Matthew 5:31-48

English Standard Version

Divorce

³¹^(A)“It was also said, ^(B)‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ ³²^(C)But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and ^(D)whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

Oaths

³³“Again ^(E)you have heard that it was said to those of old, ^(F)‘You shall not swear falsely, but ^(G)shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ ³⁴But I say to you, ^(H)Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for ^(I)it is the throne of God, ³⁵or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is ^(J)the city of the great King. ³⁶And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. ³⁷Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; ^(K)anything more than this comes from evil.^[a]

Retaliation

³⁸^(L)“You have heard that it was said, ^(M)‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ ³⁹But I say to you, ^(N)Do not resist the one who is evil. But ^(O)if anyone ^(P)slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. ⁴⁰And ^(Q)if anyone would sue you and take your tunic,^[b] let him have your cloak as well. ⁴¹And if anyone ^(R)forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. ⁴²^(S)Give to the one who begs from you, and ^(T)do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.

Love Your Enemies

⁴³^(U)“You have heard that it was said, ^(V)‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴But I say to you, ^(W)Love your enemies and ^(X)pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵^(Y)so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and ^(Z)sends rain on the just and on the unjust. ⁴⁶^(AA)For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? ⁴⁷And if you greet only your brothers,^[c] what more are you doing than others? Do not even ^(AB)the Gentiles do the same? ⁴⁸^(AC)You therefore must be ^(AD)perfect, ^(AE)as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

Matthew 5:37 Or the evil one
Matthew 5:40 Greek chiton, a long garment worn under the cloak next to the skin
Matthew 5:47 Or brothers and sisters. In New Testament usage, depending on the context, the plural Greek word adelphoi (translated “brothers”) may refer either to brothers or to brothers and sisters

Psalm 12

English Standard Version

The Faithful Have Vanished

To the choirmaster: according to The Sheminith.^[a] A Psalm of David.

12 Save, O Lord, for ^(A)the godly one is gone;
for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.
²Everyone ^(B)utters lies to his neighbor;
with ^(C)flattering lips and ^(D)a double heart they speak.

³May the Lord cut off all ^(E)flattering lips,
the tongue that makes ^(F)great boasts,
⁴those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,
our lips are with us; who is master over us?”

⁵“Because ^(G)the poor are plundered, because the needy groan,
    ^(H)I will now arise,” says the Lord;
    “I will place him in the ^(I)safety for which he longs.”
⁶^(J)The words of the Lord are pure words,
    like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
    purified seven times.

⁷You, O Lord, will keep them;
you will guard us^[b] from this generation forever.
⁸On every side the wicked prowl,
as vileness is exalted among the children of man.