Matthew 6
6
1Take heed not to do your alms before men to be seen of them, otherwise ye have no reward with your Father who is in the heavens. 2When therefore thou doest alms, sound not a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may have glory from men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 3But thou, when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand does; 4so that thine alms may be in secret, and thy Father who sees in secret will render it to thee.
5And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites; for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets so that they should appear to men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 6But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy chamber, and having shut thy door, pray to thy Father who is in secret, and thy Father who sees in secret will render it to thee. 7But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as those who are of the nations: for they think they shall be heard through their much speaking. 8Be not ye therefore like them, for your Father knows of what things ye have need before ye beg anything of him.
9Thus therefore pray ye: Our Father who art in the heavens, let thy name be sanctified, 10let thy kingdom come, let thy will be done as in heaven so upon the earth; 11give us to-day our needed bread, 12and forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors, 13and lead us not into temptation, but save us from evil. 14For if ye forgive men their offences, your heavenly Father also will forgive you yours, 15but if ye do not forgive men their offences, neither will your Father forgive your offences.
16And when ye fast, be not as the hypocrites, downcast in countenance; for they disfigure their faces, so that they may appear fasting to men: verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 17But thou, when fasting, anoint thy head and wash thy face, 18so that thou mayest not appear fasting unto men, but to thy Father who is in secret; and thy Father who sees in secret shall render it to thee.
19Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth, where moth and rust spoils, and where thieves dig through and steal; 20but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust spoils, and where thieves do not dig through nor steal; 21for where thy treasure is, there will be also thy heart. 22The lamp of the body is the eye; if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body will be light: 23but if thine eye be wicked, thy whole body will be dark. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great the darkness! 24No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and will love the other, or he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
25For this cause I say unto you, Do not be careful about your life, what ye should eat and what ye should drink; nor for your body what ye should put on. Is not the life more than food, and the body than raiment? 26Look at the birds of the heaven, that they sow not, nor reap, nor gather into granaries, and your heavenly Father nourishes them. Are ye not much more excellent than they? 27But which of you by carefulness can add to his growth one cubit? 28And why are ye careful about clothing? Observe with attention the lilies of the field, how they grow: they toil not, neither do they spin; 29but I say unto you, that not even Solomon in all his glory was clothed as one of these. 30But if God so clothe the herbage of the field, which is to-day, and to-morrow is cast into the oven, will he not much rather you, O ye of little faith? 31Be not therefore careful, saying, What shall we eat? or What shall we drink? or What shall we put on? 32for all these things the nations seek after; for your heavenly Father knows that ye have need of all these things. 33But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. 34Be not careful therefore for the morrow, for the morrow shall be careful about itself. Sufficient to the day is its own evil.
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Matthew 6: DARBY
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First published in 1890. This edition is maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society.
Matthew 6
6
Showy religion
1 “Be careful that you don’t practice your religion in front of people to draw their attention. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.
2 “Whenever you give to the poor, don’t blow your trumpet as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets so that they may get praise from people. I assure you, that’s the only reward they’ll get. 3But when you give to the poor, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing 4so that you may give to the poor in secret. Your Father who sees what you do in secret will reward you.
Showy prayer
5 “When you pray, don’t be like hypocrites. They love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners so that people will see them. I assure you, that’s the only reward they’ll get. 6But when you pray, go to your room, shut the door, and pray to your Father who is present in that secret place. Your Father who sees what you do in secret will reward you.
Proper prayer
7 “When you pray, don’t pour out a flood of empty words, as the Gentiles do. They think that by saying many words they’ll be heard. 8Don’t be like them, because your Father knows what you need before you ask. 9Pray like this:
Our Father who is in heaven,
uphold the holiness of your name.
10 Bring in your kingdom
so that your will is done on earth as it’s done in heaven.
11 Give us the bread we need for today.
12 Forgive us for the ways we have wronged you,
just as we also forgive those who have wronged us.
13 And don’t lead us into temptation,
but rescue us from the evil one.
14 “If you forgive others their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15But if you don’t forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your sins.
Showy fasting
16 “And when you fast, don’t put on a sad face like the hypocrites. They distort their faces so people will know they are fasting. I assure you that they have their reward. 17When you fast, brush your hair and wash your face. 18Then you won’t look like you are fasting to people, but only to your Father who is present in that secret place. Your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Earthly and heavenly treasures
19 “Stop collecting treasures for your own benefit on earth, where moth and rust eat them and where thieves break in and steal them. 20Instead, collect treasures for yourselves in heaven, where moth and rust don’t eat them and where thieves don’t break in and steal them. 21Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Seeing and serving
22 “The eye is the lamp of the body. Therefore, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light. 23But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how terrible that darkness will be! 24No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be loyal to the one and have contempt for the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.
Worry about necessities
25 “Therefore, I say to you, don’t worry about your life, what you’ll eat or what you’ll drink, or about your body, what you’ll wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothes? 26Look at the birds in the sky. They don’t sow seed or harvest grain or gather crops into barns. Yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth much more than they are? 27Who among you by worrying can add a single moment to your life? 28And why do you worry about clothes? Notice how the lilies in the field grow. They don’t wear themselves out with work, and they don’t spin cloth. 29But I say to you that even Solomon in all of his splendor wasn’t dressed like one of these. 30If God dresses grass in the field so beautifully, even though it’s alive today and tomorrow it’s thrown into the furnace, won’t God do much more for you, you people of weak faith? 31Therefore, don’t worry and say, ‘What are we going to eat?’ or ‘What are we going to drink?’ or ‘What are we going to wear?’ 32Gentiles long for all these things. Your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33Instead, desire first and foremost God’s kingdom and God’s righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore, stop worrying about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
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2011 Common English Bible. All rights reserved.