Matthew 5:33-48

Oaths

33 “Again ¹you have heard that it was said to those of old, ²‘You shall not swear falsely, but ³shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn. ’

34 But I say to you, ⁴Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for ⁵it is the throne of God,

35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is ⁶the 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’; ⁷anything more than this comes from evil. ^[a]

Retaliation

38 ⁸“You have heard that it was said, ⁹‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. ’

39 But I say to you, ¹⁰Do not resist the one who is evil. But ¹¹if anyone ¹²slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.

40 And ¹³if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, ^[b] let him have your cloak as well.

41 And if anyone ¹⁴forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.

42 ¹⁵Give to the one who begs from you, and ¹⁶do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.

Love Your Enemies

43 ¹⁷“You have heard that it was said, ¹⁸‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. ’

44 But I say to you, ¹⁹Love your enemies and ²⁰pray for those who persecute you,

45 ²¹so 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 ²²sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

46 ²³For 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 ²⁴the Gentiles do the same?

48 ²⁵You therefore must be ²⁶perfect, ²⁷as your heavenly Father is perfect.