"Blessed are the persecuted."

“You're blessed when your commitment to God provokes persecution.”ⁱ

“God blesses those people who are treated badly for doing right. They belong to the Kingdom of Heaven. God will bless you when people insult you, mistreat you, and tell all kinds of evil lies about you because of me. Be happy and excited! You will have a great reward in heaven. People did these same things to the prophets who lived long ago.”ⁱⁱ

“PERSECU'TION, n. The act or practice of persecuting; the infliction of pain, punishment or death upon others unjustly, particularly for adhering to a religious creed or mode of worship, either by way of penalty or for compelling them to renounce their principles.”ⁱⁱⁱ

“In all ages, in one form or another, the people of God have had to suffer persecution. In its earliest history the Christian church passed through many bloody persecutions. Of subsequent centuries in our own and in other lands the same sad record may be made.”^iv

“Happy are you, when men have hate for you, and put you away from among them and say angry words to you, turning away in disgust at your name, because of the Son of man. Be glad in that day, and be lifted up for joy, for your reward in heaven will be great: for their fathers did these same things to the prophets.”^v

“Be exceeding glad - Αγαλλιασθε, leap for joy. There are several cases on record, where this was literally done by the martyrs, in Queen Mary’s days.”^vi

“Theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven - They have evidence that they are Christians, and that they will be brought to heaven.”^vii

The ultimate persecution of the righteous was suffered by Jesus Himself. The great reward is that some of us have chosen to give our lives to Him.

There's a lot more on the subject of persecution of the righteous, some of it will be included in other posts.

I have referred to several English translations of the Bible in writing this which is made easy by e-sword, a free downloadable program. For further information I recommend reading the Bible.

© Ken Glasgow 2010

This post was written using Open Office 3.2.1, open source software from the www.openoffice.org this software is available to download for free.

iMark 5:10a "The Message" paraphrase of the Bible.

iiMark 5:10-12 Contemporary English Version of the Bible.

iiiWebster's 1828 Dictionary.

ivEaston's Dictionary of the Bible.

vLuke 6:22-23 The Bible in Basic English.

viAdam Clarke's commentary on the Bible.

viiAlbert Barnes' notes on the Bible.

About this blog.

I am a Christian, and no longer state my nationality because a dictator in another part of the nation where I live could drag me into exile for up to ten years imprisonment.

As a Christian I am obliged to go into all the world proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ (who is the way, the truth and the life, no one goes to the Heavenly Father but by Him) and teaching people to observe what he commanded. There is no greater potential audience than the World Wide Web, so I have chosen to put my message on it.

I am also obliged to “Remember those who are in prison, as though you were in prison with them. Remember those who are suffering, as though you were suffering as they are.” This blog will draw the reader's attention to the ways in which Christians suffer for their faith.

“In my life now, I am obsessed with only two things: I don't want anybody to die before their time, and I don't want to see good people spend their energies without making a difference ... you can change the reality of human history by systematic action.” William J. Clinton, former president of the United States of America. I want to make a positive difference. It is my intention that I will depopulate Hell and populate Heaven with this site.

© Ken Glasgow 2010 lightly edited 13 February 2021

This page was written using Open Office 3.2.1, open source software from the www.openoffice.org this software is available to download for free.