Shared Word Translation
Matthew 6
Practicing Righteousness in Secret
Take care not to do your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you have no reward from your Father in the heavens.
On Almsgiving
So whenever you give alms, do not blow a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be in secret; and your Father, who sees in secret, will repay you.
On Prayer
And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the corners of the streets, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, shut the door, and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father, who sees in secret, will repay you. And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
Pray then in this way:
Our Father in the heavens,
hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And do not bring us into testing,
but deliver us from the evil one.
For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
On Fasting
And whenever you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites; for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father, who sees in secret, will repay you.
Treasures and the Heart
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
The eye is the lamp of the body. So if your eye is single, your whole body will be full of light; but if your eye is evil, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!
No one can serve two masters; for either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.
Anxiety and the Kingdom
Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to your life?
And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith?
Therefore do not be anxious, saying, “What shall we eat?” or “What shall we drink?” or “What shall we wear?” For the Gentiles seek all these things; and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. So do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Today’s trouble is enough for today.