THE GOSPELS: THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT: BEATITUDE 4, BLESSED are those who HUNGER and THIRST for RIGHTEOUSNESS, for they will be filled, Part 2

22 May 2026

We are proceeding to study the SERMON of YESHUA on the MOUNT.

We are mainly reading from the Complete Jewish Study Bible – insight for Jews and Christians. We use the Hebrew letters for the name of God, YHVH (Yod-Heh-Vav-Heh) where the word LORD in English is indicated in capital letters in the Scriptures. The reason being that the Jewish writers removed the vowels in God’s name out of fear of transgressing the third Commandment of taking His Name in vain. And today there is a lot of controversy about the pronunciation of His Name.  We also refer to Him as Abba Father and use the Hebrew Name Yeshua the Messiah instead of the English Name Jesus Christ translated from the Greek.

We are still studying the fourth BEATITUDE in Matthew 5:6 where Yeshua taught: “How BLESSED (meaning happy and fortunate) are those who HUNGER and THIRST for RIGHTEOUSNESS! For they will be FILLED.”

We are focusing on what the WORD teaches us on RIGHTEOUSNESS.

Last week we learned more about YHVH our GOD being a RIGHTEOUS and JUST GOD.

His WORD also tells us that we as believers are CALLED to live in RIGHTEOUSNESS conforming to His principles, laws and statutes and to DO JUSTICE by practicing and maintaining what is good and right and uphold what is just and fair in accordance with His Word.

We find the guidelines and rules on righteousness and justice throughout the Word and specifically in the Torah (Genesis to Deuteronomy), like in Exodus 23, saying in verses 1-8:

• “You are not to repeat false rumors; do not join hands with the wicked by offering perjured (bearing false) testimony (witness).” This is in line with Commandment 8 telling us not to give false evidence against our neighbor/ other people). (Verse 1)

• “Do not follow the crowd when it does what is wrong; and don’t allow the popular view to sway (influence) you into offering testimony for any cause if the effect (result, consequence) will be to pervert (distort, misrepresent) JUSTICE.” (Verse 2)

• “On the other hand, don’t favor a person’s lawsuit simply because he is poor.” (Verse 3)

• “If you come upon your enemy’s ox or donkey straying, you must return it to him. If you see the donkey that belongs to someone who hates you, lying down helpless under its load, you are not to pass him by but to go and help him free it.” (Verse 4-5). This reminds us of the words of Yeshua’s our Messiah in Luke 6:26” Love your enemies, do GOOD to those who HATE you.”

• “Do not deny anyone JUSTICE in his lawsuit (complaint, grievance, court case) simply because he is poor. Keep away from fraud (deception, scams, schemes), and do not cause the death of the innocent righteous (those morally right and in right standing with God’s will and Word); for I will not justify (defend, vindicate, support) the wicked.” (Verses 6-7)

• ‘You are not to receive a bribe, for a bribe blinds the clear-sighted and subverts (undermines, weakens, sabotages, harms) the cause of the righteous (those morally right and in right standing with God’s will and Word).” (Verse 8)

In line with God’s EXPECTATION of PEOPLE to act RIGHTEOUS and JUST, Paul reminds us in Romans 13:8-10 that the PURPOSE of GODS LAW (His Torah as written in Genesis to Deuteronomy and summed up in the TEN COMMANDMENTS, and therefore including COMMANDMENT 8, not to give false witness against a neighbor), is to LOVE other people and cause them NO HARM.

We read of king David the following words in 1^st Chronicles 18:14 “David ruled over ISRAEL; he administered (implemented, applied the) LAW (other versions says RIGHTEOUSNESS or DOING what was RIGHT) and JUSTICE for ALL his people.”

In Isaiah 1:17 God addresses the sinful nation (specifically Judah, the Southern Kingdom under the reign of king Uzziah, Ahaz and Hezekiah in 774-697 B.C during the period the Northern Kingdom was conquered by Assyria in 722 B.C) saying: “Wash yourselves clean! Get your evil out of My sight! Stop doing evil, LEARN to DO GOOD! SEEK JUSTICE, RELIEVE the oppressed, DEFEND the orphans, PLEAD for the widow.” And we read in verse 18-20 the PROMISED BLESSING for OBEDIENCE and CURSE for DISOBEDIENCE: “Come now, says YHVH, let’s talk this over together. Even if your sins are like scarlet, they will be white as snow; even if they are red as crimson, they will be like wool. IF you are WILLING and OBEDIENT, you will eat the good of the land; but IF you REFUSE and REBEL, you will be eaten by the sword; for the mouth of YHVH has spoken.”

The same goes for Jeremiah 22:3 where the prophet had to go to the kings of Judah, Jehoiakim, Jehoiakin and Zedekiah while occupying David’s throne (in 609-586 B.C before the Southern Kingdom went into captivity to Babylon), and did not obey YHVH’s commands and say to them: “DO what is RIGHT and JUST; RESCUE the WRONGED (the mistreated, the neglected, the persecuted) from their oppressors; do nothing wrong or violent to the stranger, orphan or widow; don’t shed blood in this place.” And then we read the PROMISED BLESSING for OBEDIENCE and CURSE for DISOBEDIENCE in verse 4-5: “IF you are careful to DO this, then future kings occupying David’s throne will enter these palace gates riding in chariots (a two wheeled vehicle used in warfare)  and on horses (drawing the chariots) – he, his servants and his people. But IF you will not pay attention to these words, then I swear by Myself, says YHVH, that this palace will become a ruin (it will collapse, be destructed).”

In Hosea chapter 12 the unfaithfulness (disloyalty, betrayal) of both Judah (the Southern Kingdom comprising of Judah and Benjamin) as well as Ephraim (the Northern Kingdom, the Ten Tribes under Ephraim), are addressed and they are called in verse 6 to: “…RETURN to your GOD; HOLD FAST to GRACE (the unmerited favor and love of God) and JUSTICE (fairness, righteousness); and ALWAYS put your HOPE (faith, belief, confidence) in your GOD.”

Babylon led Judah (the Southern Kingdom, comprising of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin) into captivity in three successive stages in 605, 597 and 587 B.C. And when Persia (modern day Iran) conquered Babylon in 539 B.C, king Cyrus of Persia issued a decree allowing all people from Judah (called Jews in the New Testament and still today), to return to their homeland. This allowed 50,000 exiles to return to Jerusalem and rebuilt the Temple. During this period God used the prophet Zechariah to encourage the people of the Southern Kingdom to return to YHVH their God. And we read in Zechariah chapter 7:9-14 “In the past YHVH-Tzva’ot (the God of Heavens Armies) said: ADMINISTER (implement, apply) TRUE JUSTICE. Let EVERYONE show MERCY and COMPASSION to his brother (fellow citizen). Don’t oppress the widows, orphans, foreigners or poor people. Don’t plot evil against each other. But they wouldn’t listen, they stubbornly turned their shoulder away and stopped up their ears, so that they wouldn’t have to hear it. Yes, they made their HEARTS as HARD as a diamond (a stone), so that they wouldn’t HEAR the TORAH (the WORD of GOD in Genesis to Deuteronomy summed up in the TEN COMMANDMENTS) and the messages that YHVH- Tzva’ot (the God of Heavens Armies) had sent by HIS SPIRIT through the earlier prophets (referring to people like Isaiah, Jeremiah and Hosea). This is why GREAT ANGER came form YHVH- Tzva’ot (the God of Heavens Armies); and it came about that just as thy hadn’t listened when HE CALLED, so YHVH- Tzva’ot (the God of Heavens Armies) said, I won’t listen when they call; but with the power of a whirlwind I will disperse (scatter) you among ALL the nations which they have not known. Thus, the land was left desolate (deserted, forsaken) after them, so that no one came and went. They had turned a PLESANT LAND into a desert.”

Proverbs 2:1-15 tells us “My son (remember ALL believers are considered brothers and sons of LIGHT and priests in the order of Melchizedek with our High Priest being Yeshua the Messiah although the protective structure and order ALWAYS remains in place as God the Father, Yeshua the Messiah, the man and then the woman as we also read in 1^st Corinthians 11:3) IF you will RECEIVE MY WORDS and STORE MY COMMANDS INSIDE you, PAYING ATTENTION to MY WISDOM, inclining your MIND (the thinking part of your SOUL) toward UNDERSTANDING – yes, IF you WILL CALL for INSIGHT and RAISE your VOICE for DISCERNMENT, IF you SEEK it as you would silver and SEARCH for it as for HIDDEN TREASURE – then you WILL UNDERSTAND the FEAR of YHVH and FIND KNOWLEDGE of GOD. For YHVH GIVES WISDOM; from HIS MOUTH comes KNOWLEDGE and UNDERSTANDING. He STORES UP COMMON SENSE for the UPRIGHT (those in right standing with Him, the honest) is a SHIELD for the BLAMELESS (innocent, righteous, guiltless), in order to GUARD the COURSES of JUSTICE and PRESERVE the WAY of the FAITHFUL to HIM. THEN you WILL UNDERSTAND RIGHTEOUSNESS, JUSTICE, FAIRNESS and EVERY GOOD PATH. For WISDOM WILL ENTER your HEART (the emotional/ feelings part of your SOUL), KNOWLEDGE will be ENJOYABLE for you, DISCRETION will WATCH over you, and DISCERNMENT will GUARD you.  They will SAVE you from the way of evil (the broad way) and from those who speak deceitfully, who leave the path of honesty (the narrow way) to walk the ways of darkness (on the broad way), who delight in doing evil and take joy in being stubbornly deceitful, from those whose tracks are twisted and whose paths are perverse.”

And like the prophets who spoke to and warned the kings, Proverbs 31 encourages men as kings (rulers, including kings and rulers/ heads of their own families) and woman to live RIGHTEOUSLY and JUSTLY.

We read the following guidelines for the man as king in verse 1-9 namely:

• “Don’t give your strength to woman or your ways to that which destroys kings (this may be in line with the warnings given about the strange woman and the loose woman in Proverbs 2:16-19 with smooth talk, who abandons discipline and forgets the covenant of God and whose house is sinking toward death, her paths lead to the dead from which no one who goes to her return). And therefore, the man is encouraged in verse 20 to: “…. walk (to live life) on the WAY of GOOD people and keep to the paths of the RIGHTEOUS (the narrow WAY of GOD).

 

• Not to DRINK wine and strong liquor for many DRINK and then forget what has been decreed (commanded by God) and pervert (distort, misrepresents) JUSTICE due to the poor (Proverbs 31:4-5). We know that under the influence of alcohol people’s judgement are not sound and they behave out of character and often submit to sin in such a way that they are ashamed when they return to normal. Proverbs 31 tells us that this behavior is not fit (appropriate, suitable, acceptable) for a king (and therefore also not fit for the head of his household/ the king of his family) but rather (drinking alcohol and strong drink are for) those who are perishing, poor, depressed and whose lives are filled with trouble (read Proverbs 31:6-7). And if you are not married, or not yet married, remember you don’t need a family to be regarded as a GODLY MAN or serving as a king and priest in GOD’s KINGDOM or acting RIGHTEOUSLY and JUST towards everyone in your life in the execution of your PURPOSE.

• The man is further required in his role as king (or ruler) to SPEAK UP for those who can’t speak for themselves, for the RIGHTS of ALL who need an advocate. And to SPEAK UP, JUDGE RIGHTEOUSLY, DEFEND the cause of the poor and the needy. (Verses 8-9)

And the rest of Proverbs 31 from verse 10-31 gives us an example of what a godly WOMAN married to the king/ ruler, a man who sits at the city gates with the LEADERS of the land according to verse 23, looks like to which we as woman can aspire, just as our husbands can aspire to be godly kings/ rulers of our households, namely:

• She is a capable (talented, skilled, clever) wife, her value is far beyond that of pearls. (Verse 10)

• Her husband TRUSTS her from his heart (she is therefore a faithful wife), and she will prove a great asset (advantage, strength, benefit) to him. She works to bring him GOOD, not harm (damage, destruction) all the days of her life. (Verse 11-12)

• She produces wool and flax and works with willing hands. It is still dark when she rises to give food to her household and orders to the women serving her. We also read when it snows, she has no fear for her household; since all of them are doubly clothed. She watches (guards) how things go in her house, not eating the bread of idleness (she is not lazy). She makes her own quilts and she herself is clothed in fine linen and purple (interestingly fine linen is indicated in Revelation 19:8 as the “righteous deeds” of God’s people, therefore it may indicate that she is a righteous woman, doing what is right according to God’s will and WORD) and she manages and cares for her household with dedication. (Verses 13-15, 21-22 & 27).

• She considers a field, then buys it, and from her earnings she plants a vineyard. She gathers her strength around her and throws herself into her work. She sees that her business affairs go well; her lamp stays lit at night (it is therefore clear that she is economically active and assist in bringing in income to the household). (Verses 16-19)

• She reaches out to EMBRACE (be affectionate, loving, caring, friendly to) the POOR and OPENS her arms (she gives) to the NEEDY. (Verse 20)

• She is not only clothed in FINE LINEN herself (possibly indicating her righteous deeds) but she also MAKES LINEN GARMENTS and SELLS them (maybe an indication of spreading the message of RIGHTEOUSNESS, like we are required to SPREAD the GOOD NEWS of SALVATION and living a holy, set-apart life); she supplies the merchants with SASHES (possibly a picture of the SASH around the PRIESTS WAIST, equating to the BELT of TRUTH, the WORD of GOD as part of our spiritual warfare armor as we read in Ephesians 6:14). (Proverbs 31:24)

• She is clothed with STRENGTH and DIGNITY (self-respect, her behavior is worthy of honor and respect) she can laugh at the days to come (she does not fear the future). This may be a picture of believers putting aside the deeds of darkness and arming ourselves with the weapons of light as we clothe ourselves with Yeshua the Messiah and we receive His authority/ power, dignity and righteousness and not waste our time thinking about how to provide for the sinful desires of our old nature as we read in Romans 13:12-14. We further read when she opens her mouth, she SPEAKS WISELY; on her tongue is LOVING INSTRUCTION (in all possibility she is teaching others the TORAH, the LAW of GOD in Genesis to Deuteronomy, summed up in THE TEN COMMANDMENDS which IS HIS LAW of LOVE according to Romans 13:8-10).

• Her CHILDREN arise (they get up, they wake up); they make her happy (other Bible versions says: “they call her blessed”); her HUSBAND too, as he praises her (with the following words): “Many women have done wonderful things, but you surpass them all!” (Verses 25-29).

• And then Proverbs 31 concludes in verses 30-31 by reminding us that: “Charm can lie, beauty can vanish; but a woman who fears YHVH (have deep reverence, awe and respect for Him and love and obeys His Word) should be praised. Give her a share in what she produces (let she eat/ enjoy the FRUITS of her work); let her works speak her praises at the city gates.