Meek or opressed? Reading Matthew 5:5 in context
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Date
2016
Authors
Domeris, W.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Faculty of Theology, University of the Free State
Abstract
According to the Gospel of Matthew 5:5, Jesus pronounces a blessing on “the meek”
(Greek οἱ πραεῖς), promising that they will receive the inheritance of the earth (or land).
The words of Jesus are a quotation from the LXX of Psalm 37:11 and each of the
Hebrew terms (subject, object and verb) need careful consideration. Following, the
Hebrew original we might translate the verse in Psalm 37:11 as “The oppressed/
humiliated will take possession of the land”. The force of the original saying finds its
meaning in the wider context of the Psalm, where wealthy landowners threaten the
interests of ordinary peasants and they cry out to God for justice.
The variance between the Hebrew (MT) and the Greek (LXX) raises anew the
interpretation of these words of Jesus. Who did Matthew’s Jesus have in mind - the
meek of emerging Christianity or the poor and humiliated peasants, who made up
the majority of his Palestinian audience? In this article, I consider the implications
of Jesus addressing a peasant audience in a conversation about taking possession
of farming land and then extend this discussion into the emerging peasant realities
of the post-revolutionary context in Galilee and Judaea. In the light of the present
archaeological data, and the rabbinic sources, peasant life continued more or less
unchanged with little indication of large-scale estates.
Description
Keywords
Matthew 5:5, Meek, Ps. 37:11, Opressed, Possession of land
Citation
Domeris, W. (2016). Meek or opressed? Reading Matthew 5:5 in context. Acta Theologica, 23, 131-149.