And seeing the crowds, he went up into the mountain and when he had sat down his disciples came to him. And having opened his mouth he taught them saying,
“Blessed the poor in spirit for the kingdom of heaven is theirs; blessed they who mourn for they will be comforted; blessed the meek for they will inherit the earth; blessed they who are hungry and thirsty for righteousness, for they will be filled; blessed the merciful for they will receive mercy; blessed the clean in heart for they will see God; blessed the peacemakers for they will be called sons of God; blessed they who have been persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven; blessed are you when they will reproach you, and will persecute and, lying, will say every wicked word against you on account of me. Rejoice and be very glad; for your reward is great in heaven, for thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
“You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt becomes tasteless, with what will it be salted? It is good for nothing any longer, except to be thrown out and trampled on by men. You are the light of the world. A city situated on a mountain can’t be hidden, nor do they light a lamp and put it under the corn measure, but on the lampstand and it gives light to all the ones in the house. So let your light shine before men that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
“Don’t think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets: I haven’t come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I’m telling you until the heaven and the earth pass away not one jot or one tittle at all will pass from the law, until all comes to pass. Whoever then will break one of the least of these comandments and teach men thus, will be called least in the kingdom of heaven: but whoever will practise and teach them, this one will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I’m telling you that unless your righteousness abounds more than the scribes’ and the Pharisees’ you will definitely not enter the kingdom of heaven.
“You’ve heard that it was said to them of old time, ‘you shall not commit murder’ and ‘whoever commits murder will be liable to judgement’. I, however, am telling you that everyone who is angry with his brother without purpose, will be liable to judgement; and whoever says to his brother ‘Raka!’ will be liable to the Sanhedrin: but whoever says ‘Moron!’ will be liable to the hell of fire. If, therefore, you offer your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar, and go away. First be reconciled to your brother and then, having come, offer your gift. Agree with your opponent at law quickly while you are on the road with him, in case the opponent at law hands you over to the judge, and the judge hands you over to the legal oficer, and you are sent to prison. Truly I’m telling you, you will definitely not come out from there until you pay the last fraction of a penny.
“You have heard that it was said to them of old time, ‘You shall not commit adultery’ but I’m telling you that everyone that looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. And if your right eye causes you to offend, pluck it out and throw it away from you, for it is profitable for you that one of your members should perish rather than your whole body be cast into hell. And if your right hand causes you to offend, cut it off and throw it away from you: for it is profitable for you that one of your members should perish rather than your whole body be cast into hell.
“It was also said that whoever sends away his wife let him give her a divorce, but I’m telling you that whoever sends away his wife, except because of fornication, causes her to commit adultery and whoever marries her who has been sent away commits adultery.
“Again, you’ve heard that it was said to them of old time, ‘You shall not perjure yourself but shall discharge your oaths to the Lord’, but I’m telling you not to swear at all, neither by heaven, because it is God’s throne; nor by the earth, because it is the footstool of his feet; nor by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King. Nor shall you swear by your head, because you are unable to make one hair white or black. But let your word be yes, yes, no, no, and what is more than these is from evil.
“You’ve heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth’ but I’m telling you don’t resist evil, but whoever strikes you on your right cheek, turn to him also the other; and to him who would take you to court and take away your coat, let him have your overcoat too. And whoever forces you to go one mile, go with him two. To him who asks of you, give. And you shall not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you.
“You’ve heard that it was said ‘You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ But I’m telling you: love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who falsely accuse you and persecute you; so that you may be sons of your Father, who is in heaven, for he makes the sun rise on evil and good, and sends rain on just and unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Don’t the tax-collectors also do the same? And if you greet your brethren only, what are you doing out of the ordinary? Don’t the tax-collectors do this too? Be perfect therefore, even as your Father, who is in heaven, is perfect.
“Be careful not to do your alms in front of men, so as to be seen by them, otherwise you have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. Therefore when you do alms, don’t blow a trumpet in front of you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may have glory from men: truly I’m telling you, they have their reward. But you, doing alms, don’t 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, himself will reward you openly. And when you pray, don’t be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets so that they may be obvious to men. Truly I’m telling you that they have their reward. But you, when you pray, go into your secret place, and having shut your door, pray to your Father in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. But when you pray don’t babble emptily like the pagans, for they think that because of their much speaking they will be heard. So don’t be like them, for your Father knows what things you need before you ask him. So pray thus: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, may your name be sanctified, may your kingdom come, may your will be done as in heaven also on earth. Give us today the bread necessary for us, and forgive us our debts, as also we forgive our debtors. And don’t lead us into temptation but deliver us from evil. For yours is the kingdom, and the power and the glory for ever, in truth.’
“For if you forgive people their offences, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: but if you don’t forgive people their offences, neither will your Father forgive your offences.
“And when you fast don’t be like the hypocrites - with a sad face - for they mar their faces so that they make their fasting obvious to men. Truly I’m telling you that they have their reward. But you, when you fast, anoint your head, and wash your face so that you may not appear to men to fast, but to your Father in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. Don’t store up for yourselves treasures on the earth, where moth and rust do damage, and where thieves break through and steal: but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust cause damage and where thieves don’t break through nor steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be too. The body’s lamp is the eye. If therefore your eye is sound your whole body will be bright. But if your eye is evil your whole body will be dark. If therefore the light in you is darkness, how great the darkness!
“No one can serve two masters, for either he’ll hate the one and love the other, or he’ll hold to one and despise the other. You can’t serve God and mammon! Because of this I’m telling you, don’t be anxious as to yourself, what you’re going to eat and what you’re going to drink, nor as to your body, what you’re going to put on. Isn’t the soul more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the sky that they don’t sow, nor do they reap, nor do they gather into storehouses, and your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you much better than them? And which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his height. And why are you worried about clothes? Look at the lilies of the field, how they grow: they don’t toil, nor do they spin, but I’m telling you that not even Solomon in all his glory was clothed as one of these. So if God thus clothes the plants of the field which are today, and tomorrow are thrown into a furnace, won’t he much more rather you, oh you of little faith? Therefore don’t be anxious, saying ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘With what will we be clothed?’ For the pagans seek after all these things, for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But look first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. So don’t be anxious about the morrow, for the morrow will be anxious about the things of itself. Enough for the day is its evil.
“Don’t judge, so that you aren’t judged, for with what judgement you judge, you’ll be judged, and with what scale you measure, it’ll be measured again to you. And why do you see the twig that is in your brother’s eye but you do not see the beam that is in your own eye? Or how will you say to your brother ‘Let me pull out the twig from your eye’ - and look at the beam in your own eye? Hypocrite! First cast the beam out of your eye, and then you’ll see clearly to take out the twig from the eye of your brother.
“Don’t give holy things to the dogs, nor throw your pearls in front of the pigs, in case they trample on them with their feet and, having turned, tear you apart.
“Ask, and it’ll be given you, seek and you’ll find, knock and it’ll be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it’ll be opened. Or what man is there of you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? And if he asks for a fish will give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know to give good gifts to your children, how much more your Father in heaven will give good things to those who ask him?
“All things therefore, whatever you wish that people should do to you, so also do you to them, for this is the law and the prophets.
“Enter through the narrow gate, for wide the gate and broad the way that leads to destruction and they who enter through it are many, for narrow and staitened the way that leads to life and they who find it are few. But beware of the false prophets that come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inside are rapacious wolves. From their fruits you’ll know them. Do men gather grapes from thorns, or figs from thistles? So every good tree produces good fruit, but the rotten tree produces evil fruit. A good tree can’t produce evil fruit, nor a rotten tree produce good fruit. Every tree not producing good fruit is cut down and thrown into a fire. Then surely from their fruits you’ll know them.
“Not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord!’ will enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and in your name do many powerful works?’ And then I’ll confess to them, ‘I never knew you: depart from me you who do evil!’
“So everyone who hears these words of mine and does them, I’ll liken him to a sensible man, who built his house on the rock, and the rain came down, and the torrents came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it didn’t fall because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and doesn’t do them, will be likened to a foolish man who built his house on the sand, and the rain came down, and the torrents came, and the winds blew and beat on that house and it fell, and its fall was great.”
And it happened that when Jesus had finished these words the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as having authority and not like the scribes.
