"Matthew 5:5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth."

by pale.emperor 24 Replies latest watchtower bible

  • pale.emperor
    pale.emperor

    Now that im not longer a JW this verse puzzles me. Being born and raised a witness, this verse confirmed to me that Jesus was talking about a paradise on earth. But now that everything the witnesses taught is 99.99% incorrect can somone explain what he was getting at here? How can they inherit the earth but be in heaven? And who will be on the earth if people are destined to go to heaven?

    Im asking purely for interest. I dont believe the bible is inspired any more than Herge's Adventures of Tintin is.


  • evilApostate
    evilApostate

    Some teach that after the great crowd goes to heaven the earth will be remade anew and subsequently they will be sent back to earth.

    Others say that this inheritance of the earth is temporary.

    Either way it doesn't bother me because the bible is not inspired or anything.

  • LevelThePlayingField
    LevelThePlayingField

    I agree with the part that some believe that one time in the future those in heaven might be placed back on the earth. To be honest, I wonder about that scripture too.

  • sir82
    sir82

    Yeah, I seem to dimly recall some Evangelical teaching about how the "resurrection" referred to in the Bible is really the uniting of an immortal soul with a new human body, and the newly conjoined body-soul would live on the "new earth" of 2 Peter.

  • tepidpoultry
    tepidpoultry

    If you research this you should find this updated (many years ago)

    "understanding"

    Who was Jesus talking to here?

    Those with the "heavenly" Hope

    He meant "inherit" in the sense that his listeners would rule over the Earth

    Its all interpretation

    And can change from one minute to the next,

    Fun eh?

    :0)

  • TheWonderofYou
    TheWonderofYou

    I agree that Jesus is speaking much about "earthly" blessings. This is not the same as if Jesus was talking about a paradise earth full of "immortal" human bodies though or sadly, it is simple a blessing like if you honour your parents you will inherit the earth.

    BUT Jesus certainly did not only speak of a "heavenly" hope too. All his parables speak of an strongly "earthly" blessings for men on earth, it showes that Jesus' understanding of the kingdom of god had an earthyl note. Perhaps expressed with the words of the swiss reformed theologian Leonhard Ragaz and the catolic philospher and priest Urs Eigenmann https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonhard_Ragaz#

    Jesus understanding of "EARTH"ly blessing might have been: "the kingdom of God, the Righteousness for the EARTH" (book title by Urs Eigenmann). If you think of all the earthly blessings that are in the parables and the sermon of the mountain that is clear. The Jewish hope was primarily a blessing for MEN on Earth and secondly the eternal completion in community with god.

    He testified as a holistic liberation from material need and disease, from political oppression and social exclusion, as well as from religious ostracism and demons. Despite the central concern of Jesus, the Kingdom of God in the Great Churches and their school-theologies did not play a role for centuries, or it was privatized, spiritualized and misrepresented.

    On the other hand, the central position of the Kingdom of God is emphasized in the message of Jesus, and is confirmed by his biblically attested content and complex structure. The Kingdom of God can be understood as a universal-solidarity community of people, in which all those who are in need of material, social and cultural-religious needs recognize themselves.

    Against this background, the question of God is posed in the horizon of the Kingdom of God, the criteria for a kingdom of god compatibility assessment of the church and society are developed as well as the dimensions of a kingdom-God-spirituality and mysticism. This is in the knowledge that all efforts in the sense of the kingdom of God are to be seen in the horizon of his fulfillment promised as the gift of God.

  • neat blue dog
    neat blue dog

    Pretty sure it means "inheriting" the right to judge the earth after being resurrected to heaven.

  • Magnum
    Magnum

    I agree with tepidpoultry. Pretty sure that the org used to teach (still does?) that this verse applies to anointed ones who will inherit the earth in the sense of ruling over it. The application to people living on the earth in paradise was an "extended" application.

    As far as what it really means... I don't know.

  • tepidpoultry
  • waton
    waton
    He meant "inherit" in the sense that his listeners would rule over the Earth

    agree with tepidpoultry, with wt the meek anointed are they themselves, they will be the absentee landlords, they will decide who lives in paradise, they will appoint the princes, and not only post-Armageddon, even now.

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