Bible Students

Introduction and Observations

The Beatitudes are one of Christianity’s most quoted idealics. They take place during Christ’s “Sermon on the Mount,” a three-chapter-long sermon given by Jesus at the beginning of His ministry. This event, recorded in both Matthew and Luke, occurs shortly after Jesus calls His first disciples and begins to gain a following. After His explosive arrival on the first-century scene, He takes His disciples up the Mount of Olives to teach them about the Kingdom of God. In the Beatitudes, “blessed” in Latin, Christ lists eight characteristics of the followers of God and the blessings that follow those who manifest them. 

Matthew 5:1-12 will be in special focus here. Jesus’ first sermon regards eight different character traits of His followers, while repeating the eighth characteristic for special application. These blessings are formulaic in writing style, and will be listed as such. These are the eight characteristic traits and their blessings: The poor in spirit will inherit the kingdom of heaven; Those who mourn will be comforted; The meek shall inherit the earth; Those who desire righteousness will be fulfilled; The merciful will be shown mercy; The pure of heart will see God; The peacemakers will be called children of God; Those who are persecuted will inherit the kingdom of heaven. Each of these eight characteristics will be discussed.

It is important to note a few peculiar observations in order to have proper interpretation. Firstly, meekness may have an augmented meaning today, as opposed to its original meaning. Also, why do some inherit heaven while others inherit earth? Do Christians really desire true justice if they are deserving of it? In the case of the merciful, does this show works salvation? Who truly is pure, and how could they see an immaterial God? Why are there two sections about those who are persecuted. These questions will be answered throughout this Scriptural investigation. 

Interpretation and Rebuttles

The Poor in Spirit

Firstly, it is important to define what blessed means. The Greek term for blessed refers to someone who is singularily favored by God, and then given reward or blessings. It is also important to define what poor in spirit means. The poor in spirit are humble before God. They know their own sin and acknowledge their need for Him. They are not wise in their own eyes, but instead know their shortcomings and humbly come before God. These humble people will enjoy the reign of the Messiah most, as they understand their need for Him. To be poor can also mean to voluntarily “empty” oneself of their own spirit, and be “filled” with Christ’s spirit. 

There is a supposed textual critique here. While Matthew has “poor in spirit,” Luke only records “poor.” This may cause some to believe there is a discrepancy between the Gospels, however, there is clear spiritual connotations in both the Old and New Testaments regarding the poor. It would make some sense for Christ to be referring to the poor here, for what they lack on earth they will gain in heaven. However, this makes no sense apart from the spiritual connotations. A poor person who hates God will inherit only gnashing of teeth, while even a rich person who loves God will inherit heaven. 

Those Who Mourn

Similarily to those who are poor in spirit, those who mourn are likely not those who mourn over carnal things. There is undeniable spiritual overtones to this blessing. A person who mourns over carnal lusts will not be comforted by God, for their carnal lusts either in heaven or hell will never return favorably to them. However, under the context of spiritual mourning, this blessing makes much sense. 

It is those who mourn over sin, unrighteousness, and a broken world who will be comforted. These people are more concerned about their sin and the brokenness of the world than much of anything else, and for that they will be comforted. In fact, this blessing creates a flow from the first. Those who empty themselves of their carnality and fill themselves with Christ should be expected to mourn over sin. The mind of Christ in a Christian views all of their sin as loss, and all of the suffering of the world as something that could be avoided. The poor in spirit is a friend to mourning, for they hold it close to their heart. 

It is also possible that this mourning is over the state of Israel, who were once God’s chosen people, and these mourners will be comforted upon Christ’s return and the restoration of national Israel as God’s chosen people. I would push back against this idea, however, as I believe the lack of context shows this concept must be applied to a much broader kind of mourning, and not to mourning over only one kind of brokenness.

The Meek

Meek is a characteristic not often used to describe people in modern culture. Biblical meekness is often thought to be the attribute of one who is patient and longsuffering in spirit and character. Because the meek are kingdom-minded, they are able to put up with worldly troubles. Meekness follows the logical progression of the blessings. When someone puts on Christ’s spirit and mourns over their own sin, they are patient with the world around them. Meekness requires true humility and recognition of one’s own sin. To be meek is to have control over oneself, not lashing out in anger or frustration, but rather being a gentle spirit. 

Because Christ notes that the meek shall inherit the earth, many commentators have suggested they will rule with Christ during the millineal reign. It is true that in order to rule properly, a king must be meek towards his people. He must be patient and kind, treating his subjects with humility and self-control. Some may push back, though there does not seem to be much biblical evidence against this concept. It is clear that this passage does not speak of a current rule on earth by the meek. The kingdom of Satan does not have need for the meek ones of God. Worldly power accomplishes terrible things in positions of power and steamrolls over those who are not wolves. The millineal reign, however, is not like this. There will be no opposition to Christ’s kingdom, and the self-controlled and gentle will rule the earth in love and humility.

Those who Hunger and Thirst for Righteousness

Following next in the list of admirable traits is the thirst and hunger for righteousness. Those who fill themselves with Christ and mourn over their sin are drawn into action as they treat others meekly and hunger for righteousness. However, should a Christian desire righteousness if they too are deserving of it? This passage seems to suggest otherwise. The righteousness at hand is not necessarily the condemnation of the wicked, but rather personal righteousness, and ultimately the restoration of heaven and earth. In fact, this is supplimented by the next blessing on those who are merciful. 

To put on Christ’s spirit and be filled with Him is to share one mind with God. God’s desire is for righteousness to be renewed and for the conection between heaven and earth to be restored. Like God, though, the one who desires righteousness does not desire the death of the wicked. This would not make sense, given the biblical example God has set, namely through the prophets. It is clear that God does not delight in the death of the wicked, shown through His many attempts to bring nations to repentance and restoration in Him. This should be the same desire of Christians, who hate unrighteousness in themselves and desire restoration between humanity and the heavenly. 

The Merciful

Continuing in the line of traits of a Christian is mercy. When a Christian looks inwardly and desires righteousness, they are able to acknowledge their shortcomings and be merciful to others. Merciful people do not demand perfection from others in a hypocritical way, for they understand the practical impossibility of such an expectation. They pity those who are suffering, and treat them with grace. To be merciful is also to dely justice on the wicked. God has shown mercy throughout history through the prophets, who have delayed His righteous judgment until a time of national repentance. Likely the best example of God’s mercy is in the book of Jonah. Jonah is called to preach repentance to Nineveh, a powerful national rival to Israel. They were extremely wicked, but God desired to delay His justice so that the people could repent. That is true mercy.

On a first read, the blessing of being shown mercy may be confusing. Some may come to the conclusion that this refers to salvific grace. The same conclusion is also made regarding the Lord’s prayer. However, the promises of mercy for the merciful seem to apply best in the context of rewards in heaven. Those who show mercy on earth will be shown mercy for their wicked deeds and will be judged less harshly for them when rewards are given. Those who do not show mercy will be judged more harshly for their wicked deeds. John writes in I John that is a person has experienced the love of God, they will in turn express the love of God to others. In this same manner, those who have experienced the mercy of God will express the mercy of God to those around them. 

The Pure in Heart

To be pure in heart is to be contrary to the Pharisees. Unlike the hypocritical ways of the first century religious leaders, those who are pure in heart are obedient to God even in their thoughts. Not only do their outward actions obey Him, but their desires and wants are lined up with God’s and are untainted by the world. To be undefiled in one’s heart also is to be free from doublemindedness, a concept visited by James. James writes that a doubleminded person should not expect to have his prayers answered by God, for he is tossed like the waves of the sea. He believes one moment that God has the power to grant prayers, and the next that He does not. This kind of person is corrupt in all of their ways. 

True religion, to be pure in heart, is also spoken of by James. He writes that true religion is to look after widows and orphans in their suffering and to keep oneself pure from the world. This includes two different kinds of expressed religion. The first, to look after the helpless, is to be pure in motive (heart). The second, to keep oneself untainted from the world, is to be pure in being (heart). Thus, both of these ideas are encapsulated in the idea of being pure in heart. One should be pure in motive and pure in being. 

The Peacemakers

A peacemaker is the last trait of a Christian that is self-controlled. Peacemakers use their influence to promote love and community for the kingdom, both inside and outside the Christian congregation, and do not promote division amongst the body. In fact, Paul writes in Romans that love (peaceful uniting of God’s people) is the fulfillment of the Law. Disciples of God are to be marked with a love for peace. In Ephesians, the last pieces of the armor of God are the sandals of peace of the gospel. They cover the feet of those who go into the world spreading peace thorugh the spreading of the gospel, similarily to what is shown here. 

This is not to say that Christians should only promote unity and destroy division. There are biblical examples of proper division. For example, in I Corinthians Paul tells the church to remove a certain member from their congregation for commiting awful unrepentant sin. There is a place for division when there is unrepentant sin, but this should not be the first course of action. In Matthew, Jesus gives the model for proper church discipline (dividing amongst the congregation). He says to go to the unrepentant person alone first, then if they do not repent go with a group, and then finally go in front of the congregation. Only after these three attempts should a person be removed from the church. Even then, the removal is so that they will understand the effects of their sin and the community they wish to be a part of (the world), and ultimately so that they would be saved and brought back into the congregation. A Christian should desire this reconnection and not desire division.

Now, the blessing on the peacemakers may be confusing. The phrase “they will be called sons of God” should not be confused with “they will become sons of God.” Because Christians should be marked with a desire for unity, they will “bear the family resemblance” and be called children of God by others who see the similarity between the child and their Father. If a Christian’s desire is to be made in the image of Christ, then to be called a child of God because of the resemblance is the ultimate compliment and blessing. 

The Persecuted

To be persecuted is not a controllable outcome, but usually follows the true expression of the previous seven traits. It is also likely no accident that there are seven traits (and one effect of these traits), as seven has biblical signifigance. The Christians who actively live out their faith will be laughed at, mocked, and possibly attacked. Though this seems like a strange idea in the West, this is an all-too common reality in other countries. However, a Christian should not be discouraged by persecution. In fact, James writes that we should have joy in trials, because trials create endurance, and endurance creates maturity. A mature Christian is one that will inherit the kingdom of heaven in the most full sense. This maturity is in line with those who are poor in spirit. To be mature (and to be poor in spirit) is to know your own situation and to sit in Christ’s shadow. This maturity causes one to inherit the kingdom of heaven. When one expresses the seven Christian traits, they will be persecuted, and then more fully express those traits. It seems persecution and expression of Christ-like traits go hand-in-hand and promote the growth of one another. 

Application and Conclusion

What section of Scripture could be more simply applied? As you go into the world, empty yourself of your own spirit. In humility, fill yourself with the spirit of God. Once you have done this, you are able to mourn over your own sin. Humility brings recognition of shortcomings. This mourning causes meekness, a humble response to others. To know yourself is to be gentle to others. With maturity comes an inward desire for righteousness, both in yourself and in the world. Though there is desire for righteousness, mercy delays damning justice from being served. The pure in heart then are those who have matured to be separate from the world, though they are still in it. When those things are expressed, they expose the sin of the world, and bring persecution upon the head that expresses them. Empty yourself, fill yourself with Christ, and be full of humility. This kind of love is the fulfillment of the Law.

Bibliography

J. C. Ryle, Matthew: Expository Thoughts on the Gospels (Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 1993).

Kenneth L. Barker, eds John R. Kolenberger III, The Zondervan NIV Bible Commentary (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Corporation, 1994).

Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible (Hendrickson Publishers, 1991).

William Macdonald, Believer’s Bible Commentary (Nashville, Tennessee: Thomas Nelson, 1993).