Matthew 7
Amplified Bible
Judging Others
7 “[a]Do not judge and criticize and condemn [others unfairly with an attitude of self-righteous superiority as though assuming the office of a judge], so that you will not be judged [unfairly]. 2 For just as you [hypocritically] judge others [when you are sinful and unrepentant], so will you be judged; and in accordance with your standard of measure [used to pass out judgment], judgment will be measured to you. 3 Why do you look at the [insignificant] speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice and acknowledge the [egregious] log that is in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me get the speck out of your eye,’ when there is a log in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite (play-actor, pretender), first get the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.
6 “Do not give that which is holy to [b]dogs, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, for they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.
Prayer and the Golden Rule
7 “[c]Ask and keep on asking and it will be given to you; seek and keep on seeking and you will find; knock and keep on knocking and the door will be opened to you.(A) 8 For everyone who keeps on asking receives, and he who keeps on seeking finds, and to him who keeps on knocking, it will be opened. 9 Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will [instead] give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will [instead] give him a snake? 11 If you then, evil (sinful by nature) as you are, know how to give good and advantageous gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven [perfect as He is] give what is good and advantageous to those who keep on asking Him.
12 “So then, in everything treat others the same way you want them to treat you, for this is [the essence of] the Law and the [writings of the] Prophets.
The Narrow and Wide Gates
13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad and easy to travel is the path that leads the way to destruction and eternal loss, and there are many who enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow and difficult to travel is the path that leads the way to [everlasting] life, and there are few who find it.(B)
A Tree and Its Fruit
15 “Beware of the false prophets, [teachers] who come to you dressed as sheep [appearing gentle and innocent], but inwardly are ravenous wolves.(C) 16 By their fruit you will recognize them [that is, by their contrived doctrine and self-focus]. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles?(D) 17 Even so, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the unhealthy tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Therefore, by their fruit you will recognize them [as false prophets].
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 [when I judge them], ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, and driven out demons in Your name, and done many miracles in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them publicly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me [you are banished from My presence], you who act wickedly [disregarding My commands].’(E)
The Two Foundations
24 “So everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, will be like a wise man [a far-sighted, practical, and sensible man] who built his house on the rock.(F) 25 And the rain fell, and the floods and torrents came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26 And everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not do them, will be like a foolish (stupid) man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods and torrents came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great and complete was its fall.”
28 When Jesus had finished [speaking] these words [on the mountain], the crowds were astonished and overwhelmed at His teaching; 29 for He was teaching them as one who had authority [to teach entirely of His own volition], and not as their scribes [who relied on others to confirm their authority].
Footnotes
- Matthew 7:1 This is not a prohibition of judgment, nor is it a command to stop using godly wisdom, common sense, and moral courage together with God’s written word to discern right from wrong, to distinguish between morality and immorality, and to judge doctrinal truth. There are many judgments that are not only legitimate, but are commanded (cf John 7:24; 1 Cor 5:5, 12; Gal 1:8, 9; 1 John 4:1-3; 2 John 10); however, you cannot judge another if you are committing the same type of sin.
- Matthew 7:6 In this verse “dogs” and “pigs” represent those who despise sacred things.
- Matthew 7:7 Here the use of Greek present imperatives (asking, seeking, knocking; vv 7, 8) emphasizes persistent, constant prayer.
Matthew 7
New King James Version
Do Not Judge(A)
7 “Judge[a] (B)not, that you be not judged. 2 For with what [b]judgment you judge, you will be judged; (C)and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. 3 (D)And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? 5 Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
6 (E)“Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.
Keep Asking, Seeking, Knocking(F)
7 (G)“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For (H)everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 9 (I)Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? 11 If you then, (J)being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him! 12 Therefore, (K)whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for (L)this is the Law and the Prophets.
The Narrow Way(M)
13 (N)“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 [c]Because narrow is the gate and [d]difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.
You Will Know Them by Their Fruits(O)
15 (P)“Beware of false prophets, (Q)who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. 16 (R)You will know them by their fruits. (S)Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? 17 Even so, (T)every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19 (U)Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them.
I Never Knew You(V)
21 “Not everyone who says to Me, (W)‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who (X)does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we (Y)not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ 23 And (Z)then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; (AA)depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
Build on the Rock(AB)
24 “Therefore (AC)whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.
26 “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: 27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”
28 And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that (AD)the people were astonished at His teaching, 29 (AE)for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
Footnotes
- Matthew 7:1 Condemn
- Matthew 7:2 Condemnation
- Matthew 7:14 NU, M How narrow . . . !
- Matthew 7:14 confined
Matthew 7
New American Standard Bible
Judging Others
7 “(A)Do not [a]judge, so that you will not be judged. 2 For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and [b](B)by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. 3 Why do you (C)look at the [c]speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 4 (D)Or how [d]can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the [e]speck out of your eye,’ and look, the log is in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the [f]speck out of your brother’s eye!
6 “(E)Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.
Prayer and the Golden Rule
7 “[g](F)Ask, and (G)it will be given to you; [h]seek, and you will find; [i]knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or what person is there among you [j]who, when his son asks for a loaf of bread, [k]will give him a stone? 10 Or [l]if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? 11 So if you, despite being [m]evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, (H)how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!
12 “In everything, (I)therefore, [n]treat people the same way you want [o]them to treat you, for (J)this is the Law and the Prophets.
The Narrow and Wide Gates
13 “(K)Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is constricted that leads to life, and there are few who find it.
A Tree and Its Fruit
15 “Beware of the (L)false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are (M)ravenous wolves. 16 You will [p](N)know them by their fruits. [q]Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor figs from thistles, are they? 17 So (O)every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19 (P)Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 So then, you will [r]know them (Q)by their fruits.
21 “(R)Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 22 (S)Many will say to Me on (T)that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many [s]miracles?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; (U)leave Me, you who practice lawlessness.’
The Two Foundations
24 “Therefore, (V)everyone who hears these words of Mine, and [t]acts on them, will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell and the [u]floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. 26 And everyone who hears these words of Mine, and does not [v]act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell and the [w]floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and its collapse was great.”
28 [x](W)When Jesus had finished these words, (X)the crowds were amazed at His teaching; 29 for He was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.
Footnotes
- Matthew 7:1 I.e., make a habit of judging or have a judgmental attitude
- Matthew 7:2 Lit by which measure you measure
- Matthew 7:3 Or splinter
- Matthew 7:4 Lit will
- Matthew 7:4 Or splinter
- Matthew 7:5 Or splinter
- Matthew 7:7 Or Keep asking
- Matthew 7:7 Or keep seeking
- Matthew 7:7 Or keep knocking
- Matthew 7:9 Lit whom his son will ask
- Matthew 7:9 Lit he will not give him a stone, will he?
- Matthew 7:10 Lit also will ask
- Matthew 7:11 I.e., as sinful mankind
- Matthew 7:12 Lit you, too, do so for them
- Matthew 7:12 Lit people
- Matthew 7:16 Or recognize
- Matthew 7:16 Lit They do not gather
- Matthew 7:20 Or recognize
- Matthew 7:22 Or works of power
- Matthew 7:24 Lit does them
- Matthew 7:25 Lit rivers
- Matthew 7:26 Lit do them
- Matthew 7:27 Lit rivers
- Matthew 7:28 Lit And it happened when
Matthew 7
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Do Not Judge
7 “Do not judge, so that you won’t be judged.(A) 2 For with the judgment you use,[a] you will be judged, and with the measure you use,[b] it will be measured to you.(B) 3 Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye but don’t notice the log in your own eye?(C) 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and look, there’s a log in your eye? 5 Hypocrite! First take the log out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye. 6 Don’t give what is holy to dogs or toss your pearls before pigs,(D) or they will trample them with their feet, turn, and tear you to pieces.
Keep Asking, Searching, Knocking
7 “Keep asking,[c](E) and it will be given to you.(F) Keep searching,[d] and you will find. Keep knocking,[e] and the door[f] will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who searches finds,(G) and to the one who knocks, the door[g] will be opened. 9 What man 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,(H) 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—this is the Law and the Prophets.[h](I)
Entering the Kingdom
13 “Enter through the narrow gate.(J) For the gate is wide and the road is broad that leads to destruction,(K) 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 “Beware of false prophets(L) who come to you in sheep’s(M) clothing(N) but inwardly are ravaging wolves.(O) 16 You’ll recognize them by their fruit.(P) Are grapes gathered from thornbushes or figs from thistles?(Q) 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.(R) 20 So you’ll recognize them by their fruit.(S)
21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord!’ will enter the kingdom of heaven,(T) but only the one who does the will(U) of My Father in heaven.(V) 22 On that day many will say to Me, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in Your name, drive out demons(W) in Your name, and do many miracles in Your name?’(X) 23 Then I will announce to them, ‘I never knew you! Depart from Me, you lawbreakers!’[i](Y)[j]
The Two Foundations
24 “Therefore,(Z) everyone who hears these words(AA) of Mine and acts on them will be like a sensible 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. And its collapse was great!”
28 When Jesus had finished this sermon,[k](AB) the crowds were astonished at His teaching,(AC) 29 because He was teaching them like one who had authority, and not like their scribes.
Footnotes
- Matthew 7:2 Lit you judge
- Matthew 7:2 Lit you measure
- Matthew 7:7 Or Ask
- Matthew 7:7 Or Search
- Matthew 7:7 Or Knock
- Matthew 7:7 Lit and it
- Matthew 7:8 Lit knocks, it
- Matthew 7:12 When capitalized, the Law and the Prophets = the OT
- Matthew 7:23 Lit you who work lawlessness
- Matthew 7:23 Ps 6:8
- Matthew 7:28 Lit had ended these words
Matthew 7
The Message
A Simple Guide for Behavior
7 1-5 “Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults—unless, of course, you want the same treatment. That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging. It’s easy to see a smudge on your neighbor’s face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own. Do you have the nerve to say, ‘Let me wash your face for you,’ when your own face is distorted by contempt? It’s this whole traveling road-show mentality all over again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your part. Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face, and you might be fit to offer a washcloth to your neighbor.
6 “Don’t be flip with the sacred. Banter and silliness give no honor to God. Don’t reduce holy mysteries to slogans. In trying to be relevant, you’re only being cute and inviting sacrilege.
7-11 “Don’t bargain with God. Be direct. Ask for what you need. This isn’t a cat-and-mouse, hide-and-seek game we’re in. If your child asks for bread, do you trick him with sawdust? If he asks for fish, do you scare him with a live snake on his plate? As bad as you are, you wouldn’t think of such a thing. You’re at least decent to your own children. So don’t you think the God who conceived you in love will be even better?
12 “Here is a simple, rule-of-thumb guide for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you, then grab the initiative and do it for them. Add up God’s Law and Prophets and this is what you get.
Being and Doing
13-14 “Don’t look for shortcuts to God. The market is flooded with surefire, easygoing formulas for a successful life that can be practiced in your spare time. Don’t fall for that stuff, even though crowds of people do. The way to life—to God!—is vigorous and requires total attention.
15-20 “Be wary of false preachers who smile a lot, dripping with practiced sincerity. Chances are they are out to rip you off some way or other. Don’t be impressed with charisma; look for character. Who preachers are is the main thing, not what they say. A genuine leader will never exploit your emotions or your pocketbook. These diseased trees with their bad apples are going to be chopped down and burned.
21-23 “Knowing the correct password—saying ‘Master, Master,’ for instance—isn’t going to get you anywhere with me. What is required is serious obedience—doing what my Father wills. I can see it now—at the Final Judgment thousands strutting up to me and saying, ‘Master, we preached the Message, we bashed the demons, our super-spiritual projects had everyone talking.’ And do you know what I am going to say? ‘You missed the boat. All you did was use me to make yourselves important. You don’t impress me one bit. You’re out of here.’
24-25 “These words I speak to you are not incidental additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundational words, words to build a life on. If you work these words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who built his house on solid rock. Rain poured down, the river flooded, a tornado hit—but nothing moved that house. It was fixed to the rock.
26-27 “But if you just use my words in Bible studies and don’t work them into your life, you are like a stupid carpenter who built his house on the sandy beach. When a storm rolled in and the waves came up, it collapsed like a house of cards.”
28-29 When Jesus concluded his address, the crowd burst into applause. They had never heard teaching like this. It was apparent that he was living everything he was saying—quite a contrast to their religion teachers! This was the best teaching they had ever heard.
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson