Matthew 4–12

THE TEMPTATION OF JESUS

4Then^l Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.^{m 2}After he had fasted forty days and forty nights,ⁿ he was hungry. ³Then the tempter approached him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”^o

⁴He answered, “It is written: Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”^Dp

⁵Then the devil took him to the holy city, had him stand on the pinnacle of the temple,^{q 6}and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written:

He will give his angels^r orders concerning you,

and they will support you with their hands

so that you will not strike

your foot against a stone.”^Es

⁷Jesus told him, “It is also written: Do not test the Lord your God.”^Ft

⁸Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. ⁹And he said to him, “I will give you all these things if you will fall down and worship me.”^G

¹⁰Then Jesus told him, “Go away,^H Satan! For it is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.”^Iu

¹¹Then the devil left him, and angels came and began to serve him.^v

MINISTRY IN GALILEE

¹²When he heard that John had been arrested,^w he withdrew into Galilee.^{x 13}He left Nazareth and went to live in Capernaum^y by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali. ¹⁴This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah:

¹⁵Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali,

along the road by the sea, beyond the Jordan,

Galilee of the Gentiles.

¹⁶The people who live in darkness

have seen a great light,

and for those living in the land of the shadow of death,

a light has dawned.^ABz

¹⁷From then on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, because the kingdom of heaven^aa has come near.”

THE FIRST DISCIPLES

¹⁸As^ab he was walking along the Sea of Galilee,^ac he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter), and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. ¹⁹“Follow me,” he told them, “and I will make you fish for^C people.” ²⁰Immediately they left their nets and followed him.

²¹Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They were in a boat with Zebedee their father, preparing their nets, and he called them. ²²Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.

TEACHING, PREACHING, AND HEALING

²³Now Jesus began to go all over Galilee,^a teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every^D disease and sickness^E among the people.^{b 24}Then the news about him spread throughout Syria.^c So they brought to him all those who were afflicted, those suffering from various diseases and intense pains, the demon-possessed, the epileptics, and the paralytics.^d And he healed them. ²⁵Large crowds followed him from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.^e

THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT

5When he saw the crowds, he went up on the mountain,^f and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. ²Then^F he began to teach them, saying:^g

THE BEATITUDES

³“Blessed are the poor in spirit,^h

for the kingdom of heavenⁱ is theirs.

⁴Blessed are those who mourn,^j

for they will be comforted.

⁵Blessed are the humble,^k

for they will inherit the earth.

⁶Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,^l

for they will be filled.

⁷Blessed are the merciful,

for they will be shown mercy.^m

⁸Blessed are the pure in heart,

for they will see God.ⁿ

⁹Blessed are the peacemakers,

for they will be called sons of God.^o

¹⁰Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,

for the kingdom of heaven^p is theirs.

¹¹“You are blessed when they insult you and persecute you and falsely say every kind of evil against you because of me. ¹²Be glad and rejoice, because your reward is great in heaven. For that is how they persecuted^q the prophets who were before you.^r

BELIEVERS ARE SALT AND LIGHT

¹³“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt should lose its taste, how can it be made salty?^A It’s no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.^s

¹⁴“You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden.^{t 15}No one lights a lamp^u and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are in the house.^{v 16}In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.^w

CHRIST FULFILLS THE LAW

¹⁷“Don’t think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.^{x 18}For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter^B or one stroke of a letter will pass away from the law until all things are accomplished. ¹⁹Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commands and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever does and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.^{y 20}For I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never get into the kingdom of heaven.

MURDER BEGINS IN THE HEART

²¹“You have heard that it was said to our ancestors, Do not murder,^Cz and whoever murders will be subject to judgment.^{aa 22}But I tell you, everyone who is angry with his brother or sister^D will be subject to judgment. Whoever insults^E his brother or sister, will be subject to the court.^F Whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be subject to hellfire.^{Gab 23}So if you are offering your gift on the altar, and there you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, ²⁴leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled with your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift. ²⁵Reach a settlement quickly with your adversary while you’re on the way with him to the court, or your adversary will hand you over to the judge, and the judge to^H the officer, and you will be thrown into prison.^{ac 26}Truly I tell you, you will never get out of there until you have paid the last penny.^I

ADULTERY BEGINS IN THE HEART

²⁷“You have heard that it was said, Do not commit adultery.^{Ja 28}But I tell you, everyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.^{b 29}If your right eye causes you to sin,^c gouge it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.^{d 30}And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.

DIVORCE PRACTICES CENSURED

³¹“It was also said, Whoever divorces^e his wife must give her a written notice of divorce.^{Af 32}But I tell you, everyone who divorces his wife, except in a case of sexual immorality, causes her to commit adultery. And whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.^g

TELL THE TRUTH

³³“Again, you have heard that it was said to our ancestors, You must not break your oath, but you must keep your oaths to the Lord.^{Bh 34}But I tell you, don’t take an oath at all: either by heaven, because it is God’s throne; ³⁵or by the earth, because it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King.^{i 36}Do not swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. ³⁷But let your ‘yes’ mean ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ mean ‘no.’ Anything more than this is from the evil one.^j

GO THE SECOND MILE

³⁸“You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.^{Ck 39}But I tell you, don’t resist^D an evildoer. On the contrary, if anyone slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.^{l 40}As for the one who wants to sue you and take away your shirt, let him have your coat as well. ⁴¹And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two. ⁴²Give to the one who asks you, and don’t turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.^m

LOVE YOUR ENEMIES

⁴³“You have heard that it was said, Love your neighbor^En and hate your enemy. ⁴⁴But I tell you, love your enemies^F and pray for those who^G persecute you,^{o 45}so that you may be^H children of your Father in heaven. For he causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.^{p 46}For if you love those who love you, what reward will you have? Don’t even the tax collectors do the same? ⁴⁷And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what are you doing out of the ordinary?^Iq Don’t even the Gentiles^J do the same? ⁴⁸Be perfect,^r therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

HOW TO GIVE

6“Be careful not to practice your righteousness^K in front of others to be seen by them. Otherwise, you have no reward with your Father in heaven. ²So whenever you give to the poor, don’t sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be applauded by people. Truly I tell you, they have their reward.^{s 3}But when you give to the poor, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, ⁴so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.^At

HOW TO PRAY

⁵“Whenever you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites, because they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by people. Truly I tell you, they have their reward.^{u 6}But when you pray, go into your private room, shut your door, and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.^{Bv 7}When you pray, don’t babble like the Gentiles, since they imagine they’ll be heard for their many words.^{w 8}Don’t be like them, because your Father knows the things you need before you ask him.^x

THE LORD’S PRAYER

⁹“Therefore, you should pray like this:^y

Our Father in heaven,

your name be honored as holy.^z

¹⁰Your kingdom come.

Your will be done

on earth as it is in heaven.^aa

¹¹Give…