Matthew 5:29-8:20

English Standard Version

^29 (A)If your right eye ^(B)causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into ^(C)hell. ^30 (D)And if your right hand ^(E)causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into ^(F)hell.

Divorce

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

Oaths

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

Retaliation

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

Love Your Enemies

^43 (AA)“You have heard that it was said, ^(AB)‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴ But I say to you, ^(AC)Love your enemies and ^(AD)pray for those who persecute you, ^45 (AE)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 ^(AF)sends rain on the just and on the unjust. ^46 (AG)For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? ⁴⁷ And if you greet only your brothers,^[c] what more are you doing than others? Do not even ^(AH)the Gentiles do the same? ^48 (AI)You therefore must be ^(AJ)perfect, ^(AK)as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Giving to the Needy

6 “Beware of ^(AL)practicing your righteousness before other people in order ^(AM)to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.

^2 (AN)“Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may ^(AO)be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have ^(AP)received their reward. 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. ^(AQ)And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

The Lord's Prayer

⁵ “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love ^(AR)to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. ^(AS)Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. ⁶ But when you pray, ^(AT)go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. ^(AU)And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

⁷ “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as ^(AV)the Gentiles do, for ^(AW)they think that they will be heard ^(AX)for their many words. ⁸ Do not be like them, ^(AY)for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. ^9 (AZ)Pray then like this:

^14 (BL)For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, ^15 (BM)but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Fasting

¹⁶ “And ^(BN)when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. ^(BO)Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. ¹⁷ But when you fast, ^(BP)anoint your head and wash your face, ¹⁸ that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. ^(BQ)And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Lay Up Treasures in Heaven

^19 (BR)“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where ^(BS)moth and rust^[h] destroy and where thieves ^(BT)break in and steal, ^20 (BU)but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

^22 (BV)“The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, ^23 (BW)but if ^(BX)your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!

^24 (BY)“No one can serve two masters, for 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 God and ^(BZ)money.^[i]

Do Not Be Anxious

^25 (CA)“Therefore I tell you, ^(CB)do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? ^26 (CC)Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. ^(CD)Are you not of more value than they? ²⁷ And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his ^(CE)span of life?^{[j] 28} And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, ²⁹ yet I tell you, ^(CF)even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. ³⁰ But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, ^(CG)O you of little faith? ³¹ Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For ^(CH)the Gentiles seek after all these things, and ^(CI)your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. ³³ But ^(CJ)seek first ^(CK)the kingdom of God and his righteousness, ^(CL)and all these things will be added to you.

^34 (CM)“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Judging Others

7 ^(CN)“Judge not, that you be not judged. ^2 (CO)For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and ^(CP)with the measure you use it will be measured to you. ³ Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but ^(CQ)do not notice the log that is in your own eye? ⁴ Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log 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 speck out of your brother's eye.

^6 (CR)“Do not give ^(CS)dogs what is holy, and do not throw your ^(CT)pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.

Ask, and It Will Be Given

^7 (CU)“Ask, ^(CV)and it will be given to you; ^(CW)seek, and you will find; ^(CX)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 which one of you, if his son asks him for ^(CY)bread, will give him ^(CZ)a stone? ¹⁰ Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? ¹¹ If you then, ^(DA)who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will ^(DB)your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

The Golden Rule

¹² “So ^(DC)whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is ^(DD)the Law and the Prophets.

^13 (DE)“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy^[k] that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. ¹⁴ For the gate is narrow and ^(DF)the way is hard that leads to life, and ^(DG)those who find it are few.

A Tree and Its Fruit

^15 (DH)“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ^(DI)ravenous wolves. ¹⁶ You will recognize them ^(DJ)by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? ¹⁷ So, ^(DK)every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸ A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. ^19 (DL)Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰ Thus you will recognize them ^(DM)by their fruits.

I Never Knew You

^21 (DN)“Not everyone who ^(DO)says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will ^(DP)enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who ^(DQ)does the will of my Father who is in heaven. ^22 (DR)On that day ^(DS)many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not ^(DT)prophesy in your name, and cast out demons ^(DU)in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ ^23 (DV)And then will I declare to them, ‘I ^(DW)never knew you; ^(DX)depart from me, ^(DY)you workers of lawlessness.’

Build Your House on the Rock

^24 (DZ)“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like ^(EA)a wise man who built his house on the rock. ²⁵ And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but 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 ^(EB)a foolish man who built his house on the sand. ²⁷ And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”

The Authority of Jesus

²⁸ And when Jesus finished these sayings, ^(EC)the crowds were astonished at his teaching, ^29 (ED)for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.

Jesus Cleanses a Leper

8 When he came down from the mountain, ^(EE)great crowds followed him. ^2 (EF)And behold, a leper^[l] came to him and ^(EG)knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.” ³ And Jesus^[m] stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. ⁴ And Jesus said to him, ^(EH)“See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, ^(EI)show yourself to the priest and ^(EJ)offer the gift that Moses commanded, ^(EK)for a proof to them.”

The Faith of a Centurion

^5 (EL)When he had entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to him, appealing to him, ⁶ “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering terribly.” ⁷ And he said to him, “I will come and heal him.” ⁸ But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but ^(EM)only say the word, and my servant will be healed. ⁹ For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my servant,^[n] ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” ¹⁰ When Jesus heard this, ^(EN)he marveled and said to those who followed him, “Truly, I tell you, with ^(EO)no one in Israel^[o] have I found such faith. ¹¹ I tell you, ^(EP)many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, ^12 (EQ)while the sons of the kingdom ^(ER)will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place ^(ES)there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” ¹³ And to the centurion Jesus said, “Go; let it be done for you ^(ET)as you have believed.” ^(EU)And the servant was healed at that very moment.

Jesus Heals Many

^14 (EV)And when Jesus entered Peter's house, he saw ^(EW)his mother-in-law lying sick with a fever. ¹⁵ He ^(EX)touched her hand, and the fever left her, and she rose and began to serve him. ¹⁶ That evening they brought to him many who were ^(EY)oppressed by demons, and he cast out the spirits ^(EZ)with a word and healed all who were sick. ^17 (FA)This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: ^(FB)“He took our illnesses and bore our diseases.”

The Cost of Following Jesus

¹⁸ Now ^(FC)when Jesus saw a crowd around him, ^(FD)he gave orders to go over to the other side. ^19 (FE)And a scribe came up and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” ²⁰ And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”