Matthew Six
Be careful concerning your alms, not to
do them in the presence of men, merely
that they may see them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father in heaven. Therefore when you give alms, do not blow
a trumpet before you, just as the hypocrites
do in the synagogues and in the market
places, so that they may be glorified by men.
Truly I say to you, that they have already
received their reward. But when you give alms, let not your left
hand know what your right hand is doing; So that your alms may be done secretly,
and your Father who sees in secret, shall himself
reward you openly.
¶ And when you pray, do not be like the
hypocrites, who like to pray, standing in the
synagogues and at the street corners, so that
they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you,
that they have already received their reward. But you, when you pray, enter into your
inner chamber, and lock your door, and pray
to your Father who is in secret, and your
Father who sees in secret he himself shall
reward you openly. And when you pray, do not repeat your
words like the pagans, for they think that
because of much talking they will be heard. Therefore, do not be like them, for your
Father knows what you need, before you ask
him.
¶ Therefore pray in this manner: Our Father
in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done,
as in heaven so on earth. Give us bread for our needs from day to
day. And forgive us our offences, as we have
forgiven our offenders; And do not let us enter into temptation,
but deliver us from error. Because thine is
the kingdom and the power and the glory
for ever and ever. Amen. For if you forgive men their faults, your
Father in heaven will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men, neither
will your Father forgive even your faults.
¶ When you fast, do not look sad like the
hypocrites; for they disfigure their faces, so
that they may appear to men that they are
fasting. Truly I say to you, that they have
already received their reward. But you, when you fast, wash your face
and anoint your head; So that it may not appear to men that you
are fasting, but to your Father who is in secret;
and your Father who sees in secret, he
will reward you.
¶ Do not lay up for yourselves treasures
buried in the ground, a place where rust and
moth destroy, and where thieves break
through and steal. But lay up for yourselves a treasure in
heaven, where neither rust nor moth destroy,
and where thieves do not break through and
steal. For where your treasure is, there also is
your heart. The eye is the lamp of the body; if therefore
your eye be clear, your whole body is
also lighted. But if your eye is diseased, your whole
body will be dark. If therefore the light that
is in you is darkness, how much more will
be your darkness.
¶ No man can serve two masters; for either
he will hate the one, and like the other;
or he will honor one, and despise the other.
You cannot serve God and mammon
(wealth). For this reason, I say to you, Do not worry
for your life, what you will eat, and what
you will drink, nor for your body, what you
will wear. Behold, is not life much more
important than food, and the body than clothing? Watch the birds of the sky, for they do
not sow, neither do they harvest, nor gather
into barns, and yet your Father in heaven
feeds them. Are you not much more important
than they? Who is among you who by worrying can
add one cubit to his stature? Why do you worry about clothing? Observe
the wild flowers, how they grow; they
do not get tired out, nor do they spin. But I say to you, that not even Solomon
with all of his glory was covered like one of
them. Now if God clothes in such fashion the
grass of the field, which today is and tomorrow
falls into the fireplace, is he not much
more to you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not worry or say, What will
we eat, or what will we drink, or with what
will we be clothed? For worldly people seek after all these
things. Your Father in heaven knows that all
of these things are also necessary for you. But you seek first the kingdom of God
and his righteousness, and all of these things
shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry for tomorrow;
for tomorrow will look after its own. Sufficient
for each day, is its own trouble.
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