Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Matthew 5:7

"Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy." — Matthew 5:7 (ASV)

This beatitude is akin to Ps 18:25. Mercy embraces both forgiveness for the guilty and compassion for the suffering and needy. No particular object of the demanded mercy is specified, because mercy is to be a function of Jesus’ disciples, not of a particular situation. This theme is common in Matthew (e.g., 6:12–15; 9:13). The reward is not mercy shown by others but by God. This does not mean that our mercy is the causal ground of God’s mercy but its occasional ground .