Charitable Giving to the Poor and Prayer

“Take care not to practice your righteousness in the sight of people, (A)to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.

“So when you [a]give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, so that they (B)will be praised by people. (C)Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But when you [b]give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your charitable giving will be in secret; and (D)your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

“And when you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to (E)stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners (F)so that they [c]will be seen by people. (G)Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But as for you, when you pray, (H)go into your inner room, close your door, and pray to your Father who is in secret; and (I)your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

“And when you are praying, do not use thoughtless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard because of their (J)many words. So do not be like them; for (K)your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.

The Lord’s Prayer

(L)Pray, then, in this way:

‘Our Father, who is in heaven,
[d]Hallowed be Your name.
10 [e](M)Your kingdom come.
(N)Your will be done,
[f]On earth as it is in heaven.
11 (O)Give us this day [g]our daily bread.
12 And (P)forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And do not lead us into temptation, but (Q)deliver us from [h](R)evil.[i]

14 (S)For if you forgive other people for their [j]offenses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But (T)if you do not forgive other people, then your Father will not forgive your [k]offenses.

Fasting; The True Treasure; Wealth

16 “Now (U)whenever you fast, do not make a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they [l]distort their faces so that they will be noticed by people when they are fasting. (V)Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. 17 But as for you, when you fast, [m](W)anoint your head and wash your face, 18 so that your fasting will not be noticed by people but by your Father who is in secret; and your (X)Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

19 (Y)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 (Z)treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; 21 for (AA)where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

22 (AB)The eye is the lamp of the body; so then, if your eye is [n]clear, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if (AC)your eye is [o]bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. So if the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!

24 (AD)No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and [p](AE)wealth.

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 6:2 Lit make a charitable gift
  2. Matthew 6:3 Lit make a charitable gift
  3. Matthew 6:5 Lit may show themselves to
  4. Matthew 6:9 I.e., treated as sacred or holy
  5. Matthew 6:10 Or May Your...come
  6. Matthew 6:10 Lit as in heaven, also on earth
  7. Matthew 6:11 Or our bread for tomorrow
  8. Matthew 6:13 Or the evil one
  9. Matthew 6:13 Late mss add For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen
  10. Matthew 6:14 Or wrongdoings
  11. Matthew 6:15 Or wrongdoings
  12. Matthew 6:16 I.e., leave unwashed, or discolor their faces with makeup
  13. Matthew 6:17 I.e., rub oil in the hair
  14. Matthew 6:22 Or healthy; or sincere
  15. Matthew 6:23 Or evil
  16. Matthew 6:24 Gr mamonas, for Aramaic mamon (mammon); i.e., wealth etc. personified as an object of worship

Giving to the Needy

“Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them.(A) If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.

“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.(B)

Prayer(C)

“And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing(D) in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father,(E) who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling(F) like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.(G) Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need(H) before you ask him.

“This, then, is how you should pray:

“‘Our Father(I) in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
10 your kingdom(J) come,
your will be done,(K)
    on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us today our daily bread.(L)
12 And forgive us our debts,
    as we also have forgiven our debtors.(M)
13 And lead us not into temptation,[a](N)
    but deliver us from the evil one.[b](O)

14 For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.(P) 15 But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.(Q)

Fasting

16 “When you fast,(R) do not look somber(S) as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, 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 others 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.(T)

Treasures in Heaven(U)

19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth,(V) where moths and vermin destroy,(W) and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven,(X) where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.(Y) 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.(Z)

22 “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy,[c] your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eyes are unhealthy,[d] 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 you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.(AA)

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 6:13 The Greek for temptation can also mean testing.
  2. Matthew 6:13 Or from evil; some late manuscripts one, / for yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
  3. Matthew 6:22 The Greek for healthy here implies generous.
  4. Matthew 6:23 The Greek for unhealthy here implies stingy.