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THE BEATITUDES: A Puritan Exposition of Matthew 5:1-10
Thomas Watson
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‘What announces itself as an exposition of Matthew 5:1-10 turns out to be a digest of all the central Puritan teaching on the Christian life. The Beatitudes are treated as mineshafts into the whole economy of grace , as indeed they are.’ — J.I. PACKER
The opening verses of the best-known of all Christ’s sermons were handled by many of the Puritans, for the Beatitudes gave full scope to the combination of sound doctrine, practical wisdom and heart-searching application which characterized their preaching. In addition to these general Puritan characteristics, Thomas Watson added certain of his own: a master of a terse, vigorous style and of a beauty of expression, he could speak not only to win men’s understanding but also to secure a place for the truth in their memories. More than most of his generation he sought to follow the example of Christ’s teaching by employing all manner of illustrative material from common life, and with simplicity and charm he spoke words not easy to forget. Two hundred years after Thomas Watson’s death William Jay of Bath said that he could go to any one of his books and ‘find it ever fresh, pointed and instructive.’
The Beatitudes, first published in 1660, has been one of the rarest of Watson’s works. In this edition the layout has been entirely revised and editorial notes supplied.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
To the Reader xi
1 INTRODUCTION 1
The preacher: Christ and his qualifications
The ministry does not ‘lie in common’
The pulpit
The occasion
Ministers should embrace opportunities of service
Exhortations to ministers
Exhortations to the flock of God
2 THERE IS A BLESSEDNESS IN REVERSION 13
Wherein blessedness does not consist
Blessedness does not lie in externals
Wherein blessedness consists
Blessedness in practice
3 THE GODLY ARE IN SOME SENSE ALREADY BLESSED 25
Evidences that the godly are already blessed
Practical issues
4 BLESSED ARE THE POOR IN SPIRIT 31
Various observations
The meaning of ‘poor in spirit’
Several questions propounded
Why Christians must be ‘poor in spirit’
Poverty of spirit is true riches
How we may know whether we are ‘poor in spirit’
Four persuasions to be ‘poor in spirit’
5 THE POOR IN SPIRIT ARE ENRICHED WITH A KINGDOM 43
Saints glorified may be compared to kings
The kingdom of heaven excels other kingdoms
The kingdom of heaven is infallibly entailed upon the saints
Corollaries and inferences from the above
A scrutiny and trial whether we belong to the kingdom of heaven
Serious exhortations to the wicked and to Christians
6 BLESSED ARE THEY THAT MOURN 55
A two-fold mourning which does not make us blessed
The object of holy mourning
A five-fold mourning which is spurious
The right gospel-mourning
The accompaniments of gospel-mourning
We must mourn for the sins of others
We must mourn for the miseries of the church
The seasons of holy mourning
The degrees of mourning
The opposite to holy mourning
7 SUNDRY SHARP REPROOFS 71
8 MOTIVES TO HOLY MOURNING 75
Eleven divine motives to holy mourning
An objection answered
9 THE HINDRANCES TO MOURNING 81
Nine hindrances considered
10 SOME HELPS TO MOURNING 89
11 THE COMFORTS BELONGING TO MOURNERS 89
The relationship of comfort to mourning
The nature of the comforts during the earthly life
Three differences between true and false comfort
Reasons why mourners may lack comfort
The nature of the comforts in the world to come
An exhortation to comfort
12 CHRISTIAN MEEKNESS 109
Meekness towards God and towards man
Meekness in the bearing of injuries
Meekness in the forgiving of injuries
Meekness in recompensing good for evil
Meekness shows the character of a true saint
Ten reasons why Christians should be meek
How to attain the grace of meekness
13 THE NATURE OF SPIRITUAL HUNGER 129
Hungering after righteousness
A reproof for such as do not hunger after righteousness
A reproof for such as hunger but not after righteousness
Five signs of spiritual hunger
Comforts for such as know spiritual hunger
Six differences between spiritual and carnal hunger
Believers’ objections answered
A persuasion to spiritual hunger
Helps to spiritual hunger
14 SPIRITUAL HUNGER SHALL BE SATISFIED 145
God can fill the hungry soul: why and how he does so
The objections of carnal and godly men considered
15 A DISCOURSE OF MERCIFULNESS 151
The nature and source of mercifulness
Mercy is to be extended to the souls of others
Reproofs for such as have no mercy to souls
Christians must be tender of one another’s names
Mercy is to be extended to the estates, offences and wants of others
A vindication of the Church of England and its doctrine of good works
A check to the unmerciful
Persuasions to mercifulness
Nine persuasions to works of mercy
Rewards for the merciful man in this life
Six rules concerning works of mercy
16 A DESCRIPTION OF HEART-PURITY 185
The nature of heart-purity
Reasons for purity of heart
Christians must not rest in outside purity
Signs of an impure heart
Seven signs of a pure heart
Nine exhortations to heart-purity
Eight means to be used to obtain heart-purity
17 THE BLESSED PRIVILEGE OF SEEING GOD EXPLAINED 213
The sight of God in this life and in the life to come
Nine excellencies of the beatific vision
It is the sinner’s misery that he shall not see God
We must labor to be rightly qualified for this vision
A cordial for the pure in heart
18 CONCERNING PEACEABLENESS 221
A four-fold peace
Two reasons for peaceable-mindedness
Peaceable-mindedness a saint’s character
A reproof for such as are unpeaceable
An exhortation to peaceable-mindedness (under 11 heads)
Some helps to peaceable-mindedness
All Christians must be peacemakers
19 THEY SHALL BE CALLED THE CHILDREN OF GOD 237
By nature we are not children of God
Children of God are made such by adoption and infusion of grace
How we come to be children of God by faith
Nine signs of divine sonship
How Christians should bring up their children
The love of God in making us his children
The honor of God’s children
Twelve high privileges of God’s children:
1) God’s love towards them
2) God bears with their infirmities
3) God accepts of their imperfect services
4) God provides for them
5) God shields off dangers from them
6) God reveals to them the great things of his law
7) God gives them boldness in prayer
8) God brings them into a state of freedom
9) God makes them heirs apparent to the promises
10) God gives them his blessing
11) God works all things for their good
12) God keeps them from perishing
20 EXHORTATIONS TO CHRISTIANS AS THEY ARE CHILDREN OF GOD 279
Let us prove ourselves to be the children of God
Let us carry ourselves as becomes the children of God
21 CONCERNING PERSECUTION 285
Observations on persecution
What is meant by persecution?
Various kinds of persecution
The causes of persecution
The persecution of ministers
The persecution that makes one blessed
Lessons to be learned from persecution
Two sharp reproofs
Christians should possess themselves beforehand with thoughts of sufferings
Christians must arm themselves for suffering:
Labor to be persons rightly qualified for suffering
Avoid those things which will hinder suffering
Promote those things which will help you to suffer (especially self-denial):
Inure yourselves to suffering
Be well-skilled in the knowledge of Christ
Prize every truth of God
Keep a good conscience
Make the Scripture familiar to you
Get a suffering frame of heart
Get suffering graces
Treasure up suffering promises
Set before your eyes suffering examples
Lay in suffering considerations
22 AN APPENDIX TO THE BEATITUDES 329
The Lord’s commandments are not grievous
Eight particulars showing that God’s commands are not grievous
Christ’s commands compared with:
The law
The commands of sin
The torments of the damned
The glory of heaven
Various reproofs
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