"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”
Matthew 5:6

This beatitude, like the first, must be taken as a whole. Taking only the first seven words ("Blessed are those who hunger and thirst”), without the second two words (“for righteousness”) may mislead readers. Jesus was not pronouncing His blessing on those with empty stomachs and parched tongues, who merely who hunger and thirst for food and water. As essential to physical life as food and water are, Jesus had a deeper spiritual point in mind.

What does it mean to hunger and thirst for righteousness? This is a second phase of being “poor in spirit.” It is the essential step that one takes when one is actually concerned about one’s spiritual bankruptcy. It is indicative of longing to have one’s spiritual bankruptcy remedied.

Since we have no righteousness of our own, and are incapable of producing any (Isaiah 64:6), those who are blessed by God cry out to Him to do for them what they are altogether unable to do for themselves. Those who do this rightly abandon any hope for righteousness from any source but Jesus. The perfect righteousness of Jesus is given to those who place their faith in Jesus, alone.

The result? “They shall be satisfied.” That may be one of the greatest understatements of all time. The common understanding of being satisfied is that one has enough. In one sense Jesus does provide enough righteousness. This is so because the righteousness God requires is infinite, and since Jesus is infinitely righteous, His infinite righteousness is—well, enough.

In another sense let us rejoice that the infinite righteousness of Christ, at least in our finite understanding, is more than just enough. The righteousness afforded to those who hunger and thirst for it, receive an infinite super-abundance of righteousness. It is a righteousness that will never run out and that our sin cannot undo!

A little more about what it means to hunger and thirst next time…