And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said,
Blessed be you poor: for yours is the kingdom of God.
All Commentaries on Luke 6:20 Go To Luke 6
Augustine of Hippo
AD 430
If you propose a choice between these two things, which is better, to laugh or to cry? Is there anybody who wouldn’t prefer to laugh? Because repentance involves a beneficial sorrow, the Lord presented tears as a requirement and laughter as the resulting benefit. How? When he says in the Gospel, “Blessed are those who cry, because they shall laugh.” So crying is a requirement, laughter the reward, of wisdom. He wrote laughter to mean joy. He did not mean howling with laughter but jumping for joy.
