Beatitudes

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

What does Jesus mean when He talks about blessings? The word BLESSED in Greek is makarios, and it's difficult to translate into English. Many translators used the word BLESSED or HAPPY as this was the closest to the meaning they could get. There is an eternal JOY on the inside that the world cannot give you.

This means no matter what happens in my day, I have a joy that cannot be taken away.

These Beatitudes are an invitation into a completely counter-cultural value system that no circumstance or happening can take our JOY away. It's by living with these new instructions that Jesus gives, that he is inviting us to live a truly flourishing life.

The first group that Jesus says is blessed are the poor in spirit. What does He mean to be poor in spirit? In verse 3 the word that is used in the original New Testament Greek is a word that means 'poverty, to cower, to cringe like a beggar'. In classical Greek usage, it was used the same way, as someone who crouches, who bends, who wretchedly begs for money or for worth.

And if you take this meaning of the word and you combine it with 'in spirit', 'poverty in spirit', what it is saying is: those who are poor in spirit are those who are blessed, are those who will have the kingdom of heaven.

You could translate it like this, ‘Blessed are those who are so desperately poor in their spiritual resources that they realise that they must have help from outside sources. Theirs is the kingdom of heaven'.