Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
All Commentaries on Matthew 5:8 Go To Matthew 5
John Chrysostom
AD 407
By the pure are here meant those who possess a perfect goodness, conscious to themselves of no evil thoughts, or again those who live in such temperance mostly necessary to seeing God according to that of St. Paul, “Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see God.” For as there are many merciful, yet unchaste, to show that mercy alone is not enough, he adds this concerning purity.
He who in thought and deed fulfils all righteousness, “sees God” in his heart, for righteousness is an image of God, for God is righteousness. So far as anyone has rescued himself from evil, and works things that are good, so far does he “see God,” either hardly, or fully, or sometimes, or always, according to the capabilities of human nature. But in that world to come the pure in heart shall see God face to face, not in a glass, and in enigma as here.
