Blessed Are The Pure In Heart.

The pure in heart are happy. Blessed are the poor in heart, for they shall see God. This is the most comprehensive of all the beatitudes here holiness and happiness are fully described and put together.

Here is the most comprehensive character of the blessed: they are pure in heart. Note, True religion consists in heart-purity. Those who are inwardly pure, show themselves to be under the power of pure and undefiled religion. True Christianity lies in the heart, in the purity of heart the washing of that from wickedness, Jeremiah 4:14. We must lift up to God, not only clean hands, but a pure heart, Psalms 24:4,5,1 Timothy 1:5. The heart must be pure, in opposition to mixture--an honest heart that aims well and pure, in opposition to pollution and defilement as wine unmixed, as water unmuddied. The heart must be kept pure from fleshly lusts, all unchaste thoughts and desires and from worldly lusts covetousness is called filthy lucre from all filthiness of flesh and spirit, all that which come out of the heart, and defiles the man. The heart must be purified by faith, and entire for God must be presented and preserved a chaste virgin to Christ. Create in me such a clean heart, O God!

Here is the most comprehensive comfort of the blessed They shall see God. Note, It is the perfection of the soul's happiness to see God seeing him, as we may by faith in our present state, is a heaven upon earth and seeing him as we shall in the future state, in the heaven of heaven. To see him as he is, face to face, and no longer through a glass darkly to see him as ours, and to see him and enjoy him to see him and be like him, and be satisfied with that likeness (Psalm 17:15) and to see him for ever, and never lose the sight of him this is heaven's happiness.

The happiness of seeing God is promised to those, and those only, who are pure in heart. None but the pure are capable of seeing God, nor would it be a felicity to the impure. What pleasure could an unsanctified soul take in the vision of a holy God? As he cannot endure to look upon their iniquity, so they cannot endure to look upon his purity nor shall any unclean thing enter into the new Jerusalem but all that are pure in heart, all that are truly sanctified, have desires wrought in them, which nothing but the sight of God will sanctify and divine grace will not leave those desires unsatisfied. - Matthew Henry