The Beatitudes - Part 4

"Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the land."

Blessed are the meek….in the verse above the word meek is underlined because it may be written as 'gentle' in other versions of the Bible. In fact, in the Hebrew-Greek Study Bible it is written as gentle and is underlined to look up in the reference material such as the New Testament Dictionary for specific meaning as used in the verse. In this context, it comes from the Greek word praus –' meek, meekness, forbearance, mildness.' In the New Testament, it expresses a meekness that differs from the usual connotation of the word in English. The root word Prautes is 'the middle standing between two extremes, getting angry without reason, and not getting angry at all. It is the result of a strong man's choice to control his reactions in submission to God. It is a balance born in strength of character, stemming from confident trust in God, not from weakness or fear.'

If that last couples of lines do not describe Jesus, I do not know what does.

Also underlined in the verse above is 'inherit the land.' Some versions read 'inherit the earth', however, it is used with the Greek word kleronomeo, which comes from the word kleronomos meaning 'to be an heir, to obtain, acquire, possess. Used in the New Testament, it is spoken as friends of God receiving admission to the kingdom of heaven and its attendant privileges.' We cannot earn our way into heaven; we receive admission when living in submission to God.

 So, still connecting the dots…

Jesus is talking of the qualities of true believers, the redeemed. The foundational characteristic is humility…a poverty of spirit, a brokenness that acknowledges spiritual bankruptcy (Matthew 5:3). Genuine believers see themselves as sinners; they know they have nothing to offer God that will buy His favor. This is why they mourn (Matthew 5:4) with sorrow that accompanies true repentance. They are of a humble mind, and continual dependence for acceptance on the mercy of God in Christ Jesus, with constant seeking the Holy Spirit, to cleanse away the remaining evil. Heaven is the joy of our Lord, a mountain of joy, to which our way is through a vale of tears. God shall comfort such mourners. (Matthew 5:5) shows us once again we are to be under submission to God as evidenced by the willful choice to rely in confidence, to trust, in His strength not our own. Without which we will not become heirs and receive admission to heaven. Meekness is not a position of personal ineptitude or lack of courage but a choice to fore-go any action of our own abilities or attitude of entitlement regarding our 'right' to fight back when we perceive a wrong done to us, trusting in God alone.

  "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the land."