Chapter 5

The Sermon on the Mount; The Beatitudes

1 aWhen Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on bthe 1mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him.

2 aHe opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying,

3 “1aBlessed are the 2poor in spirit, for btheirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 “Blessed are athose who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

5 “Blessed are athe 1gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.

6 “Blessed are athose who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

7 “Blessed are athe merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

8 “Blessed are athe pure in heart, for bthey shall see God.

9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for athey shall be called sons of God.

10 “Blessed are those who have been apersecuted for the sake of righteousness, for btheirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 “Blessed are you when people ainsult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.

12 “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for ain the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Disciples and the World

13 “You are the salt of the earth; but aif the salt has become tasteless, how 1can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.

14 “You are athe light of the world. A city set on a 1hill cannot be hidden;

15 anor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a 1basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.

16 “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may asee your good works, and bglorify your Father who is in heaven.

17 “Do not think that I came to abolish the aLaw or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.

18 “For truly I say to you, auntil heaven and earth pass away, not 1the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.

19 “Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches 1others to do the same, shall be called least ain the kingdom of heaven; but whoever 2keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

20 “For I say to you that unless your arighteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.

Personal Relationships

21 “aYou have heard that 1the ancients were told, ‘bYou shall not commit murder’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be 2liable to cthe court.’

22 “But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be 1guilty before athe court; and whoever says to his brother, ‘2You good-for-nothing,’ shall be 1guilty before 3bthe supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be 1guilty enough to go into the 4cfiery hell.

23 “Therefore if you are apresenting your 1offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you,

24 leave your 1offering there before the altar and go; first be areconciled to your brother, and then come and present your 1offering.

25 “aMake friends quickly with your opponent at law while you are with him on the way, so that your opponent may not hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the officer, and you be thrown into prison.

26 “Truly I say to you, ayou will not come out of there until you have paid up the last 1cent.

27 “aYou have heard that it was said, ‘bYou shall not commit adultery’;

28 but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman awith lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

29 “aIf your right eye makes you 1stumble, tear it out and throw it from you; for it is better for you 2to lose one of the parts of your body, 3than for your whole body to be thrown into 4bhell.

30 “aIf your right hand makes you 1stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; for it is better for you 2to lose one of the parts of your body, 3than for your whole body to go into 4bhell.

31 “It was said, ‘aWhoever sends his wife away, let him give her a certificate of divorce’;

32 abut I say to you that everyone who 1divorces his wife, except for the reason of unchastity, makes her commit adultery; and whoever marries a 2divorced woman commits adultery.

33 “Again, ayou have heard that 1the ancients were told, ‘2bYou shall not 3make false vows, but shall fulfill your 4vows to the Lord.’

34 “But I say to you, amake no oath at all, either by heaven, for it is bthe throne of God,

35 or by the earth, for it is the afootstool of His feet, or 1by Jerusalem, for it is bthe city of the great King.

36 “Nor shall you make an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black.

37 “But let your statement be, ‘Yes, yes’ or ‘No, no’; anything beyond these is 1of aevil.

38 “aYou have heard that it was said, ‘bAn eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’

39 “But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but awhoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.

40 “If anyone wants to sue you and take your 1shirt, let him have your 2coat also.

41 “Whoever 1forces you to go one mile, go with him two.

42 “aGive to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you.

43 “aYou have heard that it was said, ‘bYou shall love your neighbor cand hate your enemy.’

44 “But I say to you, alove your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,

45 so that you may 1be asons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

46 “For aif you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?

47 “If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?

48 “Therefore 1ayou are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Chapter 6

Giving to the Poor and Prayer

1 “Beware of practicing your righteousness before men ato be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.

2 “So when you 1give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they amay be honored by men. bTruly I say to you, they have their reward in full.

3 “But when you 1give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,

4 so that your 1giving will be in secret; and ayour 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 astand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners 1bso that they may be seen by men. cTruly I say to you, they have their reward in full.

6 “But you, when you pray, ago into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and byour 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 amany words.

8 “So do not be like them; for ayour Father knows what you need before you ask Him.

9 “aPray, then, in this way:

‘Our Father who is in heaven,

Hallowed be Your name.

10 ‘aYour kingdom come.

bYour will be done,

On earth as it is in heaven.

11 ‘aGive us this day 1our daily bread.

12 ‘And aforgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

13 ‘And do not lead us into temptation, but adeliver us from 1bevil. 2[For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.]’

14 “aFor if you forgive 1others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

15 “But aif you do not forgive 1others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.

Fasting; The True Treasure; Wealth (Mammon)

16 “aWhenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they 1neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. bTruly I say to you, they have their reward in full.

17 “But you, when you fast, aanoint 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 aFather who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

19 “aDo 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 atreasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal;

21 for awhere your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

22 “aThe eye is the lamp of the body; so then if your eye is 1clear, your whole body will be full of light.

23 “But if ayour eye is 1bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!

24 “aNo 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 1bwealth.

The Cure for Anxiety

25 “aFor this reason I say to you, 1do not be bworried about your 2life, 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 “aLook at the birds of the 1air, 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 aworried can badd a single 1hour to his 2life?

28 “And why are you aworried 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 aSolomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these.

30 “But if God so clothes the agrass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? bYou of little faith!

31 “Do not aworry 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 ayour heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.

33 “But 1seek first 2His kingdom and His righteousness, and aall these things will be 3added to you.

34 “So do not aworry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will 1care for itself. 2Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Chapter 7

Judging Others

1 “aDo not judge so that you will not be judged.

2 “For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and 1aby your standard of measure, it will be measured to you.

3 “Why do you alook at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?

4 “aOr how 1can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and behold, the log is in your own eye?

5 “You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.

6 “aDo not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.

Prayer and the Golden Rule

7 “1aAsk, and bit will be given to you; 2seek, and you will find; 3knock, and it will be opened to you.

8 “For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.

9 “Or what man is there among you 1who, when his son asks for a loaf, 2will give him a stone?

10 “Or 1if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he?

11 “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, ahow much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!

12 “In everything, atherefore, 1treat people the same way you want 2them to treat you, for bthis is the Law and the Prophets.

The Narrow and Wide Gates

13 “aEnter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it.

14 “For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.

A Tree and Its Fruit

15 “Beware of the afalse prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are bravenous wolves.

16 “You will 1aknow them by their fruits. 2Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they?

17 “So aevery good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit.

18 “A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit.

19 “aEvery tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

20 “So then, you will 1know them aby their fruits.

21 “aNot everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.

22 “aMany will say to Me on bthat day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many 1miracles?’

23 “And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; adepart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’

The Two Foundations

24 “Therefore aeveryone who hears these words of Mine and 1acts on them, 2may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock.

25 “And the rain fell, and the 1floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock.

26 “Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not 1act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.

27 “The rain fell, and the 1floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.”

28 1aWhen Jesus had finished these words, bthe crowds were amazed at His teaching;

29 for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.

Chapter 8

1 When 1Jesus came down from the mountain, 2large crowds followed Him.

2 And aa leper came to Him and 1bbowed down before Him, and said, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.”

3 Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” And immediately his aleprosy was cleansed.

4 And Jesus * said to him, “aSee that you tell no one; but bgo, cshow yourself to the priest and present the 1offering that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”

5 And awhen 1Jesus entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, imploring Him,

6 and saying, “1Lord, my 2servant is 3lying aparalyzed at home, fearfully tormented.”

7 Jesus * said to him, “I will come and heal him.”

8 But the centurion said, “1Lord, I am not worthy for You to come under my roof, but just 2say the word, and my 3servant will be healed.

9 “For I also am a man under aauthority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, ‘Go!’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come!’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this!’ and he does it.”

10 Now when Jesus heard this, He marveled and said to those who were following, “Truly I say to you, I have not found such great faith 1with anyone in Israel.

11 “I say to you that many awill come from east and west, and 1recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven;

12 but athe sons of the kingdom will be cast out into bthe outer darkness; in that place cthere will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

13 And Jesus said to the centurion, “Go; 1it shall be done for you aas you have believed.” And the 2servant was healed that very 3moment.

Peter’s Mother-in-law and Many Others Healed

14 aWhen Jesus came into Peter’s 1home, He saw his mother-in-law lying sick in bed with a fever.

15 He touched her hand, and the fever left her; and she got up and 1waited on Him.

16 When evening came, they brought to Him many awho were demon-possessed; and He cast out the spirits with a word, and bhealed all who were ill.

17 This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet: “aHe Himself took our infirmities and 1carried away our diseases.”

Discipleship Tested

18 Now when Jesus saw a crowd around Him, aHe gave orders to depart to the other side of the sea.

19 aThen a scribe came and said to Him, “Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go.”

20 Jesus * said to him, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the 1air have 2nests, but athe Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”

21 Another of the disciples said to Him, “Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father.”

22 But Jesus * said to him, “aFollow Me, and allow the dead to bury their own dead.”

23 aWhen He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him.

24 And behold, there arose 1a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being covered with the waves; but Jesus Himself was asleep.

25 And they came to Him and woke Him, saying, “aSave us, Lord; we are perishing!”

26 He * said to them, “Why are you 1afraid, ayou men of little faith?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and 2it became perfectly calm.

27 The men were amazed, and said, “What kind of a man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”

Jesus Casts Out Demons

28 aWhen He came to the other side into the country of the Gadarenes, two men who were bdemon-possessed met Him as they were coming out of the tombs. They were so extremely violent that no one could pass by that way.

29 And they cried out, saying, “1aWhat business do we have with each other, Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before 2the time?”

30 Now there was a herd of many swine feeding at a distance from them.

31 The demons began to entreat Him, saying, “If You are going to cast us out, send us into the herd of swine.”

32 And He said to them, “Go!” And they came out and went into the swine, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and perished in the waters.

33 The herdsmen ran away, and went to the city and reported everything, 1including what had happened to the ademoniacs.

34 And behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus; and when they saw Him, athey implored Him to leave their region.

Chapter 9

A Paralytic Healed

1 Getting into a boat, Jesus crossed over the sea and came to aHis own city.

2 aAnd they brought to Him a bparalytic lying on a bed. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralytic, “cTake courage, 1son; dyour sins are forgiven.”

3 And some of the scribes said 1to themselves, “This fellow ablasphemes.”

4 And Jesus aknowing their thoughts said, “Why are you thinking evil in your hearts?

5 “Which is easier, to say, ‘aYour sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, and walk’?

6 “But so that you may know that athe Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—then He * said to the bparalytic, “Get up, pick up your bed and go home.”

7 And he got up and 1went home.

8 But when the crowds saw this, they were 1awestruck, and aglorified God, who had given such authority to men.

Matthew Called

9 aAs Jesus went on from there, He saw a man called bMatthew, sitting in the tax collector’s booth; and He * said to him, “cFollow Me!” And he got up and followed Him.

10 Then it happened that as 1Jesus was reclining at the table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and 2sinners came and were dining with Jesus and His disciples.

11 When the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, “aWhy is your Teacher eating with the tax collectors and sinners?”

12 But when Jesus heard this, He said, “It is not athose who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick.

13 “But go and learn 1awhat this means: ‘bI desire 2compassion, 3and not sacrifice,’ for cI did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

The Question about Fasting

14 Then the disciples of John * came to Him, asking, “Why do we and athe Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?”

15 And Jesus said to them, “The 1attendants of the bridegroom cannot mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them, can they? But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.

16 “But no one puts 1a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for 2the patch pulls away from the garment, and a worse tear results.

17 “Nor do people put new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wineskins burst, and the wine pours out and the wineskins are ruined; but they put new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved.”

Miracles of Healing

18 aWhile He was saying these things to them, 1a synagogue 2official came and 3bbowed down before Him, and said, “My daughter has just died; but come and lay Your hand on her, and she will live.”

19 Jesus got up and began to follow him, and so did His disciples.

20 And a woman who had been suffering from a hemorrhage for twelve years, came up behind Him and touched athe 1fringe of His 2cloak;

21 for she was saying 1to herself, “If I only atouch His garment, I will 2get well.”

22 But Jesus turning and seeing her said, “Daughter, atake courage; byour faith has 1made you well.” 2At once the woman was 3made well.

23 When Jesus came into the 1official’s house, and saw athe flute-players and the crowd in noisy disorder,

24 He said, “Leave; for the girl ahas not died, but is asleep.” And they began laughing at Him.

25 But awhen the crowd had been sent out, He entered and btook her by the hand, and the girl 1got up.

26 aThis news spread throughout all that land.

27 As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed Him, crying out, “Have mercy on us, aSon of David!”

28 When He entered the house, the blind men came up to Him, and Jesus * said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They * said to Him, “Yes, Lord.”

29 Then He touched their eyes, saying, “1It shall be done to you aaccording to your faith.”

30 And their eyes were opened. And Jesus asternly warned them: “See that no one knows about this!”

31 But they went out and aspread the news about Him throughout all that land.

32 As they were going out, aa mute, bdemon-possessed man 1was brought to Him.

33 After the demon was cast out, the mute man spoke; and the crowds were amazed, and were saying, “aNothing like this has 1ever been seen in Israel.”

34 But the Pharisees were saying, “He acasts out the demons by the ruler of the demons.”

35 Jesus was going through all the cities and villages, ateaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness.

36 aSeeing the 1people, He felt compassion for them, bbecause they were 2distressed and 3dispirited like sheep 4without a shepherd.

37 Then He * said to His disciples, “aThe harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.

38 “Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.”