matthew 6:13 - Later manuscripts add the final sentence of the Lord’s Prayer, known as the doxology, that is familiar from other translations: “For yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.” The manuscripts are not very reliable that support this reading, but a version of it is recorded in the Deidache and 3 Nephi 13:13. 

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“. . .  the very first request of the Lord’s Prayer is a plea that God’s name be spoken rightly (Hallowed be thy name,” Matt 6:9). Glory, it seems, can and should flow in prayer, but it should flow in a single direction—Godward. The danger with the “hypocrites” is that they intervene in that linear flow of praise and try to create a feedback loop, to siphon off some of that glorification to their own benefit. For these public worshippers, glory transits reciprocally whereas, for the disciples, glory transits in a single direction (heavenward) and properly extends to only one person (God).” 

Kimberly Matheson. “On Earth as in Heaven: Turning the Other Cheek, Going the Second Mile, and the Purpose of Prayer.” Sperry Symposium 2022.

SLIDE

“Prayer is a slice of time that suspends the typical run of the world and, by praying regularly, disciples thereby habituate themselves in an ability to suspend the world whenever necessary. Trained in hitting “pause” before sleeping and after rising and every time food is set before them, disciples then grow capable of hitting “pause” when a conversation comes to blows or their mile-worn legs grow fatigued.”

Kimberly Matheson. “On Earth as in Heaven: Turning the Other Cheek, Going the Second Mile, and the Purpose of Prayer.” Sperry Symposium 2022.

SLIDE

“Instead of praying for debtors to get their payments in on time, we practice viewing every economy in light of heaven’s grace.” 

Kimberly Matheson. “On Earth as in Heaven: Turning the Other Cheek, Going the Second Mile, and the Purpose of Prayer.” Sperry Symposium 2022.

SLIDE

Mathew 7:1  “Judge not, that ye be not judged.” (the Greek word translated judge is a very strong word—means “condemn or cut off.”)

JST Matt. 7:1–2 “Now these are the words which Jesus taught his disciples that they should say unto the people. Judge not unrighteously, that ye be not judged; but judge righteous judgment.” 

SLIDE

Sermon on the Mount turned into the Dialogue on the Mount - 

JST Matthew 7:14-17

14 And then said his disciples unto him, They will say unto us, We ourselves are righteous, and need not that any man should teach us. God, we know, heard Moses and some of the prophets; but us he will not hear.

15 And they will say, We have the law for our salvation, and that is sufficient for us.

16 Then Jesus answered, and said unto his disciples, Thus shall ye say unto them,

17 What man among you, having a son, and he shall be standing out, and shall say, Father, open thy house that I may come in and sup with thee, will not say, Come in, my son; for mine is thine, and thine is mine?

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“This is extremely insightful. Nowhere else except in the Joseph Smith Translation do we get the information that Jesus was so careful in helping His apostolic ministers craft their teaching points. And nowhere else do we receive such insightful but disheartening data about the social and religious atmosphere in which the Apostles had to carry out their ministry. The attitudes held in certain quarters of Judaism toward the doctrines of continuing revelation, salvation, and Jesus as Messiah indicate that Judaism was in much sadder condition than might be supposed from evidence in the other versions of the text of the Sermon on the Mount.”

Skinner pg. 352

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James E. Talmage: “Our Lord was qualified to teach as He did, not only by reason of the sufficing fact that He bore the Father’s commission, but because He had done and was doing just what He required of others. The authority of Divine precept was united in Him with that of unimpeachable example. The burden of all scriptural direction relation to the attainment of a place in the Kingdom of God is: Do the works that are prescribed.” Judd. Footnote 46, pg. 318

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“The Sermon is filled with doctrine that leads to, and speaks of, exaltation. It both alludes to and speaks explicitly of restoration. It provides a window into the challenges faced by the primitive Church in the context of first-century Judea. It is filled with allusions to the culture and language of its time, but it also shows that that time was not completely different from our own. . . . it is the outward expression of an inner emotion that Jesus is seeking to change.” Skinner pg. 353

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“For much of what Jesus preached, we can find parallels in rabbinic teaching or intertestamental literature. But Jesus always gave fresh insight or provided new perspective. And, of course, some things were simply unique to Him. There was not then, nor is there now, any question about the significance of all that He proclaimed. He could speak with such power because He lived what He taught, every syllable. The day the Sermon the Mount was preached was the day God Himself gave a discourse.”

Skinner pg. 354

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Q: How does the Sermon on the Mount shift the emphasis from what we do to what we are?

Q: What was important to you about this week’s readings?

Q: What more do we learn about Jesus from the Sermon on the Mount