Matthew 6–7

Giving to the Needy

6“Beware of ^rpracticing your righteousness before other people in order ^sto be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.

^2t“Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may ^ube praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have ^vreceived their reward. ³But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, ⁴so that your giving may be in secret. ^wAnd your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

The Lord’s Prayer

⁵“And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love ^xto stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. ^yTruly, I say to you, they have received their reward. ⁶But when you pray, ^zgo into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. ^aAnd your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

⁷“And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as ^bthe Gentiles do, for ^cthey think that they will be heard ^dfor their many words. ⁸Do not be like them, ^efor your Father knows what you need before you ask him. ^9fPray then like this:

^g“Our Father in heaven,

^hhallowed be ⁱyour name.¹

^10jYour kingdom come,

^kyour will be done,²

^lon earth as it is in heaven.

^11mGive us ⁿthis day our daily bread,³

¹²and forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

¹³And ^olead us not into temptation,

but ^pdeliver us from ^qevil.⁴

^14rFor if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, ^15sbut if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Fasting

¹⁶“And ^twhen you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. ^uTruly, I say to you, they have received their reward. ¹⁷But when you fast, ^vanoint your head and wash your face, ¹⁸that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. ^wAnd your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Lay Up Treasures in Heaven

^19x“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where ^ymoth and rust⁵ destroy and where thieves ^zbreak in and steal, ^20xbut lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

^22a“The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, ^23abut if ^byour eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!

^24c“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and ^dmoney.⁶

Do Not Be Anxious

^25e“Therefore I tell you, ^fdo not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? ^26gLook at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. ^hAre you not of more value than they? ²⁷And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his ⁱspan of life?^{7 28}And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, ²⁹yet I tell you, ^jeven Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. ³⁰But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, ^kO you of little faith? ³¹Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³²For ^lthe Gentiles seek after all these things, and ^myour heavenly Father knows that you need them all. ³³But ⁿseek first ^othe kingdom of God and his righteousness, ^pand all these things will be added to you.

^34q“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Judging Others

7^r“Judge not, that you be not judged. ^2sFor with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and ^twith the measure you use it will be measured to you. ³Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but ^udo not notice the log that is in your own eye? ⁴Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? ⁵You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.

^6v“Do not give ^wdogs what is holy, and do not throw your ^xpearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.

Ask, and It Will Be Given

^7y“Ask, ^zand it will be given to you; ^aseek, and you will find; ^bknock, and it will be opened to you. ⁸For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. ⁹Or which one of you, if his son asks him for ^cbread, will give him ^ca stone? ¹⁰Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? ¹¹If you then, ^dwho are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will ^zyour Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

The Golden Rule

¹²“So ^ewhatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is ^fthe Law and the Prophets.

^13g“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy¹ that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. ¹⁴For the gate is narrow and ^hthe way is hard that leads to life, and ⁱthose who find it are few.

A Tree and Its Fruit

^15j“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ^kravenous wolves. ¹⁶You will recognize them ^lby their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? ¹⁷So, ^mevery healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. ¹⁹ⁿEvery tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰Thus you will recognize them ^lby their fruits.

I Never Knew You

^21o“Not everyone who ^psays to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will ^qenter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who ^rdoes the will of my Father who is in heaven. ^22sOn that day ^tmany will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not ^uprophesy in your name, and cast out demons ^vin your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ ^23tAnd then will I declare to them, ‘I ^wnever knew you; ^xdepart from me, ^yyou workers of lawlessness.’

Build Your House on the Rock

^24z“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like ^aa wise man who built his house on the rock. ²⁵And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. ²⁶And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like ^aa foolish man who built his house on the sand. ²⁷And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”

The Authority of Jesus

²⁸And when Jesus finished these sayings, ^bthe crowds were astonished at his teaching, ^29cfor he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.