03-02-2009, 11:37 AM
While most people think that what are called ‘the Beatitudes’ (Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount) are quite simple and straight forward, some of the things he said there are very complicated and difficult to translate accurately. A good example is found in the words of Matthew 5:3, which the 2001 Translation renders as, ‘The spiritually impoverished are blest, because the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to them.’
In the Greek text, this reads: ‘Makarioi oi ptochoi to pneumati, hoti auton e Basilea ton ouranon,’ or, ‘Blest the poor/ones to/the breath that of/them is the Kingdom of/the heavens.’ And in Aramaic it reads, ‘Tuwâyhon Lmiskéné Brukh. D-dheelhonee mâlkutha dâshmây-ya,’ or, ‘Blest are they; the people poor in the breath of life. For theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.’
The first translating problem that arises here is with the word that is rendered as breath or spirit (pneumati in Greek). For both the Greek and Aramaic words used there just mean breath, wind, or unseen force… which is what the Latin word spirit also means. And notice that in the Aramaic text it is referred to as the ‘breath (spirit) of life,’ which seems to imply the life force that God once breathed into Adam. So, much greater things may be implied here than most suspect.
And regardless of the meanings of the words, the question we must next ask is; Why would those who don’t have much ‘spirit’ or ‘breath’ be given the Kingdom of the heavens? Wouldn’t such a reward require a great depth of spirituality?
Well, most Bibles render the words ‘ptochoi to pneumati’ as ‘poor in spirit,’ whereas the NWT translates it as ‘conscious of their spiritual need’... which seems to make some sense to those who think Jesus was speaking of a requirement for life in heaven, but these words just aren’t in the original text.
So, what did Jesus mean?
While most people think of Jesus’ famous sermon as just good words to live by (that’s why they call them Beatitudes, which means Happinesses), he apparently didn’t say them for that reason. Rather, if you read the next verse, for example, you’ll notice that he was actually foretelling a change in opportunities. For it says there, ‘The sad are blest because they will be comforted.’
Now, Jesus wasn’t implying that all sad people would be blest, nor was he saying that all those who are spiritually impoverished would be blest. Rather, he was telling the common people who listened to him that their lives could be changed if they listened to his words and became his followers. And if they did that, their spiritually impoverished condition would be changed to a life of total spirituality (the Kingdom of the heavens), and they would receive comfort for their reasons for sadness.
So, it doesn’t appear as though Jesus was speaking of different types of people and the different rewards they would receive at Matthew 5:1-10, as some have taught. Rather, it seems that Jesus was opening opportunities for people to have a part in that Kingdom, and all ten verses of Matthew Five were an admonishment to the common people to seek the Kingdom of Heaven, because (as the parable of the rich man and Lazarus teaches us), things were about to change. This didn’t necessarily mean that they had the hope of going to heaven, but that they would receive the benefits of the heavenly Kingdom, and that they would receive an inheritance of land on the earth.
Also notice that rendering the Greek word makarios as happy is a very poor choice. For, according to Zodhiates’ Complete Word Study Dictionary, the word should never translated as happy, because happy is derived from the words happen, happening, or happenstance (luck). His reasoning is that: Whenever someone suffers for the sake of righteous principles, his/her reward isn’t just happiness (which can come from any source of good luck or fortune), but rather, it is a joy that comes from gaining a better relationship with God (a blessing).
So, notice that the 2001 translators have chosen the word blest instead of happy. We have selected this older spelling of the word blessed to get rid the affected pronunciation that was likely introduced by early preachers (bless-ed).
In the Greek text, this reads: ‘Makarioi oi ptochoi to pneumati, hoti auton e Basilea ton ouranon,’ or, ‘Blest the poor/ones to/the breath that of/them is the Kingdom of/the heavens.’ And in Aramaic it reads, ‘Tuwâyhon Lmiskéné Brukh. D-dheelhonee mâlkutha dâshmây-ya,’ or, ‘Blest are they; the people poor in the breath of life. For theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.’
The first translating problem that arises here is with the word that is rendered as breath or spirit (pneumati in Greek). For both the Greek and Aramaic words used there just mean breath, wind, or unseen force… which is what the Latin word spirit also means. And notice that in the Aramaic text it is referred to as the ‘breath (spirit) of life,’ which seems to imply the life force that God once breathed into Adam. So, much greater things may be implied here than most suspect.
And regardless of the meanings of the words, the question we must next ask is; Why would those who don’t have much ‘spirit’ or ‘breath’ be given the Kingdom of the heavens? Wouldn’t such a reward require a great depth of spirituality?
Well, most Bibles render the words ‘ptochoi to pneumati’ as ‘poor in spirit,’ whereas the NWT translates it as ‘conscious of their spiritual need’... which seems to make some sense to those who think Jesus was speaking of a requirement for life in heaven, but these words just aren’t in the original text.
So, what did Jesus mean?
While most people think of Jesus’ famous sermon as just good words to live by (that’s why they call them Beatitudes, which means Happinesses), he apparently didn’t say them for that reason. Rather, if you read the next verse, for example, you’ll notice that he was actually foretelling a change in opportunities. For it says there, ‘The sad are blest because they will be comforted.’
Now, Jesus wasn’t implying that all sad people would be blest, nor was he saying that all those who are spiritually impoverished would be blest. Rather, he was telling the common people who listened to him that their lives could be changed if they listened to his words and became his followers. And if they did that, their spiritually impoverished condition would be changed to a life of total spirituality (the Kingdom of the heavens), and they would receive comfort for their reasons for sadness.
So, it doesn’t appear as though Jesus was speaking of different types of people and the different rewards they would receive at Matthew 5:1-10, as some have taught. Rather, it seems that Jesus was opening opportunities for people to have a part in that Kingdom, and all ten verses of Matthew Five were an admonishment to the common people to seek the Kingdom of Heaven, because (as the parable of the rich man and Lazarus teaches us), things were about to change. This didn’t necessarily mean that they had the hope of going to heaven, but that they would receive the benefits of the heavenly Kingdom, and that they would receive an inheritance of land on the earth.
Also notice that rendering the Greek word makarios as happy is a very poor choice. For, according to Zodhiates’ Complete Word Study Dictionary, the word should never translated as happy, because happy is derived from the words happen, happening, or happenstance (luck). His reasoning is that: Whenever someone suffers for the sake of righteous principles, his/her reward isn’t just happiness (which can come from any source of good luck or fortune), but rather, it is a joy that comes from gaining a better relationship with God (a blessing).
So, notice that the 2001 translators have chosen the word blest instead of happy. We have selected this older spelling of the word blessed to get rid the affected pronunciation that was likely introduced by early preachers (bless-ed).