Matthew 5:7 is the seventh verse of the fifth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. It is the fifth verse of the Sermon on the Mount, and also the fifth of what are known as the Beatitudes.
Content
In the King James Version of the Bible, the text reads:
:Blessed are the merciful:
:for they shall obtain mercy.
The World English Bible translates the passage as:
:Blessed are the merciful,
:for they shall obtain mercy.
The Novum Testamentum Graece text is:
:μακάριοι οἱ ἐλεήμονες,
:ὅτι αὐτοὶ ἐλεηθήσονται.
For a collection of other versions see BibleHub: Matthew 5:7.
Analysis
Like Matthew 5:5 this verse has no parallel in Luke's Sermon on the Plain. New Testament scholar Robert H. Gundry therefore suggests that this fairly straightforward construction was probably thus a creation by the author of Matthew's Gospel. The theme is an obvious one for Matthew to choose: Eduard Schweizer notes that "mercy is the focal point of Matthew's message".
The form – "blessed" (Greek: ') + subject + "that" (') + cause – can be found in (also in Tobit 13:16), whereas the eschatological orientation is similar to (also 1 Enoch 58:2–3). Other ancient literature can attest the grouping together of several beatitudes (cf. 4Q525 2; 2 Enoch 52:1–14) and the use of third person plural address (cf. Pss. Sol. 17:44; Tobit 13:14). The Greek word makarios cannot adequately be rendered as "blessed" nor "happy", as it is rather 'a term of congratulation and recommendation' which can also mean "satisfied" (as in ).
The Greek phrase , , "the merciful" or "the compassionate" (; Homer, Odyssey, Book 5, line 191) does not merely refer to the 'negative quality' ("not dealing harshly, not inflicting punishment when due, sparing an animal or a fellow-man some unnecessary labor"), but also 'active kindness to the destitute and to any who are in trouble' (cf. ; ; ; ).
This verse, according to Gundry, marks the beginning of the second quartet of Beatitudes. The first four are all about private attitudes and conditions, the second four are about relations between people. Gundry feels the first four reflect the persecuted conditions of the disciples and the second four show the righteous behaviour that led to this persecution.