English Standard Version ESV
New King James Version NKJV
1 Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.
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And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him.
2 And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
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Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:
3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
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"Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
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Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted.
5 “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
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Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth.
6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
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Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled.
7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
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Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy.
8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
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Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God.
9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
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Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God.
10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
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Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.
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"Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.
12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
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Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
13 “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.
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"You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.
14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
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You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.
15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.
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Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.
16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
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Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.
17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.
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"Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.
18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.
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For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.
19 Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
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Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
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For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.
21 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment. ’
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"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.'
22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool! ’ will be liable to the hell of fire.
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But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, 'Raca!' shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, 'You fool!' shall be in danger of hell fire.
23 So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you,
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Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you,
24 leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.
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leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.
25 Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison.
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Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him, lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison.
26 Truly, I say to you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.
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Assuredly, I say to you, you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny.
27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery. ’
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"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.'
28 But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
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But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
29 If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell.
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If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.
30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.
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And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.
31 “It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce. ’
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"Furthermore it has been said, 'Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.'
32 But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
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But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.
33 “Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn. ’
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"Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.'
34 But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God,
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But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God's throne;
35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.
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nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.
36 And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black.
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Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black.
37 Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.
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But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No.' For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.
38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. ’
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"You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.'
39 But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.
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But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.
40 And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well.
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If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also.
41 And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.
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And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two.
42 Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.
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Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away.
43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. ’
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"You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'
44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
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But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you,
45 so 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 sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
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that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?
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For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?
47 And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
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And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so?
48 You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
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Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®) © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved. ESV Text Edition: 2025
Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.