BLESSED ARE THE PURE IN HEART
“Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God.” Matthew 5:8
In my previous article, we looked at the meaning of “hungering and thirsting for righteousness”, a yearning to be generous towards others which will mirror God’s generosity towards us which is the first “bookend” of the literary construction called reverse concentric symmetry.
Pure in heart is the other bookend that encloses the idea of being merciful. It is based on the teaching in the Torah about “tamai” and “tahor”, unclean and clean. Sin is not defined as doing bad things; sin is defined as anything that is not perfect which makes a person “tamai”, unclean. Being unclean separated people from the community and demanded sacrifice to restore them to a state of “tahor”, purity. Being “tamai” was very infectious. Anyone touching someone who was tamai became tamai. Living in a situation like this made them realise how impossible this was. It demanded someone to rescue them from the ceaseless cycle of being tamai.
Jesus came to rescue to world from being in a state of tamai which separated everyone from God. He was the once-for-all sacrifice which made us permanently tahor before God. Everyone Jesus touched became “tahor” instantly, lepers, blind, deaf, lame, and dead people. Because of Him we are no longer “tamai” because He has made us “tahor” in Him. To be “tahor” means that our vision is cleared of our selfishness and self absorption and we can more clearly see the suffering of those around us. Jesus said “Be perfect (tahor) as your Father in heaven is perfect.”
In Hebrew thinking there was something called “zikkut”. “Zikkut” described a person’s attitude of heart that reached out to help someone in need, not in obedience to a command but just because of the compassion in the person’s heart that moved him to help. The rabbis taught that “zikkut” enabled one to see the face of God – to see, know and experience God in a deeper way than simply by obeying His commandments.
This is what God said to Shallum, king of Judah, who was selfish and greedy, about his father Josiah. “Does it make you a king to have more and more cedar? Did not your father have food and drink? He did what was right and just, so all went well with him. He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well. Is that not what it means to know me?” declares the Lord. Jeremiah 22:16.
In the beatitudes Jesus is saying that to desire to be generous to people in need, sharing your resources with them even if your resources are meagre, means that you will always have enough yourself. You will never go hungry if you share with others. But, more than that, when we have a burning desire to meet the needs of others, beyond our duty, we will truly understand the heart of God and God will take care of every need of ours in response to our self-sacrificing generosity.