Blessed Are Those Who are Meek

Blessed Are Those Who are Meek

Based on Matthew 5:5

Image source: breadforbeggars.com

In a devotional Bible lesson,¹ some kids were asked why God blesses those who are meek and we have some very interesting answers that are worth sharing here.

Six-year-old T.J. puts it nicely, “If you are really good and you don’t brag, you will get better stuff.”

Taylor who is four years older, says, “Meek means to be disappointed,” but he continues, “A good example is when you get to a championship game and lose. That’s when you are meek.” It’s easy to see how so many people confuse the word ‘meek’ with something else but we’ll get to that later.

Taylor’s peer, Sarah says, “Happy are those who are humble before God. The meek think of God more than they think of themselves.” Bingo.

Nine-year-old Anna says, “God doesn’t bless the hard spirit,” alluding to how Pharaoh, in his resistance towards God’s miracles performed through Moses, had his heart hardened.

Lee, 10, explains, “Meek means gentle” and he continues, “God wants us to be gentle. If we are gentle, we’ll enjoy helping God rule the Earth,” which is essentially what David said in Psalm 37:11 that the meek not only will inherit the Earth but “shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.” 

Lee’s younger peer, Brad, 9, believes meekness means “being very patient for things, not being mad.”

On the other hand, Salar, 9, says we ought to all like the father [sic] of our faith. He meant the patriarch Abraham who “inherited the Earth because he was so humble. So you will inherit the Earth if you are humble.”

Eight-year-old Lauren thinks if you’re meek, “God will let you rule the Earth.”

These are just kids but it’s fascinating what they think meekness is. Yet so much has been written about the word ‘meek’ that not surprisingly, many still misunderstand what it means. Many assume that a meek person is personified by weakness but whether that is in reference to physique or mental strength, we don’t know. To be meek is to be incapable of bringing the fight to others.

The one lazy problem with English speakers is that because ‘meek’ somewhat rhymes with ‘weak,’ the conjecture is that they both mean the same thing and often through the years, we’ve seen the two words conjoined. A seemingly popular dictionary – but one obviously with questionable credibility – suggests that ‘meek’ means “too submissive or easily imposed on or spineless or spiritless.” And with this kind of stupidity available online, we don’t need to wonder why people are questioning Jesus who said, “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth” (Mt 5:5). To them, you need to be either spineless or spiritless to take over the earth. Oh, but it gets more interesting.

The word ‘meek’ has its exegetical origins in the Greek word praus (πραεῖς), which 19th-century theologian James Strong argued in his ‘Strong’s Concordance’² as referring to ‘mild’ or ‘gentle’ or even ‘soft.’ In fact the Greeks during the New Testament days use this same word to describe a horse that had been broken-in. John Nolland in his 2005 commentary on the Greek text behind the Book of Matthew likens the word ‘meek’ as ‘powerless.’³

Yet someone like Mahatma Gandhi found reason to comment on the use of the word in Matthew 5:5. In fact, he went on to say, “It is my firm opinion that… Europe is today only nominally Christian. It is really worshipping Mammon.” Within the context of how the word ‘meek’ is used, Gandhi’s remarks are scathing in that maybe we don’t really understand what its real meaning is. But Gandhi adds, “I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” He doesn’t mince his words but he might also be correct.

Over the centuries prior, the word ‘meek’ was already misinterpreted. French philosopher and leading luminary of the French Enlightenment, Baron d’Holbach (1723-1789) said the word ‘meek’ correctly described the way Christians felt about their smallness and powerlessness at that time. For him, the description was appropriate so long as the Christians were suppressed but once they gained prominence and power, those views were to be swiftly abandoned. How untrue can that be! And how convenient!

Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900), the German philosopher whose übermensch⁴ concept inspired Hitler’s Aryanism and anti-Semitic race purity accused Jesus of ‘slave morality.’⁵ Similarly famous novelists including James Joyce (1882-1941), William Blake (1757-1827) and Theodore Dreiser (1871-1945) all rejected the idea of a life without striving.⁶ Clearly their idea of ‘meek’ is one where a person doesn’t do anything to save himself.

That’s what the secular world thinks ‘meek’ means – weak, tame or deficient in courage. But Christology has a completely different take on it. Strong’s argument is, after all, correct. Meekness is an expression of how power is handled. It is, in other words, ‘strength under control.’ It is power but restrained. It is power without the undue harshness. It is power perfected in and through Christ.

One problem with the word ‘meek’ – at least from the English perspective – is that it’s difficult to find another word that accurately blends gentleness with power. From a quick check of the few thesauruses available online, we find this collection of forty-two words (in alphabetical order):

Acquiescent, biddable, compliant, cowed, deferential, demure, diffident, fearful, forbearing, frightened, gentle, docile, humble, long-suffering, lowly, mild, modest, obedient, patient, peaceful, quiet, resigned, retiring, reverent, self-effacing, shy, spineless, spiritless, submissive, tame, timid, tractable, unambitious, unassuming, unobtrusive, unpretentious, unprotesting, unresisting, weak, weak-kneed, wimpish, yielding.

Maybe some words have close resemblances but in the main, they’re pretty far off. Some are just downright silly. Perhaps, it is because of the deficiency of the English language that leads so many to misunderstand the use of the word ‘meek.’ Without a real understanding of the word, it’s then not surprising that people have the wrong idea of what Jesus meant in the Third Beatitude (Mt 5:5). Without the correct definition, the struggle will understandably continue.

And yet while thesauruses struggle, the Bible has clear references to the word ‘meek.’ For example, Scripture according to the King James Version⁷ refers to Moses as the meekest man:

“Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the Earth.” (Num 12:3, KJV)

The KJV, being the leading and one of the most authoritative translations around uses the word ‘meek’ but amplifies it with “above all the men” to mean Moses was the meekest. But of course we are all aware of Moses in his earlier role as a prince of Egypt and one most favoured by the Pharaoh. Meekness is, in fact, a very noteworthy characteristic of Moses.

The Greeks’ description of a horse that had been broken-in holds authenticity here. Moses had power. He wasn’t weak. And he had a temper. After all, he did react out of his own anger at injustice and murdered an Egyptian solder and had to flee from Egypt in disgrace. Given all that, and in the course of time developed a sense of meekness, Moses was certainly very different from who the one whom God had called on to bear His message to the Pharaoh.

In the same way, Paul describes Christ as meek and gentle:

“Now I, Paul, myself urge you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ – I who am meek when face to face with you but bold toward you when absent!” (2 Cor 10:1, KJV)

It is the brand of meekness that also describes the same One who cleansed the temple:

“And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves. And He said to them, ‘It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer’; but you are making it a robber’s den.” (Mt 21:12-13 NASB, emphasis not mine)

In fact, it also describes Christ under interrogation by Pontius Pilate:

“And while He was being accused by the chief priests and elders, He did not answer. Then Pilate said to Him, ‘Do You not hear how many things they testify against You?’ And He did not answer him with regard to even a single charge, so the governor was quite amazed.” (Mt 27:12-14, NASB)

In both cases, Christ demonstrated ‘power under control.’ When accused by His enemies and then given the chance to respond by Pilate, Christ showed tremendous restrain from unleashing power. He could have easily done that but He held back, which was why, “the governor was quite amazed.” 

But then at the temple, His anger was on show as He “overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves.” In a clear case of unhappiness, Christ expressed His feelings, which in the NASB translation, was separately highlighted. The use of small uppercase is a distinction of His outspokenness but still under control, falling short of seriously destroying anything or anyone.

And of course there is the other usage of meekness that is captured in the Gospel of Matthew where Jesus says:

“Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart; and you will find rest for your souls.” (Mt 11:29, WEB)

There is a clear image of a beast of burden filled with the rawest of physical power but tamed so that it can be used. In the same way, a trainer would yoke or tether a colt to a more experienced animal thus encouraging it to comply, without making it fearful.

Given these contexts, maybe we can then consider Strong’s definition of ‘power under control’ as a reference to two specific things. The first is the refusal to think too highly of ourselves and second, a conscious reluctance to put ourselves first.

Refusal to think too highly of ourselves

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In his usual eloquence, the apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the Romans:

“Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.” (Rom 12:3, NLT)

Meek people don’t make themselves out to be larger than who they are. They do not need to go to the top of the mountain and shout, “I’m great” when they know that in any self-examination, they aren’t and without God, they also realise they are nothing. There is clearly no cause to inflate their own self-estimation and with that, there is no room for self-importance.

Instead they see themselves as nothing but unreserved servants of God, availing themselves at His service to do His will. Rather than thinking highly of themselves, they recognise their limitations. Aware of their weaknesses, they aren’t the type to shower themselves in glory and neither are they interested in being worshipped at the altar. They have no interest in putting themselves on any pedestal.

However, this doesn’t mean we are blind to our strengths and capabilities. God has endowed each of us with enough skills and talents for us to recognise them as assets that we can then use to advance His kingdom. For example, when Jesus was asked by the disciples of the incarcerated John the Baptist if He was the Messiah, He replied:

“‘Go back to John and tell him what you have heard and seen – the blind see, the lame walk, those with leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life and the Good News is being preached to the poor.’ And He added, ‘God blesses those who do not fall away because of Me.’” (Mt 11:4-6, NLT)

Jesus neither inflated His self-image nor exuded a sense of inferiority. There was no evidence of self-importance in what He said. It was factual. It was truthful. Nothing more, nothing less. His was what Paul calls an “honest evaluation.” (Rom 12:3, NLT)

Conscious reluctance to put ourselves first

Putting others before ourselves first is servitude though that certainly doesn’t mean slavery. In the Christian perspective, this is the cornerstone of what having a servant’s heart is about. Christian service revolves around the centrality of serving needs other than our own, placing importance on helping others first and summoning one’s greatest strengths for the sake of others.

It is not about looking after our own selves first. It certainly isn’t about prioritising our needs before we take others into account. Instead, meekness draws out our greatest gifts so that we may assert ourselves for the betterment of others. There is great power in which God has given us but He did not avail that to us so we may use it irresponsibly. Rather the power vested unto us by God is to benefit others and not simply to make us look good. David puts it best when he said:

“Do not fret because of those who are evil or be envious of those who do wrong; for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away.” (Ps 37:1, NIV)

David encourages us not to be concerned if evil seems to be winning because ultimately, it will never last. The day will surely come when all evil men throughout the world will face their reckoning. 

When we read the news of corrupt political leaders or captains of industries who purge the country of its wealth and resources, we feel frustrated because they seem to be able to do so brazenly in broad daylight. They steal billions of dollars from the people. They flaunt wealth that they stole, ‘knowing’ that it is near impossible to charge them, let alone drag them to prison. And the more we read about them, the harder it seems for us to understand how all this can happen when we have a just God.

David assures us that if only we’re patient and humble and not be worried, we can then be certain that God will have His day. That means retribution will come as Scripture says. This also means that corrupt political leaders and those who share the same evil will be revealed before Him at the Seat of Judgement. In verse 11 further down the Psalm, David echoes the same promise as God’s:

“But the meek will inherit the land and enjoy peace and prosperity.” (Ps 37:11, NIV)

And with that, we really need to stop being frustrated. In short, evil will be paid. In full. No matter how dismissive others have been about meekness, this is the verse that matters most. The meek WILL inherit. In other words, this is a certainty and with that, we should view all the unfairness and lack of justice that the world dishes out as a temporary irritation. It’s an annoying itch that God will ultimately scratch for us.

Of course, the waiting can be the test. Some of us have been waiting like an eternity for things to change but in the meantime, being down in the doldrums can be humiliating. Ask those who have been waiting for their corrupted political leaders to be arrested and thrown in jail. Yet at each turn, they outsmart us with their evil manipulations. Ask those who have been out of a job for too long a time. Subsequently there comes a time when the very thought of applying for a job no longer whets the appetite.

Ask those who have been trying and trying but can’t seem to overcome their depression. You try but each time, something new knocks us back far enough to start all over again. Or ask those who have been working so hard in their job but seem to be constantly overlooked for their deserved promotion. Sometimes, doing the right things don’t seem to pay dividends.

Many years ago, I once asked a friend why he spent so many years perfecting his martial arts. He gave me a simple answer: “it helps me to perfect my tolerance and patience.” That didn’t make much sense because to most of us, martial art is about fighting. So I decided to keep asking.

He told me that in the many years that it took for him to reach the pinnacle of his art, his master would continuously – and relentlessly – taunt him by provoking him to lose his cool. He would stand erect and look into the distance while his master punched him in the gut, kicked his feet, slapped his face and did everything he could to get him to strike back. But if he had struck back, he would have lost everything.

The aim of all this taunting and provocation was to mould his power and keep it in check. It was to develop his sense of restraint. It was typically, “strength under control.” Very much like what meekness is about although my friend’s explanation had nothing to do with Christianity. Yet there’s a lesson we can learn here nonetheless.

My friend explained to me that martial arts wasn’t always about fighting. It was just as vital to learn the importance of perseverance and self-discipline, which ultimately defines martial arts as a way of life for those who are serious about it. He said, “To me, martial arts permeates a person’s life and creates solid relationships and a sense of justice and respect.”

Martial arts does not teach the exponent to fight back and in that sense, it is wrong to say that it encourages violence. Instead it compels the student to hold back and not strike. In other words, it moulds character by developing the side of him that may otherwise resolve to violence to address problems. One martial arts website says, “True martial arts avoids unnecessary conflicts by all means and does not take combat lightly.”

And this brings us to understand that with all the power that God gives us, He actually does not want us to use it the way we otherwise would have been inclined to. If we are to submit to our human tendencies, it would have been second nature to wield force – physically or verbally – and victimise whoever crosses our paths. But if that isn’t His plan, then why empower us to begin with? After all, what good is the gift if we can’t use it at all?

Scripture offers us many heroes who were given great power to do incredible things. Other than Moses, many of the Old Testament patriarchs – particularly the major prophets – were certainly wielding that kind of power. In real life, we have thousands of years of martyrs from whom we can draw lessons about meekness. Christians over the many centuries have chosen to die rather than to capitulate against evil. Their power came from within. Rather than resolve to respond under their power, they deferred to the Lord. They made themselves the perfect instrument for His will and by doing that, His glory.

The martyrs were not weak. Meek, yes, but not weak. Their actions might impress the uninformed that they had let the bad guys win having willed themselves to die. Because they didn’t fight back, the impression was that they were not aggressive enough in promoting their own defence. Had they fought back successfully, they could have lived and moved on to bigger and better things in life. Perhaps, they might have done greater things for God. At least that’s what the uninformed would believe, not understanding that in many of these cases, renouncing their faith wouldn’t have brought any glory to Him.

Detractors to our faith don’t get much larger than Chester Karass who wrote in his 1996 book, ‘In Business and in Life,’ saying, “You don’t get what you deserve, you get what you negotiate.”⁸ What he’s saying is that if we don’t get on the bullhorn and do our own selling, we’ll never get anywhere fast. His suggestion echoes many of today’s corporate and industry leaders who use their biggest platforms to tell the world how great they are, how successful they’ve been and how the others should follow their lead. They waste no time to do everything they can to get ahead of the competition.

Of course, people like Karass prove their ‘worth’ because such advice has often produced ‘results’ in the workplace. These results lay evidence to the world that indeed, the arrogant and the powerful do, after all, win. Being timid doesn’t do the trick and meekness isn’t any different. We’re told to be bold and forthright, and if we ever have to sacrifice anyone along the way, so be it. After all, we have to think for ourselves first. All of this merely tells people that they’re right and their methods work. It’s the way of the world.

That’s the dog-eat-dog mentality that infests the many corporate worlds. Here, friends remain friends until or unless there’s a tussle for the next promotion and he’s pitted himself against you. In the workplace, the desire to ‘get ahead’ has a price. When you’re arrogant and seen to wield power, you’re never going to be a very popular person unless you find dregs who hang on to your coattails for expediency reasons. 

Oftentimes, you become a target for others to bring down. Very quickly, you become deeply resented and even if you do succeed and get to the top, you’ll soon find how lonely it is up there. By then, you would have alienated many of your peers who now see a very different side to who you really are.

Arrogance is as ugly as it is self-seeking. That’s because it pushes you to put yourself ahead of others. It is selfishness personified. When you crave power, you’ll inevitably find yourself in the position to have to destroy others who get in your way, which is why in the end, loneliness will haunt you as your friends desert you in droves. Even if you end up being successful, you’ll also wind up constantly looking over your shoulder, afraid that others might now want to destroy you.

You will also be financially insecure, always paranoid if the taxmen will come visiting or if you ever have enough. Needless to say, you’ll never have enough because you will have adopted a kind of lifestyle that demands even more out of you. Wealth becomes self-perpetuating because you’ll always want more. And the more it seeks from you, the more obsessed you will become. Powerful (but deeply misguided) people like Mark Zuckerberg are deluded enough to think they own the world but the truth is the world owns and controls them. Because once you’re at that level of life, you already have sacrificed yourself at the altar of godlessness.

The inheritance

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In contrast to all that, Jesus’ Third Beatitude says, “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth” (Mt 5:5). In other words, blessed are those who have surrendered themselves entirely to God. In their blessedness, they will inherit everything that the others thought they all had in the first place but God says that, that will only happen to those who are meek. So if you’re the arrogant, aggressive, self-promoting type, sorry but it doesn’t apply to you.

That is why meekness is not what the world thinks it is. It is neither passive resignation nor servile conformism but instead, it is the openness to the future, which God wants to realise through us. In other words, it means not deploying violence, arrogance or aggression. It also means we are not to be easily provoked nor stoked with anger. Instead, we are called to have a heart for tranquillity, calmness, serenity and peace with a willingness to love and correct the wrong of others.

It is therefore very important to have absolute clarity over what the Third Beatitude actually expresses. Clearly, three words are of utmost importance. We already know what ‘meek’ is but we need to have a better understanding of the other two; ‘inherit’ and ‘earth.’ Between these two, the contentiousness is on the latter word ‘earth.’ So before we begin to assume that it refers to the world we presently live in, let’s see how Matthew 5:5 looks from the original Greek translation.

In exegesis, the Koine Greek phrase for ‘inherit the earth’ is κληρονομησουσι την γην. It is also the same as that used in David’s Psalm 37:11. In both senses, the ‘πραεις’ (the meek) will do the inheriting, which unequivocally suggests that the Third Beatitude is consistent with the Hebrew expression in the Old Testament. Having established this, we can now focus on our question, which, of course is what the meek is supposed to inherit.

The Greek word for ‘earth’ as in Matthew 5:5 and Psalm 37:11 is γην (gen). The Septuagint (LXX) uses it to mean either ‘land’ or ‘ground’ depending on context. In order words, then for us to capture the true gist of the word ‘earth,’ we’ll need to determine how it is used in conjunction with the word ‘inherit’ (as in κληρονομεω). 

In the Old Testament, the earliest passage where the Hebrew version of the words ‘inherit’ (ירש) and ‘land’ (ארץ) are used together is in Genesis 15:7 as follows:

“Then He said to him, ‘I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to inherit it.” (Gen 15:7, NIV, my emphasis)

Here, God’s promise to Abram was that the land would be his to inherit. As we know from the rest of Genesis, the word ‘land’ here refers to a physical place of specific geographic location where Abram’s descendants would eventually take possession of and live in. It does not refer to the entire world or earth, for that matter. In fact, throughout other passages within the Old Testament – notably in Genesis, Leviticus, Numbers and Joshua⁹ – the pairing offers the same take. In the Book of Deuteronomy alone, the pairing exists more than forty times.  

To be sure we also understand what the word ‘inherit’ means here, we are compelled to look at it in a negative sense as it refers to the premise that this ‘land’ was first possessed by other tribes. When God promises Abram that he would inherit this land, He meant that he could now go to that same land and expel the existing tribes (Jdg 1:27,32-33). From what we now understand in an exegetical sense, the pairing of the words offers us this position of thought:

To ‘inherit the land’ in this biblical sense refers to God’s promise to Abraham that the specific piece of land was to be possessed by him to dwell in.

The context of the word ‘possessed’ here means that Abraham was to seize control and ownership of the land so that he and his descendants may call home. And so in historical terms, the meaning should, with God-given right, apply to the Jews dwelling in the land we call Israel. In Scripture, we can back this up in Psalms 44:3 and 105:44 where the Israelites entered the land of Canaan to ‘inherit’ it:

“For they did not gain possession of the land by their own sword, nor did their own arm save them; but it was Your right hand, Your arm and the light of Your countenance because You favoured them.” (Ps 44:3, NKJV, my emphasis)

“He gave them the lands of the Gentiles and they inherited the labour of the nations.” (Ps 105:44, NKJV)

If we look a little farther still, there are two passages in the Bible where the same pairing might imply somewhat otherwise:

“Prepare slaughter for his children because of the iniquity of their fathers, lest they rise up and possess the land, and fill the face of the world with cities.” (Isa 14:21, NKJV, my emphasis)

“For indeed I am raising up the Chaldeans, a bitter and hasty nation which marches through the breadth of the earth, to possess dwelling places that are not theirs.” (Hab 1:6, NKJV, my emphasis)

In Isaiah 14:21, a prophecy is made and levelled against the kingdom of Babylon as in, “…lest they rise up and possess the land.” In Habakkuk 1:6, it is a prophecy of judgement against Judah in respect to Chaldea (neo-Babylon). In either case, that reference to ‘land’ can still be the same piece of geography within Israel and not a global application of the word.

While this pairing of words seem quite common in the Old Testament, only the Book of Matthew has it in the New Testament in, of course, the form of the Beatitudes (Mt 5:1-12). Yet the Lukan equivalent (Lk 6:20-23) doesn’t feature the same pairing. We put this difference, as is widely suggested, to Matthew being more for the ‘Jewish’ audience of the two.

When we consider the Beatitudes to be in the larger context of Matthew’s ‘Sermon on the Mount,’ then we can see it as a series of Jesus’ sayings that concern one’s conduct that is in faith with ‘the Law and the Prophets,’ which comprise the Law of Moses – meaning the first five books of the Old Testament known as the Torah (Hebrew) or the Pentateuch (Greek) – and the books of the major and minor prophets that are grouped into different arrangements in accordance to either Jewish or Christian traditions. 

Given this context, when Jesus says “inherit the land,” it is not in the global sense but within His historical context. In that time, it was essentially an Israelite speaking to another Israelite about inheriting the land that was, Israel, and therefore how they should act and apply themselves to achieve that.

Yet for all that we’ve looked at the word pairing in the Third Beatitude (Mt 5:5), we should not confine ourselves unnecessarily to a single contextual implication because we might end up narrowing our interpretation. While David’s Psalm 37:11 certainly echoes Matthew 5:5 in the conception that the ‘land’ is one that God promised to Abraham,¹⁰ there may be other interesting contexts to bear in mind.

And with that, Jonathan Pennington¹¹ puts forth the argument that we should consider the theme of heaven and earth as one that we should think about. Let’s have a look at three passages in the Bible that point to this use of heaven and earth:

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.” (Mt 6:19-20, NKJV, my emphasis)

“And I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” (Mt 16:19, NKJV, my emphasis)

“Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.” (Mt 23:9, NKJV, my emphasis)

These aren’t all. There are also two others as in part of the Lord’s Prayer and also the Great Commission towards the end of the Book of Matthew:

“Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” (Mt 6:10, NKJV, my emphasis)

“And Jesus came and spoke on them, saying, ‘All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.” (Mt 28:18, NKJV, my emphasis)

In the Lord’s Prayer, we see the kingdom of heaven being earthbound and then in the Great Commission, Christ is vested with the exclusive authority over heaven and earth. Matthew brings to attention the distinction between the kingdom of heaven and those of the earth but then the eschatological end of his Gospel is that the kingdom of heaven is to come to earth.

And here’s the part that puts everything into even sharper focus. Jesus’ first and last Beatitudes points to God’s promise of the ultimate inheritance being “the kingdom of heaven” (Mt 5:3,10) and in that, the blessed, being the meek, will inherit the earth that could well expand beyond the land of Israel to be inclusive of the kingdom of heaven that is to come to earth.

So there we have it – on the one hand, the inheritance of the ‘land’ is perceived to be the possession of the land of Israel itself. In Psalm 37:11, that pertained to the Davidic king – likely David himself – but on the other hand, we see the viability of the land being a reference point to the Davidic son’s rule over the nations. The difference between the two is, of course, quite dramatic.

In the end, the beatitude in the Book of Matthew emphasises the distinction between the kingdom of heaven and those of the earth and therefore pertains less to something literal and more to a spiritual one. This should be what we glean from considering whether γῆ is supposed to mean ‘land’ or ‘earth.’ In that sense therefore, the kingdom of heaven will become earth itself. It is not necessarily the one that Revelation 21-22 refers to, with gold-paved streets, pearly gates, bejewelled walls and a crystal-clear river with fruiting trees of life.

It is, in other words, the part of God’s promise of the kingdom as a new heaven and new earth as mentioned in Revelation 21:1 as follows:

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. And I saw the holy city, the New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.” (Rev 21:1-2, NLT)

This New Earth will have real houses, real gardens, real mountains, rivers and everything. They will be part and parcel of the perfect future life that is in store for all of us who remain faithful to God’s Word. The Bible says that the greater part of our future existence as humans will occur exactly here on our planet Earth. It will thence be re-created from all the destruction. It will be restored to its original perfection.

Earth will no longer know any sicknesses, wars, droughts, famines, crimes, natural disasters and anything that used to threaten us. It will be a life beyond our mortal imagination. It will be so good that we have to reinvent the definition of the word ‘good.’ Revelation 21:1-4, Isaiah 65:17-25 and John 14:2-3 have something more to say about this.

Those among us who submit our powers to God will inherit this perfect earthbound kingdom. On New Earth, we receive through God’s grace, the fruits that the arrogant pine for but are unattainable (to them). These are the good things they thought they would be privy to but in the end, they are nothing but fruitless mirages. They appear real but to them, they aren’t. For the meek, they are real.

In our ever-broken world today, the meek recognise their strengths and limitations and with ‘strength under control,’ peace is possible despite the harsh realities. Because of this, the meek can empower others to see things differently. With the God-given gifts, skills and talents, the meek has everything at his disposal to do good for others. It is this that ultimately defines the greatness of power that the meek has for in the end, they, and not anyone else, are the ones who, out of love, reach out to others.

The wild donkey in us

It’s never been – still isn’t – easy to come to terms with what ‘meek’ is when there is so much backchat about what it appears to be from the secular misunderstanding. Even some Christians think that a meek person is soft-spoken, offers a limp handshake and is an easy pushover. For so many people, the picture of a ‘spineless’ person basically epitomises the meek. Think of meek as Clark Kent because he speaks and behaves like one. Though the apple of Lois Lane’s eyes, his fumbling mild-mannered nature makes him an easy target for any of his detractors.

Even Charles Wesley inadvertently contributed to the mix-up. Published in 1763 in a collection called ‘Hymns for Children,’ he entitled it, “Gentle Jesus, Meek and Mild.” Putting ‘meek’ together with ‘mild’ could have given the impression of a person who is feeble, limp and lacking either authority or forthright strength. Just like a mild curry is probably not worth savouring, it’s unthinkable to consider that an American football player can ever be meek.

But for those who seek a more compelling sense of purpose in their lives, look no further than the Beatitudes. As founts of blessing, they are unbeatable. In the Beatitudes, Jesus tells us that there are things in life that are truly desirable and that it would do us good to pursue and cultivate them. One of them is meekness.

In ‘A Discourse on Meekness and Quietness of Spirit,’ famous biblical commentary exponent Matthew Henry (1662-1714) explains that in Latin, a meek man is called ‘mansuetus,’ which comes from two words – ‘manu’ to mean ‘hand’¹² and ‘assuetus’ to mean ‘accustomed to.’ Combining the two, meekness therefore means being ‘accustomed to the hand,’ which Henry refers to the taming of wild creatures. This dovetails nicely with how the New Testament Greek analogy of a horse being broken into when describing the same word (πραεῖς).

Scripture pretty much says the same. In the Book of Jeremiah, God describes His own people in a fairly damning manner:

“You say, ‘That’s not true! I haven’t worshipped the images of Baal! But how can you say that? Go and look in any valley in the land! Face the awful sins you have done. You are like a restless female camel desperately searching for a mate. You are like a wild donkey sniffing the wind at mating time. Who can restrain her lust? Those who desire her don’t need to search for she goes running to them!” (Jer 2:28-29, NLT, my emphasis)

God compares our fallen nature to the impulsiveness of wild animals. To say that we’re like a restless female camel or a wild donkey behaving so desperately is not flattering but reckless. Henry adds, “Man’s corrupt nature has made him like a wild donkey… but the grace of meekness, when that gets dominion in the soul, alters the temper of it, brings it to hand, and submits it to management.”¹³

Therefore, meekness is a way in which God tempers our wretchedness and makes sense of our chaos. He soothes our wild passions and calms our impulsiveness. He also moderates our rambunctiousness and quells our boldness so that we may have some order to the way we behave and yet possess the power to get things done to His glory.

I’ve had my fair share of working in organisations where the boss was overbearing and self-opinionated. In the brief time I had working in an international school, the bosses were pompous with an unbearable sense of self-importance. They think so highly of their own capabilities with none of the self-deprecation that Christians should be inclined to conduct themselves. Either boss threw their weight around, boasting their self-worth and how they knew everything about education and others don’t.

In one instance, one of them was seen parking his car in a spot that he shouldn’t be. But because a parent witnessed it and said so to him, he flew into a rage and had his son expelled from the school, forcing (a needless) apology from the parent just to calm him down and reverse the expulsion. I didn’t know him too well but it was obvious that he wasn’t a very happy person. It was obvious to everyone who knew and worked closely with him.

A colleague of mine who returned to Ireland with her husband pretty much felt the same thing. She wrote to me offering her view of what they were like. It wasn’t pretty to say the least. Both bosses must have been so deeply conflicted and frustrated within themselves that they would behave this badly. Even in public. If they learn meekness, things would have been very different for them. It would have tempered their outrage and “brought it to hand,” as Henry said.

They weren’t the only people I had the displeasure of working with. Over the years, a few others were more or less the same. There was also a seminary dean who was, in a word, impossible, to deal with, considering the grief she caused so many students. There was also a supposed CEO of an English academy who was constantly losing it, forcing the whole office into a complete meltdown. And then, there was a senior principal in a successful law firm who couldn’t go through a day without lambasting at least one staff member. All of them had unspeakable problems, conducting themselves like an unbroken horse, neighing noisily while wildly buckling and kicking everywhere.

When someone nears it, the horse would resist the bit and the bridle. Simply put, it is unaccustomed (assuetus) to the hand (manu) much like how Henry describes the taming of wild creatures. It takes a little while to get over the hurdle, transforming a wild horse into one that is used to the hand but when that happens, out of the blue, we see a different horse, one with dignity, poise and sheer beauty in a quiet resilient sort of way. The beast is no longer wild. Instead, it is at peace with itself. It is altogether a completely different horse. Though same on the outside, it is transformed on the inside.

Desiring meekness

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In more ways than one, each of us have a little of the unbroken horse inside us. We behave badly and yet we aren’t aware of it because it’s in our broken nature to misbehave. We don’t want anyone to tell us what to do, least of all, God. As with Him, we’re more inclined to resist by bucking and kicking him away. And it looks like we’ll keep doing this for as long as we can. However, eventually we will come to a point where we realise we cannot do this forever. 

So long as we keep fighting Him, we’ll never savour the peace we so treasure yet behave like we don’t care much for it. So long as we are engulfed in one conflict after another, we will just drown ourselves in turmoil and inevitably all of this will affect those around us at our workplace and in our family.

A life void of meekness is a troubling one. Internal strife manifests itself in many ways, all of which are hardly things we can be proud of – outbursts of anger, infuriation and animosities coupled with deep resentment and upheavals. Meekness on the other hand, helps us to see things differently because we review the way we behave by perceiving and understanding what outcomes we can expect. We can then begin to submit to God who tames our impetuousness and subdues our irrational self. It is only then that we become blessed.

On the subject of meekness, Thomas Watson says, “Meekness is a grace whereby we are enabled by the Spirit of God to moderate our angry passions. It is a grace. The philosopher calls it a virtue – but the apostle calls it a grace and therefore reckons it among the ‘fruit of the Spirit’ (Galatians 5:23). It is a divine extract and original. By it, we are enabled to moderate our passion.”¹⁴

“By nature, the heart is like a troubled sea, casting forth the foam of anger and wrath. Now meekness calms the passions. It sits as moderator in the soul, quieting and giving check to its distempered motions. As the moon serves to temper and allay the heat of the sun, so Christian meekness allays the heat of passion. Meekness of spirit not only fits us for communion with God – but for civil converse with men; and thus among all the graces, it holds first place. Meekness has a divine beauty and sweetness in it. It brings credit to true religion; it wins upon all.”¹⁴

Using just five words, Charles Spurgeon¹⁵ defines meekness as, “humble, gentle, patient, forgiving and contented.” In other words, when we attain meekness, we are free from the bondage of pride, harshness, impudence, vengefulness and malcontent. And with that, Christ is calling us to meekness so that we may attain four separate attributes:

Firstly, in meekness, we can manage our anger by calming our passions and putting a lid on our impulsiveness.

Secondly, meekness transforms the way we speak and the choice of words we use. We no longer subject others to the sharpness of our tongue and the unnecessary harshness of our expressions.

Thirdly, meekness opens the way for us to be more content and no longer forever feeling dissatisfied with life. We are reconciled to who we are, happy with where we’re at and knowing we are safe in the hands of Christ in terms of where we’re headed. It helps us to overcome our trials and tribulations and in fact, even see the hand of God in all of them.

Fourthly, being meek sets us up to enjoy peace by better understanding God’s assurance and fully embracing His promise. We are therefore, in Henry’s words, “used to the hand.” We can finally accept that peace comes from our submission to God. Through our submissiveness, we place our sense of purpose under God’s will.

What all this means is that, as Christians, our hopes, dreams and ambitions are laid before Christ. Only then can we say to Him, “You are Lord over my life and I submit everything to you. I lay all I am before and under You.” When we are in the position to say that to Christ, we can join all the others who have done the same. Christ calls us to be meek so that we can be the expression of His power through us and to do that, we are to submit our hopes, dreams and aspirations and place them under His purpose and will.

In desiring meekness, we learn to give in to God’s sovereign will. We learn that God’s will be done on earth as it is heaven. To give way for God’s glory is to be blessed. The Third Beatitude affirms this, saying that the people who attain meekness accordingly are those who will be blessed. No one else but the meek it is who place everything in the hands of God only to be pleasurably surprised that in the end, He places them all into their very own hands. As Jesus says, “The meek will inherit the earth.”

Now that we understand why meekness is so desirable to all Christians, how do we achieve it? There are three ways that we must go to do so. We must submit to God’s Word, submit to God’s will and submit to God’s People.

Meekness by submitting to God’s Word

In the Book of James, Jesus’ brother says:

“So get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives and humbly accept the Word God as planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls.” (Jm 1:21, NLT)

In humbly accepting God’s Word, we must, in other words, do and believe in what Jesus says:

“Anyone who listens to My teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock.” (Mt 7:24, NLT)

We can all do that in a church where the Bible is faithfully taught and then faithfully listened to. A church that is unconditionally true to the teachings of Christ will seek to build meekness in its congregation. If you’re in such a church, that’s a great place to be in because in being nourished by the Word, your path to blessedness is assured. Christians grow because they listen to and obey Christ’s teachings.

But here’s the caveat. A church that teaches meekness can also be in danger because there is responsibility in what we hear and who speaks it. Will the congregation receive God’s Word with meekness? Was the message delivered in meekness? In other words, while we listen to the Word of God, are we doing anything about it? Listening and doing are two different things. While listening is good, not exercising what we learn takes us back to square one. We achieve nothing beyond having our ears massaged.

I know those who say they’re Christians but refuse to bow before God. As ridiculous as that sounds, it is true and there’re plenty of them around. A friend’s mother once rejected my offer to conduct Bible classes for her not because she knew everything but because she did not want anything more complicated than just accepting that Christ is Lord.

Just the same, there will be many self-willed Christians who hear God’s Word on meekness and still reject it. In the course of their argument, they say they exercise the right to disagree…with God. Those who are comfortable with who they are – though they embrace the faith – could say that meekness cramps their style. “It’s not me,” they might say. “I don’t want to be meek and it’s my life,” some others might also say. “I don’t see a need to change things in my life when it’s going well,” those in a worse position might add.

If there’s one word that describes what God’s trying to say to us throughout Scripture, it’s “stiff-necked.” We are all stubborn to some extent. Those who resist God’s will to mould us are exactly that. To reject meekness is to say to God that we do not want Him to shape His influence on us. People are simply saying that they want to believe Him on their terms. If we truly seek meekness, we cannot be “stiff-necked.” Instead we have to be mouldable (teachable) so that God’s Word can make a real impact on our lives.

Meekness by submitting to God’s will

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Submitting to God’s will sounds, to many of us, great on paper but to at least some extent, undoable. It is perhaps the one thing that is hardest for all of us to submit to. I’m sure that many Christians have this wish to keep their faith without having to do God’s will…especially if it involves Him placing us in the kinds of situations we rather choose not to be.

Such situations can take place at home with the family or in the workplace with our peers or bosses. Or it may be that we’re caught up in a scenario that we have no taste for be it in church in the middle of a scandal that we have nothing to do with or even finding ourselves at 35,000 feet with a terrorist holding everyone else hostage. Maybe it’s discovering something very debilitating about our health from a simple medical check-up.

Some of us have been called by God to do something that we have been running away from for a long time but, from my own experience, it does catch up with us. When we run out of places to hide (or run away), we are put in a position of having to finally submit to His will. The Bible is full of characters who did that and lived to tell us of their experiences. They’re no different from some of us who have also gone on to tell the same story.

When we find ourselves in situations that we aren’t comfortable with, there are different outcomes. The most common is unbelief. We can get caught in the feeling that maybe, after all, God doesn’t love me. He never did and He’s proving it now. Unbelief can effervesce from the depths of our darkest emotions to prove our resistance to God and when that happens, the next step is likely to be resentment where we’re envious of those who are so much better off than we are. “After all the hard work, why didn’t I get the promotion that he got? What did he do that I hadn’t done better!?”

The problem with all this is that Jesus knew the difficulty in submitting to the Father well before we did. He experienced the worst kind, suffering in the most agonising way that is unimaginable to all of us. What does meekness then look like if God were to put us in a garden in the final darkening hours of the night where we see a number of men soundly asleep over here and over there. 

Look a little more closely and we’ll notice a man stumped over a boulder as if His whole body is draped over it. After taking a few ginger steps towards Him, we see Jesus sweating so profusely as if He’s hyperventilating. In the agony of His soul and in the countdown to His final hours on earth, He says something incredible:

“My Father! If it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from Me. Yet I want Your will to be done, not Mine.” (Mt 26:39, NLT)

And when He realised that His followers were all fast asleep instead of waiting for Him, he admonished Peter before He then prayed a second time:

“My Father! If this cup cannot be taken away unless I drink it, Your will be done.” (Mt 26:42, NLT)

In fact, Jesus repeated the same prayer the third time before He was finally betrayed. That was when He knew it was time to submit to the Father’s will. And He did, with meekness and at an unthinkable cost. This is why in the Third Beatitude, He has called us to do because He knew what it would mean.

Meekness by submitting to God’s People

In his letter to the church in Ephesus, Paul wrote:

“And further, submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” (Eph 5:21, NLT)

But before this passage, Paul described how God’s people (Eph 5:1) were filled with the Holy Spirit and was singing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs to each other. They were also always giving thanks (vv.4,20). And if we read that whole chapter, we will also see what people filled with the Holy Spirit tend to do; that in meekness, they submit to one another.

Ephesians 5 holds some significance for Christians – how and who do we submit to if we don’t attend church at all or we attend irregularly? How do we do what God has asked us to in this chapter if we do not commit ourselves to a life of a dedicated church member? Where meekness is a cornerstone of being a Christian, it is worth nothing if we lack the discipline of committed relationships within the Body of Christ.

Without the inter-relational fellowships that can only be possible in a church, how practical is meekness? It is one thing to say that we can practise meekness in our family and workplace settings but the Body of Christ matters because that is God’s gift to us believers. If we are self-centred Christians with an agenda of personal independence and control, we’ll neither know nor understand all this, let alone appreciate the importance of the blessing of meekness.

This is particularly pertinent for those among us who do not attend church because someone has upset them. Meekness can never be learned by those who are too easily rattled every time someone upsets them. One wrong word. A message from the pulpit that is miscommunicated or misunderstood. Or a gesture mistaken for an offensive remark. Whatever it is, when we’re upset by any of these, submitting to God and leaving the matter to Him opens the way for us to understand what meekness is about. Running away in a huff doesn’t.

Distinguishing between the three

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Of the three mentioned, the first two are unconditional, meaning we cannot not do without being submissive. On the other hand, the third submission – submitting to God’s people – isn’t unconditional. Not mincing his words, the apostle Peter affirms this:

“But Peter and the apostles replied, ‘We must obey God rather than any human authority.” (Acts 5:29, NLT)

Though we too may echo this ourselves, we must be reminded that different circumstances drove Peter and the apostles to say this. Unlike us, they defended the Gospel when the high priest and his officials barred them from teaching the people in Jesus’ name. 

While we’re not under such duress, submitting to one another in the Body of Christ should be part of our spiritual culture and even if this may sometimes be hard to do – relationship problems might exist, for example – wanting to be meek means we must possess a different motivation to overcome whatever difficulties. Paul says:

“Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from His love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another and working together with one mind and purpose. Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests but take an interest in others, too.” (Php 2:1-4, NLT)

Paul tells us to lose our selfishness and stop the grandstanding but instead, to humble ourselves by listening to what others are saying and thinking and then to be thoughtful of others before ourselves. By doing so, we make room for ourselves to love others even if others may not and to work together even if we may have to overcome our own prejudices so that we may be of “one mind and purpose,” which is what it means to be in the Body of Christ.

Of course, reality can force us to take a few steps back and make us realise how meekness may sometimes be very difficult to attain even among God’s own people. Paul’s words are wonderful and inspiring but the harshness of the real world can dish out some pretty hard settings in which we may look to as stumbling blocks. Here, we look at four such occasions.

Meekness is challenged when we are opposed

In the Old Testament, the translation according to the King James Version has this to say about Moses’ meekness:

“Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.” (Num 12:3, KJV)

This is evidently a very interesting inclusion in Scripture. Notice too that this verse is bracketed as well. The Bible chose to take note of Moses’ meekness for a good reason. Although God had chosen him to lead His people out of Egypt where they had been slaves for 400 years, it couldn’t have been a simple or straightforward process of leading them out.

We certainly know the forty years in the wilderness after being led out of Egypt were very trying. When Moses, through God’s grace, helped the people escape across the Red Sea, he then brought them to the Sinai where God made a lasting covenant with them. For most intents and purposes, something like that should have brought great encouragement and assurance to the people but it didn’t. 

Instead of being grateful, they moaned and they groaned. Besides complaining about having no water to drink, Moses was besieged by a whole mob of ungrateful Israelites who tormented him, saying:

“‘Why did you bring us out of Egypt? Are you trying to kill us, our children and our livestock with thirst?’” (Ex 17:3, NLT)

Considering how arduous an effort it had been thus far for Moses to bring them all out of 400 years of slavery, the people were ungrateful and relentless in their demands. This was opposition unheard of and surely unexpected by someone like Moses. Meek as he was, confronting such people would have been toxic beyond comprehension. 

The people had no idea how blessed they were and instead of showing humility at being saved, they just kept moaning and complaining about anything and everything they didn’t like. How do we maintain our meekness if or when we face such opposition?

For Moses, he simply got down on his knees and prayed, asking God for guidance. It wasn’t just asking for water, which he did and God delivered. Chapters later in the Book of Exodus, after the people had made the golden calf in his absence, Moses had to intercede for his fellow Israelites and hence convened with God, saying:

“‘Oh, what a terrible sin these people have committed. They have made gods of gold for themselves. But now, if You will only forgive their sin – but if not, erase my name from the record you have written!’” (Ex 32:31, NLT)

Despite all the ungratefulness, Moses kept God’s people in his prayer, besieging Him to forgive them to the extent of changing places so that they be saved from His anger and retribution. Moses showed how meekness was not a liability. In fact he clearly demonstrated that ‘strength under control’ in which he held his own despite all the pressures that came with being the leader of God’s people. He proved that meekness may sometimes beyond our mortal grasp but equipped with the Spirit of Christ, all things remain possible.

Meekness is challenged when we are provoked

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When it comes to provocation, the Bible’s record of how David suffered taunting is legendary. This was at a time when King David and all his household had to flee the city of Jerusalem from his son Absalom (2 Sam 15). On his journey to escape, he crossed the Kidron Valley towards the wilderness before he reached the summit of the Mount of Olives. 

After that, he arrived at the village of Bahurim where Shimei, son of Gera, emerged to heap curses at him. Coming from the same clan as the deposed Saul’s family (2 Sam 16), Shimei flung stones at David and his officers including all his surrounding soldiers and said:

“‘Get out of here, you murderer, you scoundrel! … ‘The Lord is paying you back for all the bloodshed in Saul’s clan. You stole his throne and now the Lord has given it to your son Absalom. At last, you will taste some of your own medicine, for you are a murderer!’” (2 Sam 16:7-8, NLT)

It is obvious that being someone who hailed from the house of Saul, Shimei would have had nothing pleasant to say about David whom he blamed for Saul’s death. Even though David emerged as Israel’s greatest king, he had no praise for him despite the fact that God had anointed him to rule over the Jewish state. Shimei’s words were dripping in contempt but the more he frothed at David, the riskier it was for him:

“‘Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king?’ Abishai, son of Zeruiah, demanded. ‘Let me go over and cut off his head!’” (2 Sam 16:9, NLT)

As one of David’s most loyal men, Abishai was having none of Shimei’s abuse and was within his right to protect his king from it. And he was right. Shimei’s provocations were unnecessary not to mention, self-threatening, and during those days, could have easily warranted his execution. Yet David displayed exemplary meekness towards someone who hated him:

“‘No,’ the king said. ‘Who asked your opinion, you sons of Zeruiah! If the Lord has told him to curse me, who are you to stop him?’ Then David said to Abishai and to all his servants, ‘My own son is trying to kill me. Doesn’t this relative of Saul have even more reason to do so? Leave him alone and let him curse, for the Lord has told him to do it. And perhaps the Lord will see that I am being wronged and will bless me because of these curses today.’” (2 Sam 16:10-13, NLT)

Even so, that didn’t stop Shimei from relentlessly hurling stones and dirt and cursing David. Through God’s grace, David showed the kind of remarkable composure that defined exemplary meekness. And as the following verses described, all of the taunting and cursing would have caused the travelling party to grow “weary along the way” to the point that they had to break journey and rest by the Jordan River (v.13).

David didn’t just stop Abishai. He saved Shimei’s life. And in the process of all that, he put up with all the insults before his own people. It couldn’t have possibly been anything but humiliating for the king of Israel to have to endure in public. And to think that Shimei would also have gloated at how he could curse David without any repercussions on his life. None of this would have played well in the secular world then as it is today. But for David who could have easily – and rightfully – disposed of him, this was a powerful display of meekness.

Meekness is challenged when we are disappointed

For all that the apostle Paul had done to spread the Word to the Gentiles, his disappointment was palpable and the silence of those who did not come and stand by him was remarkably deafening. Maybe Paul had set his expectations a little too high and had now come to pay the price. Or maybe he felt that for all that he had poured into the lives of so many believers, he felt it was only right that they came to court and vouched for his credibility.

In Paul’s final words recorded in his second letter to Timothy, he mentioned the names of those who not only deserted but betrayed him (2 Tim 4:9-15). And then in the next passages, he expressed inescapable disappointment:

“The first time I was brought before the judge, no one came with me. Everyone abandoned me.” (2 Tim 4:16, NLT)

“No one came with me,” Paul said. It’s not difficult to picture how he would have nuanced these words. And then he chose to use the word ‘abandoned’ to transmit an even more powerful image of how he felt the loneliness of desertion. Reading these passages made me grimace in pain. 

Despite the care and love Paul had shown to the believers he had been ministering too, this was not just rewards. Would he regret having spent his life doing so much but now getting virtually nothing in return? Would he have become angry at how they were so ungrateful in failing to support him at this pressing hour?

Of course, if it were any of us, we would have probably felt that way but Paul did not. Read on the following passages:

“May it not be counted against them. But the Lord stood with me and gave me strength so that I might preach the Good News in its entirety for all the Gentiles to hear. And He rescued me from certain death. Yes, and the Lord will deliver me from every evil attack and will bring me safely into His heavenly Kingdom. All glory to God forever and ever! Amen.” (2 Tim 4:16-18, NLT)

Disappointments are a fact of life. We all go through them in one way or another and at one time or the other. It’s foolish to even try to avoid every single one of them because even if you could, some are here to stay. But disappointments caused by those we have done so much for is quite a different matter for these are especially painful and very difficult to overcome. By all means, we would expect to be not only frustrated but also stumbled by such disappointments.

And yet Paul seemed to be able to march on despite it all. He asked God not to hold it against them (v.16) and then he proceeded to draw an account of how God – and not people – had stood with him all this while. It was, he claimed, He whose strength manifested in his weakness. It was He who rescued him from certain death and now, Paul rejoices that God would not disappoint him but instead, “bring me safely into His heavenly Kingdom.”

In a great turnaround, Paul saw not the endurance of disappointments but relished in his relationship with God to pull him through.

Meekness is challenged when we are wounded

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As Jesus hung on the cross with precious time remaining on His life on earth, it’s easy to believe that He would be bitter at how He was treated. It wasn’t that He was selling anything fancy but unattainable. Instead Jesus was showing the people the real promise of salvation and amidst His encouragement, offered a window of great opportunity to be forgiven of one’s sins. And for all that He did for them, He ended up on the cross. Never mind that this was fulfilling prophecy; the fact that in being wounded, He could have lashed out with absolute justice.

In this context, recall Peter’s words:

“He did not retaliate when He was insulted nor threaten revenge when He suffered. He left His case in the hands of God who always judges fairly.” (1 Pt 2:23, NLT)

Jesus could have vented His anger. He could have retaliated or intimidated His detractors with a promise of vengeance. But instead, “He left His case in the hands of God who always judges fairly.” Jesus’ sense of justice is predicated by His willingness to forgive even as He hung on in pain and agony:

“Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.’” (Lk 23:34, NLT)

And so despite being betrayed, humiliated and forcefully mistreated, not to mention so grossly misunderstood, Jesus chose to forgive and sought the Father’s blessing to carry it out and with that, He set a powerful precedent for us to follow. Meekness here suggests therefore that to those who trespass us, we find it in the depths of our heart to forgive because “they don’t know what they are doing.”

It is Peter who reminds us the reason Jesus could forgive when he reinforced the kind pacifism we can learn from. He neither retaliated nor sought revenge even though He was insulted and in His wounded state, He suffered greatly. Rather He left it to the Father to decide to do what was best. For Christ, the suffering was secondary in importance to the job He had at hand, which was to bear our sins and pin them on the cross in order that we may be healed and live eternally (1 Pt 2:23-24).

Jesus’ trademark meekness is not founded on selfishness and outward boldness. His was to bear wounds afflicted for our sake and then to forgive those who were responsible for sending Him to the cross. His was ultimately to do good in response to outrageous evil. Instead of paying evil with evil, Christ did the very thing that is worth a million lessons if that’s what it takes for us to learn.

Matthew Henry says, “If this is Christianity, the Lord help us! How little is there of the thing, even among those that make great pretensions to the name? Surely (as one said in another case), Aut hoc non Evangelium, aut hi non Evangelici – Either this is not Gospel or these are not Gospel-professors. And Oh! How bare and uncomely does profession appear, for want of this adorning!”¹⁶

“We are called Christians, and it is our privilege and honour that we are so: we name the Name of the meek and lowly Jesus, but how few are actuated by His Spirit or conformed to His example! It is a shame that any occasion should be given to charge it upon professors, who, in other things, are most strict and sober, that in this, they are mostly faulty and that many who pretend to conscience and devotion should indulge themselves in a peevish, froward and morose temper, and conversation, to the great reproach of that worthy Name by which we are called. May we not say as that Mahometan did, when a Christian prince had perfidiously broken his league with him, ‘O Jesus! Are these Thy Christians?’”¹⁷

Though Henry speaks of a time when Christians were only in name but not in works, the society we live in today is even more dramatically different and we’re struggling to make sense of it. Regardless of which part of the developed world we live in, we cannot escape the legalism and political correctness that have proven to be nothing but moral decay. We have lost that sense of civility in public discourse that we so cherished. Even in normal dialogue, we no longer can do the same.

If only Henry would know what we have to deal with today, he’d turn in his grave. The world has turned into a cesspool of sharks that not only attack moral decency but also assault our integrity. This world we live in is no longer discretely separate from the church but with its indomitable influence, has now seen its immoral values creeping into our pews and pulpit.

Between Shemei and David, the world favours the former because he displays boldness and resoluteness. He is the epitome of a world of people who dare to say what he feels. He characterises the kind of people that Karass¹⁸ so favours and endorses, which is why modern society leans very decidedly on the one who does the insulting rather than the one, in his meekness, is ruthlessly mocked.

Yet it is David who has the character and spirit of Christ. It is David who God favours and blesses because of his meekness. The Third Beatitude testifies that people like David – and Moses and Paul – are the ones who carry important lessons wherein we can rediscover what it is to be truly meek. In meekness they are blessed for they will inherit the land.

Footnotes

¹ Kinsolving, Carey, 2006

² Strong’s Concordance entry #4239

³ Nolland, 2005

⁴ “Behold, I bring you the Superman! The Superman is the meaning of the earth. Let your will say: The Superman shall be the meaning of the earth! I beg of you my brothers, remain true to the earth, and believe not those who speak to you of otherworldly hopes! Prisoners are they, whether they know it or not. Despisers of life are they, decaying ones and poisoned ones themselves, of whom the earth is weary: so away with them!” (Nietzsche’s philosophy in Also Sprach Zarathustra (tr. Thus Spake Zarathustra) concerning the concept of the Superhuman)

⁵ Davids, P.H., 1992

⁶ Clark, H., 2003

⁷ The same applies to ESV, ASV, BRG, DARBY, DRA (Douay-Rheims 1899), ESVUK, GNV (Geneva 1599), JUB (Jubilee 2000) and RSV. Pretty much most of the rest of the available English translations use the word ‘humble’ or ‘uniquely humble’ or ‘humble and without pride’ to describe Moses. The AMP translation calls Moses, “humble (gentle, kind, devoid of self-righteousness).”

⁸ Karass, C., 1996

⁹ Genesis 28:4, Leviticus 20:24, Numbers 21:24,35, 33:52-55 and Joshua 1:11,15, 12:1

¹⁰ Nolland (2005) wrote, “The interest in 4:25 in the scope of historic Israel … and the evocation of exile and return in the opening beatitudes weigh in favour of Matthew’s also intending γῆ to refer to Israel as the land of covenant promise.”

¹¹ Pennington, J.T., 2009

¹² Where the word ‘manual’ – as in ‘manual labour’ – is derived from.

¹³ Henry, M., 2012

¹⁴ Watson, T., 1971

¹⁵ Spurgeon, C.H., 1873

¹⁶ Henry, M., 1811

¹⁷ Henry, M., 1979

¹⁸ Karass, C., 1996

 Reference sources used in this article

Karass, Dr. Chester L. (Jun 1996) In Business and in Life: You Don’t Get What You Deserve, You Get What You Negotiate (Stanford Street Press, 43761st Edition). Available at https://www.amazon.com/Business-Life-Dont-Deserve-Negotiate/dp/0965227499

Clarke, Howard W. (2003) The Gospel of Matthew and its Readers: A Historical Introduction to the First Gospel (Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press)

Davids, Peter H. (1992) Meek Shall Inherit the Earth in Jeffrey, David Lyle, gen. editor (1992) A Dictionary of Biblical Tradition in English Literature (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans).

Henry, Matthew (2012) Discourse on Meekness & Quietness of Spirit (Monergism) in Chapter 1: Nature of Meekness

Henry, Matthew (1811) The Miscellaneous Writings of Matthew Henry – Late Minister of the Gospel, Vol. VII (The Strand, London: Samuel Bagster). Accessible online at https://books.google.com.my/books?id=l7FNAQAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false

Henry, Matthew (1979) The Complete Works of Matthew Henry: Treatises, Sermons and Tracts (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books). Available as an e-book download at https://books.google.com.my/books?id=DNz_DQAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false

Kinsolving, Carey (Sept 2006) Why Does God Bless the Meek? (South Padre Island, TX: Kids Talk About God). Accessible online at http://www.kidstalkaboutgod.org/BibleLessons/DevotionalBibleLessons/tabid/648/ID/66/Why-Does-God-Bless-The-Meek.aspx

Nolland, John (2005) The Gospel of Matthew: A Commentary on the Greek Text (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdsman)

Pennington, Jonathan T. (Jul 2009) Heaven and Earth in the Gospel of Matthew (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic Reprint Edition). Available at https://www.amazon.com/dp/080103728X/?tag=stackoverflow17-20

Smith, Pastor Colin S. () Blessed Are the Meek, Sermon on Matthew 5:5 (Unlocking the Bible). Video available at either http://unlockingthebible.org/sermon/blessed-are-the-meek/#_ftn1 or directly at https://youtu.be/kuNRlCPjfOk

Spurgeon, Charles H. (Dec 1873) The Third Beatitude (Columbus, NJ: Bible Bulletin Board). Accessible at http://www.biblebb.com/files/spurgeon/3065.htm

Watson, Thomas (Jul 2014) The Beatitudes (Carlisle, PA: Banner of Truth). Available at https://www.amazon.com/Beatitudes-Thomas-Watson/dp/184871436X