Excerpts from Books and Wikipedia
Jesus Christ may have effected a transformation in the Roman Empire, the Pax Romana.
5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
5:5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
5:9 Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. [Mathew] "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. [Mathew 24:14] "The stupendous endeavors of one gigantic community to convey the Scriptures in every language to every part of the globe may well deserve to be considered as an eminent sign even of these eventual times. Unless I be much mistaken, such endeavors are preparatory to the final grand diffusion of Christianity, which is the theme of so many inspired prophets, and which cannot be very far distant in the present day." [Destinations on the Prophecies, vol. II, 406, written in 1844; quoted in The Prophecies of Jesus, p. 57]