based on notes from teachings by Rev. David Pileggi
Imagine…
Imagine you are sitting on this hillside by Lake Tiberias (we know it as the Sea of Galilee). The sun is warm but the breeze from the lake keeps you from feeling too hot. You are seated with your friends, up close to the Master, Jesus. Many others are seated behind you, also wanting to hear Him. He is audible because the volcanic rock is a great sound reflector, but Jesus is talking to you.
You chose to follow this man when, astoundingly, He announced who He is by creating the fruit of the vine at a wedding in Cana. Since then, you’ve seen people healed, demons cast out, and lives changed (Mt 4:23-25). Could it be true? Could this be the long-awaited Messiah? You listen carefully, analyzing what He is saying based on your knowledge of the Scriptures and the culture, and are astonished (Mt 7:28-29). Modern readers may wonder why.
Jesus was Multilingual
Let’s look at what Jesus taught while seated on that hillside, putting on the context of our Jewish roots glasses. The first thing to note is that, as is still normal for many people, Jesus probably spoke more than one language. In fact, in Israel during the second temple period, people spoke Aramaic, Hebrew, Latin, and Greek. There is evidence that Jesus had some knowledge of all four. The New Testament was written in Greek since that language would have been familiar to most readers, but the underlying syntax suggests that Jesus may have done much of His teaching in Hebrew. This seemingly minor fact will help us to understand the text.
Hebrew is a poetic and rather imprecise language. As David Pileggi, Rector of Christ Church Jerusalem said, “Each word is rich with meaning, but you wouldn’t want to use Hebrew to write the building specs for a rocket.” We can expect a word to be important, but we cannot nail a word down to exactly one meaning. Hebrew poetry also often uses repetition or parallelism. This is very evident in the Psalms. Take Psalm 18 where verses 1 and 2 give slightly different aspects of the same meaning at least four times. Then verses 4 and 5 do the same thing, as do verses 7 and 8, 9 and 10, etc.
What Could He Mean?
Matthew 5 records that Jesus began His teaching on that mountain with, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Let’s first focus on the promised reward—the kingdom of heaven. What? God will give Heaven to people? That makes no sense. So, what is meant? Remembering the imprecision of Hebrew helps. Jesus often speaks of the kingdom of heaven, the kingdom of God, and eternal life. In Hebrew, all are the same word. The kingdom isn’t a place or a future state. The kingdom is within believers (Lk 17:21). It is like treasure, a mustard seed, a net, and yeast. It is at hand, given to Jesus’ followers, not of this world, good news, and eternal. It is all of these things. It is anywhere that God is the King, where He reigns, heals, and guides. In essence, it is the Jesus movement. A more accurate translation of Mt 5:3 would therefore be, “…for they ARE the kingdom of heaven.” Mind-blowing. Jesus is saying that the kingdom is here and now in His followers. They literally bring Heaven to Earth.
Now we can address who His followers are. We know from Psalm 24 that people who can ascend to God’s holy mountain are those with clean hands and a pure heart. Pretty much none of us. But, there is hope. Throughout the Old Testament, we read that God will not despise a broken and contrite heart; He is merciful and abiding in steadfast love. Jesus is underlining that teaching. People who are poor in spirit know that they can’t make it on their own. They have come to the end of themselves: they are broken and contrite. People who are poor in spirit are very aware that they’ve been going the wrong way and have decided to turn around with God’s help—they are continuously repentant.
Nongeometric Parallels
The rest of the passage, which is known as the Beatitudes, is Hebrew parallelism. First, it expounds on what it is to be poor in spirit. Those who are poor in spirit mourn about their sin, are aware of their state before God, and long for righteousness. They are merciful to other sinners but focus on God and His purity. They share God’s love with others, thereby bringing them peace. Inevitably, this results in insults, persecution, and slander. As David Pileggi said, “The Truth will set you free, but first it’ll make you miserable.” We need to understand that following Jesus, being in His movement, is hard because people will treat us like they did Him. So, why do it?
Again in the Hebrew parallel structure, the Beatitudes describe the advantages of being in the Jesus movement. You are comforted with forgiveness and cleansing and filled with a vision of His righteousness. You obtain mercy as you forgive others. You are aware of God and see Him in action in and around you. You continuously increase in personal holiness, and God accepts you as His child. And, in the end, after all is done, you will be greatly rewarded in Heaven. I am reminded of a song that is traditional at the end of the Seder meal. Dayenu. There it points out that, if God had only done one of His miracles in Exodus, it would have been sufficient (p. 14-15). But, that is not God’s style. He gives infinitely more than all we can ask or imagine.
Who is This Guy, Anyway?
As a final observation here, note the unspoken assumption at the end of the passage (v. 11). How can Jesus promise all this? Why would God bless those who are persecuted because of their association with this Jewish teacher? The Bible gives us much evidence, if we are looking. Parts of Is 61, a prophecy of the Messiah, are very similar to the Beatitudes. Doubtless, the disciples recognized where the words came from and could add up what Jesus meant. Jesus is the Messiah: He was telling them through His actions and His words. And, because of that, we can trust His promises as we continue to be the Kingdom of God.