God & Savior

Matthew 5:3

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 5:3
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Study notes

Jesus says the poor in spirit are blessed, because the kingdom of heaven belongs to them.

Explanation

This is the first of the Beatitudes, the blessings that open the Sermon on the Mount (5:3-12). The "poor in spirit" are those who know they have nothing to offer God and depend on Him. Jesus says the kingdom is theirs.

Theology

Entry into God's kingdom begins with humble dependence on God, not with self-confidence or achievement.

Original language
  • Μακάριοι (Makarioi): blessed
    Greek · Adjective, nominative, plural, masculine · Strong's G3107 · text: NA28 (as recorded in TAGNT)

    Blessed, happy: favoured by God.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAGNT: Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, Matthew 5:3, word 1

  • πτωχοὶ (ptōchoi): poor
    Greek · Noun, nominative, plural, masculine · Strong's G4434 · text: NA28 (as recorded in TAGNT)

    Poor: someone with nothing, who must depend on others.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAGNT: Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, Matthew 5:3, word 3

  • πνεύματι (pneumati): spirit/breath
    Greek · Noun, dative, singular, neuter · Strong's G4151G · text: NA28 (as recorded in TAGNT)

    Spirit.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAGNT: Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, Matthew 5:3, word 5

  • βασιλεία (basileia): kingdom
    Greek · Noun, nominative, singular, feminine · Strong's G0932 · text: NA28 (as recorded in TAGNT)

    Kingdom: God's rule and reign.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAGNT: Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, Matthew 5:3, word 10

Cross-references
  • Luke 6:20 · Parallel account

    Blessed are you who are poor.

  • Isaiah 66:2 · Background

    God looks to the one who is humble and contrite in spirit.

  • Psalm 34:18 · Same theme

    The LORD saves the crushed in spirit.

Sources

Original language and places

Reference data from open datasets, shown as published by their sources. Word-by-word English is a literal guide, not a translation.

Original language (Greek)

Μακάριοι οἱ πτωχοὶ τῷ πνεύματι, ὅτι αὐτῶν ἐστιν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν.

  1. ΜακάριοιMakarioi“Blessed [are]”
    Adjective, nominative, plural, masculine · from μακάριος · “blessed” · Strong's G3107
  2. οἱhoi“the”
    Article, nominative, plural, masculine · from ὁ · “the/this/who” · Strong's G3588
  3. πτωχοὶptōchoi“poor”
    Noun, nominative, plural, masculine · from πτωχός · “poor” · Strong's G4434
  4. τῷtō“in the”
    Article, dative, singular, neuter · from ὁ · “the/this/who” · Strong's G3588
  5. πνεύματι,pneumati“spirit,”
    Noun, dative, singular, neuter · from πνεῦμα · “spirit/breath” · Strong's G4151G
  6. ὅτιhoti“for”
    Conjunction · “that/since” · Strong's G3754H
  7. αὐτῶνautōn“theirs”
    Personal pronoun, genitive, plural, masculine · from αὐτός · “he/she/it/self” · Strong's G0846
  8. ἐστινestin“is”
    Verb, present, active, indicative, 3rd person singular · from εἰμί · “to be” · Strong's G1510
  9. ἡhē“the”
    Article, nominative, singular, feminine · from ὁ · “the/this/who” · Strong's G3588
  10. βασιλείαbasileia“kingdom”
    Noun, nominative, singular, feminine · “kingdom” · Strong's G0932
  11. τῶνtōn“of the”
    Article, genitive, plural, masculine · from ὁ · “the/this/who” · Strong's G3588
  12. οὐρανῶν.ouranōn“heavens.”
    Noun, genitive, plural, masculine · from οὐρανός · “heaven” · Strong's G3772
  • Prepared by the God & Savior team. Not yet reviewed by an editor.
  • Greek words: STEP Bible (STEPBible.org), based on work at Tyndale House, Cambridge. CC BY 4.0. Source (version ed476a8)