Scriptures Plain & Simple (Matthew 5:2-12)

Barclay Newman, a translator on the teams for both the Good News Bible and the Contemporary English Version, translated passages of the New Testament into English and published them in 2014, “in a publication brief enough to be non-threatening, yet long enough to be taken seriously, and interesting enough to appeal to believers and un-believers alike.” The following is the translation of Matthew 5:2-12:

Trust God absolutely — though you have nothing to offer —
       God is the Great Rewarder!

Hurt with those who hurt — God is the Gracious Comforter!

Humility is the pathway to victory –- God is the Generous Giver!
       And the earth will be given to those who are humble.

Above all else, hunger and thirst to obey God — you will be satisfied.

Mercy for mercy — Show mercy, and God will be merciful to you.

Purity of heart and mind opens eyes to see God —
       and this perfect vision can be yours.

Do you want to become a child of God? Make peace, not war!

Don’t give up, even if you’ve been mistreated for doing right!
       God remains the Great Rewarder!

When others insult you or mistreat you or tell evil lies about you,
       because you belong to God, don’t worry or whimper!
In heaven God will reward you greatly — after all, don’t you recall
       this was the fate of prophets long ago?

Translation commentary on Matthew 5:6

Hunger and thirst for righteousness: hungering and thirsting are figures for longing after God, both in the Old Testament (Isa 55.1; Psa 42.2; Baruch 2.18) and in the New Testament (John 4.13; 7.37; Rev 21.6; 22.17). The meaning of the figure is to seek something with all one’s heart, to desire it above all else. Most translations maintain the original figure of speech, but those that do away with it include Good News Translation: (“whose greatest desire is to do what God requires”) and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch (“who burn as they wait for God’s will to be done”).

The parallel passage in Luke reads “Blessed are you that hunger now, for you shall be satisfied” (6.21). But Matthew moves from a literal, physical hunger to that of hungering after righteousness, a term which is not easily defined (see comments at 3.15). Some translations reflect the meaning as “the desire to do right” (An American Translation “uprightness”; Moffatt “goodness”; Phillips “true goodness”; and New American Bible “holiness”). Good News Translation renders “what God requires,” while Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch prefers “that God’s will may be done.”

In many cases translators have felt that the metaphor hunger and thirst will be clearly understood by their readers. Other translators have felt that a simile is better, as in “those who desire righteousness as if they were hungering and thirsting” or “who long for God’s will to be done like people who are hungry and thirsty long for food and drink.” This can make for a rather long and awkward construction, so many translators do find it better to drop the image altogether, as Good News Translation and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch have done. Other examples of this are “who want more than anything else to do God’s will” or “who seek with all their heart to do God’s will.”

As we pointed out, another acceptable translation of righteousness here is “to see God’s will done.” Thus translators can say in this verse “whose greatest desire is for people to do what God tells them to do” or “whose greatest desire is that people do what God wants.”

Translators will probably not translate satisfied with a word that only means to be full from eating enough, especially if they have dropped the image of hungering and thirsting. The idea of getting what one desires, however, can be used: “God will give them what they desire” or “God will satisfy them completely.”

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1988. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator’s Notes on Matthew 5:6

5:6a

Blessed are: For help in translating the word Blessed, see the note at 5:3a.

those who hunger and thirst: The verbs hunger and thirst are both used figuratively here. Both verbs refer to desiring something very much, just as people desire food when they are hungry and water when they are thirsty.

Here are some other ways to translate these verbs:

• Change the clause to a simile. For example:

those who want righteousness ⌊like⌋ people who are hungry and thirsty ⌊for it⌋
-or-
those who desire righteousness ⌊as much as⌋ those who are hungry ⌊desire food⌋ and thirsty ⌊desire water⌋

• Translate the meaning of the figure. For example:

greatly desire
-or-
want to (New Century Version)

for righteousness: The word righteousness refers to doing the right and good things that God wants. A righteous person has good morals and is honest.

Here are some other ways to translate righteousness:

do what is right
-or-
do what God wills/desires
-or-
do what God requires (Good News Translation)
-or-
do what God considers right

This same word occurs in 3:15b.

5:6b

for: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as for introduces the reason that “those who hunger and thirst for righteousness” are blessed. They are blessed because they shall be satisfied. For example:

because God will fully satisfy them (New Century Version)

In some languages, no conjunction is necessary here. For example:

They will be satisfied. (God’s Word)

In other languages, it will be more natural to put 5:6b before 5:6a. For example:

Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be satisfied, ⌊so⌋ they are blessed.

they will be filled: The clause they will be filled refers to satisfying or filling those who “hunger and thirst for righteousness.” Like a hungry person eats and is filled, God will satisfy/fill those who desire righteousness. This means that he will help them to become righteous.

Your translation of this clause will depend on whether you literally translated “hunger and thirst” in 5:6a. Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

(a) If you have kept the verbs “hunger and thirst,” you may be able to literally translate “filled/satisfied.” Here are some other ways to do this:

• Use a passive form. For example:

they will be satisfied (NET Bible)

• Use an active form. For example:

God will fully satisfy them (New Century Version)

(b) If you have not kept the figures of “hunger and thirst,” you may have to translate the verb will be filled in another way. Here are some other ways to do this:

• Use a passive form. For example:

they will be given the power to do it

• Use an active form. For example:

God will help them to do this

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