WEEKLY INTRODUCTION: The theme for the Beatitudes is the same as Jesus’ message throughout His ministry, namely: “The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand,” which means that it is “right here” and “right now.” It is a spiritual kingdom in which we enter through the gate of REPENTANCE and walk its streets by FAITH. Each Beatitude identifies the quality of one who has entered the Kingdom, followed by a promise to those who possess this quality. Once we enter the Kingdom, or we might say, once the Kingdom enters us, we receive all its blessings. And let’s remember “to be blessed” is to be fully satisfied, lacking no good thing.

The Third Beatitude: “Blessed are those who are gentle, for they shall inherit the earth” (Mt. 5:5).

While the first two beatitudes are internal dispositions of the heart (humility and mourning), this beatitude begins internally but is expressed externally, that is, toward others. The word for “gentle” comes from the word prautes, and the Greeks used it to describe the taming of a wild stallion, an animal who is incredibly strong and yet when bridled, is under control, and even “gentle.” In essence, to be “gentle,” is to have strength of character, but a character that is “bridled,” or “under control.” As a side note, the King James Bible translated prautes as “meek” and we often think of “meekness” as “weakness,” which is certainly not the case with this meaningful Greek word.

Do you remember Elijah after he fled from Jezebel? He went into a cave and experienced an earthquake, a violent wind, and fire, but he knew that the Lord was not in either of them. But then came a “gentle” whisper, or breeze, and that’s when the Lord spoke to him (1 Kings 19:11-12). We know that Moses was gentle, more than any other man alive (Numbers 12:3), and that “a gentle answer turns away wrath (Proverbs 15:3). And so, we see that “gentleness” was an admirable character quality even in the Old Testament.

Some have described “gentleness” as being willing to disregard one’s own rights and privileges for the benefit of others. The concept of “gentleness” is found throughout the New Testament. For example:

• It is a character trait of Jesus himself (Matt. 11:29)
• It is a character trait of Jesus’ followers (Col. 3:12)
• It is a character trait of godly women (1 Pet. 3:1-4)
• It is characteristic of Christian authenticity (Eph. 4:1-2)
• It is characteristic of godly wisdom (Jas. 3:13-18)
• It should be present when engaging with God’s Word (Jas. 1:21)
• It should be present when sharing your faith (1 Pet. 3:14-16)
• It should be present when correcting others (1 Cor. 4:21)
• It should be present when restoring a fallen brother or sister in Christ (Gal. 6:1)
• It is the fruit of a spirit-filled life (Gal. 5:22-25)

So, what did Jesus mean when He said that the “gentle” will inherit the earth? Let’s keep in mind that an inheritance is distributed after someone dies. I’m pretty sure that Jesus was focusing on His own death, and so this inheritance of “the earth” is something that Jesus provided for us after His own death and resurrection. For all those who are “in Christ,” our spiritual inheritance was received after Jesus’ death and resurrection. We can learn more from the Apostle Paul in his letter to the Corinthian church:

Let’s have no more boasting about human leaders! All things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, and you are of Christ, and Christ is of God (1 Corinthians 3:21-23).

And in his second letter to the church in Corinth, Paul wrote:

…beaten, and yet not killed; sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything (2 Corinthians 6:9-10).

Possessing “everything!” Wow! And let’s check out what Paul wrote to the Ephesian church:

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ (Ephesians 1:3). 

And the Apostle Peter had this to say:

 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness (2 Peter 1:3).

And so, from these two Apostles, Paul and Peter, we find that those who possess “gentleness” in their character possess all spiritual blessings in Christ, and everything they need to live a life of godliness. That is the inheritance of those who possess prautes. If you do not possess this quality, ask God to carve this into your character by the power of the Holy Spirit. After all, He is able to do far above all that we ask or think in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:20).