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Matthew 5:9Sermon on the Mount
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.
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Interpretation

Jesus teaches a peacemakers that is worked out in concrete decisions in Matthew 5:9—look for "blessed" and "peacemakers". Choose peacemakers with time and attention—bind joy to obedience.

Context

Matthew speaks here as gospel narrative writing, developing peacemakers. Read in Matthew 5, its force becomes clearer. Listen for “blessed” alongside “peacemakers”.

Authorship & Historical Background

Early sources associate Matthew with Matthew the disciple (a former tax collector). Critical study of Matthew often concludes: Anonymous in earliest copies; attributed to Matthew in later tradition; reflects Mark and a sayings source.. Scholars commonly date Matthew AD 80–90. Matthew seems aimed at Jewish‑Christian community.. The setting is the Sermon on the Mount (gospel narrative). Five discourse blocks echo Torah scaffolding. Catechetical structure appears in the discourse blocks.

More details
Traditional:Matthew the tax collector
Modern scholarship:Anonymous; attributed to Matthew; uses Mark + Q source.
Date:AD 80–90
Audience:Jewish‑Christian community.
Manuscripts & Textual Witnesses
The Greek text is preserved in more than 5,800 manuscripts, exceeding other ancient writings in manuscript count. 2nd-3rd century papyri like P46, P66, P75 provide text roughly 100-150 years after composition. Major uncial codices (Sinaiticus, Vaticanus, 4th century) contain complete or near-complete texts. The Byzantine text family represents the majority of later manuscripts. Textual variants exist but are mostly minor: word order, articles, spelling. No central Christian doctrine depends on any disputed text. Modern critical editions compare all manuscript families to determine the best reflects the earliest recoverable text reading.
Sources & witness notes
SinaiticusVaticanusP46