“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.” Matthew 5:7
All the beatitudes end with a promise from God. If the audience were to gasp any where in the beatitudes, it might be here. The Lord tells them (and us) that God extends his mercy to the merciful. The clear implication is that those who do not show mercy will not receive God’s mercy or forgiveness. The audience would think about religion the way it was being taught to them, not a religion of mercy or forgiveness but of rules and condemnation for those who did not “toe the line” and they would marvel.
They shall obtain mercy The Lord says the merciful, the compassionate, the forgiving in heart will receive mercy, compassion and forgiveness. This is really a broad statement. John McArthur defines mercy this way. “Mercy is meeting people’s needs. It is not simply a feeling but showing compassion, not only sympathizing but giving a helping hand. Mercy is giving food to the hungry, comfort to the bereaved, love to the rejected, forgiveness to the offender, companionship to the lonely. It is therefore one of the loveliest and noblest of all virtues.” It is selflessness in action.
Mercy is much broader than forgiveness, as important as forgiveness is. This shows us that the merciful in heart (a heart that God abides in because one hungers and thirsts after righteousness) shows compassion to others who are hurting. Why? Because that is the way God is. And His love dwells in and through the believer. This also implies that those who do not show mercy do not receive God’s compassion.
The Jewish audience knew God is merciful. They knew God’s Word. Psalm 103:8 says, “The Lord is merciful and gracious”. They had read Exodus 34:6–7. “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin.” They knew Lamentations 3:22. “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end.” But unfortunately they had forgotten 2 Samuel 22:26, “With the merciful you show yourself merciful; with the blameless man you show yourself blameless” and Micah 6:8, “And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God”. Judaism taught mercy was limited. Those who were not of their religion were to be despised. Those who were not faithful were looked down on. Compassion was for a limited group. Mercy existed but without God at the center. They worshipped themselves but they had become hateful and unloving to others. This verse is radical to them.
What can we learn? The fifth beatitude drives home the point that true belief is produced by God in one’s heart. God shows compassion to all His creation. God shows mercy to the believer and the unbeliever for it is His goodness leads them to repentance, not His wrath. His followers do the same. When those who are called by God’s name do not show mercy and compassion to others (even those deep in sin) we demonstrate that the love of God is not real or true. But even more when we do not “love our brother” God’s hand of
compassion is withdrawn from our lives. A lack of mercy separates us from the mercy of God. Did the Lord pause after this statement to let it sink into their hearts? His statement is powerful and is the first outward evidence of genuine belief.
Hopefully his audience that day examined their hearts to see if God produced mercy in them. Hopefully there were ears to hear in the audience that day. Hopefully God’s mercy and love led to repentance.
Hopefully that happens today as well as in those who read or hear the Lord’s words.