and a great number of the people from all Judjea,' etc. (v."). Having described the cures, which in Mt. preceded the ascent of the mountain, he says, ' And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said,' etc. — here commencing his version of the great Sermon. Thus in Lk. this is delivered to the hrst of the two groups, the disciples in distinction from the crowd, as in Mt. Moreover, the use of the 2nd person in the Lukan version of the Beatitudes evidently indicates disciples — a fact which the apos- trophe of the absent rich does not nullify ; because in each case a specific class, not the mixed multitude, is contemplated. As we proceed witli the Sermon, this fact repeatedly emerges. It is only to His own disciples that Jesus could say, ' Ye are the salt of the earth ' . . . ' Ye are the light of the world ' (Mt 5^^- ^*). It is no objection that towards the end of the discourse Jesus says, ' Not every one that saith unto me. Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven,' etc. (7"M, and concludes with the parable of the Two Foundations, because tliese warnings might well be needetl by many disciples. There was a traitor even among the Twelve. We are not to conclude, however, that these disciples consisted only of the Apostles. St. Luke had expressly said that ' there was a great multitude of his disciples ' (Lk 6") present on this occasion.
In Lk. (6'^) the Sermon follows the choosing and appointment of the AjDostles ; and this fact has led some to regard it as 'the charge to the Twelve.' But in Mt. there is no description of the choice of the Apostles, and they are not especially associated M'ith the Sermon. In both Gospels the introduc- tion of the Sermon introduces a much larger audi- ence. All the genuine 'hearers of the word,' all who expressly sought out Jesus and set themselves to learn of Him, are included in the comprehensive group of 'disciples.' Still the audience was virtu- ally confined to this group. The Sermon was for disciples, not for the world at large. It may be pointed out, on the other hand, that while the introduction to the Sermon in both Gospels has this indication, the comments which follow it in each case seem to point to the general public. Thus in Mt 7^* it is .said, ' And it came to pass, Avhen Jesus ended these words, the m^dtitudes were astonished at his teaching,' etc., and in Lk 7^ ' After he had ended all his sayings in the ears of i\\e people.^ Tiie language, however, is indefinite in both cases and perhaps not specially considered, for no emphasis is here laid on the nature of the hearers, as was the case in the introductory descrip- tions.
5. Purpose and character. — The purpose of the Sermon on the Mount can be understood only when account is taken of the audience to which it was addressed. Since this audience consisted of disciples and not the public, we must read the discourse as an ethical directory for Christians. Therefore the question as to whether its precepts can be embodied in the laws of the State is irrele- vant. A group of Galihiean jieasants in a province of the Roman Empire had nothing whatever to do with the business of legislation ; and even in con- templation of the future spread of Christianity it could not have been the intention of Christ that principles which He desired to see working outward from the heart should be imposed upon a com- munity by force with the external authority of tlie magistrate. But while it is a mistsike to regard tlie Sermon on the Mount as a model for civil and criminal law, on the other hand it would be an error to abandon its ideal in favour of a lower code of ethics even in the police courts. The disciple of Christ will always desire to see His will carried out ; but this does not mean that he is at liberty to force his Master's precepts on a society
612 SERMON" ON THE MOUNT
SERPENT
that is reluctant to obey them because it has not submitted to the authority from whicli they eman- ated. If Ave can look forward to a condition in which the State is effectually Christianized, then we shall have a society in which the magistrate is not needed ; that is to say, the removal of the conditions which now prevent the Sermon on the Mount being applied in the police court will abolish the police court itself as an anachronism. Therefore we must view the Sermon on the Mount as primarily aiming at the direction of the conduct of Christians in their personal behaviour as indi- viduals and members of a brotherhood. It has relations to the outside world in so far as Christian men and women have such relations. For instance, commands about love to enemies and kindness to persecutors are especially concerned with the conduct of Christians towards people who are not of their own fellowship. Still, it is the conduct of Christians only that is considered. These con- siderations should safeguard the interpreter against two other misapprehensions-: (1) It is an error to regard the Sermon on the Mount as the sum and substance of Christianity, and to condemn later developments as not of the essence of Christianity (Hatch, Harnack). We have no evidence that Jesus Christ intended to put His whole message into this one discourse. He is here discussing the ethics of the Kingdom of heaven. Elsewhere He treats of other features of the Kingdom. (2) Since this discourse lays down principles of conduct for discipleship, the discipleship must have been pre- viously established in other ways {e.g. denying self, taking up the cross, following Christ, turning and becoming as little children, etc., as elsewhere indicated by Jesus Christ).