Variety: Matthew 5v3

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5v3)

Who precisely are the “poor in spirit” whom Jesus blesses? Again and again in the Psalms ‘poor’ and ‘pious’ are synonymous for those who out of their need cast themselves wholly on God for their salvation (see Psalms 9.18; 33.18; 40.18). They are the poor of Isaiah 61.1, who are “oppressed” and “broken hearted” to whom the Servant of the Lord was anointed to preach good news. In the Judaism of Jesus’ time, ‘poor’ had become a title of honour for the righteous (see Psalms of Solomon 5.2,11; 10.7; 15.1; 18.2). Interestingly, at the site where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found we discover the phrase “poor in spirit”, who are people who “have knowledge of God” and to whom God “gives firm stance to those whose knees are weak and upright posture to those whose backs are broken” so that they may “walk perfectly” (1 Qumran 14.6-7).
R.T. (‘Dick’) France commented that “the poor in spirit are humbly dependent on God’s protection in the face of the oppression which they endure from the ungodly rich”. Poverty in spirit “is not speaking of weakness of character, but rather of a person’s relationship with God. It is a positive spiritual orientation, the converse of the arrogant self-confidence which rides roughshod over the interests of other people”. They are the ones who gladly accept God’s rule and therefore enjoy the benefits which come to God’s subjects. As Douglas Hare commented, “the proud self-reliance that is fed by prosperity all too easily prompts forgetfulness of our dependence upon God (see Deuteronomy 8.11-18)”. Does this mean that there is no hope for most of us, who are not really poor? Not necessarily. Although Jesus did not say it, nonetheless I have no doubt that Jesus could have said, “Blessed are the wealthy who regard themselves as if they were poor, remembering humbly their dependence upon God and their subservience to his rule”. As the dying Martin Luther said, “We are all beggars”. The good news that Jesus brought is not for the proud and self-sufficient, but for those who, owning their sinfulness and insufficiency, cast themselves on the mercy of God.

Paul Beasley-Murray