Matthew 5:1-2: "And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying...."

Luke 6:17, 20: "And he came down with them, and stood in the plain, and the company of his disciples, and a great multitude of people...came to hear him.. And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples and said..."

Was this sermon on a mountain, or on a plain? And just what was its content? Matthew and Luke appear to vary.

In terms of place, the Greek in Matthew is to be interpreted as referring not to "on a mountain" but "in mountain country" - it is a regional rather than a specific reference.

The issue of content is also easy to explain. When reckoning with any teaching of Jesus that appears in more than one gospel, one should observe the dictum that Jesus taught these same basic things, in slightly different forms, perhaps hundreds of times. As long as the basic message is intact, it matters not at all which "version" is recorded.

At the same time, Matthew's structure is as a "teaching" gospel, a manual with a structure designed with education in mind. Matthew has clearly designed the Sermon on the Mount as a compendium (which his readers, seeing the structure of his Gospel, would recognize), rather than as a straight historical report (like Luke's version would be expected to be, as he is reporting in the Hellenistic historiographic tradition).

Keener's commentary on Matthew explains:
> ...[A]ncient writers exercised the freedom to rearrange sayings, often topically. Writers who collected such sayings summarizing the thrust of a famous teacher's message (such as Epictetus' Encheiridion, Menander's epitome, or the Qumran Temple Scroll) called their collections "epitomes"; Matthew has exercised an analogous literary liberty, collecting many of Jesus' sayings on the topic of ethics, even if the precise comparison with Greek "epitomes" may be overstated.

Keener notes as well that rabbinic collections of sayings could vary on details just as the two sermon "versions" could. There is no need to resort to any other harmonizations, such as that Jesus said the same things twice, varying them by saying them once in the third person and the other in the first person.

In the introductory comments to Jesus’ oft’-quoted sermon recorded in Matthew chapters 5-7, the first verse sets the stage for His “astonishing teachings.” Matthew indicates that “seeing the multitudes,” Jesus “went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him” (emp. added). When Luke gives the setting for Jesus’ masterful sermon, he says that Jesus “came down with them and stood on a level place” (emp. added). The question that has been asked by many people is why Matthew recorded Jesus preaching this sermon from a mountain, while Luke said it was while He stood on a level place. Could Matthew or Luke have made a legitimate geographical error here, or is there a reasonable explanation for the difference that exists?

First of all, for these passages to be contradictory one must assume the two sermons were delivered at the same place and at the same time. But, as H. Leo Boles stated in his commentary on Luke, this sermon “may have been repeated a number of times and Luke gives a record of the sermon which was repeated at some later time than the record given by Matthew” (1940, p. 134). It is more than possible that Jesus repeated His teachings on various occasions. He easily could have preached the beatitudes in Capernaum as well as in Cana. He could have taught the model prayer in both Bethany and Bethsaida. Who are we to say that Jesus preached the principles and commands found in Matthew 5-7 only once? There are some men today who travel to a different city nearly every week preaching the same sermons—and do so effectively. Could Jesus not have done something similar?

A more likely solution to this geographical “problem” is simply to understand that Matthew and Luke were referring to the same sermon, and that Jesus was preaching it while being both on a mountain and on a “plain” (KJV) at the same time. The word “plain” (tópou pedinoú) simply means “ level place” (Wycliffe, 1985), and is translated thusly in nearly all modern versions of the Bible. Since a mountain can have level places on it, no one can assert logically that Matthew 5:1 and Luke 6:17 are contradictory. I have been to the top of a mountain in Anchorage, Alaska, that is so level it is known as “Flattop Mountain.” To say Jesus stood on a level place on a mountain is no oxymoron.

Luke 6:17
—Why does Luke say Jesus gave this sermon on a level place when Matthew declares it was given on the mountain?
Problem:
Luke affirms that Jesus “stood on a level place” when He gave this famous sermon, but Matthew says “He went up on a mountain” to deliver it (
Matt. 5:1
). How can this discrepancy be resolved?
Solution:
Granted that the two accounts are referring to the same event (see comments on
Luke 6:20
below), they can be reconciled by noting that the mountain only refers to the
general area
where everyone was, while the level place denotes the
particular spot
from which Jesus spoke. It says “He
stood
on a level place.” It does not say all the people were
seated
in a level place. A level place from which to preach to a multitude on a mountain side would make a natural amphitheater.

Luke 6:17
—Why does Luke say Jesus stood to teach them when Matthew declares that He sat to teach them?
Problem:
Luke says that Jesus “stood on a level place” to preach. But Matthew recorded that “when He was seated ... He opened His mouth and taught them” (
Matt. 5:1–2
).
Solution:
These references may be of slightly different times during the same event. One possibility is that Matthew’s reference is to the beginning of the event when “His disciples came to Him ... and [He] taught them” (
Matt. 5:1–2
). Then when the “great multitude [that] followed Him” gathered to listen in, Jesus would naturally want to stand to project His voice so that all could hear, as Luke records.
Another possibility is that Luke’s reference to Jesus’ standing is before He gave the sermon while He is still healing people (
Luke 6:17–19
). Then, since “the whole multitude sought to touch Him” Jesus may have found a place to sit where “He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples and said ... [His message]” (
6:20
). This fits the order given in Luke and would also explain why Matthew declares that Jesus was sitting when He spoke to His disciples. In any event, there is no irreconcilable difference in the two accounts, even assuming they both refer to the same occasion.

Problem: This text states distinctly that “without a parable He [Jesus] did not speak to them.” However, Jesus gave His whole Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5–7) without a single parable in it.

Solution: There are two qualifying factors that must be noted, one of which is stated and another implied. First, Matthew 13:34 states that Jesus spoke these things “to the multitude,” whereas the Sermon on the Mount was given to His “disciples” (Matt. 5:1–2; cf. Luke 6:20), even though the multitudes apparently listened in (cf. Matt. 7:28). What is more, Jesus’ statement may have only a reference to what He was doing at that time, not on every occasion. It does not say that He always and on every occasion spoke to a crowd only in parables. However, this interpretation is possible, since we have only a limited record of what Jesus spoke (cf. John 21:25).

Did Jesus knowingly, purposefully lie to the Jews?

- John 18:20, “I spoke openly to the world, I always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where the Jews always meet, and in secret, I have said nothing.”

- Matt. 5:1-2, “And when He saw the multitudes, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. 2 And opening His mouth He began to teach them…”

- Matt. 13:1-3, “On that day Jesus went out of the house, and was sitting by the sea. 2 And great multitudes gathered to Him so that He got into a boat and sat down, and the whole multitude was standing on the beach. 3 And He spoke many things to them in parables, saying…”

In John 18:20 He said that He always taught in synagogues and the Temple,
but we know that He also spoke on a mountain (Matt. 5:1-2), a boat (Matt. 13:1-3), and other places. So, was Jesus lying? No, He wasn’t lying.

The supposed problem rests on the definition of “always.” Does it mean “without exception” since this is the only sense in which the supposed contradiction can stand?

The word “always” in John 18:20 is pantote. It occurs 42 times in the Greek New Testament and has several different meanings depending on the context. Following are some of its usages:

- It can mean without exception.

Jesus is always with Christians, (Matt. 28:20).

- Jesus always did that which pleases the Father, (John 8:29).

- The Father always hears the Son, (John 11:42).

- It can mean frequently.

A son always with his father, (Luke 15:31).

- “men ought always to pray,” (Luke 18:1).

- “always abounding in the work of the Lord,” (1 Cor. 15:58).

- “Giving thanks always for all things,” (Eph. 5:20).

- “I thank my God . . . Always in every prayer,” (Phil. 1:3).

- “praying always for you,” (Col. 1:3).

- “Rejoice evermore,” (1 Thess. 5:16).

- Other.

“everymore give us this bread,” (John 6:34).

- “your time is always opportune,” (John 7:6).

Therefore, the alleged contradiction rests on saying that the use of the word by Jesus meant “always” in the sense of “without exception.” But how can this be demonstrated to be the case? It cannot, especially since the word is used by Jesus to mean ‘frequently’ as in Luke 15:31 and 18:1. It is also used by Paul in the same sense in 1 Cor. 15:58; Eph. 5:20; Phil. 1:3; Col. 1:3; 1 Thess. 5:16.

It is common in discussions and assertions to try to make a point by using exaggeration. wife says to her husband, “You never listen to me.” Does she mean he “never in any case” hears what she says? Of course not. Consider the statement, “You always exaggerate things.” Haven’t we all used phrases like this to make a point, not meaning for it to be taken literally? Of course, we have, but does it mean we are purposely lying? No. We are exaggerating to make a point.

Jesus did this in John 12:8 when He said, “the poor you always have with you…” He was speaking to the disciples along with Lazarus and Martha. He used the word “always” in the sense of the poor being generally with them, not literally with them. Was Jesus lying there? No, He was using the word as we all do sometimes.

Also, the Jewish way of speaking back then was a bit different from ours now. Consider Mark 4:10, “And as soon as He was alone, His followers, along with the twelve, began asking Him about the parables.” How could Jesus be “alone,” and yet His disciples were also with Him? Simple, the Ancient Jews spoke differently from what we do. Therefore, it isn’t fair to impose our linguistic patterns on them in such cases and assert contradictions or lying on the part of Jesus.

So, the claim of a contradiction cannot be sustained since the word pantote has different meanings in different contexts, and it cannot be asserted that Jesus only meant the literal usage in John 18:20, especially since He often used the word in a non-literal sense.

# The Setting of the Sermon on the Mount: Up or Down the Mountain?

Did Jesus go up or down the mountain to deliver the Sermon?

The Gospel of Matthew indicates Jesus “went up on a mountain” before preaching the famous Sermon on the Mount. Meanwhile, the Gospel of Luke reveals that Jesus “came down” before delivering His message. Furthermore, Matthew notes that Jesus “was seated” before teaching, while Luke states that Jesus “stood on a level place.” How can both accounts be reconciled?

> And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. Then He opened His mouth and taught them... (Matthew 5:1–2)

> Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray... And He came down with them and stood on a level place with a crowd of His disciples and a great multitude of people... Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples, and said... (Luke 6:12–20)

The Harmonization

The ancient Christian exegetes have long observed that these accounts are easily harmonized by looking closely at the movements described.

Luke provides specific details about Christ’s activities the night before the sermon. “He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God” (Luke 6:12). In the morning, Jesus called His followers and came down the mountain to a "level place" on the mountainside to preach.

Matthew provides a broader summary. He simply notes that Jesus “went up on a mountain.” Jesus had gone up to the higher peaks to pray, and then descended to a plateau—a level place on the mountain—to accommodate the large crowds. Therefore, He was still on the mountain (Matthew), but had come down to a level area (Luke).

Regarding His posture: Luke states that Jesus stood while healing the multitude, which may have taken some time (Luke 6:17-19). Following the healings, as was the common practice among Jewish teachers of the day, He sat down to deliver the formal teaching of the sermon, which Matthew accurately records (Matthew 5:1).

The accounts are fully compatible: Jesus ascended the mountain to pray, descended to a level plateau to heal the crowds while standing, and then sat down to teach them the Sermon on the Mount.