Words found both in Matthew and James: "Poor" and "Merciful"

There are two books in the New Testament that are being studied here, Matthew and JamesThere are two words that are being studied here, Poor and Merciful Matthew 5:3 The Sermon on the Mount

“

Blessed

are

the

poor

in

spirit

,

for

theirs

is

the

kingdom

of

heaven

makarios

o

ptōchos

o pneuma

oti

autos

eimi

o

basileus

o ouranos

3107

3588

4434

3588 4151

3754

846

2076

3588

932

3588 3772

^[1]

B. Adjective. ptochos (πτωχός, 4434), an adjective describing “one who crouches and cowers,” is used as a noun, “a beggar” (from ptosso, “to cower down or hide oneself for fear”), Luke 14:13, 21 (“poor”); 16:20, 22; as an adjective, “beggarly” in Gal. 4:9, i.e., poverty-stricken, powerless to enrich, metaphorically descriptive of the religion of the Jews.While prosaites is descriptive of a “beggar,” and stresses his “begging,” ptochos stresses his poverty-stricken condition. See POOR.[2]

4434.      πτωχός ptōchŏs, pto-khos´; from  πτώσσω ptōssō, to crouch; akin to 4422 and the alt. of 4098); a beggar (as cringing), i.e. pauper (strictly denoting absolute or public mendicancy, although also used in a qualified or relative sense; whereas 3993 prop. means only straitened circumstances in private), lit. (often used as a noun) or fig. (distressed):— beggar (-ly), poor.[3]

.Verse 3. Blessed are the poor in spirit—All familiar with Old Testament phraseology know how frequently God's true people are styled "the poor" (the "oppressed," "afflicted," "miserable") or "the needy"—or both together (as in Ps 40:17; Isa 41:17). The explanation of this lies in the fact that it is generally "the poor of this world" who are "rich in faith" (Jas 2:5; compare 2 Cor 6:10 Rev. 2:9); while it is often "the ungodly" who "prosper in the world" (Ps 73:12). Accordingly, in Luke 6:20, 21, it seems to be this class—the literally "poor" and "hungry"—that are specially addressed. But since God's people are in so many places styled "the poor" and "the needy," with no evident reference to their temporal circumstances (as in Ps 68:10; Ps 69:29-33; Ps 132:15; Isa 61:1; Isa 66:2), it is plainly a frame of mind which those terms are meant to express. Accordingly, our translators sometimes render such words "the humble" (Ps 10:12, 17), "the meek" (Ps 22:26), "the lowly" (Pr 3:34), as having no reference to outward circumstances. But here the explanatory words, "in spirit," fix the sense to "those who in their deepest consciousness realize their entire need" (compare the Greek of Luke 10:21; John 11:33; John 13:21; Ac 20:22; Rom 12:11; 1 Cor 5:3; Phil 3:3). This self-emptying conviction, that "before God we are void of everything," lies at the foundation of all spiritual excellence, according to the teaching of Scripture. Without it we are inaccessible to the riches of Christ; with it we are in the fitting state for receiving all spiritual supplies (Rev. 3:17, 18; Mt 9:12, 13).[4]

^{James 2:5 NASB} Listen, my beloved brethren: did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? [5]

---

MAT 5:7

“

Blessed

are

the

merciful

,

for

they

shall

obtain

mercy

.

[6]

makarios

o

eleos

oti

autos

eleos

3107

3588

1655

3754

846

1653

eleeo (ἐλεέω, 1653), “to have mercy (eleos, “mercy”), to show kindness, by beneficence, or assistance,” is translated “have compassion” in Matt. 18:33 (KJV); Mark 5:19 and Jude 22. See MERCY. [7] 

1653.      ἐλεέω ĕlĕĕō, el-eh-eh´-o; from 1656; to compassionate (by word or deed, spec., by divine grace):— have compassion (pity on), have (obtain, receive, shew) mercy (on).[8]

1654.      ἐλεημοσύνη ĕlĕēmŏsunē, el-eh-ay-mos-oo´-nay; from 1656; compassionateness, i.e. (as exercised toward the poor) beneficence, or (concr.) a benefaction:— alms (-deeds).[8]

1655.      ἐλεήμων ĕlĕēmōn, el-eh-ay´-mone; from 1653; compassionate (actively):— merciful.[8]

Notes for Verse 7 Verse 7. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy—Beautiful is the connection between this and the preceding beatitude. The one has a natural tendency to beget the other. As for the words, they seem directly fetched from Ps 18:25, "With the merciful Thou wilt show Thyself merciful." Not that our mercifulness comes absolutely first. On the contrary, our Lord Himself expressly teaches us that God's method is to awaken in us compassion towards our fellow men by His own exercise of it, in so stupendous a way and measure, towards ourselves. In the parable of the unmerciful debtor, the servant to whom his lord forgave ten thousand talents was naturally expected to exercise the small measure of the same compassion required for forgiving his fellow servant's debt of a hundred pence; and it is only when, instead of this, he relentlessly imprisoned him till he should pay it up, that his lord's indignation was roused, and he who was designed for a vessel of mercy is treated as a vessel of wrath (Mt 18:23-35; and see Mt 5:23, 24; Mt 6:15; Jas 2:13). "According to the view given in Scripture," says Trench most justly, "the Christian stands in a middle point, between a mercy received and a mercy yet needed." Sometimes the first is urged upon him as an argument for showing mercy—"forgiving one another, as Christ forgave you" (Col 3:13; Eph 4:32): sometimes the last—"Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy"; "Forgive, and ye shall be forgiven" (Lk 6:37; Jas 5:9). And thus, while he is ever to look back on the mercy received as the source and motive of the mercy which he shows, he also looks forward to the mercy which he yet needs, and which he is assured that the merciful—according to what Bengel beautifully calls the benigna talio ("the gracious requital") of the kingdom of God—shall receive, as a new provocation to its abundant exercise. The foretastes and beginnings of this judicial recompense are richly experienced here below: its perfection is reserved for that day when, from His great white throne, the King shall say, "Come, ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was an hungered, and thirsty, and a stranger, and naked, and sick, and in prison,  and ye ministered unto Me." Yes, thus He acted towards us while on earth, even laying down His life for us; and He will not, He cannot disown, in the merciful, the image of Himself. [9]

James 2: 12, 13 Wuest In this manner be speaking and in this manner be doing, namely, as those who are about to be judged by a law of liberty, for the judgment will be without mercy to the person who did not show mercy; mercy exults in triumph over judgment [10].

James 5:9-11 Wuest Stop complaining, brethren, about one another, in order that you may not be judged. Consider this. The judge has taken His stand before the doors. Take the prophets who spoke in the Name of the Lord, brethren, as an example of suffering and of patience under the mistreatment of others. Put your thought upon this. We consider those who patiently remain under their trials spiritually prosperous and fortunate. You heard of the patience of Job, how he patiently remained under the trials to which he was subjected, and you saw the consummation of those trials brought about by the Lord, that the Lord is compassionate and merciful[11].

In conclusion James took some ideas of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount in the book of Matthew and discussed them in the book of James. This post just looks at poor and mercy as concepts taught.

Appendix / Bibliography

[1] The Revised Standard Version. (1971). (Mt 5:3). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.

[2] Vine, W. E., Unger, M. F., & White, W., Jr. (1996). Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words (Vol. 2, pp. 56–57). Nashville, TN: T. Nelson.

[3] Strong, J. (1996). The New Strong’s Dictionary of Hebrew and Greek Words. Nashville: Thomas Nelson

[4] Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset, David Brown, A Commentary: Critical, Experimental, and Practical on the Old and New Testaments, (Toledo, OH: Jerome B. Names & Co., 1884), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, Under: "Chapter 5 - 3". [5] Holy Bible, New American Standard La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995. WORDsearch CROSS e-book.

[6] The Revised Standard Version. (1971). (Mt 5:7). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.

[7] Vine, W. E., Unger, M. F., & White, W., Jr. (1996). Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words (Vol. 2, p. 117). Nashville, TN: T. Nelson.

[8] Strong, J. (1996). The New Strong’s Dictionary of Hebrew and Greek Words. Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

[9] Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset, David Brown, A Commentary: Critical, Experimental, and Practical on the Old and New Testaments, (Toledo, OH: Jerome B. Names & Co., 1884), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, Under: "Chapter 5 - 7".

[10] Wuest, Kenneth S., trans. The New Testament: An Expanded Translation Grand Rapids, MI: Wlliam B. Eerdmans, 1961. Reprint, Grand Rapids, MI: Wlliam B. Eerdmans, 2002. WORDsearch CROSS e-book. 

[11] Wuest, Kenneth S., trans. The New Testament: An Expanded Translation Grand Rapids, MI: Wlliam B. Eerdmans, 1961. Reprint, Grand Rapids, MI: Wlliam B. Eerdmans, 2002. WORDsearch CROSS e-book. 

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