Matthew 5:3-10

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Matthew 5:7

7. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy—Beautiful is the connection between this and the preceding beatitude. The one has a natural tendency to beget the other. As for the words, they seem directly fetched from :-, "With the merciful Thou wilt show Thyself merciful." Not that our mercifulness comes absolutely first. On the contrary, our Lord Himself expressly teaches us that God's method is to awaken in us compassion towards our fellow men by His own exercise of it, in so... read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Matthew 5:8

8. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God—Here, too, we are on Old Testament ground. There the difference between outward and inward purity, and the acceptableness of the latter only in the sight of God, are everywhere taught. Nor is the "vision of God" strange to the Old Testament; and though it was an understood thing that this was not possible in the present life ( :-; and compare Job 19:26; Job 19:27; Isaiah 6:5), yet spiritually it was known and felt to be the privilege of... read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Matthew 5:9

9. Blessed are the peacemakers—who not only study peace, but diffuse it. for they shall be called the children of God—shall be called sons of God. Of all these beatitudes this is the only one which could hardly be expected to find its definite ground in the Old Testament; for that most glorious character of God, the likeness of which appears in the peacemakers, had yet to be revealed. His glorious name, indeed—as "The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in... read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Matthew 5:10

10. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake, c.—How entirely this final beatitude has its ground in the Old Testament, is evident from the concluding words, where the encouragement held out to endure such persecutions consists in its being but a continuation of what was experienced by the Old Testament servants of God. But how, it may be asked, could such beautiful features of character provoke persecution? To this the following answers should suffice: "Every one that... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Matthew 5:3

The "poor in spirit" are those who recognize their natural unworthiness to stand in God’s presence and who depend utterly on Him for His mercy and grace (cf. Psalms 37:14; Psalms 40:17; Psalms 69:28-29; Psalms 69:32-33; Proverbs 16:19; Proverbs 29:23; Isaiah 61:1). They do not trust in their own goodness or possessions for God’s acceptance. The Jews regarded material prosperity as an indication of divine approval since many of the blessings God promised the righteous under the Old Covenant were... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Matthew 5:3-10

2. The subjects of Jesus’ kingdom 5:3-16Their condition 5:3-10 (cf. Luke 6:20-26)This pericope describes the character of the kingdom’s subjects and their rewards in the kingdom.Kingsbury identified the theme of this Sermon as "greater righteousness" and divided it as follows: (I) On Those Who Practice the Greater Righteousness (Matthew 5:3-16); (II) On Practicing the Greater Righteousness toward the Neighbor (Matthew 5:17-45); (III) On Practicing the Greater Righteousness before God (Matthew... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Matthew 5:4

"Those who mourn" do so because they sense their spiritual bankruptcy (Matthew 5:4). The Old Testament revealed that spiritual poverty results from sin. True repentance produces contrite tears more than jubilant rejoicing because the kingdom is near. The godly remnant in Jesus’ day that responded to the call of John and of Jesus wept because of Israel’s national humiliation as well as because of personal sin (cf. Ezra 10:6; Psalms 51:4; Psalms 119:136; Ezekiel 9:4; Daniel 9:19-20). It is this... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Matthew 5:5

A "gentle" or "meek" person is not only gentle in his or her dealings with others (Matthew 11:29; Matthew 21:5; James 3:13). Such a person is unpretentious (1 Peter 3:4; 1 Peter 3:14-15), self-controlled, and free from malice and vengefulness. This quality looks at a person’s dealings with other people. A person might acknowledge his or her spiritual bankruptcy and mourn because of sin, but to respond meekly when other people regard us as sinful is something else. Meekness then is the natural... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Matthew 5:6

As mentioned previously, Matthew always used the term "righteousness" in the sense of personal fidelity to God and His will (Matthew 3:15; cf. Psalms 42:2; Psalms 63:1; Amos 8:11-14). He never used it of imputed righteousness, justification. Therefore, the righteousness that the blessed hunger and thirst for is not salvation. It is personal holiness and, extending this desire more broadly, the desire that holiness may prevail among all people (cf. Matthew 6:10). When believers bewail their own... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Matthew 5:7

A merciful person forgives the guilty and has compassion on the needy and the suffering. A meek person acknowledges to others that he or she is sinful, but a merciful person has compassion on others because they are sinful. [Note: John R. W. Stott, The Message of the Sermon on the Mount, p. 48.] Notice that Jesus did not specify a situation or situations in which the merciful person displays mercy because he or she is characteristically merciful. The promise applies in many different... read more

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