An Exegesis of Matthew 5:3-16
Abstract
The paper will be divided into three sections. The
first (I), the introduction, will explore religion vs.
idolatry; a few interpretative assumptions regarding the New
Testament; explication of theological method and position of
the reader in the text; and finally a brief introduction to
Matthew's Gospel as a component of the New Testament canon
and as a work arising out of the context of first century
Judaism.
The second section (II) is the body of the paper:
exegesis of the text.
The third section (III) is an attempt to relate the text
to the context of American culture and politics on the cusp
of a new millennium, giving special attention to the reality
of the atomic Bomb.