Matthew 5:1-48; Matthew 6:1-34;
Matthew 7:1-29 (New International Version)
1 Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat
down. His disciples came to him, 2 and
he began to teach them, saying: 3 "Blessed
are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted. 5 Blessed
are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled. 7 Blessed
are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called sons of God. 10Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.11 "Blessed
are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil
against you because of me. 12 Rejoice
and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they
persecuted the prophets who were before you.
13 "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its
saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything,
except to be thrown out and trampled by men. 14 "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill
cannot be hidden. 15 Neither
do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its
stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your
light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your
Father in heaven.
17 "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the
Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 I tell you the truth, until
heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a
pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is
accomplished. 19 Anyone
who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the
same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and
teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless
your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law,
you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
21 "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do
not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' 22 But I tell you that anyone who
is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says
to his brother, 'Raca, ' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says,
'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell. 23 "Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the
altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24leave your gift there in front of
the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your
gift. 25 "Settle
matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you
are still with him on the way, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the
judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into
prison. 26 I tell you
the truth, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.
27 "You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit
adultery.' 28 But I
tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed
adultery with her in his heart. 29 If
your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better
for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown
into hell. 30 And if
your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better
for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.
31 "It has been said, 'Anyone who divorces his wife must give her
a certificate of divorce.' 32 But
I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital
unfaithfulness, causes her to become an adulteress, and anyone who marries the
divorced woman commits adultery.
33 "Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long
ago, 'Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the
Lord.' 34 But I tell
you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne; 35 or by the earth, for it is his
footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36 And do not swear by your head,
for you cannot make even one hair white or black. 37Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No'; anything
beyond this comes from the evil one.
38 "You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for
tooth.' 39 But I tell
you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek,
turn to him the other also. 40 And
if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as
well. 41 If someone
forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. 42 Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from
the one who wants to borrow from you.
43 "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate
your enemy.' 44 But I
tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be sons of your
Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends
rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get?
Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47 And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing
more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
1 "Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men,
to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in
heaven. 2 "So
when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites
do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the
truth, they have received their reward in full. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand
know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who
sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
5 "And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they
love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by
men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6 But when you pray, go into your
room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father,
who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for
they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your
Father knows what you need before you ask him. 9 "This, then, is how you should pray: " 'Our
Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in
heaven. 11 Give us
today our daily bread. 12 Forgive
us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into
temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. '14 For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your
heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not
forgive your sins.
16 "When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for
they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth,
they have received their reward in full. 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your
face, 18 so that it
will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who
is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
19 "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth
and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves
treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do
not 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 eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eyes are bad, your
whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness,
how great is that darkness! 24 "No
one can serve two masters. 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 both God
and Money.
25 "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you
will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more
important than food, and the body more important than clothes?26 Look at the birds of the air;
they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father
feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Who of you by worrying can add
a single hour to his life ? 28 "And
why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do
not labor or spin. 29 Yet
I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of
these. 30 If that is
how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is
thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little
faith? 31 So do not
worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we
wear?' 32 For the
pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need
them. 33 But seek
first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to
you as well. 34Therefore do
not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has
enough trouble of its own.
1 "Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge
others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured
to you. 3 "Why do
you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to
the plank in your own eye? 4 How
can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all
the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye,
and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's
eye. 6 "Do not
give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may
trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces.
7 "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find;
knock and the door will be opened to you. 8For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him
who knocks, the door will be opened. 9 "Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give
him a stone? 10 Or if
he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good
gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good
gifts to those who ask him! 12 So
in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums
up the Law and the Prophets.
13 "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad
is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and
narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
15 "Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's
clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick
grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree
bears bad fruit. 18A good
tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear
good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. 21"Not everyone who says to me,
'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will
of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many
will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and
in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' 23 Then I will tell them plainly,
'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'
24 "Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts
them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the
streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not
fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not
put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the
streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with
a great crash." 28 When
Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his
teaching, 29 because
he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law.
