Beatitudes, the the blessings listed by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 3:5–11): ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.’

The word beatitude means supreme blessedness; it is recorded from late Middle English, and comes via Old French or Latin, from Latin beatus ‘blessed’.

Beatitudes. Promises of blessing, and specifically the sequence of eight or nine sentences beginning ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit’ in Jesus' Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5. 3–11). The version in Luke's ‘sermon on the plain’ (6. 20–2) is shorter with more marked contrast of present and future.

beatitudes Blessings spoken by Jesus at the opening of his Sermon on the Mount upon those worthy of admission to the Kingdom of God (Luke 6, Matthew 5).

Beatitudes, The. Cantata by Bliss, 1961, for sop., ten., ch., org., and orch., biblical text being interspersed with poems. F.p. Coventry Cath. 1962.