The Beatitudes Page 5
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The news that Jesus and his disciples had left Capernaum spread from town to town. The narrow, usually deserted roads between Tibereas and Capernaum, were choked with men, women and children, all heading toward the mountain west of the lake. Many men and women who had heard all kinds of rumors about Jesus' teachings and his miracles, but who had never had an opportunity to see or hear him, came to learn in the practical school of human observation. They all came to sit at the feet of the great teacher and healer of human souls. A teacher who was familiar with human problems, human suffering, and human difficulties. A teacher who was ready to heal them of their wounds, relieve them of their heavy burdens, and comfort their broken hearts. Jesus sat on the summit and looked into the faces of the men and women who sat on the ground in front of him eagerly waiting to hear him speak, and behind them lay the beautiful lake.
And when Jesus spoke again, he said: "Blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted."
These words, full of hope and consolation, were addressed to the men and women whose sorrows were evident in their faces, and whose hearts were heavy with grief. Some of them no doubt had lost their dear ones fighting to free their country from the Romans. Some of them mourned because of the heavy burdens and the harsh yoke that King Herod and the Imperial government had laid upon them. Some of them were mourning because they had lost faith in their political and religious leaders and were like sheep wandering in the desert without a shepherd to lead them to the fold.
Nearly all of those who had assembled to hear Jesus expound the law of the prophets had some kind of grievance in their hearts reflected in their faces. They had come to hear a comforting word from the man whose healings and miracles were talked of in every town and hamlet in Galilee, Judea and Syria. They had come to see if he who was hailed as a great prophet was the true Messiah -- the deliverer of the oppressed and the restorer of the reign of justice. They had come to see him with their own eyes and to hear his comforting and precious words with their own ears.
Centuries before Jesus, the prophets had foreseen the coming of a great savior. Moses had predicted the coming of a prophet greater than himself. And since the days of Elijah and Elisha no one had cleansed the lepers, fed the hungry, or performed miracles and wonders like this humble teacher from Nazareth.
And when Jesus spoke again, he said: "Blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted."
These words, full of hope and consolation, were addressed to the men and women whose sorrows were evident in their faces, and whose hearts were heavy with grief. Some of them no doubt had lost their dear ones fighting to free their country from the Romans. Some of them mourned because of the heavy burdens and the harsh yoke that King Herod and the Imperial government had laid upon them. Some of them were mourning because they had lost faith in their political and religious leaders and were like sheep wandering in the desert without a shepherd to lead them to the fold.
Nearly all of those who had assembled to hear Jesus expound the law of the prophets had some kind of grievance in their hearts reflected in their faces. They had come to hear a comforting word from the man whose healings and miracles were talked of in every town and hamlet in Galilee, Judea and Syria. They had come to see if he who was hailed as a great prophet was the true Messiah -- the deliverer of the oppressed and the restorer of the reign of justice. They had come to see him with their own eyes and to hear his comforting and precious words with their own ears.
Centuries before Jesus, the prophets had foreseen the coming of a great savior. Moses had predicted the coming of a prophet greater than himself. And since the days of Elijah and Elisha no one had cleansed the lepers, fed the hungry, or performed miracles and wonders like this humble teacher from Nazareth.