Matthew 6

Giving to the Needy

1 "Beware of ¹practicing your righteousness before other people in order ²to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.

2 ³"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 ⁴be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have ⁵received 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. ⁶And 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 ⁷to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. ⁸Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.

6 But when you pray, ⁹go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. ¹⁰And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

7 "And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as ¹¹the Gentiles do, for ¹²they think that they will be heard ¹³for their many words.

8 Do not be like them, ¹⁴for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

9 ¹⁵Pray then like this: ¹⁶"Our Father in heaven, ¹⁷hallowed be ¹⁸your name.^[a]

10 ¹⁹Your kingdom come, ²⁰your will be done,^{[b] 21}on earth as it is in heaven.

11 ²²Give us ²³this day our daily bread,^[c]

12 and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

13 And ²⁴lead us not into temptation, but ²⁵deliver us from ²⁶evil.^[d]

14 ²⁷For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you,

15 ²⁸but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Fasting

16 "And ²⁹when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. ³⁰Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.

17 But when you fast, ³¹anoint your head and wash your face,

18 that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. ³²And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Lay Up Treasures in Heaven

19 ³³"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where ³⁴moth and rust^[e] destroy and where thieves ³⁵break in and steal,

20 ³⁶but 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 ³⁷"The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light,

23 ³⁸but if ³⁹your 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 ⁴⁰"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 ⁴¹money.^[f]

Do Not Be Anxious

25 ⁴²"Therefore I tell you, ⁴³do 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 ⁴⁴Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. ⁴⁵Are you not of more value than they?

27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his ⁴⁶span of life?^[g]

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, ⁴⁷even 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, ⁴⁸O 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 ⁴⁹the Gentiles seek after all these things, and ⁵⁰your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.

33 But ⁵¹seek first ⁵²the kingdom of God and his righteousness, ⁵³and all these things will be added to you.

34 ⁵⁴"Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Matthew 6 Commentary

Chapter 6

Against hypocrisy in almsgiving. (1-4) Against hypocrisy in prayer. (5-8) How to pray. (9-15) Respecting fasting. (16-18) Evil of being worldly-minded. (19-24) Trust in God commended. (25-34)

Verses 1-4 Our Lord next warned against hypocrisy and outward show in religious duties. What we do, must be done from an inward principle, that we may be approved of God, not that we may be praised of men. In these verses we are cautioned against hypocrisy in giving alms. Take heed of it. It is a subtle sin; and vain-glory creeps into what we do, before we are aware. But the duty is not the less necessary and excellent for being abused by hypocrites to serve their pride. The doom Christ passes, at first may seem a promise, but it is their reward; not the reward God promises to those who do good, but the reward hypocrites promise themselves, and a poor reward it is; they did it to be seen of men, and they are seen of men. When we take least notice of our good deeds ourselves, God takes most notice of them. He will reward thee; not as a master who gives his servant what he earns, and no more, but as a Father who gives abundantly to his son that serves him.

Verses 5-8 It is taken for granted that all who are disciples of Christ pray. You may as soon find a living man that does not breathe, as a living Christian that does not pray. If prayerless, then graceless. The Scribes and Pharisees were guilty of two great faults in prayer, vain-glory and vain repetitions. "Verily they have their reward;" if in so great a matter as is between us and God, when we are at prayer, we can look to so poor a thing as the praise of men, it is just that it should be all our reward. Yet there is not a secret, sudden breathing after God, but he observes it. It is called a reward, but it is of grace, not of debt; what merit can there be in begging? If he does not give his people what they ask, it is because he knows they do not need it, and that it is not for their good. So far is God from being wrought upon by the length or words of our prayers, that the most powerful intercessions are those which are made with groanings that cannot be uttered. Let us well study what is shown of the frame of mind in which our prayers should be offered, and learn daily from Christ how to pray.

Verses 9-15 Christ saw it needful to show his disciples what must commonly be the matter and method of their prayer. Not that we are tied up to the use of this only, or of this always; yet, without doubt, it is very good to use it. It has much in a little; and it is used acceptably no further than it is used with understanding, and without being needlessly repeated. The petitions are six; the first three relate more expressly to God and his honour, the last three to our own concerns, both temporal and spiritual. This prayer teaches us to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and that all other things shall be added. After the things of God's glory, kingdom, and will, we pray for the needful supports and comforts of this present life. Every word here has a lesson in it. We ask for bread; that teaches us sobriety and temperance: and we ask only for bread; not for what we do not need. We ask for our bread; that teaches us honesty and industry: we do not ask for the bread of others, nor the bread of deceit, ( Proverbs 20:17 ) ; nor the bread of idleness, ( Proverbs 31:27 ) , but the bread honestly gotten. We ask for our daily bread; which teaches us constantly to depend upon Divine Providence. We beg of God to give it us; not sell it us, nor lend it us, but give it. The greatest of men must be beholden to the mercy of God for their daily bread. We pray, Give it to us. This teaches us a compassion for the poor. Also that we ought to pray with our families. We pray that God would give it us this day; which teaches us to renew the desires of our souls toward God, as the wants of our bodies are renewed. As the day comes we must pray to our heavenly Father, and reckon we could as well go a day without food, as without prayer. We are taught to hate and dread sin while we hope for mercy, to distrust ourselves, to rely on the providence and grace of God to keep us from it, to be prepared to resist the tempter, and not to become tempters of others. Here is a promise, If you forgive, your heavenly Father will also forgive. We must forgive, as we hope to be forgiven. Those who desire to find mercy with God, must show mercy to their brethren. Christ came into the world as the great Peace-maker, not only to reconcile us to God, but one to another.

Verses 16-18 Religious fasting is a duty required of the disciples of Christ, but it is not so much a duty itself, as a means to dispose us for other duties. Fasting is the humbling of the soul, ( Psalms 35:13 ) ; that is the inside of the duty; let that, therefore, be thy principal care, and as to the outside of it, covet not to let it be seen. God sees in secret, and will reward openly.

Verses 19-24 Worldly-mindedness is a common and fatal symptom of hypocrisy, for by no sin can Satan have a surer and faster hold of the soul, under the cloak of a profession of religion. Something the soul will have, which it looks upon as the best thing; in which it has pleasure and confidence above other things. Christ counsels to make our best things the joys and glories of the other world, those things not seen which are eternal, and to place our happiness in them. There are treasures in heaven. It is our wisdom to give all diligence to make our title to eternal life sure through Jesus Christ, and to look on all things here below, as not worthy to be compared with it, and to be content with nothing short of it. It is happiness above and beyond the changes and chances of time, an inheritance incorruptible. The worldly man is wrong in his first principle; therefore all his reasonings and actions therefrom must be wrong. It is equally to be applied to false religion; that which is deemed light is thick darkness. This is an awful, but a common case; we should therefore carefully examine our leading principles by the word of God, with earnest prayer for the teaching of his Spirit. A man may do some service to two masters, but he can devote himself to the service of no more than one. God requires the whole heart, and will not share it with the world. When two masters oppose each other, no man can serve both. He who holds to the world and loves it, must despise God; he who loves God, must give up the friendship of the world.

Verses 25-34 There is scarcely any sin against which our Lord Jesus more warns his disciples, than disquieting, distracting, distrustful cares about the things of this life. This often insnares the poor as much as the love of wealth does the rich. But there is a carefulness about temporal things which is a duty, though we must not carry these lawful cares too far. Take no thought for your life. Not about the length of it; but refer it to God to lengthen or shorten it as he pleases; our times are in his hand, and they are in a good hand. Not about the comforts of this life; but leave it to God to make it bitter or sweet as he pleases. Food and raiment God has promised, therefore we may expect them. Take no thought for the morrow, for the time to come. Be not anxious for the future, how you shall live next year, or when you are old, or what you shall leave behind you. As we must not boast of tomorrow, so we must not care for to-morrow, or the events of it. God has given us life, and has given us the body. And what can he not do for us, who did that? If we take care about our souls and for eternity, which are more than the body and its life, we may leave it to God to provide for us food and raiment, which are less. Improve this as an encouragement to trust in God. We must reconcile ourselves to our worldly estate, as we do to our stature. We cannot alter the disposals of Providence, therefore we must submit and resign ourselves to them. Thoughtfulness for our souls is the best cure of thoughtfulness for the world. Seek first the kingdom of God, and make religion your business: say not that this is the way to starve; no, it is the way to be well provided for, even in this world. The conclusion of the whole matter is, that it is the will and command of the Lord Jesus, that by daily prayers we may get strength to bear us up under our daily troubles, and to arm us against the temptations that attend them, and then let none of these things move us. Happy are those who take the Lord for their God, and make full proof of it by trusting themselves wholly to his wise disposal. Let thy Spirit convince us of sin in the want of this disposition, and take away the worldliness of our hearts.

Cross References

• 1. 1 John 2:29
• 2. ver. 16; Matthew 23:5
• 3. [1 Corinthians 13:3]
• 4. John 5:44
• 5. Luke 6:24
• 6. ver. 6, 18
• 7. Mark 11:25; Luke 18:11
• 8. ver. 2, 16
• 9. 2 Kings 4:33; Isaiah 26:20
• 10. ver. 4, 18
• 11. ver. 32; Matthew 5:47
• 12. 1 Kings 18:26
• 13. Proverbs 10:19; Ecclesiastes 5:2
• 14. ver. 32
• 15. For ver. 9-13, [Luke 11:2-4]
• 16. ver. 1
• 17. Isaiah 29:23; [Luke 1:49; 1 Peter 3:15]
• 18. John 17:6
• 19. [Matthew 3:2; Matthew 4:17]
• 20. Matthew 26:42; Luke 22:42; Acts 21:14; [Matthew 12:50; Hebrews 13:21]
• 21. Psalms 103:20, 21; Daniel 4:35
• 22. Proverbs 30:8
• 23. [ver. 34]
• 24. Matthew 26:41; Mark 14:38; Luke 22:40, 46; [1 Corinthians 10:13]
• 25. John 17:15; 2 Thessalonians 3:3; [2 Timothy 4:18]
• 26. See Matthew 13:19
• 27. Mark 11:25; Luke 6:37; Ephesians 4:32; Colossians 3:13
• 28. Matthew 18:35; See James 2:13
• 29. Isaiah 58:5
• 30. ver. 2, 5
• 31. Ruth 3:3; 2 Samuel 12:20
• 32. ver. 4, 6
• 33. Matthew 19:21; Luke 12:21, 33, 34; Luke 18:22; 1 Tim. 6:9, 10, 17-19; Hebrews 13:5
• 34. James 5:2, 3
• 35. Matthew 24:43
• 36. [See ver. 19 above]
• 37. Luke 11:34, 35
• 38. [See ver. 22 above]
• 39. Matthew 20:15; Deuteronomy 15:9; Proverbs 28:22
• 40. Luke 16:13; [Romans 6:16; James 4:4]
• 41. Luke 16:9, 11, 13
• 42. For ver. 25-33, see Luke 12:22-31
• 43. ver. 27, 28, 31, 34; Matthew 10:19; Matthew 13:22(Gk.); 1 Corinthians 7:32(Gk.); Philippians 4:6; 1 Peter 5:7
• 44. [Job 38:41; Psalms 147:9]
• 45. Matthew 10:31
• 46. Luke 2:52
• 47. 1 Kings 10:4-7
• 48. Matthew 8:26; Matthew 14:31; Matthew 16:8; [Matthew 17:20]
• 49. ver. 7
• 50. ver. 8
• 51. [Matthew 5:6, 20]
• 52. ver. 10
• 53. [1 Kings 3:11-14; Mark 10:29, 30; 1 Timothy 4:8; 1 Peter 3:9]
• 54. [James 4:13, 14]

Footnotes

• [a]. Or Let your name be kept holy, or Let your name be treated with reverence
• [b]. Or Let your kingdom come, let your will be done
• [c]. Or our bread for tomorrow
• [d]. Or the evil one; some manuscripts add For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen
• [e]. Or worm; also verse 20
• [f]. Greek mammon, a Semitic word for money or possessions
• [g]. Or a single cubit to his stature; a cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters