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Thus whenever you do charitable giving,[a] do not blow a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in synagogues[b] and on streets so that people will praise them. I tell you the truth,[c] they have their reward! But when you do your giving, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your gift may be in secret. And your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you.[d]

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 6:2 tn Grk “give alms,” referring primarily to the giving of money or food for the relief of the poor, but this term is not in common use today. The giving of alms was highly regarded in the ancient world (Deut 15:7-11).
  2. Matthew 6:2 sn See the note on synagogues in 4:23.
  3. Matthew 6:2 tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amēn), I say to you.”
  4. Matthew 6:4 tc L W Δ Θ 0250 565 579 700 1241 1424 M al it read ἐν τῷ φανερῷ (en tō phanerō, “openly”) at the end of this verse, giving a counterweight to what is done in secret. But this reading is suspect because of the obvious literary balance, because of detouring the point of the passage (the focus of vv. 1-4 is not on two kinds of public rewards but on human vs. divine approbation), and because of superior external testimony that lacks this reading (א B D Z ƒ1, 13 33 co).

When you give to the poor, do not boast about it, announcing your donations with blaring trumpets as the play actors do. Do not brazenly give your charity in the synagogues and on the streets; indeed, do not give at all if you are giving because you want to be praised by your neighbors. Those people who give in order to reap praise have already received their reward. 3-4 When you give to the needy, do it in secret—even your left hand should not know what your right hand is doing. Then your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you.

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When you give to someone in need, don’t do as the hypocrites do—blowing trumpets in the synagogues and streets to call attention to their acts of charity! I tell you the truth, they have received all the reward they will ever get. But when you give to someone in need, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. Give your gifts in private, and your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.

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“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 others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.(A)

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