Matthew 6

Giving to the Poor and Prayer

1 "Beware of practicing your righteousness before men 1to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.
2 "So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they 2may be honored by men. 3Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.
3 "But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,
4 so that your giving will be in secret; and 4your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
5 "When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to 5stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners 6so that they may be seen by men. 7Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.
6 "But you, when you pray, 8go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and 9your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
7 "And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their 10many words.
8 "So do not be like them; for 11your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.
9 "12Pray, then, in this way: 'Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
10 '13Your kingdom come. 14Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.
11 '15Give us this day our daily bread.
12 'And 16forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 'And do not lead us into temptation, but 17deliver us from 18evil. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.']
14 "19For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
15 "But 20if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.

Fasting; The True Treasure; Wealth (Mammon)

16 "21Whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. 22Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.
17 "But you, when you fast, 23anoint your head and wash your face
18 so that your fasting will not be noticed by men, but by your Father who is in secret; and your 24Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
19 "25Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
20 "But store up for yourselves 26treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal;
21 for 27where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
22 "28The eye is the lamp of the body; so then if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light.
23 "But if 29your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!
24 "30No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot * serve God and 31wealth.

The Cure for Anxiety

25 "32For this reason I say to you, do not be 33worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?
26 "34Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?
27 "And who of you by being 35worried can 36add a single hour to his life?
28 "And why are you 37worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin,
29 yet I say to you that not even 38Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these.
30 "But if God so clothes the 39grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? 40You of little faith!
31 "Do not 41worry then, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear for clothing?'
32 "For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for 42your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
33 "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and 43all these things will be added to you.
34 "So do not 44worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Images for Matthew 6

Cross References 44

  • 1. Matthew 6:5, 16; Matthew 23:5
  • 2. Matthew 6:5, 16; Matthew 23:5
  • 3. Matthew 6:5, 16; Luke 6:24
  • 4. Jeremiah 17:10; Matthew 6:6, 18; Hebrews 4:13
  • 5. Mark 11:25; Luke 18:11, 13
  • 6. Matthew 6:1, 16
  • 7. Matthew 6:2, 16; Luke 6:24
  • 8. Isaiah 26:20; Matthew 26:36-39; Acts 9:40
  • 9. Matthew 6:4, 18
  • 10. 1 Kings 18:26
  • 11. Psalms 38:9; Psalms 69:17-19; Matthew 6:32; Luke 12:30
  • 12. Matthew 6:9-13: {Luke 11:2-4}
  • 13. Matthew 3:2; Matthew 4:17
  • 14. Matthew 26:42; Luke 22:42; Acts 21:14
  • 15. Proverbs 30:8; Isaiah 33:16; Luke 11:3
  • 16. Exodus 34:7; Psalms 32:1; Psalms 130:4; Matthew 9:2; Matthew 26:28; Ephesians 1:7; 1 John 1:7-9
  • 17. John 17:15; 1 Corinthians 10:13; 2 Thessalonians 3:3; 2 Timothy 4:18; 2 Peter 2:9; 1 John 5:18
  • 18. Matthew 5:37
  • 19. Matthew 7:2; Mark 11:25; Ephesians 4:32; Colossians 3:13
  • 20. Matthew 18:35
  • 21. Isaiah 58:5
  • 22. Matthew 6:2
  • 23. Ruth 3:3; 2 Samuel 12:20
  • 24. Matthew 6:4, 6
  • 25. Proverbs 23:4; Matthew 19:21; Luke 12:21, 33; Luke 18:22; 1 Timothy 6:9, 10; Hebrews 13:5; James 5:2
  • 26. Matthew 19:21; Luke 12:33; 1 Timothy 6:19
  • 27. Luke 12:34
  • 28. Matthew 6:22, 23: {Luke 11:34, 35}
  • 29. Matthew 20:15; Mark 7:22
  • 30. 1 Kings 18:21; Luke 16:13; Galatians 1:10; James 4:4
  • 31. Luke 16:9, 11, 13
  • 32. Matthew 6:25-33: {Luke 12:22-31}
  • 33. Matt 6:27, 28, 31, 34; Luke 10:41; Luke 12:11, 22; Philippians 4:6; 1 Peter 5:7
  • 34. Job 35:11; Job 38:41; Psalms 104:27, 28; Matthew 10:29f; Luke 12:24
  • 35. Matt 6:25, 28, 31, 34; Luke 10:41; Luke 12:11, 22; Philippians 4:6; 1 Peter 5:7
  • 36. Psalms 39:5
  • 37. Matt 6:25, 27, 31, 34; Luke 10:41; Luke 12:11, 22; Philippians 4:6; 1 Peter 5:7
  • 38. 1 Kings 10:4-7; 2 Chr 9:4-6, 20-22
  • 39. James 1:10, 11; 1 Peter 1:24
  • 40. Matthew 8:26; Matthew 14:31; Matthew 16:8
  • 41. Matt 6:25, 27, 28, 34; Luke 10:41; Luke 12:11, 22; Philippians 4:6; 1 Peter 5:7
  • 42. Matthew 6:8; Philippians 4:19
  • 43. Matthew 19:28; Mark 10:29; Luke 18:29; 1 Timothy 4:8
  • 44. Matt 6:25, 27, 28, 31; Luke 10:41; Luke 12:11, 22; Philippians 4:6; 1 Peter 5:7

Footnotes 23

  • [a]. Or "give alms"
  • [b]. Or "give alms"
  • [c]. Or "alms"
  • [d]. Lit "to be apparent to men"
  • [e]. Or "our bread for tomorrow"
  • [f]. Or "the evil one"
  • [g]. This clause not found in early mss
  • [h]. Gr "anthropoi"
  • [i]. Gr "anthropoi"
  • [j]. Lit "distort their faces", i.e. discolor their faces with makeup
  • [k]. Or "healthy;" or "sincere"
  • [l]. Or "evil"
  • [m]. Gr "mamonas," for Aram "mamon" (mammon); i.e. wealth, etc., personified as an object of worship
  • [n]. Or "stop being worried"
  • [o]. Lit "soul"
  • [p]. Lit "heaven"
  • [q]. Lit "cubit" (approx 18 in.)
  • [r]. Or "height"
  • [s]. Or "continually seek"
  • [t]. Or "the kingdom"
  • [u]. Or "provided"
  • [v]. Lit "worry about itself"
  • [w]. Lit "Sufficient for the day is its evils"

Matthew 6 Commentaries

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