The Beatitudes are the opening lines of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, nine sentences that each begin “Blessed.” They sound like proverbs, but they work more like announcements. Jesus names people the world overlooks, the poor in spirit, the grieving, the meek, the persecuted, and says God’s kingdom and comfort belong to them.

Quick Answer

In Matthew 5:3–12, Jesus declares nine groups of people “blessed” and attaches a promise to each, from “theirs is the kingdom of heaven” to “they will see God.” The Beatitudes are not a list of achievements that earn God’s favor; the Greek pronounces people blessed rather than commanding them. They describe the kind of people who belong to God’s kingdom and turn the world’s ranking upside down. The rest of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5–7) fills out what that life looks like.

The Passage in Full

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets before you.” (Matthew 5:3–12, BSB)

The Setting

Matthew 4 ends with Jesus “preaching the gospel of the kingdom” in Galilee and large crowds following him “from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan” (4:23, 25). Then: “When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain and sat down. His disciples came to Him, and He began to teach them” (5:1–2).

So the Beatitudes are addressed to disciples, with the crowds within earshot. When the sermon ends, “the crowds were astonished at His teaching, because He taught as one who had authority” (7:28–29). The Beatitudes lead straight into “You are the salt of the earth” and “You are the light of the world” (5:13–14): the blessed people of verses 3–12 are the same people Jesus sends into the world.

The Shape of the List

Verse Who is blessed Promise
5:3 The poor in spirit “Theirs is the kingdom of heaven”
5:4 Those who mourn “They will be comforted”
5:5 The meek “They will inherit the earth”
5:6 Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness “They will be filled”
5:7 The merciful “They will be shown mercy”
5:8 The pure in heart “They will see God”
5:9 The peacemakers “They will be called sons of God”
5:10 Those persecuted because of righteousness “Theirs is the kingdom of heaven”
5:11–12 You, when insulted and persecuted because of Jesus “Great is your reward in heaven”

Two features stand out in the text. The first and eighth beatitudes end with the same words, “theirs is the kingdom of heaven,” which frame the list. Those two promises are in the present tense (“theirs is”), while the six between them look to the future (“will be comforted,” “will see God”). The wording suggests that the kingdom already belongs to these people, while its full blessings are still to come. The ninth beatitude then shifts from “those who” to “you,” turning the description directly on the disciples.

What “Blessed” Means

The Greek word is makarios. Thayer’s lexicon defines it as “blessed, happy.” John Wesley, preaching on this passage, said “so the word should be rendered, both in this and the following verses,” and read it as “happy.” Thayer notes the word’s use “in congratulations,” where a reason is given for pronouncing someone blessed. That is the pattern here: each beatitude pronounces a group blessed and gives the reason, so the word describes their standing, not their mood.

In verses 3–10 the opening words also have no verb in Greek. Bible Hub’s interlinear prints verse 3 as “Blessed [are] the poor,” with the brackets marking a word English supplies, and verse 11 uses the ordinary verb “are,” not a command. The Beatitudes are pronouncements, not commands. Jesus does not say “Become poor in spirit so that you will be blessed”; he declares that the poor in spirit already are.

The Beatitudes One by One

The poor in spirit (5:3). The word for “poor,” ptōchos, describes a beggar; the NAS Exhaustive Concordance entry on Bible Hub defines it “(of one who crouches and cowers, hence) beggarly, poor.” John Wesley read “poor in spirit” as describing people who know their need before God, whatever their outward circumstances, and called it the “disposition of heart which is the first step to all real, substantial happiness.”

Those who mourn (5:4). Jesus does not say what the mourners grieve over. Wesley read it as mourning “after God” and “for the sins and miseries of mankind.” The wording recalls Isaiah 61:2–3, where the one the LORD has anointed is sent “to comfort all who mourn.” Jesus read from that chapter in the synagogue at Nazareth (Luke 4:18–19).

The meek (5:5). Praus means mild or humble. The BSB offers an alternative rendering: “those who exercise strength under control.” The promise quotes Psalm 37:11, “But the meek will inherit the land,” and the BSB footnote points there.

Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness (5:6). The image is of physical craving. The same Greek word for righteousness returns later in the sermon (5:20; 6:33), and the promise is that such people “will be filled.”

The merciful (5:7). Mercy shown and mercy received belong together, a theme the sermon returns to in the Lord’s Prayer and the words after it (6:12, 14–15).

The pure in heart (5:8). Psalm 24 asks, “Who may ascend the hill of the LORD?” and answers, “He who has clean hands and a pure heart” (24:3–4). Jesus promises the pure in heart something greater: “they will see God.”

The peacemakers (5:9). Not peace-lovers only but peace-makers, people who work to reconcile. The sermon soon gives an example: leave your gift at the altar and “first go and be reconciled to your brother” (5:24).

The persecuted (5:10–12). The last beatitude is expanded. Persecution “because of righteousness” becomes persecution “because of Me,” and Jesus places his disciples in the line of the prophets who suffered before them.

Matthew and Luke

Luke records a shorter set of blessings in a sermon Jesus gives after he “came down with them and stood on a level place” (Luke 6:17). The comparison is useful:

Matthew 5 Luke 6
“Blessed are the poor in spirit” (5:3) “Blessed are you who are poor” (6:20)
“Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness” (5:6) “You who hunger now” (6:21)
“Those who mourn” (5:4) “You who weep now” (6:21)
Nine blessings, mostly third person Four blessings in second person, then four woes (6:24–26)

Luke’s woes, “woe to you who are rich… who are well fed now… who laugh now” (6:24–25), make the reversal explicit. Taken together, the two Gospels keep both sides in view: the Beatitudes concern spiritual poverty and hunger for righteousness, and they also speak to people who are literally poor, hungry, and weeping.

Two Classic Readings

Two well-documented readings show how the Beatitudes can describe both the character of Jesus’ disciples and the grace they receive.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church says, “The Beatitudes are at the heart of Jesus’ preaching,” and that they “depict the countenance of Jesus Christ and portray his charity,” “shed light on the actions and attitudes characteristic of the Christian life,” and “are the paradoxical promises that sustain hope in the midst of tribulations” (CCC 1716–1717).

John Wesley’s sermons on the Sermon on the Mount define poverty of spirit as “a just sense of our inward and outward sins, and of our guilt and helplessness,” the “first step we take in running the race which is set before us.” That reading puts the emphasis on need and grace before any change in conduct.

Common Misreadings

Treating them as an entrance exam

The Beatitudes do not say “Do these eight things to get in.” They announce God’s favor to people who seem least likely to have it. The demands of the sermon come after the blessings, not before.

Making them only about inner attitudes

Matthew’s “poor in spirit” and “hunger and thirst for righteousness” stress the heart, but Luke’s “you who are poor” and “you who hunger now” keep material need in view. Reading the two together guards against either extreme.

Reading “inherit the earth” as a promise of success

The promise quotes Psalm 37, a psalm about waiting for the LORD while the wicked seem to prosper. It is a promise about who finally receives God’s world, not about getting ahead now.

  • Luke 6:20–26: Luke’s blessings and woes.
  • Isaiah 61:1–3: good news to the poor and comfort for those who mourn.
  • Psalm 37:11 and Psalm 24:3–4: the Old Testament roots of the meek and the pure in heart.
  • Matthew 5:13–16: salt and light, addressed to the same disciples.

On this site, see turn the other cheek (Matthew 5:39), Matthew 6:33, “seek first the kingdom”, the narrow gate in Matthew 7:13–14, and what the Bible says about making peace.

Final Thoughts

The Beatitudes open the Sermon on the Mount with a surprise. Jesus pronounces blessed the people the world would pity: the spiritually bankrupt, the grieving, the gentle, the hungry for justice, the persecuted. Each promise, framed by “theirs is the kingdom of heaven,” tells them that God’s kingdom belongs to them. The rest of the sermon shows what life in that kingdom looks like.

FAQ

How many Beatitudes are there?

Matthew 5:3–12 has nine sentences that begin “Blessed.” The first eight speak about “those who” (verses 3–10); the ninth turns to “you” (verse 11) and leads into “Rejoice and be glad” (verse 12). Whether the count is eight or nine depends on whether verses 11–12 are read as a separate beatitude or as an expansion of verse 10.

What does “blessed” mean in the Beatitudes?

The Greek word is makarios, which Thayer’s lexicon defines as “blessed, happy.” John Wesley said it should be rendered “happy” throughout. In the Beatitudes it declares someone fortunate in God’s sight, often against appearances.

What does “poor in spirit” mean?

The Greek word for “poor” describes a beggar. John Wesley read “poor in spirit” as a sense of one’s own sin and helplessness before God. Luke’s version says simply “you who are poor,” which keeps material poverty in view as well.

Are the Beatitudes commands?

No. The blessings use no command verbs. In verses 3–10 English supplies the verb (“Blessed [are]”), and verse 11 uses the ordinary verb “are.” They pronounce people blessed and attach promises, though the rest of the sermon makes clear these qualities are what Jesus expects of his disciples.

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