Matthew 7:15-27

Easy-to-Read Version

What People Do Shows What They Are^(A)

¹⁵ “Be careful of false prophets. They come to you and look gentle like sheep. But they are really dangerous like wolves. ¹⁶ You will know these people because of what they do. Good things don’t come from people who are bad, just as grapes don’t come from thornbushes, and figs don’t come from thorny weeds. ¹⁷ In the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, and bad trees produce bad fruit. ¹⁸ A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot produce good fruit. ¹⁹ Every tree that does not produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰ You will know these false people by what they do.^[a]

²¹ “Not everyone who calls me Lord will enter God’s kingdom. The only people who will enter are those who do what my Father in heaven wants. ²² On that last Day many will call me Lord. They will say, ‘Lord, Lord, by the power of your name we spoke for God. And by your name we forced out demons and did many miracles.’ ²³ Then I will tell those people clearly, ‘Get away from me, you people who do wrong. I never knew you.’

Two Kinds of People^(B)

²⁴ “Whoever hears these teachings of mine and obeys them is like a wise man who built his house on rock. ²⁵ It rained hard, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house. But it did not fall because it was built on rock.

²⁶ “Whoever hears these teachings of mine and does not obey them is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. ²⁷ It rained hard, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house. And it fell with a loud crash.”