Prompted by Julie’s diversion into the Beatitudes that we have been studying at Truro recently, let us consider the opening verse, Matt. 5:3, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. I have a fascination with words, getting at their inner meaning, their relationship to other words and to the Word made flesh. What is Jesus getting at here?
In Matt. 5:3, the Greek word for “poor” is ptochos. It comes from the verb to crouch—which interestingly is a bodily posture--and refers to a beggar, more precisely to a pauper, one who is absolutely poor. The same word is used by Jesus in Luke 6:20, “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.” Luke’s version leaves out the qualifier “of spirit.” Who are these poor? We learn from the Bible that God seems to have a special affection for them.
I used my searchable Bible to locate any verses where “poor” and “spirit” occur together. There are only four cases in the English Standard Version. In addition to Matt. 5:3, one is in Proverbs 16:19,
It is better to be of a lowly spirit with the poor
than to divide the spoil with the proud.
Near the start of Jesus’ ministry he tells the people of Nazareth gathered in the synagogue what his mission is (Luke 4:18),
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed.
In this Jesus echoes the words from Isaiah 61:1 about the expected Messiah,
The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,
because the LORD has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor;
he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and the opening of the prison to those who are bound.
In Isaiah 61 and Proverbs 16, the poor are the anawim in Hebrew. This Hebrew word is used as a noun or adjective 94 times in the Old Testament, often rendered afflicted, humble, or meek instead of poor. It seems not to be an easy word to translate clearly. It is used in Numbers 12:3 to refer to Moses, “Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all people who were on the face of the earth.” It is used in Zechariah 9:9 to speak of the savior to come, “humble and mounted on a donkey.” The Psalmist makes frequent use of the term:
O LORD, you hear the desire of the afflicted;
you will strengthen their heart. (Psa. 10:17)
But the meek shall inherit the land
and delight themselves in abundant peace. (Psa. 37:11)
For the LORD takes pleasure in his people;
he adorns the humble with salvation. (Psa. 149:4)
He leads the humble in what is right,
and teaches the humble his way. (Psa. 25:9)
Thus we see that the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit, who unites the Father and Son in love, sends Jesus to bring good news for the poor, the afflicted, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to those in captivity. And which of us would be so full of self and pride that we fail to see that we need that? Jesus offers himself to us, a free gift, a gift of self-giving love. Jesus comes to restore God's image in each of us that we may also delight in returning our love to God and to each other. Such is the Kingdom of Heaven, that we would be free of whatever holds us in bondage, in body or spirit. The key to the Kingdom is a humble spirit that recognizes its own utter poverty to love in this way on its own. As Jesus’ brother James says, “Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him?” (James 2:5)
Can you make any connections with the Theology of the Body?
I came across a teaching from John Paul II from an audience he gave on May 23, 2001, reflecting on Psalm 149. He considers two types of people mentioned in the psalm, the "hasadim or "faithful ones" and the "anawim" or "lowly ones". You can find his full audience at this "link.
ReplyDeleteHe speaks of the "anawim" in section 5 of the audience. This is what John Paul II says there:
"There is a second term which we use to define those who pray in the Psalm: they are the anawim, "the poor and lowly ones" (v. 4). The expression turns up often in the Psalter. It indicates not just the oppressed, the miserable, the persecuted for justice, but also those who, with fidelity to the moral teaching of the Alliance with God, are marginalized by those who prefer to use violence, riches and power. In this light one understands that the category of the "poor" is not just a social category but a spiritual choice. It is what the famous first Beatitude means: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven" (Mt 5:3). The prophet Zephaniah spoke to the anawim as special persons: "Seek the Lord, all you humble of the land, who do his commands; seek righteousness, seek humility; perhaps you may be hidden on the day of wrath of the Lord" (Zep 2:3)."