Bible Study The Beatitudes

[Beetow]

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Much of our material for this topic is based upon a portion of the Sermon On The
Mount (Matt 5:1-7:29).

When I was a growing boy, the churches I attended typically recited some of the
beatitudes at the end of services but did so without going into detail. As a result,
Jesus' instructions meant nothing to me in a personal way. It was just more rote
drilled into my head like everything else I was taught back in those days.

I discovered later on that the beatitudes are not something to be admired; no,
they're something to be feared because according to Christ's testimony, as an
expert witness in all matters pertaining to piety; failure to be influenced by the
beatitudes will result in disaster.

● Matt 7:26-27 . . Everyone who listens to these words of mine but does not act on
them will be like a fool who built his house on sand. The rain fell, the floods came,
and the winds blew and buffeted the house; and it collapsed and was completely
ruined.
_

 

[Beetow]

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● Matt 5:3 . . Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

That's a fairly easy beatitude to analyze because it's taken from the old testament.

"But on this one will I look: on him who is of a poor and contrite spirit, and who
trembles at My word." (Isa 66:2)

People poor in spirit don't presume to approach God on their own terms; nor do
they take Him for granted; no, they approach Him with hat in hand as a serf
approaches a monarch. In other words: they don't complain about The Lord's
directions; instead, they go along with them.

People poor in spirit would never think of standing up to God and asserting their
independence; no, that's the attitude of a rich man, a powerful man, rather than
one that's been humbled by poverty and want.

It's almost beyond belief how some people react to God. In my lifetime I've met
more than I care to who regard The Lord as a rival, an opponent. When people like
that finally appear before Him in judgment; I seriously doubt they'll be inclined to
kneel or bow and talk to Him in soft respectful tones.

No: they will be indignant, assertive, loud, confrontational, insulted, and furious;
and they will argue vehemently, pointing out where it is actually He who is the one
in the wrong. At that time they will no doubt insist, as they do even now, that the
Bible's God has no clue about the meanings of peace, love, and understanding. And
of course they'll accuse Him of product liability for deliberately creating a species of
intelligent creatures with the capability to go bad and do terrible things.

When those kinds of people are brought up out of Hades to face justice at the Great
White Throne event per Rev 20:11-15, I suspect they will be shackled in body
chains and escorted by angelic corrections officers to prevent them from lunging at
the man appointed by God to pass judgment on their behavior.

● John 5:22 . . Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment
to the Son

● Acts 17:31 . . God has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in
righteousness through a man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all
by raising him from the dead.
_

 

[bramblewild]

People poor in spirit don't presume to approach God on their own terms; nor do
they take Him for granted; no, they approach Him with hat in hand as a serf
approaches a monarch. In other words: they don't complain about The Lord's
directions; instead, they go along with them.

People poor in spirit would never think of standing up to God and asserting their
independence; no, that's the attitude of a rich man, a powerful man, rather than
one that's been humbled by poverty and want.

I think I understand what you're saying, but I do want to maybe kick a bit against it.

For example, what about biblical examples such as Abraham, who seemed to bargain with God over Sodom? Or Moses, who did not take his initial call at the burning bush with good grace? Or what about when God told Moses to move aside so He could destroy the people, and Moses continued to pray for them, for God to be merciful to them, and that if God did this then it would send a bad message to the nations? Or someone like Jacob, who wrestled with God all night? When God told Ezekial to cook his food while burning human dung, Ezekial protested and God allowed him to use other fuel. And right at first, Peter struggled with the vision of the unclean animals, not wanting to kill them because they were unclean.

I don't think we can safely say those men were proud. What it may show is that God is open to some legitimate give-and-take, or at least is gracious when we may struggle with his commands. He was gracious even to a non-Hebrew like Naaman, who at first resisted Elisha's command for how he was to be healed.

 

[Beetow]

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● Matt 5:4 . . Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

* The Greek word translated "blessed" doesn't necessarily indicate the hand of God;
it just simply means fortunate, viz: possessing something worth having, e.g. a high
IQ, good looks, noble birth, lots of friends, the ability to read and write, courage,
beauty, etc.

The Greek word translated "mourn" means to grieve, i.e. in particular sorrow
resulting from loss.

I would say, first off, that it is blessed to be capable of mourning because there are
folks out there unable to feel loss due to a defect in their brain's amygdala
depriving them of normal emotional responses.

I would also say that Jesus is speaking to folks who fear their loss of loved ones
might be permanent. His later teachings about resurrection are an assurance that
the loss of loved ones unified with him is temporary. (cf. 1Thess 4:13-18)
_

 

[Beetow]

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● Matt 5:5 . . Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

This beatitude is another that comes from the Old Testament.

● Ps 37:10-11 . .For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt
diligently consider his place, and it shall not be. But the meek shall inherit the
earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

"blessed" is an ambiguous word. Depending upon the application, and/or the
context; it can mean fortunate, happy, favored, approved, venerated, contented,
honored, respected, successful, prosperous, praise-worthy, privileged, endowed,
and protected.

According to Christ, the meek are fortunate because it is they who shall inherit, not
Heaven, rather, the Earth: that's an important distinction.

Why won't they inherit Heaven? Because, as every instructed Israelite already knew
in Christ's day; the long-anticipated theocratic kingdom won't be up in the celestial
regions; but rather, down here on the ground, headquartered in Jerusalem; whose
monarch will be one of David's sons; better known in the old testament as The
Branch and/or the Sprig of Jesse.

So then, among the Israelites; who qualifies as meek? Well; Moses was meek (Num
12:3) and Christ was meek (Matt 11:29, Matt 21:5). Personally I wouldn't
categorize either of those two Israelite men as meek. So then, what really is
meekness?

The Greek word translated "meek" in the third beatitude basically means mild.

Webster's defines "mild" as gentle in nature or behavior; viz: temperate; in other
words: agreeable, approachable, reasonable, calm, mellow, and self-controlled.

Non-temperate people could be characterized as moody, grudging, irritable,
emotional, thin-skinned, belligerent, militant, pugnacious, brawling, defensive,
confrontational, and reactive; around whom everybody has to walk on egg shells all
the time to avoid setting them off.

A temperate person, though mellow in demeanor, should never be assumed lacking
in strength, courage, conviction, or self confidence. Anybody who's studied the lives
of Moses and Jesus can easily testify that neither of those men were either timid,
wimpy, or vacillating.

Jacob and his dad Isaac were temperate men; but could be assertive when the
situation called for it. Temperate people like Jacob and Isaac pick their battles
carefully, and avoid getting all riled up over trifles.

Can you just imagine the pleasure of living in a global society composed entirely of
temperate people? That alone would be bliss to me.
_

 

[JLB]

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● Matt 5:5 . . Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

This beatitude is another that comes from the Old Testament.

● Ps 37:10-11 . .For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt
diligently consider his place, and it shall not be. But the meek shall inherit the
earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

"blessed" is an ambiguous word. Depending upon the application, and/or the
context; it can mean fortunate, happy, favored, approved, venerated, contented,
honored, respected, successful, prosperous, praise-worthy, privileged, endowed,
and protected.

According to Christ, the meek are fortunate because it is they who shall inherit, not
Heaven, rather, the Earth: that's an important distinction.

Why won't they inherit Heaven? Because, as every instructed Israelite already knew
in Christ's day; the long-anticipated theocratic kingdom won't be up in the celestial
regions; but rather, down here on the ground, headquartered in Jerusalem; whose
monarch will be one of David's sons; better known in the old testament as The
Branch and/or the Sprig of Jesse.

So then, among the Israelites; who qualifies as meek? Well; Moses was meek (Num
12:3) and Christ was meek (Matt 11:29, Matt 21:5). Personally I wouldn't
categorize either of those two Israelite men as meek. So then, what really is
meekness?

The Greek word translated "meek" in the third beatitude basically means mild.

Webster's defines "mild" as gentle in nature or behavior; viz: temperate; in other
words: agreeable, approachable, reasonable, calm, mellow, and self-controlled.

Non-temperate people could be characterized as moody, grudging, irritable,
emotional, thin-skinned, belligerent, militant, pugnacious, brawling, defensive,
confrontational, and reactive; around whom everybody has to walk on egg shells all
the time to avoid setting them off.

A temperate person, though mellow in demeanor, should never be assumed lacking
in strength, courage, conviction, or self confidence. Anybody who's studied the lives
of Moses and Jesus can easily testify that neither of those men were either timid,
wimpy, or vacillating.

Jacob and his dad Isaac were temperate men; but could be assertive when the
situation called for it. Temperate people like Jacob and Isaac pick their battles
carefully, and avoid getting all riled up over trifles.

Can you just imagine the pleasure of living in a global society composed entirely of
temperate people? That alone would be bliss to me.
_

Great study. Thank you for sharing.

 

[Beetow]

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● Matt 5:6 . . Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they
will be filled.

The Greek word translated "righteousness" basically means equity; roughly defined
as the application of law without passion, bias, favoritism, disparity, or prejudice.

In the world we live in today, it is very difficult to find equity; even the nine judges
sitting on the US Supreme Court, the highest court in the land, are incapable of it;
evidenced by their chronic lack of unity on many of the issues that they pick and
choose for themselves to take into consideration. And no surprise seeing as how
they are typically nominated for the position primarily on the basis of their politics.

I strongly suspect that the blessing spoken of in this beatitude is qualified. In other
words; it doesn't pertain to just any wish for equity; rather, to equity as it's
predicted in the Old Testament. In a nutshell, there's coming a day that inequity
will cease to exist on this planet when Messiah takes over to rule it with fairness
across the board regardless of people's age, race, or gender; nor how well
connected they might be, nor how wealthy, nor how intelligent, nor how beautiful,
nor how important, nor how highly positioned, nor how highly esteemed they may
be in public opinion.

● Ps 98:4-9 . . Shout joyfully to The Lord, all the earth; break forth in song, rejoice,
and sing praises. Sing to The Lord with the harp, with the harp and the sound of a
psalm, with trumpets and the sound of a horn; shout joyfully before The Lord, the
King. Let the sea roar, and all its fullness, the world and those who dwell in it; let
the rivers clap their hands; Let the hills be joyful together before The Lord, for He is
coming to judge the earth. With righteousness He shall judge the world, and the
peoples with equity.

● Ps 99:2-4 . . The Lord is great in Zion, and He is high above all the peoples. Let
them praise your great and awesome name— He is holy. The King's strength also
loves justice; you have established equity; you have executed justice and
righteousness in Jacob.

● Isa 11:4 . . But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with
equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his
mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.

So then, the fourth beatitude's blessing pertains to all who long for Messiah's
oversight in world affairs.

● Matt 13:41-43 . . The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall
gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; and
shall cast them into a furnace of fire : there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who
hath ears to hear, let him hear.

● 2Pet 3:13 . . But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new
heaven and a new earth: the home of righteousness.
_

 

[Beetow]

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● Matt 5:7 . . Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

Christ wasn't talking about forgiveness in that beatitude. The Greek word translated
"merciful" means compassionate; and the word for "mercy" means to pity.

So then, what Christ says is: if somebody is by nature cruel, hard hearted,
thoughtless, and insensitive; then they will get no sympathy from God.

Webster's defines "cruel" as: (1) disposed to inflict pain or suffering, (2) devoid of
humane feelings, (3) causing or conducive to injury, grief, or pain, and (4)
unrelieved by leniency.

A well-known example of cruelty is North Korea's Kim Jong-Un, a dictator who
squanders billions of dollars on national defense while the growth of something like
30 to 40 percent of North Korea's children is stunted by malnutrition. Adequate
health care is available only to a relatively privileged few. There are actually
hospitals in North Korea without electricity, medications, and anesthetics. Potable
water is another scarcity in North Korea.

But Kim is a red herring because there are cruelties far more common than his; for
example: demeaning comments, thoughtless remarks, carping criticism, relentless
ridicule, bullying, sniping, denigrating labels, hounding, stalking, grudging,
needling, perpetual fault-finding, gossip, slander, social sabotage, obnoxious
behavior, computer hacking, toxic rejoinders, et al.

There are actually kids growing up in homes right here in the USA where their
parents never give them even one atta-boy. As a result, they grow up feeling ugly,
unwanted, stupid, useless, marginal, expendable, and unnecessary. There are also
kids growing up in homes where mothers never hug them nor bother to take the
time to forge a bond between mother and child. Thus they grow up with reactive
attachment disorder; feeling convinced that no one could possibly ever love them
or be their best friend forever. RAD kids grow up to become adults with some
serious trust issues.

● Matt 9:13 . . But go and learn what that means: I will have mercy, and not
sacrifice.

In order to properly understand Christ's statement; it's necessary to go back into
the old testament from whence he got it.

● Hos 6:4-6 . .What can I do with you, Ephraim? What can I do with you, Judah?
Your love is like the morning mist, like the early dew that disappears. Therefore I
cut you in pieces with my prophets, I slaughtered you with the words of my mouth;
My judgments flashed like lightning upon you. For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and
acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.

In other words: God accepted Temple sacrifices when they're offered by people who
exemplify the milk of human kindness, and He fully rejected the offerings of
insensitive jerks, which is exactly what the Pharisees of Christ's day were. They
knew, and they practiced, the letter of Moses' covenanted law-- they dotted all the
I's and they crossed all the T's. But they utterly failed to exemplify the spirit of the
law; which is summed up in just one simple statement:

● Matt 7:12 . .Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you,
do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.

The spirit of Israel's covenanted law applies to Christians too. Maybe your record of
church attendance is 100%, and you tithe faithfully every week; but let me tell you
something: God is rejecting every last bit of your superficial worship if you are by
nature callous and insensitive. You'll be better off spending Sunday morning at a
sports bar rather than wasting God's time at church.

● Mic 6:8 . . He has told you, O man, what is good-- and what does The Lord
require of you but to love kindness.

Conclusion: Callous people shall be judged with neither kindness, sympathy, nor
pity, and then afterwards; slammed with cruel and unusual punishment. Fair's fair.

● Jas 2:13 . . For judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy
_

 

[Beetow]

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● Matt 5:8 . . Blessed are the pure of heart, for they will see God.

A rough-hewn definition of "pure in heart" is when someone is the same on the
inside as they are on the outside; which is just the opposite of dissembling; defined
as: to put on a false appearance, i.e. conceal facts, intentions, or feelings under
some pretense.

Dissembling is a very common form of dishonesty which is practiced by just about
everybody at one time or another. Most of us do not always want others to know
what we are actually thinking and/or feeling about certain things. The very opposite
of that is transparency, which most of us want from others, but prefer not to
reciprocate with transparency of our own.

Here's a really good example of someone pure in heart.

"When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, "Here is a true Israelite,
in whom there is nothing false." (John 1:47)

Jesus was pure in heart too.

"No deceit was found in his mouth." (1Pet 2:22)

I think we may safely assume there are no exceptions to the sixth beatitude, i.e. no
one is exempt; in other words: sincerity and forthrightness aren't optional with
God; they're a must.

"Who may ascend into the hill of The Lord? And who may stand in His holy place?
He who has . . a pure heart . . he shall receive a blessing from The Lord." (Ps 24:3-5)
_