29th January 2023, 4th Sunday after the Epiphany

Matthew 5:1-12

^[1]Ἰδὼν δὲ τοὺς ὄχλους ἀνέβη εἰς τὸ ὄρος, καὶ καθίσαντος αὐτοῦ προσῆλθον αὐτῷ οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ, ^[2]καὶ ἀνοίξας τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ ἐδίδασκεν αὐτοὺς λέγων· ^[3]

Mακάριοι οἱ πτωχοὶ τῷ πνεύματι,

ὅτι αὐτῶν ἐστιν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν.

^[4]

μακάριοι οἱ πενθοῦντες,

ὅτι αὐτοὶ παρακληθήσονται.

^[5]

μακάριοι οἱ πραεῖς,

ὅτι αὐτοὶ κληρονομήσουσι τὴν γῆν.

^[6]

μακάριοι οἱ πεινῶντες καὶ διψῶντες τὴν δικαιοσύνην,

ὅτι αὐτοὶ χορτασθήσονται.

^[7]

μακάριοι οἱ ἐλεήμονες,

ὅτι αὐτοὶ ἐλεηθήσονται.

^[8]

μακάριοι οἱ καθαροὶ τῇ καρδίᾳ,

ὅτι αὐτοὶ τὸν Θεὸν ὄψονται.

^[9]

μακάριοι οἱ εἰρηνοποιοί,

ὅτι αὐτοὶ υἱοὶ Θεοῦ κληθήσονται.

^[10]

μακάριοι οἱ δεδιωγμένοι ἕνεκεν δικαιοσύνης,

ὅτι αὐτῶν ἐστιν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν.

^[11]

μακάριοί ἐστε

ὅταν ὀνειδίσωσιν ὑμᾶς καὶ διώξωσι καὶ εἴπωσι πᾶν πονηρὸν ῥῆμα καθ᾿ ὑμῶν ψευδόμενοι ἕνεκεν ἐμοῦ. ^[12]χαίρετε καὶ ἀγαλλιᾶσθε, ὅτι ὁ μισθὸς ὑμῶν πολὺς ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς· οὕτω γὰρ ἐδίωξαν τοὺς προφήτας τοὺς πρὸ ὑμῶν.

Comments

[1] τὸ ὄρος: ‘mountain’, ‘hill’. The OT background, e.g.  Moses on Sinai, suggests ‘mountain’.

καθίσαντος αὐτοῦ:  lit., ‘after sitting’; absolute genitive part., aor. < καθίζω, intr., ‘I sit’. 

[2] ἀνοίξας τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ ἐδίδασκεν: ἀνοίξας, aor. part., 2^nd pers. sg. < ἀνοίγνυμι (cl. Greek),  ἀνοίγω (LXX Greek). Lit., ‘after opening his mouth’. Specialists note that this is a Semitic expression referring to a public speaker or teacher. It is, one might say, an indicator of an ‘oral performance’ in progress, in which the performer is aware that he or she is speaking for the public record (this  can be matched in other traditions, including Homer).

ἐδίδασκεν: impf., διδάσκω, ‘explain’ (cl. Greek); ‘teach’ (LXX Greek). ‘He taught [sc. them].’ Cf. Engl. didactic.

[3] Mακάριοι οἱ πτωχοὶ τῷ πνεύματι, ὅτι αὐτῶν ἐστιν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν: Mακάριοι < μακάριος (μακαρία, μακάριον), ‘blessed, happy’ (cl. Greek, esp. prose; derived from μάκαρ, which is used by most poets, e.g. Homer).  Μακάριος is used mostly of mortals in cl. Greek and in LXX Greek always so. Muraoka notes s.v. that μ. usually ‘opens … a generic statement …without a copula’ [i.e. the verb ‘to be’, ‘become’, etc.].

That is the case here: εἰσί (‘are’/plural ) is understood here and in the generic statements up to and including v. 10. Then Christ varies the structure, using the copula ἐστε/ ‘you are’, plural (v.11).

*In vv. 3 and 10, αὐτῶν ἐστιν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν the present tense ἐστιν refers to the (eschatological) future, as does implied ἐστιν in v. 12, ὁ μισθὸς ὑμῶν πολὺς ἐν τοῖς οὐρανoῖς. In ancient Greek the present can denote a future action or state that is assumed to be a certainty, e.g. in Thucydides 6.91, ‘If this city will be taken, the whole of Sicily is taken.’ The present in the sense of a future also occurs in prophecies in ancient Greek.

Vv. 3, 10, and 12 are in keeping with the eschatological tenor of the Beatitudes which D. J. Harrington has remarked (Sacra Pagina, The Gospel of Matthew, Collegeville, Minn., 1991, p. 78).

οἱ πτωχοὶ: πτωχὸς in Homer and cl. Greek = ‘beggar’, ‘poor person’ (noun), ‘beggarly’, ‘poor’ (adj.); in later Greek = ‘poor’.

 In its root sense πτωχὸς is someone who ‘crouches in fear and asks for help’ (πτήσσω).

τῷ πνεύματι: dat. of respect  (‘in spirit’).

[11] ὁ μισθὸς ὑμῶν: μισθὸς/ ‘reward’ is used by Plato in connection with a recompense in the afterlife for virtue (Republic 363d).

Matthew 5:1-12
5:1 When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him.

5:2 Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

5:3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

5:4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

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

5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

5:7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

5:8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

5:9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

5:10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

5:11 “Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.

5:12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.