Beatitudes. Come again. What?
Let’s see what secular English dictionaries
have to say about beatitude:
Cambridge
Dictionary
1.
Complete happiness that comes
from being blessed (= made holy) by God:
2.
Great happiness and calm:
Merriam-Webster
Dictionary
1.
A state of utmost bliss.
2.
Any of the declarations made in
the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:3–11) beginning in the King James Version
"Blessed are"
Collins
Dictionary
1.
Supreme blessedness or happiness.
2.
An honorific title of the Eastern
Christian Church, applied to those of patriarchal rank
Vocabulary
Dictionary
If you're extraordinarily happy, you might
describe what you're feeling as beatitude. The noun beatitude refers to a state
of great joy. Being blessed, or at least feeling blessed, is often linked to
beatitude.
Beatitude inherited its blessedness from the Latin word beatus,
meaning both "happy" and
"blessed." In the Bible, the Beatitudes are a series of eight
blessings, such as "Blessed are those poor in spirit; theirs is the
kingdom of heaven."
Origins of the word, Beatitude:
Latin
language = Beatus (Beatitude)
Greek
language = Makarios
English
language = Blessed
Hebrew
language = Esher or Ashrei
The
word “Beatitude” is not found in the English bible
but the Latin Beatitudo, from which it is derived in the Vulgate Jerome’s Latin
Bible 390-405 a.d. version of.
In
the context of Matthew 5 verses 3 – 12, the word
Beatitude means; a concrete sense of a particular declaration of blessedness.
The Latin word Beatitude derives from the Hebrew word for blessed
which is, Esher or Ashrei. Esher/Ashrei means to be deeply
contented, translated in many English version Bibles as happy, blessed, to
advance, to make progress, to go forward, be lead on, relieve, joyful.
Special points about the Beatitudes:
·
Ten Blessings or Beatitudes are
to be found in the Sermon on the Mount of Matthew 5: 3-11.
·
Each beatitude begins with,
“Blessed are…..”
·
All of the beatitudes begins with
a blessing and ends with a reason for that blessing.
·
Interestingly,
Yeshua presents the Beatitudes all in the future tense except for the first and
last ones. “For they shall be…” implies something yet
to come while the first and last Beatitudes (“For theirs is the kingdom of
heaven”) are in the present tense. The first and last referred in the present
tense to the King of that Kingdom present in the flesh in the MIDST of them in
Israel. New
International Version “nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it is,' because the
kingdom of God is in your midst." Luke
17:21 New
Living Translation “You won’t be able to say, ‘Here it is!’ or ‘It’s over there!’ For the
Kingdom of God is already among you.” Luke
17:21
·
Yeshua
used a BOOKEND style of presenting the 8 Beatitudes.
(Bookends are a pair of supports used to hold a row of books in an upright
position by placing one at each end of the row. Bookending means, “Be positioned at the end or on either side
of (something)”.
· By bookending the Beatitudes this way, Yeshua is emphasizing that each one is a characteristic of the coming kingdom where Yeshua will reign, in the future yet to come Messianic Kingdom where His name will be exalted.
Is
Yeshua like the Prophet Moses? Can it be rightly said, that Yeshua is the
second Moses?
Let’s read Deuteronomy 18 and see how the
Messiah Yeshua fulfills the words of Moses.
In
Deuteronomy 18:15, Moses makes a prediction: “Yahweh thy Elohim will raise up unto thee a Prophet
from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall
hearken;” (RSB Bible 04th Edition)
When
Moses died, he left behind a body of writing we call the
Pentateuch. Sometime later, an editor added these inspired words to the end of (Deuteronomy 34:10–12) “And there arose not a
prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom Yahweh knew face to face, In all
the signs and the wonders, which Yahweh sent him to do in the land of Egypt to
Pharaoh, and to all his servants, and to all his land, And in all that mighty hand, and in all the
great terror which Moses shewed in the sight of all Israel”. (RSB Bible 04th Edition)
From
this retrospective, the anticipation of a prophet like Moses only grew.
Moses was given a vision of the Prophet who
would lead the future spiritual Israel on a new exodus from the Greater Egypt
(whole wicked world) to the New Promised land the is New Heavens or New Earth
(Isaiah 65:17 and Revelation 21:1)
John
is the first prophet since Malachi, which
raises several questions for the Pharisees: “Are you Elijah? . . . Are you the
Prophet? . . . What do you say about
yourself?” (John 1:21–22). John’s answer is clear: Yeshua, not I, is the one of
whom the Law of Moses and the prophets wrote (John 1:45). Indeed, according to
the Samaritan woman, he is “a prophet” (John 4:19)—and soon the people confess,
“Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Yahshua did, said, This is
of a truth that prophet that should come into the world. (John 6:14).
Yeshua’s
followers saw him as the Prophet like Moses. Citing
Deuteronomy 18, Peter declares: “For Moses truly said unto the
fathers, A prophet shall Yahweh your Elohim raise up unto you of your brethren,
like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you.
And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet,
shall be destroyed from among the people” Acts 3:22, 23
Peter’s
words reveal the chief significance of Yeshua’s prophetic office—only his word
brings salvation. Those who listen to him will be
saved; those who don’t will be destroyed. Yeshua isn’t just another prophet;
he’s the prophet like Moses whose words offer life and invite people to follow
him out of death into life. Those who listen to Yeshua will be saved; those who
don’t will be destroyed.
Yeshua is a prophet who calls us to follow
him from death to life, just as Israel followed Moses through the Red Sea and
was baptized into his name (1 Corinthians. 10:2). And yet he’s greater than
Moses because his salvation does more than point to another; it points to
himself. Yeshua says, “Yahshua saith
unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father,
but by me.” (John 14:6)
Just as Moses delivered the people of Israel from Egypt to receive God’s Word at Sinai, so also Yeshua through his Sermon on the MOUNT and his sacrificial life in Israel has delivered his people from death in order to inscribe his law on their hearts. Truly, there is no prophet like him. And for that reason, in a world filled with many prophets, we must listen to the prophet greater than Moses above all others.
Sermon on the Mount was for Apostles and
Disciples or all common people?Luke
6:12 – 20 Timeline:
1.
Yeshua goes to a Mountain and
Prays the whole night. “And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to
pray, and continued all night in prayer to Elohim” Luke 6:12
2.
At daytime, he choose his 12
Apostles. “And when it was day, he called unto him his
disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles;” Luke 6:13 – 16.
3.
Yeshua sees and finds that a
large crowd had gathered by now on the plains of that same mountain. For what?
Apparently they came to listen to his teachings, but as the ending of Luke 6:
17 says: “and to be healed of their diseases;”
4.
Scripture from verses 18 and 19
mentions that Yeshua FIRSTLY gave the crowd what they wanted. Healings. Then
SECONDLY turning his attention towards his DISCIPLES, he then starts his
sermon, teaching them. “And he lifted up
his eyes on his disciples, and said, Blessed be ye poor: for yours is the
kingdom of Elohim” Luke 6:20.
5.
After
healing all the people, then he starts his sermon on the
mount, so those who wanted to hear him post receiving healings, lingered on. The disciples followed Yeshua for his
teachings. The crowds followed Yeshua for Miracles and Healings. By giving those
healings first and then delivering his sermon, made his teachings more
authoritative and powerful and meaningful for the large crowd who were not his
disciples as yet.
SO FROM THE ABOVE TIMELINE, one can
arrive at the safe conclusion that Yeshua’s Sermon on the Mount was primarily
for the audience of his chosen Apostles and Disciples only.
Matthew says
that, when He saw the crowds, he went up on the mountain to teach—not so that
the crowds would be able to better hear him teaching, but to escape the crowds
so that He could have some time to teach His disciples.
Yeshua
had a lot of followers, but he delivered the Sermon on the Mount
only to his disciples. Don't be part of
the crowds. Be a disciple.
Five Discourses of Matthew refers to five
specific discourses by Yeshua within the Gospel of Matthew. They are:
1.
The Sermon on the Mount.
2.
The Mission Discourse.
3.
The Parabolic Discourse.
4.
The Called out One’s Discourse.
5.
The Olivet Discourse or End Times
Discourse.
1. Sermon on the Mount Discourse
The first discourse (Matthew 5–7) is called
the Sermon on the Mount and is one of the best known and most quoted parts of
the New Testament. It includes the Beatitudes and the Lord's Prayer. The Sermon
on the Mount also contains Yeshua’s teachings on issues such as divorce, lust
and worldliness; issues pertaining to persecution; further instruction on how
to pray and words on false prophets.
2.
Mission
Discourse.
The second discourse in Matthew 10 provides
instructions to the Twelve Apostles and is sometimes called the Mission
Discourse or the Missionary Discourse. This is referred to as the little commission
in contrast to the great commission of Matthew 28:18-20.
3.
Parables
Discourse.
The third discourse in Matthew 13 (1-53)
provides several parables for the Kingdom of Heaven and is often called the
Parabolic Discourse.
4.
Called
out One’s Discourse.
The fourth discourse in Matthew 18 is often
called the Discourse on the Ecclesia (church).
5.
Olivet
Discourse or End times Discourse.
Matthew 24 is usually called the Olivet
Discourse because it was given on the Mount of Olives, and is also referred to
as the Discourse on the End Times. The
discourse corresponds to Mark 13 and Luke 21 and is mostly about judgment and
the expected conduct of the followers of Yeshua, and the need for vigilance by
the followers in view of the coming judgment.
Genesis – means “beginning.” Genesis - Latin from
Greek – be produced, to become, birth, origin (creation of the world); in
Hebrew Bereshit (in the beginning), the first word of the Jewish Bible. The
book tells of the beginning of many things: the universe, man, sin, promise of
Savior, etc.
Connection
with Discourse 2. (This
discourse has the “beginnings” of a new missionary activity for the followers
of Yeshua.)
Exodus –
means “a going out,” because it tells of Israel going out of Egypt. Exodus -
Latin from Greek - way, going out (the going out of the Children of Israel from
slavery in Egypt to the Promised Land); in Hebrew Shmot (names), at the
beginning of the book (These are the names of Israel's sons who came to
Egypt...)
Connection
with Discourse 5. (This
discourse deals with the final “going out” of the Greater Egypt that is the
wide wicked world into the new promised land of new heavens and new earth. -
Isaiah 65:17 and Revelation 21:1)
Leviticus – means “relating to the Levites.” The
book is so called because it records many laws which applied to the Levites, the
tribe named after Levi, the priestly tribe. Leviticus - Latin from Hebrew -
Levi (the tribe of Levi); in Hebrew Wayiqra (and He called), at the beginning
of the book (God called to Moses...)
Connection
with Discourse 4.(
“But ye are a
chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that
ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness
into his marvellous light:” 1 Peter 2:9)
Numbers
(Bemidar – In the Wilderness) – The book is called, “In the Wilderness” in
Hebrew, because it relates the numbers of people included in the tribes of
Israel during their travels and travails in the wilderness. In Hebrew Bamidbar
(in the desert), at the beginning of the book (God spoke to Moses in the Sinai
Desert...Take a census of the entire Israelite community.)
Connection with Discourse 3.(This discourse deals with the multiple parables of Yeshua which are primarily meant for the 10 Tribes of Israel who were yearning for the Promised land, which will be finally fulfilled with the Messianic rule in the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth via the Heavenly New Jerusalem- Revelation 3:12 and Revelation 21:2)
Deuteronomy – means “second law.” It is so called
since Moses in this book states the law of God a second time. Second (the
second statement of the Mosaic Law); in Hebrew Devarim (things or words), at
the beginning of the book (These are the words that Moses spoke to all
Israel...)
Connection
with Discourse 1. (This
discourse deals with the new law of Yeshua that will written in the hearts of
his believers and followers. – Ezekiel 36:26, 27)
Was Yeshua “standing or sitting”, while
delivering the Sermon on the Mount?At Luke
6:17, he mentions, “He went down with them and stood on a level place. A large crowd of his disciples was there and a
great number of people from all over Judea, from Jerusalem, and from the
coastal region around Tyre and Sidon,” New International Version
At Matthew
5:1, he mentions, “Now when
Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him,” New International Version
Sometimes I
really do get exasperated with the level of fault finding that the Critics of
the Bible will fall to. Cannot Yeshua as a human being during a long teaching discourse
decide to sit part of the time and stand part of the time as he chooses too?
Is it not
possible,
that Luke while writing the account of Yeshua’s sermon happens to remember
seeing him as STANDING and Matthew remembers to see him SITTING and he records
what comes to his mind. Both can happen
to be right, if Yeshua must have been standing some time and sitting too
some time while giving the Sermon on the Mount.
So was Yeshua standing or
sitting as He preached?
It is
possible He did both. Matthew states that Yeshua sat down and then started
teaching. This was the common practice among Jews of the day. Teachers would
stand when reading Scripture, but they sat during their teaching, just as Yeshua
did in the synagogue in Nazareth (Luke 4:16–21).
Once again,
Luke provides more details leading up to the Sermon, whereas
Matthew records more of the message itself. Luke shows that Yeshua “stood on a
level place” and healed all the people who came to Him.
There are at
least two obvious solutions to this sitting or standing dilemma. First, Yeshua
sat at the beginning of the Sermon but then stood and moved about during the
course of the message. A better solution is found by closely looking at the
text. Yeshua stood while healing the multitude and this may have taken several
hours. Then, after healing people, He sat down and delivered the Sermon on the
Mount.
To answer the above Question, let’s raise some
more Questions: So
the question here is whether the Sermon on the Plain and the Sermon on the
Mount are one in the same?
There are different views in regards to the
relationship between Matthew and Luke:
Ø Are they, two distinct sermons because of the
differences in the location and content?
Ø The Beatitudes
version in Matthew has 107 verses while Luke’s version has only 30 verses.
Ø Yeshua’s Ministry was a Travelling (Itinerary)
Ministry, meaning preaching and teaching while on the move, moving from one
place to another. In a travelling
ministry, the chances are good that Yeshua might have repeated the same
message in different locations.
Ø Mathew’s longer version of 107 verses was long
probably because he was writing for the attention of the Jews. Luke’s version
is shorter with only 30 verses as he is recording it for the gentiles.
Ø Matthew’s
account is sometimes called the Jewish Gospel; this particular sermon was listened to by both
Jew and gentile. But some of the verses in the version in Matthew deal with
Jews in particular. Look at the introduction of the sermon in Matthew 4:23, ‘Yeshua went throughout all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues,
preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of disease and
sickness among the people”.
Ø Matthew, who is also Levi,
and who from a publican came to be an apostle, first of all composed a Gospel
of Christ in Judaea in the Hebrew language and characters for
the benefit of those of the circumcision (Jews) who had believed.
Matthew’s visual version of Yeshua’s Sermon on the Mount.
Whereas Luke must have felt like recording the latter
part of the sermon, maybe when Yeshua moved lower
from the Mount down towards the Plains as the crowds definitely had grown large
in number and space may have been a restraint to accommodate one and all
comfortably. (Here the topic of the sermon is mostly of interest to the gentiles)
Luke’s visual version of Yeshua’s Sermon on the Plain.
Beatitude #1
Blessed are the poor
in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Poor
in spirit, in what sense?
Strong's Concordance
ptóchos:
(of one who crouches and cowers, hence) beggarly, poor
Original Word: πτωχός, ή, όν
Part of Speech: Adjective
Transliteration: ptóchos
Phonetic Spelling: (pto-khos')
Definition: (of one who crouches and cowers, hence)
beggarly, poor
Usage: poor, destitute, spiritually poor, either in a
good sense (humble devout persons) or bad.
4434 ptōxós (from ptōssō,
"to crouch or cower like a beggar") – properly, bent over;
(figuratively) deeply destitute, completely lacking resources
(earthly wealth) – i.e. helpless as a beggar. 4434 (ptōxós)
relates to "the pauper rather than the mere peasant, the extreme opposite
of the rich" (WP, 1, 371).
Today in
modern times, when we hear that someone is blessed, we often
think of a comfortable lifestyle, good health, and a successful job. But Yeshua
said that those who are poor in spirit are blessed. The New Testament Greek word
for poor refers to a beggar who is totally dependent on others for survival. Therefore, to be poor in spirit is
to be totally dependent on another for spiritual well-being. Here Yeshua is not referring to the
physical riches, but those who are poor in spiritual (spirit) matters. Those
who are like sheep without a shepherd – Matthew
9:36
How do we know that Yeshua is referring to
Spiritual poverty?
Luke 7:22 - “Then Yahshua answering said unto them, Go
your way, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the blind
see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are
raised, to the poor the good news is preached”.(RSB Bible
04th Edition)
Yeshua does speak to everyone, but it is
only the poor who actually hear the gospel and receive it. What does that mean?
Is the Master suggesting that no rich person can enter the kingdom of God?
Yeshua declared the poor (IN SPIRIT) to be the heirs of the Messianic Era? How come?
At Luke
18:24,25 Yeshua is quoted as saying: “And
when Yahshua saw that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they
that have riches enter into the kingdom of Yahweh! For it is easier for a camel
to go through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of
Yahweh”.
The
rich man with high self-confidence believed that he had observed all of God’s
commandments since he was a child. Plus he was physically well of, so surely he
must be considering himself to be blessed by God. However, Yeshua could read
the man’s heart & mind and thus revealed the state of the man’s heart when
He asked him to go and sell everything he had to the poor and then follow Him.
Luke 10:27 similarly to this rich man a lawyer had also asked Yeshua, “Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal
life?”
Parallel
Situation of Rich man of Luke 18:25 and the Lawyer of Luke 10:27:
The lawyer
had answered to Yeshua that it was written in the law (Torah), “And he answering said, Thou shalt love Yahweh thy Elohim with all
thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy
mind; and thy neighbor as thyself”.
Yeshua
quoted the second half of the Ten Commandments in Luke 18:20. These were
all the ones concerned with loving one’s neighbor. The rich man was unable to
give primary love and affection to God and his kingdom efforts, showing that in
fact he didn’t really love his neighbor at all and ultimately, that he didn’t
love God. The state of
the rich man’s heart showed that he was in fact not poor in spirit.
Instead, he
was self-sufficient (both in physical riches and spiritual riches) and believed
that he could keep all the commandments (of the Torah/Law) on his own efforts.
As such, his dependence was on self and not the creator and hence it would be
very difficult for him to enter into the Kingdom of God. The rich man was SELF
SUFFICIENT in his wealth and was SELF SOVEREIGN in working out his own
salvation by his own efforts.
Matthew’s version of the beatitude is broader and offers a little more hope for the affluent disciple. Instead of limiting the beatitude to just the economically poor, Yeshua says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” To be “poor in spirit” refers to one’s attitude and conduct. The poor in spirit might be men of wealth, but they conduct themselves with the humility of the poor.
They do not rely upon their riches or live
according to the extravagances of the affluent. The poor in spirit does not
conduct himself with the haughtiness and pride that his wealth affords but
instead lives modestly, employing his wealth for the kingdom. Such a person is
“rich toward God” (Luke 12:21). By
the same measure, a poor man who lives extravagantly and at the expense of
others is not poor in spirit:
In
the Beatitudes, Yeshua calls some people “blessed” who appear to be quite the
opposite. People who “mourn” don’t seem to be
“blessed,” according to most other people. Yeshua
is contrasting the world’s idea of happiness with true blessedness—spiritual prosperity—which comes from a
right relationship with God.
Not
mourning as when someone dies, but mourning for the dead in sin! The term
mourn means “to experience deep grief.” In keeping with His theme of spiritual
blessedness, Yeshua seems to indicate that this mourning
is due to grief over sin. The people who agree with God about the evil of their own hearts
can attain an "enviable state of blessedness," due to the comfort
they receive from communion with the Holy Spirit. Yeshua called the Holy Spirit
the Comforter (John 14:16, 26; 15:26; 2
Corinthians 1:4). The Spirit comforts those who are honest about their own
sin and humble enough to ask for forgiveness and healing. Those who hide their
sin or try to justify it before God can never know the comfort that comes from
a pure heart, as Yeshua talks about in Matthew
5:8 (cf. Proverbs 28:13; Isaiah 57:15).
In the
Beatitudes, Yeshua reminds His disciples that they cannot seek happiness the
way the world does. True joy is not found in selfish ambition, excuses, or
self-justification. An enviable state of
blessedness comes to those who mourn over their own sin. "These are the ones I look on with favor: those who are
humble and contrite in spirit, and who tremble at my word" (Isaiah 66:2).
When
we agree with God about how bad our sin is, repent of it, and seek His power to
walk away from it, Yeshua promises comfort from the Holy Spirit. The kind of
"mourning" that leads to repentance is truly blessed (2 Corinthians 7:10). Repentance results in forgiveness and
cleansing from God (Psalm 30:5).
When we have trusted in Jesus as our personal substitute for sin, we no longer
stand condemned (Romans 8:1). Rather
than wallow in guilt and shame, we realize that we stand justified before God (2 Corinthians 5:21; Galatians 3:24).
Those who learn to mourn over their own sin find the heart of God. And intimate
fellowship with God is the very foundation of true happiness.
Beatitude #3
Blessed are the
meek,
for they will inherit the land.
New Living
Translation
God blesses those
who are humble, for they will inherit the whole earth.
New American
Standard Bible
“Blessed are the
gentle, for they will inherit the earth.
Amplified
Bible
“Blessed
[inwardly peaceful, spiritually secure, worthy of respect] are the gentle [the
kind-hearted, the sweet-spirited, the self-controlled], for they will inherit
the earth.
Literal
Standard Version Blessed the
meek—because they will inherit the land.
Douay-Rheims
Bible
Blessed are
the meek: for they shall possess the
land.
Young's
Literal Translation
'Happy the
meek -- because they shall inherit the
land.
Who are the MEEK referred by Yeshua in this
beatitude?
The
Greek text behind this saying implies one who is quiet, passive, and
submissive, which is why the New American Standard renders it as “Blessed are
the gentle.” Yeshua
did not teach in Greek. Instead, the saying alludes to
the Hebrew of Psalm 37:11, which
says, “The humble (anavim) will inherit the land.”
The Hebrew anavim refers not to one who is meek and mild-mannered but
rather to the powerless, the downtrodden, the subjugated, and the victimized.
Will the humble really inherit (get) the whole wide planet earth? Was Yeshua referring to the EARTH (whole planet) or just some specific geographic LAND? The Hebrew word for “earth” (eretz) also means “land,” and in this context it refers specifically to the Holy Land, i.e., the land of Israel. Therefore, Matthew 5:5 should be understood to say “Blessed are the subjugated and downtrodden, for they will inherit the land of Israel.” In this sense, the beatitude refers to the faithful Jewish people of the Master’s day who suffered under Roman oppression and to those of every generation who have suffered exile and foreign domination.
The Messianic Era will reverse the roles. Those who were once powerless and humbled under the boot of the Gentile nations will possess the Promised Land and subjugate their enemies. Then the words of Mary’s prophecy will be fulfilled: “He has brought down rulers from their thrones, and has exalted those who were humble” (Luke 1:52).
Beatitude #4 Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.
Contrast
between, both physically poor in wealth and spiritually poor, both issues are
addressed by Messiah Yeshua when he walked on earth in Jerusalem and he sort of
gave a trailer of how the same will be addressed in his Messianic Kingdom too in
the future.
PHYSICAL FOOD: In Luke’s
version of the Sermon on the Mount, Yeshua says, “Blessed are you who hunger
now, for you shall be satisfied” (Luke
6:21), and, “Woe to you who are well-fed now, for you shall be hungry” (Luke 6:25).
Yeshua
addressed the needs of people’s lack of food and physical needs too: Yeshua miraculously feeds 5,000 people (Matthew
14:13-21; Mark 6:30-44; Luke 9:10-17; John 6:1-15).
But keeping in mind, that humans can hear and accept God’s word and
teachings more easily and better on a full stomach, he made true the written
saying, of Matthew 4:4, “But he
answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but
by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of Yahweh”.
Yeshua provided physical food and spiritual
food too. These sayings
indicate that Yeshua had literal poverty, scarcity, and want in view. In the
kingdom of heaven, roles will be reversed. Those who suffer want and need due
to misfortune and social injustice in this present age will be well-fed in the
Messianic Age while those who feed their own stomachs without thought for the
needy will find themselves experiencing hunger and poverty.
SPIRITUAL FOOD: Matthew’s version of the Sermon on the Mount changes the subject from those who suffer physical hunger to those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. One who hungers and thirsts for righteousness is one who yearns for the reversal of social and moral injustices. As the Jewish people groaned under Roman tyranny, they hungered and thirsted for the day that God would vindicate them and usher in His kingdom on earth. The Master assured His disciples that their yearning for God’s righteous vindication would be satiated when the Messianic Era comes. Therefore, the two versions of the saying complement one another. When the kingdom comes, the literally hungry and thirsty will be satisfied, and that reversal of circumstance will satisfy all who have hungered and thirsted for righteousness and justice.
Beatitude #5
Blessed are the
merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
To
be merciful is to show forgiveness and compassion to those in need. Jesus
frequently spoke of this trait. In the Lord’s Prayer, He says, “Forgive
us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors” (Matthew 6:12). In Matthew
9:13 Yeshua instructs the Pharisees, “Go
and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come
to call the righteous, but sinners.”
We
are blessed if we are merciful because mercy is something God Himself displays.
God’s mercy is the withholding of a just punishment; it is His compassion on
the miserable. Deuteronomy 30:3 says, “The LORD your God will restore your
fortunes. He will have mercy on you” (NLT). The psalmist writes, “Praise be to the LORD, for he has heard my
cry for mercy” (Psalm 28:6). Yeshua Himself often showed mercy, as we see
in His healing of the man freed from demons: “Go home to your own people and
tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you” (Mark 5:19).
We have
received God’s mercy. Romans 11:30 notes, “You who were at one time disobedient to God have now received mercy.”
Paul shared that his ministry was given to him by God’s mercy (2 Corinthians 4:1). He also saw his
salvation as an act of God’s mercy: “I
was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief” (1 Timothy 1:13). Our salvation is also
called an act of God’s mercy: “He saved
us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy” (Titus 3:5). As Peter expressed it, “In his great mercy he has given us new
birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the
dead” (1 Peter 1:3).
God’s children reflect His mercy and are therefore merciful themselves. The merciful in this world are blessed in the sense that they know God’s joy. The person who is merciful will be eternally happy because he knows God’s mercy.
Yahweh told
Moses,
“You cannot see my face, for no man can
see me and live!” (Exodus 33:20).
Nevertheless, Yeshua taught that the “pure in heart” will see God. Biblical
Hebrew uses the word “heart” to refer to the mind, the core from which a human
being thinks, reasons, and acts. Why
does Yeshua say that the pure in heart will see God? According to the
Torah’s laws of ritual purity, only the levitically pure may enter into the
Holy Temple where God dwells. Levitical purity is a prerequisite to entering
God’s presence. Psalm 24 brings that ritual-purity symbolism into the moral
sphere:
Who shall
ascend into the hill of Yahweh? or who shall stand in his holy place? He that
hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto
vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. (Psalm 24:3–4)
The
sixth beatitude will come literally true in the Messianic Kingdom of Yeshua
when the new heavens and new earth are established and the New Jerusalem
descends and our Creator Almighty Yahweh dwells and tabernacles with his “clean
of heart” people. That day, they will be blessed to see their Elohim (God) and
yet live.
Revelation
21:3
“And I heard
a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of Elohim is with
men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and Yahweh
himself shall be with them, and be their Elohim”.
Restoration
Study Bible (04th Edition)
Beatitude #7 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of
God.
Yeshua’s beatitude about peacemakers contradicted the first-century Zealot impulse that called for taking up armed resistance against Rome. Several of His disciples embraced the Zealot ideal. The beatitude about peacemaking attempted to turn their thoughts away from armed revolution.
Beatitude #8 Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Some people
suffer for doing evil, but that is punishment, not persecution. And some
are persecuted for reasons unrelated to righteousness. But Yeshua wasn’t
offering a general blessing to all victims of persecution for any cause. No, He
offered it only to those who were persecuted for actively pursuing the kingdom
of righteousness and because of their faith in Yeshua ha Messiah (Matthew 5:11). Peter put it this way: “If you suffer for doing good and you endure
it, this is commendable before God” (1
Peter 2:20).
Righteousness
means more than just “being a good person.” It refers to a complete
orientation of life toward God and His will. This kind of righteousness is
highly visible: “You are the light of the
world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp
and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light
to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others,
that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:14–16).
In the days
before the Hasmonean revolt, the wicked Syrian-Greeks persecuted and even
martyred Jewish people who remained faithful to the commandments of
circumcision, Sabbath observance, and dietary laws.
To endure
persecution for the sake of righteousness requires uncompromising faithfulness
to God despite every threat and pressure. The Old Testament prophets were
considered heroes for facing this kind of abuse (Matthew 5:12; see also 2 Chronicles 36:16; Acts 7:51–53; James 5:10).
Both the prophets of old and New Testament saints serve the same cause (the
advancement of the kingdom of God) and the same King (Yeshua). Yeshua promised
that both would suffer mistreatment, but both would also receive inexpressible
rewards in heaven.
Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost
his savor, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing,
but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men”. Matthew 5:13Can salt become unsalted?
Right after
the beatitudes Yeshua continues his sermon with this analogy of comparing his
disciples to salt. He compares his disciples and followers to Salt. Why? The disciples are definitely not literally
salt, but there’s something similar between them and salt. What is that?
TECHNICALITIES ABOUT SALT
In
its PUREST form, Salt is always chemically and taste wise SALTY. But in the
IMPURE form, Salt has the ability to lose its SALTINESS.
During the
ancient times in Jerusalem, salt was often used as a catalyst for burning fuel such as cattle
dung. Even in the poor parts of the world, people collect cattle dung that’s
dried out and then they use it for fuel because it’s dried out and it burns. In the ancient world, they put some salt
on it, or something salty. Not pure salt, but salt substance on it as a
catalyst that is to make it easier to light it on fire to get it burning.
Obviously, because if salt becomes unsalted that means the true salt of that
substance that you’re calling salt has leeched out and what you’ve got left is
not salt. Then, it could lose its strength over time becoming useless. Not even
worth to be put over cattle dung to light a fire!
PRACTICALLY
SPEAKING
We know that
it’s impossible for salt to become unsalted and to lose its salty taste. If it
doesn’t taste like salt, it’s not salt. In Yeshua’s day, whatever they were calling
salt, it obviously wasn’t pure salt and that substance that had salt in it
could lose its saltiness if the actual salt we know was leeched out so it
wasn’t salt anymore. The point though Yeshua is saying is that if you have
salt, you have saltiness. If salt loses its saltiness, it’s not good for using
as salt any longer because there’s no salt actually there.
Yeshua compared his disciples as salt and warned that the salt of his disciples could become unsalty, and therefore, tasteless and therefore useless. It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. That’s a warning to keep being salty. That is salt is salty.
That’s what
characterizes salt. If you put a little bit of salt on the tip of your finger, and
you like it, and it doesn’t taste like salt, guess what? It’s not salt. You got
an imposter. You don’t have salt. If what you think is salt doesn’t taste like
salt, it doesn’t have the salt in it, and in Yeshua’s day they’re using it as a
catalyst to light dried animal dung for fires, it doesn’t work as a catalyst
because there’s no salt there so we just toss it out.
What Yeshua is
saying is that his disciples could become
useless and tossed out because they could lose what distinctively makes them
his. His disciples. What? All the characteristics of the blessed that were
told in the beatitudes. Your mercifulness, your gentleness, the purity of your
heart. All those characteristics of the blessed, let’s face it. The disciples
were not machines, but humans. As weak humans they could yield to temptations,
to sin, to the weakness of the flesh or the wickedness of the world, or the deceptions
of the devil. Disciples of Yeshua like all humans have a free will and free
choice to choose between good and evil, pure and impure, blessings and curses. God never transformed (automated) humans
like robots.
The disciples could go back to their SINFUL (impure state in salt) like a pig goes to its mud as and when they want too. Hence they have to remain SINLESS (like pure salt that never loses its saltiness).
“Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven”. Matthew 5: 14-16.
The Salt and the Light (Matthew 5:13–16)
Salt = disciples
Saltiness = good deeds
Salt without
saltiness = disciples
without good deeds
Lamp = disciples
Light = good deeds
Concealed
lamp = disciples
without good deeds
Meaning = A disciple who does not practice good deeds (the commandments and
the teaching of Yeshua) is not fulfilling his purpose and has become useless.
The Hidden Lamp (Mark 4:21–23/Luke 8:16–17)
Lamp = disciples
Light = transmission of Yeshua’s teaching
Concealed
lamp = disciples
who do not transmit His teaching
Meaning = A disciple who does not transmit the teaching of his rabbi is not fulfilling his purpose and has become useless.