The Meek

Matthew 5:5 “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.”

Continuing in this small topical Bible study of the Beatitudes from the Lord Jesus Christ’s Sermon on the Mount in Matthew chapter five, Pastor Ken Jones points out that it is not uncommon for commentators and Bible teachers to interpret the “blessed” in the Beatitudes as meaning “to be happy”. The Greek word translated as blessed is “makarios”, and while “happy” is one of the ways it can be interpreted, in the broader context of the Beatitudes, happy seems to miss the mark. For one thing, being happy is a subjective emotional state, and being reviled and persecutes do not jibe with such a state. Furthermore, interpreting the Greek word “makarios” as “happy” leads to the mistake of seeing the Beatitudes as a series of exhortations on how to be happy, which does not seem to be what the Lord Jesus is doing here. On the contrary, the Beatitudes are a series of prophetic declarations of what God bestows on those whom He receives into His kingdom.

Luke 11:28b “Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”

Looking up the Greek Word “makarios”, used in the Beatitudes of Matthew chapter five, in the Strong’s Dictionary of Bible Words, it is defined as: “fortunate” or “well off”, and states that in the Beatitudes the Lord indicates not only the characteristics that are “blessed”, but the nature of that which is the highest good. The 1828 Webster’s Dictionary defines the word “blessed” as: enjoying spiritual happiness and the favor of God; enjoying heavenly felicity. I find that the context and the meaning of the Lord’s words in all His teachings are multifaceted in application with complex implications.

Matthew 16:26 “For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?”

Rev. Jones explains that the reason these Beatitude characteristics and virtues are bestowed or given is because they are not naturally possessed by the recipients, nor are their recipients in themselves able to produce these qualities. To take it one step further, the character traits set forth in the Beatitudes are not what we in our fallen state of sin aspire to. The idea of gaining the world seems to be the goal of fallen humanity, both individually and collectively: to make a name for ourselves through accumulation, accomplishments, or through expanding our borders. And when these things are the defining pursuits of people, they will lean in the direction of avarice and arrogance of ruthless ambition. But, here is the kicker: the ones who will gain the earth by inheritance are the meek.   

Psalm 37:9-11 “For evildoers shall be cut off; but those who wait on the Lord, they shall inherit the earth. For yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more; indeed, you will look carefully for his place, but it shall be no more. But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.”

It is said in our secular humanistic “survival of the fittest” society that Christianity is a crutch for the weak. We always must consider the “wicked” source of such a statement of unbelief, but I also have two questions: (1) What is the definition of “weak” and (2) Who is not weak? Contrary to what many may think, meekness is not weakness. Meekness is humility and submission to God. Self-centered gains of things will bring temporary pleasure this side of eternity, but only the meek, those who delight in the Lord, will inherit the earth. On the one hand, meekness is a virtue possessed by Christ in His humanity as a part of His active righteousness that is credited to us for our justification by faith alone. On the other hand, meekness is a fruit of the Spirit that the Holy Spirit causes us to manifest in our sanctification, conforming to the image of Christ.

Galatians 5:22-25 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.”

The point is that meekness is not native to our “fallen” state. So the blessing of this third Beatitude is that those who look to Christ in faith will inherit the earth because they have been credited with His meekness and have been given the gift of the fruit of the Spirit, who connects us to Christ and conforms us to His likeness.

Blessed in Christ