privileged recipient of divine favor

μακάριος, ία, ιον (s. prec. and next entry; Pind., Pla., X.+)

① pert. to being fortunate or happy because of circumstances, fortunate, happy.

ⓐ of humans, with less focus on the transcendent dimension compared to usage in 2 below (Chrysippus in Diog. L. 7, 179 calls himself a μακάριος ἀνήρ; Epict. 2, 18, 15; Jos., Ant. 16, 108; 20, 27) ἥγημαι ἐμαυτὸν μακάριον Ac 26:2. Of the widow who remains unmarried μακαριωτέρα ἐστίν she is happier 1 Cor 7:40. μ. ἤμην εἰ τοιαύτην γυναῖκα εἶχον Hv 1, 1, 2 (Chariton 6, 2, 9 μ. ἦν εἰ). Cp. Lk 23:29.

ⓑ of transcendent beings, viewed as privileged, blessed (Aristot., EN 10, 8:1178b, 25f τοῖς θεοῖς ἅπας ὁ βίος μακάριος; Epicurus in Diog. L. 10, 123 τ. θεὸν ζῷον ἄφθαρτον κ. μακάριον νομίζων; Herm. Wr. 12, 13b; Sextus 560; Philo, Cher. 86, Deus Imm. 26 ὁ ἄφθαρτος κ. μακάριος, Leg. ad Gai. 5 [other pass. in MDibelius, Hdb./Hermeneia on 1 Ti 1:11]; Jos., C. Ap. 2, 190, cp. Ant. 10, 278; cp. Ἰησοῦς ὁ μ. Hippol., Ref. 5, 9, 21) 1 Ti 1:11; 6:15 (BEaston, Pastoral Epistles ’47, 179).

② pert. to being esp. favored, blessed, fortunate, happy, privileged, fr. a transcendent perspective, the more usual sense (the general Gr-Rom. perspective: one on whom fortune smiles)

ⓐ of humans privileged recipient of divine favor (Jos., Ant. 9, 264), of Biblical persons (Ἰωβ Did., Gen. 101, 14; cp. ἄγγελοι Orig., C. Cels. 8, 25, 12): Moses 1 Cl 43:1; Judith 55:4; prophets AcPlCor 2:36 (Just., D. 48, 4); Paul (Hippol., Ref. 8, 20, 3; ὁ μ. ἀπόστολος Iren. 5, 2, 3 [Harv. II 321, 4] of Paul; cp. Orig., C. Cels. 5, 65, 7) 1 Cl 47:1; Pol 3:2 (11:3); AcPl Ha 3, 27. Of other prominent Christians, esp. martyrs: Ignatius, Zosimus, Rufus Pol 9:1. Polycarp MPol 1:1; 19:1, 21; 22:1, 3. Of presbyters who have died 1 Cl 44:5. μ. εἶναι ἐν τῇ ποιήσει αὐτοῦ be blessed in what the person does Js 1:25.—In various sentence combinations, in which the copula belonging with μ. is often omitted (B-D-F §127, 4; Rob. 395; Maximus Tyr. 14, 6f; μ. [opp. δυστυχής] εὐσεβὴς φίλος θεοῦ; but Did., Gen. 103, 2: μ. γάρ ἐστιν ἡ ἐκκλησία, ὅτε): as the apodosis of a conditional sentence Lk 6:4 D (Unknown Sayings 49–54); 1 Pt 3:14; 4:14; Hm 8:9. The conditional sentence follows J 13:17; 1 Cl 50:5; Hs 6, 1, 1a. W. relative clause foll. Mt 11:6; Lk 7:23; 14:15 (μ. ὅστις Menand., Fgm. 101 Kö., Mon. 340 Mei. al.); Ro 4:7f; 1 Cl 50:6 (both Ps 31:1f); Js 1:12 (PsSol 6:1; 10:1; Sext. 40 μ. ἀνήρ w. rel.); 1 Cl 56:6 (Job 5:17); 10:10 (Ps 1:1.—Maximus Tyr. 33, 5e ὁ μ. ἀνήρ, ὅν); 11:8; Hv 2, 2, 7; Hs 9, 29, 3. μ. ἐν Ἰησοῦ Χριστῷ, ὅς IPhld 10:2. The relative clause precedes Hv 3, 8, 4; Hs 5, 3, 9b; 6, 1, 1b. As a predicate w. a subst. or subst. adj. or ptc. μ. ὁ blessed is the one who … (2 Ch 9:7; Da 12:12; PsSol 4:23; ApcEsdr 5:11) Mt 5:3ff (the transl. 0, the happiness of or hail to those, favored by some [Zahn, Wlh., EKlostermann, JWeiss; KBornhäuser, Die Bergpredigt 1923, 24 al.] appears to be exactly right for the Aramaic original [=Hebr. אַשְׁרֵי], but scholars have disputed whether it exhausts the content that μακάριος had in the mouths of Gk.-speaking Christians [s. e.g. Maximus Tyr. 14, 6f μακάριος εὐσεβὴς φίλος θεοῦ, δυστυχὴς δὲ ὁ δεισιδαίμων; Artem. 4, 72 the state of μ. εἶναι is brought about by ascension into heaven and the ὑπερβάλλουσα εὐδαιμονία enjoyed there; other reff. in Betz, SM 97–99].—CMcCown, The Beatitudes in the Light of Ancient Ideals: JBL 46, 1927, 50–61; JRezevskis [Resewski], D. Makarismen bei Mt u. Lk, ihr Verhältnis zu einander u. ihr histor. Hintergrund: StThR I [=IBenzinger Festschr.] ’35, 157–70; JDupont, Les Béatitudes ’54; GStrecker, Die Makarismen der Bergpredigt, NTS 17, ’70/71, 255–75; see lit. s.v. ὄρος); 24:46; Lk 1:45; 6:20ff; 11:28; 12:37; cp. vs. 38, 43; J 20:29; Ro 14:22; Rv 1:3; 14:13; 16:15; 19:9; 20:6; 22:7, 14; 1 Cl 40:4; 48:4; 2 Cl 16:4; 19:3; D 1:5; Pol 2:3 (=Lk 6:20; Hv 2, 3, 3). W. ὅτι foll. (JosAs 16:7) Mt 16:17; Lk 14:14; Hs 2:10; 9, 30, 3. W. ὅταν Mt 5:11. Acc. to the reading of Michigan Pap. (ed. CBonner ’34, p. 46, 11f) and of a parchment leaf at Hamburg (SBBerlAk 1909, 1081) Hs 5, 1, 3 contains the words μακάριόν με ποιήσεις ἐάν (so Whittaker and Joly) you will make me happy, if. W. γίνεσθαι 9, 24, 2.

ⓑ of things or experiences blessed (Eur.+; Eccl 10:17)

α. of parts of the body of persons who are the objects of special grace, which are themselves termed blessed: μ. οἱ ὀφθαλμοί Mt 13:16; Lk 10:23. μ. ἡ κοιλία 11:27 (Cleopatra ln. 168f; prob. Christian despite the ref. to Cleop. Of parallels in non-bibl. wr., the next closest is Musaeus, Hero 137 … γαστήρ, ἥ σʼ ἐλόχευσε μακαρτάτη).

β. of things that stand in a very close relationship to the divinity: τὰ δῶρα τ. θεοῦ 1 Cl 35:1. Of the πνεύματα implanted in Christians 1:2 (cp. Maximus Tyr. 41, 51 the εὐδαίμων κ. μακαρία ψυχή). Of the age to come 2 Cl 19:4 (cp. OGI 519, 9 ἐν τοῖς μακαριοτάτοις ὑμῶν καιροῖς; 17).

γ. of martyrdoms MPol 2:1. Of the object of the Christian hope προσδεχόμενοι τὴν μ. ἐλπίδα Tit 2:13 (cp. OGI 383, 108 μακαριστὰς ἐλπίδας). μακάριόν ἐστιν μᾶλλον διδόναι ἢ λαμβάνειν Ac 20:35 (cp. Pla., Rep. 496c ὡς μακάριον τὸ κτῆμα; 1 Cl 2:1; Beginn. IV 264; Unknown Sayings, 78–81; EHaenchen, Ac ad loc. On Thu. 2, 97, 4 λαμβάνειν μᾶλλον ἢ διδόναι s. JKilgallen, JBL 112, ’93, 312–14.).—HSanders, HTR 36, ’43, 165–67. S. the lit. s.v. ὄρος and cp. εὐδαιμονέω.—B. 1105. DELG s.v. μάκαρ. Schmidt, Syn. IV 402–6. M-M. EDNT. TW. Spicq. Sv.