These verses, the opening phrases of the Sermon on the Mount, hold some of the Bible’s most beautiful and best-loved poetry. Part of its beauty, though, lies in the fact that the meaning is not quite clear. What does it mean to be “poor in spirit”? What does it mean to “inherit the earth” or to be called “the children of God.” The fact that there are many possibilities causes us to linger over the phrases, pondering them.

Understood in the internal sense, these blessings show the spiritual states of the various people who could be receptive of the Lord and the new church he was launching. On a deeper level it shows that states within ourselves that can lead each of us to the Lord and to a deeper understanding of His truth today.

The “poor in spirit” are those who know little about spiritual things, but want to learn. Those that “mourn” are those who want to be good, but see no desire for good in their church. The “meek” are those who love to care for and serve others. To “hunger and thirst after righteousness” shows a desire to rise up, to learn about what’s good and to come to desire it.

The “merciful” are those who love their fellow people. The “pure in heart” are those who love only what is good. “Peacemakers” are those who are in harmony with the Lord, gaining knowledge from Him and wanting what He wants. And to be “persecuted for righteousness’ sake” means acting out of love and care for others, even though you are condemned by others for it.

There’s something of a progression there, from those who simply want to learn to those who actively want to be good people to those who actually are good and acting out of love for others. None of it, though, describes those who are learned in the Jewish traditions, or even necessarily observant in terms of ritual; they are, rather, those who sense that it is possible to be a good person and are willing to make the effort.

And they are promised their rewards! The “kingdom of heaven” is the understanding the angels have of the Lord; “comfort” represents ideas that lead to the good of life; “inheriting the earth” is a state of loving others and being loved by them in return. The overall message is simple: If we truly wish to be good people, and are willing to let the Lord teach us how to be good people, we will end up filled with love and wisdom from Him. And that’s what we need to focus on: The desire to be good, and openness to ideas from the Lord. It’s not about ritual and intellectual “correctness”; it’s about ideas that lead us to be good.

But what of being reviled and persecuted? This depicts temptation, when the hells attack our newborn good desires and true understanding. They cause us to doubt our ability to be truly good and question the ideas that are leading us. And they can do it in many ways, reminding us of the fun we’ll be missing or reminding us of all the bad things we’ve ever done to render us hopeless. They will even attack the Bible and the ideas that come to us through it from the Lord; that’s represented by the idea that people also attacked the prophets.

These states, however, are blessed in their own way; only by battling these evils, which are rooted inside us, can we finally fully embrace the good life we have been striving for. That’s why it is pictured last, and that's why it leads to the “great reward” in heaven.

9337. 'Until you become fruitful' means in keeping with the increase of good. This is clear from the meaning of 'becoming fruitful' as the increase of good, dealt with in 43, 55, 913, 983, 2846, 2847. The fact that a removal from evils and falsities is accomplished in keeping with the increase of good is evident from things that have often been shown before. The Lord flows in with a person through good, and arranges truths into order through it, but not vice versa; and to the extent that truths are arranged into order through good, evils and falsities are removed. Various places in the Word liken a person to a tree; and in those places his truths of faith are meant by 'the leaves', 885, and forms of the good of love by 'the fruit', 3146, 7690. From this it is evident not only that 'becoming fruitful' means the increase of good but also that the most important feature of a person is good, just as the most important feature of a tree is the fruit. The leaves, it is true, grow first, but they do so for the sake of the fruit as the end in view. That which is the end is not only last but also first since it is the one and only thing in view within the means, making it the be-all. The situation is similar with the relationship of the good of love to the truths of faith.

[2] Such was meant by 'the fig tree' referred to in Matthew,

Jesus returning to the city was hungry, and seeing a fig tree by the wayside went to it but found nothing on it but leaves only; therefore He said to it, Let no fruit from now on ever be born from you! Therefore the fig tree withered at once. Matthew 21:18-19.

And in Luke,

A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; therefore he came seeking fruit on it, but did not find [any]. Consequently he said to the vine-dresser, Behold, for three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, but do not find [any]. Cut it down; why must it make the land unfruitful? ¹ Luke 13:6-7.

Again in the same gospel,

Every tree is known by its own fruit; people do not collect figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble-bush. A good person out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good, but a bad person out of the bad treasure of his heart brings forth bad. Why do you call Me, Lord, Lord, and do not do what I say? Luke 6:44-46.

From these quotations it is evident that the fruit of faith, as it is termed, is the most important aspect of faith, and that faith devoid of fruit, that is, of the good of life, is mere foliage, and that therefore when a person, who is a tree, is covered with leaves but devoid of fruit, he is the fig tree that withers and is cut down.

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