Summary — The study takes into consideration the theme of the « beati­tudes» (makarismoi) of the Old Testament. It is a theme, which, until these later years, has remained in the dark especially from the theological viewpoint. The author sets forth his study demonstrating the broad use of the « beatitudes » genus made by the Egyptians. However, in the Bible this genus assumed, especially among the psalmists and the wise, an ever clearer determination under both the literary and the doctrinal aspect. Whole psalms can, in actual fact, be classified as « makarismoi », and this readily shows how the biblical scholar tackled and tried to solve the great problem of human happiness. In addition, the author endeavours to point out the profound differences that exist between the concept of beatitude and that of blessedness. In the end, he attempts to present a thematic classification of the beatitudes and proposes their distribution in ten distinct groups.