Matthew 5:13–20

You Are Like Salt and Light

¹³“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its salty taste, it cannot be made salty again. It is good for nothing, except to be thrown out and walked on.

¹⁴“You are the light that gives light to the world. A city that is built on a hill cannot be hidden.¹⁵And people don’t hide a light under a bowl. They put it on a lampstand so the light shines for all the people in the house. ¹⁶In the same way, you should be a light for other people. Live so that they will see the good things you do and will praise your Father in heaven.

The Importance of the Law

¹⁷“Don’t think that I have come to destroy the law of Moses or the teaching of the prophets. I have not come to destroy them but to bring about what they said. ¹⁸I tell you the truth, nothing will disappear from the law until heaven and earth are gone. Not even the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will be lost until everything has happened. ¹⁹Whoever refuses to obey any command and teaches other people not to obey that command will be the least important in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys the commands and teaches other people to obey them will be great in the kingdom of heaven. ²⁰I tell you that if you are no more obedient than the teachers of the law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.