If you’ve ever cracked open a standard Bible to read the Sermon on the Mount, you probably met a lot of "thou shalts" and "blessed are the meeks." It’s poetic, sure. But for a lot of us, it feels like reading a legal brief from the year 1611. That is exactly why matthew 5 the message remains one of the most polarizing and popular pieces of modern spiritual writing.
Eugene Peterson, the guy behind The Message, wasn't trying to rewrite the Bible to be "cool" for the sake of it. He was a pastor who realized his congregation was bored. They were nodding off during the most radical speech in human history. So, he took the original Greek and essentially asked, "How would Jesus say this if He were standing on a street corner in 21st-century Chicago or London?"
The result is... jarring. It’s gritty.
Why the Beatitudes feel so different here
In traditional versions, the Beatitudes (the "Blessed are..." section) sound like a list of qualities you need to collect like Pokémon cards to get into heaven. But in matthew 5 the message, they read more like a rescue mission.
Take verse 3. Most Bibles say: "Blessed are the poor in spirit."
Peterson writes: "You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule."
See the difference? It’s not about being "pious." It’s about being exhausted. Honestly, "end of your rope" is a feeling most of us understand way better than "poor in spirit." Peterson is leaning into the idea that God shows up when we’ve run out of our own resources.
Then you’ve got verse 5. The "meek" inheriting the earth.
In The Message, it becomes: "You’re blessed when you’re content with just who you are—no more, no less."
That’s a massive shift in perspective. It moves the needle from "being a doormat" to "radical self-acceptance in God." It’s about not needing to perform or fake it. When you aren't busy trying to be someone else, you suddenly realize you already "own" everything that actually matters.
The salt and light "flavor"
One of the most famous parts of this chapter is the "Salt and Light" metaphor. You’ve heard it at a thousand weddings and graduations. But Peterson’s take in matthew 5 the message hits the "salt" metaphor from a culinary angle that makes a lot of sense.
He calls followers "salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth."
Think about that. Salt doesn't exist to make everything taste like salt; it exists to make the potato taste more like a potato. Peterson is arguing that a spiritual life shouldn't make you a weird, religious robot. It should make you more human. It should bring out the "flavors" of justice, joy, and community that are already supposed to be there.
He follows it up by saying, "God is not a secret to be kept." He compares a life of faith to a "city on a hill" and tells people to "keep open house; be generous with your lives." It’s less about "preaching at people" and more about being so vibrant that people can't help but notice.
The "angry" parts: When words kill
Jesus gets pretty intense later in the chapter. He starts talking about the law and murder. Most of us think, "Cool, I haven't killed anyone today, I'm doing great."
But matthew 5 the message shuts that down pretty fast.
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"Carelessly call a brother ‘idiot!’ and you just might find yourself hauled into court. Thoughtlessly yell ‘stupid!’ at a sister and you are on the brink of hellfire. The simple moral fact is that words kill."
That’s a gut punch. It’s way easier to avoid literal murder than it is to avoid calling someone an idiot in traffic. Peterson’s choice of words—idiot, stupid—brings the ancient weight of the "Sanhedrin" and "Gehenna" into the modern world of Twitter feuds and office gossip. He’s making the point that the "heart" of the law is about how we value other people, not just whether we follow the big rules.
Adultery and the "lust" problem
This is a section where people often get tripped up. Traditional translations talk about "plucking out your eye" if it causes you to sin. It’s hyperbolic and scary.
In The Message, Peterson frames it around the integrity of relationships. He talks about how "looking at a woman with lust" is essentially "doing it with your eyes." He uses the phrase "all lust, no love" to describe the emptiness of objectifying others.
Is it a "perfect" translation? No. Scholars like to point out that it's a paraphrase. That’s a big distinction. A translation tries to go word-for-word or thought-for-thought from the original language. A paraphrase, like matthew 5 the message, is more like a commentary. It’s one man's very educated "retelling" of the story.
Some people hate it. They think it’s too casual. They think calling God’s law a "vast panorama" instead of "the Law and the Prophets" loses the Jewish context. And they aren't entirely wrong. If you’re doing a deep-dive word study on the Greek word dikaiosyne, you shouldn't use The Message. You need an ESV or a NASB for that.
But if you want to feel the punch of what Jesus was saying? If you want to be unsettled by how radical His ideas were? The Message is incredible for that.
Turning the other cheek (The "slap" heard 'round the world)
The end of Matthew 5 contains the hardest teachings: love your enemies, turn the other cheek, give away your coat.
Peterson renders verse 39 like this: "If someone slaps you in the face, stand there and take it."
He doesn't sugarcoat the difficulty. He describes "loving your enemies" as a way of "living out your God-created identity." Basically, anyone can love someone who is nice to them. That’s easy. But to "respond with energies of prayer" for people who are out to get you? That’s what makes you look like God.
It’s about "living generously" rather than "living defensively."
How to actually use this text
Don't just read matthew 5 the message once and put it away. It’s designed to be chewed on. Because it’s written in common language, it can slip past your "religious filters" and actually make you think.
Here is how to get the most out of it:
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- Compare it. Read a verse in a literal translation (like the KJV or ESV) and then read it in The Message. The contrast usually highlights a nuance you missed.
- Focus on the verbs. Peterson loves active language. Notice how often he uses words like "climb," "shine," and "cooperate."
- Check your "inside world." One of the best lines in his version of the Beatitudes is: "You're blessed when you get your inside world—your mind and heart—put right."
Actionable Next Steps
- Audit your "saltiness": This week, look at your interactions. Are you bringing out the "God-flavors" in your workplace or family, or are you just blending into the background?
- The "Idiot" Challenge: Try to go 24 hours without using dismissive or dehumanizing language (like "idiot" or "stupid") toward anyone, including yourself or that guy who cut you off in traffic.
- Practice "Open House": Peterson talks about being generous with your life. Find one small way to be "as public as a city on a hill" by helping someone without expecting a "thank you" or a social media shout-out.
- Sit with the "End of Your Rope": If you’re feeling overwhelmed right now, re-read verse 3. Instead of trying to "fix" your spiritual poverty, just acknowledge it. According to this text, that's exactly where the blessing starts.
Ultimately, matthew 5 the message isn't meant to be the final word on the Bible. It’s meant to be a fresh word. It’s a tool to help you hear an old story as if it’s being told to you for the very first time.