Matthew 7
1599 Geneva Bible
7 1 We may not give judgment of our neighbors, 6 Nor cast that which is holy unto dogs. 13 The broad and strait way. 15 False prophets. 18 The tree and fruit. 24 The house built on a rock, 26 and on the sand.
1 Judge [a]not, that ye be not judged.
2 For with what (A)judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged, and with what (B)measure ye mete, it shall be measured unto you again.
3 And why seest thou the mote, that is in thy brother’s eye, and perceivest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
4 (C)Or how sayest thou to thy brother, Suffer me to cast out the mote out of thine eye, and behold, a beam is in thine own eye?
5 Hypocrite, first cast out that beam out of thine own eye, and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.
6 ¶ [b]Give ye not that which is holy to dogs, neither cast ye your [c]pearls before swine, lest they tread them under their feet, and turning again, all to rent you.
7 ¶ (D)[d]Ask, and it shall be given you: seek, and ye shall find: knock, and it shall be opened unto you.
8 For whosoever asketh, receiveth: and he that seeketh, findeth: and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened.
9 For what man is there among you, which if his son ask him bread, would give him a stone?
10 Or if he ask fish, will he give him a serpent?
11 If ye then, which are evil, can give to your children good gifts, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven, give good things to them that ask him?
12 (E)[e]Therefore whatsoever ye would that men should do to you: even so do ye to them: for this is the [f]Law and the Prophets.
13 ¶ (F)[g]Enter in at the strait gate: for it is the wide gate, and broad way that leadeth to destruction: and many there be which go in thereat.
14 Because [h]the gate is strait, and the way narrow that leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
15 ¶ [i]Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. (G)Do men gather grapes of thorns? or figs of thistles?
17 So every good tree bringeth forth good fruit, and a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.
18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
19 (H)Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit, is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
20 Therefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
21 ¶ [j]Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, (I)but he that doeth my Father’s will which is in heaven.
22 (J)Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not by thy [k]Name prophesied, and by thy name cast out devils? and by thy name done many [l]great works?
23 And then will I profess to them, (K)[m]I never knew you, (L)depart from me [n]ye that work iniquity.
24 [o]Whosoever then heareth of me these words, (M)and doeth the same, I will liken him to a wise man, which hath builded his house on a rock:
25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house, and it fell not: for it was grounded on a rock,
26 But whosoever heareth these my words, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which hath builded his house upon the sand:
27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house, and it fell, and the fall thereof was great.
28 ¶ (N)And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these words, the people were astonished at his doctrine.
29 For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the Scribes.
Footnotes
- Matthew 7:1 We ought to find fault one with another, but we must beware we do it not without cause, or to seem holier than they, or in hatred of them.
- Matthew 7:6 The stiffnecked and stubborn enemies of the Gospel are unworthy to have it preached unto them.
- Matthew 7:6 A pearl hath his name among the Grecians, for the orient brightness that is in it: and a pearl was in ancient time in great estimation among the Latins: for a pearl that Cleopatra had, was valued at two hundred and fifty thousand crowns, and the word is now borrowed from that, to signify the most precious heavenly doctrine.
- Matthew 7:7 Prayers are a sure refuge in all miseries.
- Matthew 7:12 A rehearsal of the meaning of the second table.
- Matthew 7:12 That is to say, the doctrine of the Law and Prophets.
- Matthew 7:13 Example of life must not be taken from a multitude.
- Matthew 7:14 The way is straight and narrow we must pass through this rough way, and suffer and endure, and be thronged, and to enter into life.
- Matthew 7:15 False teachers must be taken heed of, and they are known by false doctrine and evil living.
- Matthew 7:21 Even the best gifts that are, are nothing without godliness.
- Matthew 7:22 By Name here, is meant that mighty working power of God, which every man witnesseth that calleth upon him.
- Matthew 7:22 Properly powers: Now these excellent works wrought are called Powers, by occasion of these things which they bring to pass, for by them we understand, how mighty the power of God is.
- Matthew 7:23 This is not of ignorance, but because he will cast them away.
- Matthew 7:23 You that are given to all kind of wickedness, and seem to make an art of sin.
- Matthew 7:24 True godliness resteth only upon Christ, and therefore always remaineth invincible.
Matthew 7
Easy-to-Read Version
Be Careful About Criticizing Others(A)
7 “Don’t judge others, and God will not judge you. 2 If you judge others, you will be judged the same way you judge them. God will treat you the same way you treat others.
3 “Why do you notice the small piece of dust that is in your friend’s eye, but you don’t notice the big piece of wood that is in your own? 4 Why do you say to your friend, ‘Let me take that piece of dust out of your eye’? Look at yourself first! You still have that big piece of wood in your own eye. 5 You are a hypocrite! First, take the wood out of your own eye. Then you will see clearly to get the dust out of your friend’s eye.
6 “Don’t give something that is holy to dogs. They will only turn and hurt you. And don’t throw your pearls to pigs. They will only step on them.
Ask God for What You Need(B)
7 “Continue to ask, and God will give to you. Continue to search, and you will find. Continue to knock, and the door will open for you. 8 Yes, whoever continues to ask will receive. Whoever continues to look will find. And whoever continues to knock will have the door opened for them.
9 “Do any of you have a son? If he asked for bread, would you give him a rock? 10 Or if he asked for a fish, would you give him a snake? Of course not! 11 You people are so bad, but you still know how to give good things to your children. So surely your heavenly Father will give good things to those who ask him.
A Very Important Rule
12 “Do for others what you would want them to do for you. This is the meaning of the Law of Moses and the teaching of the prophets.
The Way to Heaven and the Way to Hell(C)
13 “You can enter true life only through the narrow gate. The gate to hell is very wide, and there is plenty of room on the road that leads there. Many people go that way. 14 But the gate that opens the way to true life is narrow. And the road that leads there is hard to follow. Only a few people find it.
What People Do Shows What They Are(D)
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(E)
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.”
28 When Jesus finished speaking, the people were amazed at his teaching. 29 He did not teach like their teachers of the law. He taught like someone who has authority.
Footnotes
- Matthew 7:20 by what they do Literally, “by their fruits.”
Geneva Bible, 1599 Edition. Published by Tolle Lege Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles, reviews, and broadcasts.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International