Blessed Are The Merciful.

The merciful are happy. This, like the rest, is a paradox for the merciful are not taken to be the wisest, nor are likely to be the richest yet Christ pronounces them blessed. Those are the merciful, who are piously and charitably inclined to pity, help, and succour persons in misery. A man may be truly merciful, who has not wherewithal to be bountiful or liberal and then God accepts the willing mind. We must not only bear our own afflictions patiently, but we must, by Christian sympathy, partake of the afflictions of our brethren pity must be shown Job 6:14, and bowels of mercy put on Colossians 3:12 and, being put on, they must put forth themselves in contributing all we can for the assistance of those who are any way in misery. We must have compassion on the souls of others, and help them pity the ignorant, and instruct them the careless, and warn them those who are in a state of sin, and snatch them as brands out of the burning. We must have compassion on those who are melancholy and in sorrow, and comfort them Job 16:5 on those whom we have advantage against, and not be rigorous and severe with them on those who are in want, and supply them which if we refuse to do, whatever we pretend, we shut up the bowels of our compassion, James 2:15,16,1 John 3:17. Draw out they soul by dealing thy bread to the hungry, Isaiah 58:7,10. Nay, a good man is merciful to his beast.

Now as to the merciful. They are blessed so it was said in the Old Testament Blessed is he that considers the poor, Psalm 41:1. Herein they resemble God, whose goodness is his glory in being merciful as he is merciful, we are, in our measure, perfect as he is perfect. It is an evidence of love to God it will be a satisfaction to ourselves, to be any way instrumental for the benefit of others. One of the purest and most refined delights in this world, is that of doing good. In this word, Blessed are the merciful, is included that saying of Christ, which otherwise we find not in the gospels, It is more blessed to give than to receive, Acts 20:35. 2. They shall obtain mercy mercy with men, when they need it he that watereth, shall be watered also himself (we know not how soon we may stand in need of kindness, and therefore should be kind) but especially mercy with God, for with the merciful he will show himself merciful, Psalm 18:25. The most merciful and charitable cannot pretend to merit, but must fly to mercy. The merciful shall find with God sparing mercy Matthew 6:14, supplying mercy Proverbs 19:17, sustaining mercy Psalm 41:2, mercy in that day 2 Timothy 1:18 may, they shall inherit the kingdom prepared for them Matthew 25:34,35 whereas they shall have judgment without mercy (which can be nothing short of hell-fire) who have shown no mercy. - Matthew Henry