Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” Matthew 5:6, NRSV.
I saw a picture recently of a GI feeding a starving man a piece of chocolate. The man looked like skin stretched over bones because of the way the Nazis had treated him. I wonder if he survived. I have also been struck by the images of hungry people in Gaza, holding empty containers out hoping to get a scoop of rice or a ladle of soup.
Although this text is not about physical hunger, these images are helpful in describing the kind of appetite or hunger that Jesus is describing in “those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.”
“Righteous” is the Greek word dikaiosune and it refers to moral integrity, uprightness, or being in right relationship—especially with God.
I would define the hunger in this verse as a consuming desire to live like God. It means constantly thinking about what righteousness means and how it is individually applied. Always striving to practice the habits and disciplines that produce this kind of life. This hunger is a focus of attention, like when your stomach growls alerting you of its condition.
Hunger for righteousness might be diminished by distractions created by the culture in which we live. We might be deceived into believing that we are satiated by worldly pursuits, but, in point of fact, it is similar to the artificial satisfaction produced by eating sugar.
Jesus promised satisfaction as an outcome of this hunger for righteousness. This can be looked at in two ways. The first is the immediate satisfaction that comes from doing good, seeing the outcome of treating others justly and choosing the good and noble. The other way is in the ultimate satisfaction when God’s kingdom comes to us.
One wonders if Jesus had Psalm 1 in mind as he spoke the fourth beatitude. “O the joy of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked….but delight in the law of the Lord…” Psalm 1:1-2.
Prayer:
O God, you designed us in the beginning to be like you. To live like you. To treat everyone with the same love with which you created us. Please help us to keep our attention on the righteousness you called us to. May we be dispensers of justice and kindness. In Jesus name. Amen.