The Meek Shall Inherit the Earth

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Today on the missionary coach show we’ll be talking about Matthew 5:5:

Mat: 5:5 “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”

In full time christian missions since 1999 I am your missionary coach, Bill Hutchison. Thanks for tuning in …

I’ve always taken those verses for granted, and never thought a lot about them. The thing is though, they are quite profound statements. When I think of someone who is “meek” I think of someone cowering in a corner. A “meek” person to me is someone who is trying to hide from the reality that is before him, someone who is a coward.

Jordan Peterson explains it differently than I have thought of it before. His definition of “meek” is someone who chooses to withhold their strength for the sake of peace. Someone who is strong, competent, and armed for the world.

Here is how he describes it …

“Those who have weapons and know how to use them, but still keep them sheathed, will inherit the earth.”

I like that description! It adds so much more depth and excitement to when Jesus tells us that “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth”, and it instills confidence in what he know and have in Christ.

That said, it almost sounds too good to be true, that definition of “meek”, so I decided to do some more research into it. I want it to be true, but is it?

Different Translations

To start with I thought I would compare how the verse is presented in different translations of the Bible. Most stick with the “meek” translation, but there are a few that translate it differently”

• “The gentle are blessed, for they will inherit the earth.” (HCSB Holman Christian Standard Bible)
• “Blessed are the humble, for they will inherit the earth.” (Christian Standard Bible CSB)

Meek Definitions

If we look at the specific word that is most commonly translated to meek, the word used in the original Greek is ““praus” (prah-oos)”. There are a few different definitions that can be found for that word, including:

• gentle or gentleness
• humble
• a horse that had been broken-in or trained for battle
• a calm temper of mind, not easily provoked
• the gentleness of strength

The Webster Dictionary defines “meek” as:

1. Mild of temper, soft, gentle, not easily provoked or irritated, yielding, given to forbearance under injuries.
2. Appropriately humble in an evangelical sense; submissive to the divine will; not proud, self-sufficient or refractory; not peevish and apt to complain of divine dispensations.

Thayer’s Lexicon defines it as:

1. Mildness of disposition, gentleness of spirit, meekness

HELPS Word-studies says:

1. Displaying the right blend of force and reserve (gentleness)
2. Avoids unnecessary harshness, yet without compromising or being slow to use necessary force

Other Uses of Meek

We can also look at what could be meant by they word by seeing where else it is used:

• Mat 11, 29 – Christ says, “Learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest to your souls.”
  or
  “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek (praus) and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.”
• James 3:13 – Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom
• Num 12:3 – Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.
• Ps. 37:11 – But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace

Now, what can we deduce from those other versus of the same word…

1. Jesus describes himself as “meek”! There is no way that we can define Christ as weak. Rather he is someone of infinite power and wisdom, but who has it completely and utterly submitted to the his Father’s will.
2. We are told to act out of the meekness of wisdom, inferring that there must be wisdom and competence for their to be true meekness.
3. Moses, the same one who led the Israelites out of Egypt and through the dessert is called very meek.
4. Ps 37 talks about the people who will inherit the earth, which it calls the “meek”. It includes people who:
   • submit themselves to the Lord
   • petition the Lord
   • are not envious of the prosperous
   • wait on the Lord (rather than turning to violence or evil schemes)

Commentaries

The David Guzik commentary states that:

1. Blessed are the meek: In the vocabulary of the ancient Greek language, the meek person was not passive or easily pushed around. The main idea behind the word “meek” was strength under control, like a strong stallion that was trained to do the job instead of running wild.
2. To be meek means to show willingness to submit and work under proper authority. It also shows a willingness to disregard one’s own “rights” and privileges.

Conclusion

So after all that I would have to say that Dr Peterson’s assessment of Matthew 5:5 is pretty spot on! We are not called to be weak or cowardly. We are called to strong, confident, competent, and well trained. In addition to those things we are also called to be submitted in Christ, putting His will before our own, and waiting on Him rather than pushing through in our own strength.

Thank you for listening. You can leave comments, subscribe, support my work with Youth With A Mission, and hear other episodes of the podcast at missionarycoach.org.

Now that we have explored all of that, have another listen to Dr. Peterson on an interview with Jo Rogan about being meek …

Sources:

• Reddit
• StackExchange – Biblical Hermeneutics
• Sermon on the Mount
• Bible Hub