The Beatitudes

Matthew 5:3-12 (New American Standard Bible)

³“^(A)Blessed are the poor in spirit, for ^(B)theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

⁴“Blessed are ^(C)those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

⁵“Blessed are ^(D)the ^[a]gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.

⁶“Blessed are ^(E)those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

⁷“Blessed are ^(F)the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

⁸“Blessed are ^(G)the pure in heart, for ^(H)they shall see God.

⁹“Blessed are the peacemakers, for ^(I)they shall be called sons of God.

¹⁰“Blessed are those who have been ^(J)persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for ^(K)theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

¹¹“Blessed are you when people ^(L)insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.

¹²“Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for ^(M)in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Footnotes:

1. Matthew 5:5 Or humble, meek

 

Cross references:

1. Matthew 5:3 : Matt 5:3-12; Luke 6:20-23
2. Matthew 5:3 : Matt 5:10; 19:14; 25:34; Mark 10:14; Luke 6:20; 22:29
3. Matthew 5:4 : Is 61:2; John 16:20; Rev 7:17
4. Matthew 5:5 : Ps 37:11
5. Matthew 5:6 : Is 55:1, 2; John 4:14; 6:48-ff; 7:37
6. Matthew 5:7 : Prov 11:17; Matt 6:14, 15; 18:33-35
7. Matthew 5:8 : Ps 24:4
8. Matthew 5:8 : Heb 12:14; 1 John 3:2; Rev 22:4
9. Matthew 5:9 : Matt 5:45; Luke 6:35; Rom 8:14
10. Matthew 5:10 : 1 Pet 3:14
11. Matthew 5:10 : Matt 5:3; 19:14; 25:34; Mark 10:14; Luke 6:20; 22:29
12. Matthew 5:11 : 1 Pet 4:14
13. Matthew 5:12 : 2 Chr 36:16; Matt 23:37; Acts 7:52; 1 Thess 2:15; Heb 11:33-ff; James 5:10

Blessed means:happy, fortunate, blissful- here it speaks of more than a surface emotion.

1.Poor in spirit- the opposite of self sufficiency speaks of deep humility of recognizing ones utter spiritual bankruptcy apart from God; acutely aware of their own lostness and hopelessness apart from divine grace/ the kingdom of heaven is a gracious gift to these.

2.Those who mourn- this speaks of mourning over sin; the comfort is the comfort of forgiveness and salvation.

3. The gentle, meek- the opposite of being out of control; it is not weakness, extreme self control empowered by the spirit.

4. Hunger and thirst for righteousness- the opposite of the self righteousness of the Pharisees, those who seek God’s righteousness rather than trying to create your own.

Scriptures obtained from Biblegateway.com

Notes obtained from The John MacArthur Study Bible, New American Standard Bible copyright 2006 Thomas Nelson, Inc.