The Jewish Annotated New Testament (10 page)

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Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him.
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John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?”
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But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented.
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And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him.
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And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, the Beloved,
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with whom I am well pleased.”

4
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
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He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished.
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The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.”
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But he answered, “It is written,

‘One does not live by bread alone,
         but by every word that comes from the
                  mouth of God.’”

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Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple,
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saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written,

‘He will command his angels concerning
         you,’
         and ‘On their hands they will bear you up,
     so that you will not dash your foot against
         a stone.’”
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Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

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Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor;
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and he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.”
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Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! for it is written,

‘Worship the Lord your God,
             and serve only him.’”

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Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.

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Now when Jesus
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heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee.
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He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali,
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so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

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“Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali,
         on the road by the sea, across the
                Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—

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the people who sat in darkness
           have seen a great light,
     and for those who sat in the region and
           shadow of death
         light has dawned.”

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From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
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As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen.
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And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.”
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Immediately they left their nets and followed him.
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As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them.
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Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him.

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Jesus
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went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news
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of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.
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So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought to him all the sick, those who were afflicted with various diseases and pains, demoniacs, epileptics, and paralytics, and he cured them.
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And great crowds followed him from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and from beyond the Jordan.

5
When Jesus
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saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him.
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Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

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

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“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

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“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

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“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

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“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

THE BEATITUDES

The expression “blessed are” (Gk
makarioi
) appears sixty-eight times in the LXX, usually for the Hebrew
ashrei
(“happy are …”; see, e.g., Ps 84.4, “Happy are those who live in your house, ever singing your praise.
Selah
”) known from the Jewish liturgy, where it introduces Ps 145. In terms of content as well, the Beatitudes draw upon scriptural precedent. For example, “Blessed are the poor in spirit” and “Blessed are those who mourn” may be dependent on Isa 61.1–3, which also speaks of the poor and those who mourn. “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth” is a near-quotation of Ps 37.11 (LXX 36.11; see also LXX Isa 61.7). The Hebrew of the psalm speaks of inheriting the “land” (
’aretz)
, which should be taken as a reference to the land of Israel. The LXX and hence the New Testament reads
gē
, which could be translated as either “land” or “earth”; the reading of “earth” serves to de-Judaize Jesus by disconnecting him from any specific concern for the land of Israel. The concern for those who “hunger and thirst” evokes Ps 107.5–6,9 (see also Ps 22.26); LXX Prov 14.21 (LXX; see also LXX Prov 17.5) underlies the concern for the merciful. “Pure in heart” or “clean of heart” recalls Ps 24.3–6 (see also Ps 73.1), another reference to the land; it also echoes Ps 51.10 (Heb 51.12; LXX 50.12),
kardian katharan
in the Greek text of the Psalm and
katharoi tē kardia
in Matthew.

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“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

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“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

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“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 “Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely
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on my account.
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Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

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“You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot.

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“You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid.
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No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house.
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In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

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“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.
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For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter,
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not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished.
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Therefore, whoever breaks
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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.
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For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

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“You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not murder’; and ‘whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.’
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But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister,
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you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult
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a brother or sister,
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you will be liable to the council; and if you say, ‘You fool,’ you will be liable to the hell
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of fire.
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So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister
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has something against you,
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leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister,
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and then come and offer your gift.
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Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are on the way to court
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with him, or your accuser may hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison.
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Truly I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.