“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” Matthew 5:4
In Matthew Chapter 5, during the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus delivered eight teachings called The Beatitudes. Beatitudes comes from the Greek word beatus, meaning happy or blessed. Each Beatitude names a virtue and lists an eternal reward for that virtue.
This is the second Beatitude. Once again the lesson seems contradictory. “Blessed” in the Bible often means happy, which we rarely associate with mourning. Got Questions says that “Blessed” in the context of Matthew 5 means “an enviable state”. Got Questions goes on to say that Jesus was indicating that this mourning was over sin.
Matthew Henry says:
Those that mourn are happy. That godly sorrow which worketh true repentance, watchfulness, a humble mind, and continual dependence for acceptance on the mercy of God in Christ Jesus, with constant seeking the Holy Spirit, to cleanse away the remaining evil, seems here to be intended. Heaven is the joy of our Lord; a mountain of joy, to which our way is through a vale of tears. Such mourners shall be comforted by their God.
Suddenly this verse makes sense. Those who follow Christ do indeed mourn their sin. To do so is part of our sanctification, and is the only path to true happiness in Jesus Christ.