Matthew 6

Jesus Teaches About Giving

1 “Be careful! When you do good things, don’t do them in front of people to be seen by them. If you do that, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.

2 
“When you give to the poor, don’t be like the hypocrites. They blow trumpets in the synagogues and on the streets so that people will see them and honor them. I tell you the truth, those hypocrites already have their full reward.3 So when you give to the poor, don’t let anyone know what you are doing.4 Your giving should be done in secret. Your Father can see what is done in secret, and he will reward you.

Jesus Teaches About Prayer

5 

“When you pray, don’t be like the hypocrites. They love to stand in the synagogues and on the street corners and pray so people will see them. I tell you the truth, they already have their full reward.6 When you pray, you should go into your room and close the door and pray to your Father who cannot be seen. Your Father can see what is done in secret, and he will reward you.

7 
“And when you pray, don’t be like those people who don’t know God. They continue saying things that mean nothing, thinking that God will hear them because of their many words.8 Don’t be like them, because your Father knows the things you need before you ask him.

9 So when you pray, you should pray like this:
‘Our Father in heaven,
may your name always be kept holy.10 May your kingdom comeand what you want be done,here on earth as it is in heaven.11 Give us the food we need for each day.12 Forgive us for our sins,just as we have forgiven those who sinned against us.13 And do not cause us to be tempted,but save us from the Evil One.’ [The kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours forever. Amen.]14 Yes, if you forgive others for their sins, your Father in heaven will also forgive you for your sins.15 But if you don’t forgive others, your Father in heaven will not forgive your sins.

Jesus Teaches About Worship

16 “When you fast, don’t put on a sad face like the hypocrites. They make their faces look sad to show people they are fasting. I tell you the truth, those hypocrites already have their full reward.17 So when you fast, comb your hair and wash your face.18 Then people will not know that you are fasting, but your Father, whom you cannot see, will see you. Your Father sees what is done in secret, and he will reward you.

God Is More Important than Money

19 “Don’t store treasures for yourselves here on earth where moths and rust will destroy them and thieves can break in and steal them.20 But store your treasures in heaven where they cannot be destroyed by moths or rust and where thieves cannot break in and steal them.21 Your heart will be where your treasure is.

22 
“The eye is a light for the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light.23 But if your eyes are evil, your whole body will be full of darkness. And if the only light you have is really darkness, then you have the worst darkness.

24 
“No one can serve two masters. The person will hate one master and love the other, or will follow one master and refuse to follow the other. You cannot serve both God and worldly riches.

Don’t Worry

25 

“So I tell you, don’t worry about the food or drink you need to live, or about the clothes you need for your body. Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothes.26 Look at the birds in the air. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, but your heavenly Father feeds them. And you know that you are worth much more than the birds.27 You cannot add any time to your life by worrying about it.

28 
“And why do you worry about clothes? Look at how the lilies in the field grow. They don’t work or make clothes for themselves.29 But I tell you that even Solomon with his riches was not dressed as beautifully as one of these flowers.30 God clothes the grass in the field, which is alive today but tomorrow is thrown into the fire. So you can be even more sure that God will clothe you. Don’t have so little faith!31 Don’t worry and say, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’32 The people who don’t know God keep trying to get these things, and your Father in heaven knows you need them.33 Seek first God’s kingdom and what God wants. Then all your other needs will be met as well.34 So don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will have its own worries. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Matthew 7

Be Careful About Judging Others

1 “Don’t judge others, or you will be judged.2 You will be judged in the same way that you judge others, and the amount you give to others will be given to you.

3 
“Why do you notice the little piece of dust in your friend’s eye, but you don’t notice the big piece of wood in your own eye?4 How can you say to your friend, ‘Let me take that little piece of dust out of your eye’? Look at yourself! You still have that big piece of wood in your own eye.5 You hypocrite! First, take the wood out of your own eye. Then you will see clearly to take the dust out of your friend’s eye.

6 
“Don’t give holy things to dogs, and don’t throw your pearls before pigs. Pigs will only trample on them, and dogs will turn to attack you.

Ask God for What You Need

7 

“Ask, and God will give to you. Search, and you will find. Knock, and the door will open for you.8 Yes, everyone who asks will receive. Everyone who searches will find. And everyone who knocks will have the door opened.

9 
“If your children ask for bread, which of you would give them a stone?10 Or if your children ask for a fish, would you give them a snake?11 Even though you are bad, you know how to give good gifts to your children. How much more your heavenly Father will give good things to those who ask him!

The Most Important Rule

12 “Do to others what you want them to do to you. This is the meaning of the law of Moses and the teaching of the prophets.

The Way to Heaven Is Hard

13 “Enter through the narrow gate. The gate is wide and the road is wide that leads to hell, and many people enter through that gate.14 But the gate is small and the road is narrow that leads to true life. Only a few people find that road.

People Know You by Your Actions

15 “Be careful of false prophets. They come to you looking gentle like sheep, but they are really dangerous like wolves.16 You will know these people by what they do. Grapes don’t come from thornbushes, and figs don’t come from thorny weeds.17 In the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree produces bad fruit.18 A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot produce good fruit.19 Every tree that does not produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.20 In the same way, you will know these false prophets by what they do.

21 
“Not all those who say ‘You are our Lord’ will enter the kingdom of heaven. The only people who will enter the kingdom of heaven are those who do what my Father in heaven wants.22 On the last day many people will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, we spoke for you, and through you we forced out demons and did many miracles.’23 Then I will tell them clearly, ‘Get away from me, you who do evil. I never knew you.’

Two Kinds of People

24 

“Everyone who hears my words and obeys them is like a wise man who built his house on rock.25 It rained hard, the floods came, and the winds blew and hit that house. But it did not fall, because it was built on rock.26 Everyone who hears my words and does not obey them is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.27 It rained hard, the floods came, and the winds blew and hit that house, and it fell with a big crash.”

28 
When Jesus finished saying these things, the people were amazed at his teaching,29 because he did not teach like their teachers of the law. He taught like a person who had authority.

Matthew 8

Jesus Heals a Sick Man

1 When Jesus came down from the hill, great crowds followed him.2 Then a man with a skin disease came to Jesus. The man bowed down before him and said, “Lord, you can heal me if you will.”

3 
Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man and said, “I will. Be healed!” And immediately the man was healed from his disease.4 Then Jesus said to him, “Don’t tell anyone about this. But go and show yourself to the priest and offer the gift Moses commanded for people who are made well. This will show the people what I have done.”

Jesus Heals a Soldier’s Servant

5 

When Jesus entered the city of Capernaum, an army officer came to him, begging for help.6 The officer said, “Lord, my servant is at home in bed. He can’t move his body and is in much pain.”

7 
Jesus said to the officer, “I will go and heal him.”

8 
The officer answered, “Lord, I am not worthy for you to come into my house. You only need to command it, and my servant will be healed.9 I, too, am a man under the authority of others, and I have soldiers under my command. I tell one soldier, ‘Go,’ and he goes. I tell another soldier, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and my servant does it.10 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed. He said to those who were following him, “I tell you the truth, this is the greatest faith I have found, even in Israel.11 Many people will come from the east and from the west and will sit and eat with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.12 But those people who should be in the kingdom will be thrown outside into the darkness, where people will cry and grind their teeth with pain.”13 Then Jesus said to the officer, “Go home. Your servant will be healed just as you believed he would.” And his servant was healed that same hour.

Jesus Heals Many People

14 When Jesus went to Peter’s house, he saw that Peter’s mother-in-law was sick in bed with a fever.15 Jesus touched her hand, and the fever left her. Then she stood up and began to serve Jesus.16 That evening people brought to Jesus many who had demons. Jesus spoke and the demons left them, and he healed all the sick.17 He did these things to bring about what Isaiah the prophet had said:“He took our suffering on himand carried our diseases.”

People Want to Follow Jesus

18 When Jesus saw the crowd around him, he told his followers to go to the other side of the lake.19 Then a teacher of the law came to Jesus and said, “Teacher, I will follow you any place you go.”

20 
Jesus said to him, “The foxes have holes to live in, and the birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to rest his head.”

21 
Another man, one of Jesus’ followers, said to him, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”

22 
But Jesus told him, “Follow me, and let the people who are dead bury their own dead.”

Jesus Calms a Storm

23 

Jesus got into a boat, and his followers went with him.24 A great storm arose on the lake so that waves covered the boat, but Jesus was sleeping.25 His followers went to him and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We will drown!”

26 
Jesus answered, “Why are you afraid? You don’t have enough faith.” Then Jesus got up and gave a command to the wind and the waves, and it became completely calm.

27 
The men were amazed and said, “What kind of man is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”

Jesus Heals Two Men with Demons

28 

When Jesus arrived at the other side of the lake in the area of the Gadarene people, two men who had demons in them met him. These men lived in the burial caves and were so dangerous that people could not use the road by those caves.29 They shouted, “What do you want with us, Son of God? Did you come here to torture us before the right time?”

30 
Near that place there was a large herd of pigs feeding.31 The demons begged Jesus, “If you make us leave these men, please send us into that herd of pigs.”

32 
Jesus said to them, “Go!” So the demons left the men and went into the pigs. Then the whole herd rushed down the hill into the lake and were drowned.33 The herdsmen ran away and went into town, where they told about all of this and what had happened to the men who had demons.34 Then the whole town went out to see Jesus. When they saw him, they begged him to leave their area.