Commentary - Matthew 7:13-14

Bird's-eye view

In this famous conclusion to the main body of the Sermon on the Mount, the Lord Jesus presents His hearers with a stark and unavoidable choice. There are two gates, two ways, two crowds, and two destinations. This is not a passage about the various religious options available to mankind in general, as though Jesus were just another prophet setting up his booth in the world's parliament of religions. This is the King of Israel, having laid out the constitution of His kingdom, now calling for a decision from His subjects. The choice is between the constricted way of life in His kingdom and the broad, easy way that leads to destruction.

The popular modern reading of this text often falls into a kind of grim and pinched moralism, as though the Christian life were about squeezing into a tiny, unpleasant space for the sake of a future reward. But this is to misunderstand the Lord entirely. The narrowness of the gate is the narrowness of truth itself. It is exclusive, yes, but it is not constricting in a suffocating way. As we will see, this narrow gate opens up into a vast and glorious kingdom. The broad way, in contrast, offers the illusion of freedom but is in fact a cattle chute to destruction, populated by a vast multitude.

Outline

Context In Matthew

Jesus delivers these words at the climax of the Sermon on the Mount. He has just spent three chapters describing the nature of true righteousness, contrasting it with the external and hypocritical righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. This is not, therefore, an abstract ethical discourse. It is a covenantal summons. The immediate context is first-century Israel. Jesus is speaking to Jews who were living under the Mosaic covenant, a covenant that had become encrusted with man-made traditions. The "broad way" was the conventional, mainstream religious path of their day, which looked righteous on the outside but was leading the nation toward the destruction that would befall it in A.D. 70.

When Jesus speaks of the "narrow gate" and the "few" who find it, He is not laying down a permanent demographic reality for all of church history. He is speaking about the remnant of Israel in His own generation that would receive Him as Messiah. That remnant was a "little flock." But through that narrow gate, the kingdom would explode, and the Gentiles would come streaming in, turning the "few" into a multitude that no man can number (Rev. 7:9). This passage must be read with this redemptive-historical shift in mind. The narrow gate for first-century Judaism became the gateway for the nations to enter the kingdom.

Key Issues

Commentary

Matthew 7:13

“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it."

Enter through the narrow gate; The imperative is direct. A choice must be made. This is not a suggestion for self-improvement. It is a command from the King. To "enter" implies a definitive action, a crossing of a threshold. This is the call to repentance and faith. It is a call to leave one place and enter another. The gate is Christ Himself. "I am the door," He says in John 10:9. There is no other entrance into the kingdom of God. All attempts to climb over the wall are forms of theft.

for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, The alternative is presented first. It is the default option. It is the path of least resistance. The gate is "wide," meaning it requires no particular conviction, no self-denial, no turning from sin. You can bring all your baggage with you. The way is "broad," accommodating every kind of opinion, lifestyle, and idolatry. It is the way of pluralism, of tolerance for everything except the narrow gate. This is the superhighway of humanity left to its own devices. And notice where it leads: to destruction. This is not simply annihilation, but ruin, the utter loss of all that makes a life worthwhile, culminating in the final judgment.

and there are many who enter through it. This is a simple statement of fact. Most people are on this road. It is the popular choice. It is the path of the crowd, the consensus, the majority opinion. If you determine your course by looking around to see what everyone else is doing, you will find yourself on this road. The Christian is called to be a salmon, swimming against the current.

Matthew 7:14

"For the gate is narrow and the way is constricted that leads to life, and there are few who find it."

For the gate is narrow The contrast is sharp. The gate that leads to life is "narrow." Why? Because truth is narrow. Two plus two equals four; it does not equal anything else. The gate is narrow because it is a person, Jesus Christ. It requires you to stoop, to lay down your pride, your self-righteousness, and your idols. You cannot enter this gate while still clinging to your sin. It is a gate of repentance. It is not narrow because God is stingy, but because He is holy.

and the way is constricted The word here means afflicted, or troubled. It is a path of discipline, of discipleship. It is not an easy road. It is the way of the cross. Jesus told us to take up our cross daily. This does not mean it is a miserable way. It is the way that leads to life, but it is a way that involves tribulation, persecution, and the constant mortification of sin. It is constricted because it is defined by God's Word, not by our feelings or preferences. We are constrained by the truth.

that leads to life, This is the destination. The broad way leads to ruin, but this constricted way leads to life, not just eternal life in the future, but abundant life, true life, here and now. This is the paradox. The way that seems broad and free leads to the prison of destruction, while the way that seems constricted and narrow leads to the glorious liberty of the children of God. The narrow way opens out into a wide expanse of life. It is not a divine broom closet, but a glorious mountain valley.

and there are few who find it. Again, we must read this in its immediate context. Jesus was speaking to a nation that was, by and large, rejecting Him. Only a remnant of Israel in that generation would "find" this way. It is not that the way is hidden, but that men, blinded by their sin and pride, do not see it. They stumble over the stumbling stone. But as I noted earlier, this demographic reality was not intended to be permanent. The "few" became the seed of a great harvest, and the gospel went out to the Gentiles, bringing in a number that is not few at all. The kingdom of God is like a mustard seed, the smallest of seeds, that grows into the largest of trees.

Application

The summons of this text is perennial. Every generation, and every individual, stands before these two gates. The temptation is always to redefine the narrow gate, to try to widen it just a little bit. We want to make it more accommodating, more inclusive, less offensive to the modern mind. We want a Christ who makes suggestions, not a King who issues commands. This is the essence of all theological liberalism, and it is the spirit of the broad way.

The broad way is the way of "easy believism," where salvation is a transaction that costs you nothing. It is a decision for Christ that requires no subsequent discipleship. But Jesus here makes it plain that the gate is narrow and the way is constricted. To enter is to submit to His lordship over every square inch of your life. It is not a one-time prayer, but a lifetime of walking a particular path.

But we must not end on a note of grim duty. The narrow way is the way of life. It is the path of true joy, true freedom, and true human flourishing. The world on the broad road thinks it is free, but it is enslaved to its passions and marching toward destruction. The Christian on the narrow road might face affliction, but he is walking toward life, and he is walking with the King. The choice is stark, but it is not a choice between misery and fun. It is a choice between death and life.