Blessed Poor, Luke 6:20

These verses, Luke 6:17-49, are called “the Sermon on the Plateau” as different from Matthew’s record of “the Sermon on the Mount.”  In many ways these two discourses of Jesus are similar, but one difference appears in the opening Beatitudes of each.  The Sermon on the Mount begins with the first 8 Beatitudes addressed in the third person, “Blessed are they….”  Luke’s record of the Sermon on the Plateau begins with Beatitudes addressed in the second person, “Blessed are you….”

Luke’s account of this sermon begins with the words “Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples and said…” (v. 20).  Jesus had been healing the multitude, but just prior to that, He had called His disciples to Him and from that number chose the Twelve whom He called “Apostles.”  As the sermon / discourse begins, Jesus turns His attention again to His disciples. 

This sermon is a private conversation in a very public setting.  Though the multitude was there to hear, they were not the primary audience.  This is not a message to or for the world at large; this is a message to those who have chosen to follow Jesus and who in response have chosen by Him to be His disciples.  In this setting of the presence of the multitude, Jesus words have meaning only to those who follow Him.  The world finds these words meaningless, even impossible and absurd – “Blessed (happy) are you poor….”  Literally, the Greek reads, “Blessed poor are you....”   Since both blessed and poor are adjectives in the Greek, let me put it another way, “You are blessed poor….”

coram deo