Matthew 6:16–18:16

HOW TO FAST

16 “Whenever you fast, don’t be gloomy like the hypocrites. For they make their facese unattractive so that their fasting is obvious to people. Truly I tell you, they have their reward. 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face,f 18 so that your fasting isn’t obvious to others but to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.B

GOD AND POSSESSIONS

19 “Don’t store up for yourselves treasuresG on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal.g 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven,h where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves don’t break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

22 “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. So if the light within you is darkness, how deep is that darkness!i

24 “No one can serve two masters, since either he will hate one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.j

THE CURE FOR ANXIETY

25 “Therefore I tell you:k Don’t worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing?l 26 Consider the birds of the sky: They don’t sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they?m 27 Can any of you add one moment to his life spanA by worrying? 28 And why do you worry about clothes? Observe how the wildflowers of the field grow: They don’t labor or spin thread. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these. 30 If that’s how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won’t he do much more for you—you of little faith?n 31 So don’t worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first the kingdom of GodB,o and his righteousness,p and all these things will be provided for you.q 34 Therefore don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough troubler of its own.

DO NOT JUDGE

7 “Do not judge, so that you won’t be judged.s 2 For you will be judged by the same standard with which you judge others, and you will be measured by the same measure you use.t 3 Why do you look at the splinter in your brother’s eye but don’t notice the beam of wood in your own eye?u 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the splinter out of your eye,’ and look, there’s a beam of wood in your own eye? 5 Hypocrite! First take the beam of wood out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to take the splinter out of your brother’s eye. 6 Don’t give what is holy to dogs or toss your pearls before pigs,v or they will trample them under their feet, turn, and tear you to pieces.

ASK, SEARCH, KNOCK

7 “Ask,w and it will be given to you.x Seek, and you will find. Knock, and the doorC will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds,y and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. 9 Who among you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you then, who are evil,z know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him. 12 Therefore, whatever you want others to do for you, do also the same for them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.aa

ENTERING THE KINGDOM

13 “Enter through the narrow gate.a For the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction,b and there are many who go through it. 14 How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it.

15 “Be on your guard against false prophetsc who come to you in sheep’sd clothinge but inwardly are ravaging wolves.f 16 You’ll recognize them by their fruit.g Are grapes gathered from thornbushes or figs from thistles?h 17 In the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree produces bad fruit. 18 A good tree can’t produce bad fruit; neither can a bad tree produce good fruit. 19 Every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.i 20 So you’ll recognize them by their fruit.j

21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven,k but only the one who does the willl of my Father in heaven.m 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in your name, drive out demonsn in your name, and do many miracles in your name?’o 23 Then I will announce to them, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you lawbreakers!’A,B,p

THE TWO FOUNDATIONS

24 “Therefore,q everyone who hears these wordsr of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain fell, the rivers rose, and the winds blew and pounded that house. Yet it didn’t collapse, because its foundation was on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and doesn’t act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 The rain fell, the rivers rose, the winds blew and pounded that house, and it collapsed. It collapsed with a great crash.”

28 When Jesus had finished saying these things,s the crowds were astonished at his teaching,t 29 because he was teaching them like one who had authority, and not like their scribes.

A MAN CLEANSED

8 When he came down from the mountain, large crowdsu followed him. 2 Right awayv a man with leprosy* came up and knelt before him,w saying, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”

3 Reaching out his hand, Jesus touched him, saying, “I am willing; be made clean.” Immediately his leprosy was cleansed. 4 Then Jesus told him, “See that you don’t tell anyone;x but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”y

A CENTURION’S FAITH

5 When he entered Capernaum,z a centurion came to him, pleading with him, 6 “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, in terrible agony.”

7 He said to him, “Am I to come and heal him?”D

8 “Lord,” the centurion replied, “I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed.aa 9 For I too am a man under authority, having soldiers under my command.E I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this!’ and he does it.”

10 Hearing this, Jesus was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with so great a faith. 11 I tell you that many will come from east and west to share the banquetA with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.ab 12 But the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”ac 13 Then Jesus told the centurion, “Go. As you have believed,ad let it be done for you.” And his servant was healed that very moment.B

HEALINGS AT CAPERNAUM

14 Jesus went into Peter’s houseae and saw his mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever. 15 So he touched her hand, and the fever left her. Then she got up and began to serve him. 16 When evening came, they brought to him many who were demon-possessed. He drove out the spiritsaf with a word and healed all who were sick,ag 17 so that what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

He himself took our weaknesses

and carried our diseases.C,ah

THE COST OF FOLLOWING JESUS

18 When Jesus saw a large crowdD,a around him, he gave the order to go to the other side of the sea. 19 A scribe approached him and said,b “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.”

20 Jesus told him, “Foxes have dens, and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Manc has no place to lay his head.”

21 “Lord,” another of his disciples said, “first let me go bury my father.”

22 But Jesus told him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”

WIND AND WAVES OBEY JESUS

23 As he got into the boat,d his disciplese followed him. 24 Suddenly, a violent storm arose on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves—but Jesus kept sleeping. 25 So the disciples came and woke him up, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to die!”

26 He said to them, “Why are you afraid, you of little faith?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the sea,f and there was a great calm.

27 The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the sea obeyg him!”

DEMONS DRIVEN OUT BY JESUS

28 When he had come to the other side,h to the region of the Gadarenes,E two demon-possessed men met him as they came out of the tombs. They were so violent that no one could pass that way. 29 Suddenly they shouted, “What do you have to do with us,F Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?”i

30 A long way off from them, a large herd of pigs was feeding. 31 “If you drive us out,” the demons begged him, “send us into the herd of pigs.”

32 “Go!” he told them. So when they had come out, they entered the pigs, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and perished in the water. 33 Then the men who tended them fled. They went into the city and reported everything, especially what had happened to those who were demon-possessed. 34 At that, the whole town went out to meet Jesus. When they saw him, they begged him to leave their region.j

THE SON OF MAN FORGIVES AND HEALS

9 So he got into a boat, crossed over, and came to his own town.k 2 Just thenl some menA brought to him a paralytic lying on a stretcher. Seeing their faith, Jesus told the paralytic, “Have courage, son, your sins are forgiven.”m

3 At this, some of the scribes said to themselves, “He’s blaspheming!”n

4 Perceiving their thoughts,o Jesus said, “Why are you thinking evil things …