The Beatitudes: Today's verse is Matthew 5:7

Today we continue our verse by verse look at what is often referred to as The Beatitudes, Matthew 5:2-12.  We will be looking at Matthew 5:7.

The overview of Matthew 5:2-12 can be found here, while an important word study on the term blessed can be found here.  The verse overviews of Matthew 5:2-6 can be found here,   here,  here.  here,  and here.

For any person who does not have easy access to Bible software you can look up all cross references listed in this blog at the Bible Gateway website.    It is easy and quick to use and you can choose from many different translations.  The cross references are a big part of any Bible Study that we may undertake!

Matthew 5:7

"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy."

(Matthew 5:7)

Grammatical Considerations

 

Cause and effect:  Effect is that those are merciful will be blessed!  The cause is that "they shall receive mercy."  

ARE and FOR:  As in all the Beatitudes Jesus makes it clear that what He is saying are not probabilities. They are true and will occur given the circumstances He sets forth.

Important Terms

All definitions were culled from the Complete Word Study Dictionary from AMG Publisher, Vine's Expository Dictionary and/or

Mounce's Complete Expository Dictionary.

Blessed:     

• see word study at this link.  

 merciful:

• E Sword Concordance Search---  Luk 6:36  Luk 18:13  Heb 2:17  Heb 8:12  Jas 5:11 Psa 86:15  Psa 145:8  Pro 11:17   Hos 6:6
• Definition---  The Greek word is usually used as a quality or action from God.  The word is only used as a quality of believers in Mat_5:7  or in proverbs Pro_11:17  
• Actual definition is compassionate, benevolently merciful involving thought and action.  As the previous beatitudes indicate, this state of blessedness is a permanent condition due to a person's belief in Jesus Christ and subsequent right relationship with God.

receive (obtain) mercy: (this is all one word in Greek!)

• Definition---  to show compassion or mercy.  Extend help for the consequence of sin.
• mercy is the application of grace (God's grace that has allowed us to be forgiven for our sins!) 
• Many times people asked Jesus for mercy:  Mat 9:27  Mat 15:22  Mat 17:15  Mat 20:30             Mat 20:31  
• God shows us mercy (Jesus in His earthly ministry also showed mercy):   Mar 5:19  Luk 1:58        Luk 1:78  Rom 11:32  
• Mercy is not something we earn, it is God's prerogative:  Rom 9:15  Rom 9:16  Rom 9:18  
• To be merciful is to forgive other their trespasses against us.   Blanket forgiveness of sins is God's domain.  
• It is not necessarily in OUR nature to forgive.  But Jesus wants us to forgive others (Mat 6:14-15 ).  So as this beatitude is listed after the one dealing with those who hunger for righteousness due to their realization of their poor spiritual state (caused by sin) and enabled through their humbleness to realize that only through God can their sin be forgiven and only through God can they obtain mercy, then they should be able (and desire) to show mercy.  A good example of this thought can be found in          Matt 18:23-33
• Other relevant cross-references:  Mat 9:13  Luk 10:30-37
• Mercy is also acts of kindness and compassion not just forgiveness.
• God wants us to be merciful to all those in need.  And part of that is forgiveness.   Mat 6:12-15 
• And again it is important to note that this ability (which also seems to be a command from God) to forgive others is given after the person has acknowledged the need for God (and forgiveness of one's own sins), which leads to humility and humbleness, and then thirsting and hungering for that righteousness that come only from God (which God will fill...when we believe on and accept His Son Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord), then we will show mercy because we will be able to!  Because WE HAVE BEEN shown mercy.  ...it is a cycle!  a good one...but we SHOULD NOT break the cycle!
• God's mercy also includes His acts of kindness to all of us in need and definitely includes the forgiveness of our sins through God's grace!
• We must also know that mercy is an action.  (sprung from compassion and/or empathy?)

How do we go about being merciful?

In many ways!  But the simplest are:

• To forgive those who trespass against us because the Father has forgiven us our sins,  Mat 6:14-15  Mat 18:21-35  For it is important to remember that by forgiving our sins God has shown us the ultimate mercy!  A mercy we did not earn!
• And by showing kindness to our neighbor (in other words everyone)!!  Luk 10:30-37  (among other examples!)

 Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved."