Matthew 5:7

Matthew 5:7 is the seventh verse of the fifth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. It is the fifth verse of the Sermon on the Mount, and also the fifth of what are known as the Beatitudes.

Matthew 5:7
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Matthew 5:7 depicted in the window of a Trittenheim church
Book	Gospel of Matthew
Christian Bible part	New Testament

Content

In the King James Version of the Bible, the text reads:

Blessed are the merciful:

for they shall obtain mercy.

The World English Bible translates the passage as:

Blessed are the merciful,

for they shall obtain mercy.

For a collection of other versions see BibleHub: Matthew 5:7.

Analysis

Like Matthew 5:5 this verse has no parallel in Luke's Sermon on the Plain. New Testament scholar Robert H. Gundry therefore suggests that this fairly straightforward construction was probably thus a creation by the author of Matthew's Gospel.[1] The theme is an obvious one for Matthew to choose: Eduard Schweizer notes that "mercy is the focal point of Matthew's message".[2]

The form – "blessed" (Greek: makarios) + subject + "that" (hoti) + cause – can be found in Genesis 30:13 (also in Tobit 13:16), whereas the eschatological orientation is similar to Daniel 12:12 (also 1 Enoch 58:2–3).[3] Other ancient literature can attest the grouping together of several beautitudes (cf. 4Q525 2; 2 Enoch 52:1–14) and the use of third person plural address (cf. Pss. Sol. 17:44; Tobit 13:14).[3] The Greek word makarios cannot adequately be rendered as "blessed" nor "happy", as it is rather 'a term of congratulation and recommendation' [4] which can also mean "satisfied" (as in Psalm 1:1).[5]

The Greek phrase οἱ ἐλεήμονες, hoi eleēmones, "the merciful" or "the compassionate" (Hebrews 2:17; Homer, Odyssey, Book 5, line 191)[6] does not merely refer to the 'negative quality' ("not dealing harshly, not inflicting punishment when due, sparing an animal or a fellow-man some unnecessary labor"), but also 'active kindness to the destitute and to any who are in trouble' (cf. Matthew 9:27; Matthew 15:22; Matthew 17:15; Mark 5:19).[7]

This verse, according to Gundry, marks the beginning of the second quartet of Beatitudes. The first four are all about private attitudes and conditions, the second four are about relations between people. Gundry feels the first four reflect the persecuted conditions of the disciples and the second four show the righteous behaviour that led to this persecution.[1]

References

1. Gundry, Robert H., Matthew: a Commentary on his Literary and Theological Art, Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1982.
2. Schweizer, Eduard, The Good News According to Matthew, Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1975
3. Allison 2007, p. 853.
4. France 1994, p. 911.
5. Coogan 2007, p. 13 New Testament.
6. Meyer, H., Meyer's NT Testament. Matthew 5, accessed 24 April 2018
7. Exell, Joseph S.; Spence-Jones, Henry Donald Maurice (Editors). On "Matthew 5". In: The Pulpit Commentary. 23 volumes. First publication: 1890. Accessed 24 April 2018. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.

Sources

• Allison, Dale C., Jr. (2007). "57. Matthew". In Barton, John; Muddiman, John (eds.). The Oxford Bible Commentary (first (paperback) ed.). Oxford University Press. pp. 844–886. ISBN 978-0199277186. Retrieved February 6, 2019.
• Coogan, Michael David (2007). Coogan, Michael David; Brettler, Marc Zvi; Newsom, Carol Ann; Perkins, Pheme (eds.). The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books: New Revised Standard Version, Issue 48 (Augmented 3rd ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195288810.
• France, R. T. (1994). "Matthew". In Carson, D. A.; France, R. T.; Motyer, J. A.; Wenham, G. J. (eds.). New Bible Commentary: 21st Century Edition (4, illustrated, reprint, revised ed.). Inter-Varsity Press. pp. 904–945. ISBN 9780851106489.

Preceded by Matthew 5:6

Gospel of Matthew Chapter 5

Succeeded by Matthew 5:8