Blessed are the Poor in spirit,
blessed are the Poor in Spirit,
What does it say?
what does it mean to be spiritually poor?
Let’s look at the Greek!
3107 μακάριος [makarios /mak·ar·ee·os/] adj. A prolonged form of the poetical makar (meaning the same); TDNT 4:362; TDNTA 548; GK 3421; 50 occurrences; AV translates as “blessed” 44 times, “happy” five times, and “happier” once. 1 blessed, happy.
25.119 μακάριος, α, ον: pertaining to being happy, with the implication of enjoying favorable circumstances—‘happy.’ μακάριοι οἱ ἐλεήμονες, ὅτι αὐτοὶ ἐλεηθήσονται ‘happy are those who show mercy, for God will be merciful to them’ Mt 5:7. This passive construction in Greek (ἐλεηθήσονται) is generally regarded as a so-called ‘passive of avoidance,’ that is to say, the use of a passive form in order to avoid a direct reference to God.
4434 πτωχός [ptochos /pto·khos/] adj. From ptosso, to crouch, akin to 4422 and the alternate of 4098; TDNT 6:885; TDNTA 969; GK 4777; 34 occurrences; AV translates as “poor” 30 times, “beggar” twice, “poor man” once, and “beggarly” once. 1 reduced to beggary, begging, asking alms. 2 destitute of wealth, influence, position, honour. 2A lowly, afflicted, destitute of the Christian virtues and eternal riches. 2B helpless, powerless to accomplish an end. 2C poor, needy. 3 lacking in anything. 3A as respects their spirit. 3A1 destitute of wealth of learning and intellectual culture which the schools afford (men of this class most readily give themselves up to Christ’s teaching and proved them selves fitted to lay hold of the heavenly treasure). Additional Information: For synonyms see entry 3993, penes.See entry 5870 for comparison of synonyms.
88.57 πτωχὸς τῷ πνεύματι: (an idiom, literally ‘poor in spirit’) pertaining to one who is humble with regard to his own capacities (in the one NT occurrence, namely, Mt 5:3, this humility is in relationship to God)—‘to be humble.’ μακάριοι οἱ πτωχοὶ τῷ πνεύματι ‘happy are those who are humble before God’ Mt 5:3. A literal translation of πτωχὸς τῷ πνεύματι may lead to serious misunderstanding, since ‘poor in spirit’ is likely to mean either ‘lacking in the Holy Spirit’ or ‘lacking in ambition or drive.’ In order to indicate clearly that this poverty or need is related in some way to spiritual realities, one may translate ‘happy are those who recognize their need of God.’
A. Greek Usage. makários is at first a poetic word and refers to the blessedness of the gods. Later it comes to be used for the freedom of the rich from normal cares and worries. The verb makarízō means “to extol as, or declare to be, blessed,” while makarismós means “extolling as blessed,” and is first used by Aristotle as a technical term for “beatitude” (macarism).
B. The Stylistic Form of the Beatitude. A set form develops in Greek to extol the good fortune that accrues to a person. Using makários (or trismakários), it takes on a gnomic quality, and is often found, e.g., on epitaphs. Themes are varied, e.g., material goods, children, a marriage partner, bachelorhood, riches, a good understanding, fame, righteousness, the release of death, and mystic initiation. Happy are those who enjoy such things.