God’s Favor Is on Those Who Mourn

In this session, Dr. Josh Olds turns to the second Beatitude—“God’s favor is on those who mourn, for they will be comforted”—and explores the deep biblical tradition of lament that stands at the heart of Israel’s spirituality. Josh shows how mourning is not a failure of faith, but a faithful acknowledgement of the world’s brokenness. From the lament psalms to the Book of Lamentations, from prophetic cries like Habakkuk’s “How long, O Lord?” to the communal grief of Israel’s exile, lament names suffering honestly and invites God into the pain. In a world conditioned toward convenience, optimism, and triumphalism, mourning becomes a radical act of truth-telling—refusing to look away from injustice, suffering, or sin.

Josh challenges modern Western discomfort with grief and critiques translations or teachings that try to replace “blessed” with “happy,” masking the reality that Jesus blesses those who feel deeply the wounds of the world. Lament is not passive sadness; it is the God-given impulse to grieve injustice, bear one another’s burdens, confess communal sin, and long for God’s healing. Drawing from voices such as Walter Brueggemann and Rev. Dr. Wil Gafney, Josh shows how the Beatitude moves us toward solidarity, repentance, action, and hope. Those who mourn are promised comfort—not the comfort of avoidance or denial, but the comfort of the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, who comes alongside God’s people to heal, restore, and renew. In the kingdom community, lament becomes the doorway through which God brings supernatural comfort and makes all things new.

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