Verse (Click for Chapter) New International Version “When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. New Living Translation “And when you fast, don’t make it obvious, as the hypocrites do, for they try to look miserable and disheveled so people will admire them for their fasting. I tell you the truth, that is the only reward they will ever get. English Standard Version “And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. Berean Standard Bible When you fast, do not be somber like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they already have their full reward. Berean Literal Bible And whenever you fast, do not be downcast in countenance like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so that they might appear to men as fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their recompense. King James Bible Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. New King James Version “Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. New American Standard Bible “Now whenever you fast, do not make a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they distort their faces so that they will be noticed by people when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. NASB 1995 “Whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. NASB 1977 “And whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance in order to be seen fasting by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. Legacy Standard Bible “Now whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. Amplified Bible “And whenever you are fasting, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they put on a sad and dismal face [like actors, discoloring their faces with ashes or dirt] so that their fasting may be seen by men. I assure you and most solemnly say to you, they [already] have their reward in full. Christian Standard Bible “Whenever you fast, don’t be gloomy like the hypocrites. For they disfigure their faces so that their fasting is obvious to people. Truly I tell you, they have their reward. Holman Christian Standard Bible “Whenever you fast, don’t be sad-faced like the hypocrites. For they make their faces unattractive so their fasting is obvious to people. I assure you: They’ve got their reward! American Standard Version Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may be seen of men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have received their reward. Aramaic Bible in Plain English And when you are fasting, do not be gloomy like the pretenders, for they disfigure their faces, so that they may appear to the children of men to fast, and truly I say to you, that they have received their reward. Contemporary English Version When you go without eating, don't try to look gloomy as those show-offs do when they go without eating. I can assure you that they already have their reward. Douay-Rheims Bible And when you fast, be not as the hypocrites, sad. For they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Amen I say to you, they have received their reward. English Revised Version Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may be seen of men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have received their reward. GOD'S WORD® Translation "When you fast, stop looking sad like hypocrites. They put on sad faces to make it obvious that they're fasting. I can guarantee this truth: That will be their only reward. Good News Translation "And when you fast, do not put on a sad face as the hypocrites do. They neglect their appearance so that everyone will see that they are fasting. I assure you, they have already been paid in full. International Standard Version "Whenever you fast, don't be gloomy like the hypocrites, because they put on sad faces to show others they are fasting. I tell all of you with certainty, they have their full reward! Literal Standard Version And when you may fast, do not be as the hypocrites, of sour countenances, for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear to men fasting; truly I say to you that they have their reward. Majority Standard Bible When you fast, do not be somber like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they already have their full reward. New American Bible “When you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites. They neglect their appearance, so that they may appear to others to be fasting. Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward. NET Bible "When you fast, do not look sullen like the hypocrites, for they make their faces unattractive so that people will see them fasting. I tell you the truth, they have their reward. New Revised Standard Version “And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, 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. New Heart English Bible "Moreover when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with sad faces. For they disfigure their faces, that they may be seen by people to be fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. Webster's Bible Translation Moreover, when ye fast, be not as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear to men to fast. Verily, I say to you, they have their reward. Weymouth New Testament "When any of you fast, never assume gloomy looks as the hypocrites do; for they disfigure their faces in order that it may be evident to men that they are fasting. I solemnly tell you that they already have their reward. World English Bible “Moreover when you fast, don’t be like the hypocrites, with sad faces. For they disfigure their faces that they may be seen by men to be fasting. Most certainly I tell you, they have received their reward. Young's Literal Translation 'And when ye may fast, be ye not as the hypocrites, of sour countenances, for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear to men fasting; verily I say to you, that they have their reward. Additional Translations ... Audio Bible Context Proper Fasting15But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive yours. 16 When you fast, do not be somber like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they already have their full reward. 17But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face,… Cross References Isaiah 58:5 Is this the fast I have chosen: a day for a man to deny himself, to bow his head like a reed, and to spread out sackcloth and ashes? Will you call this a fast and a day acceptable to the LORD? Matthew 6:1 "Be careful not to perform your righteous acts before men to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. Matthew 6:2 So when you give to the needy, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. Truly I tell you, they already have their full reward. Matthew 6:5 And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. Truly I tell you, they already have their full reward. Treasury of Scripture Moreover when you fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear to men to fast. Truly I say to you, They have their reward. when. Matthew 9:14,15 Then came to him the disciples of John, saying, Why do we and the Pharisees fast oft, but thy disciples fast not? … 2 Samuel 12:16,21 David therefore besought God for the child; and David fasted, and went in, and lay all night upon the earth… Nehemiah 1:4 And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven, be. Matthew 6:2,5 Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward… 1 Kings 21:27 And it came to pass, when Ahab heard those words, that he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softly. Isaiah 58:3-5 Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labours… Jump to Previous Already Appear Appearance Assume Changed Countenance Countenances Disfigure Downcast Evident Face Faces False-Hearted Fast Fasting Food Full Gloomy Hypocrites Looks Moreover Neglect Noticed Order Received Reward Sad Show Solemnly Sour Truth Verily WheneverJump to Next Already Appear Appearance Assume Changed Countenance Countenances Disfigure Downcast Evident Face Faces False-Hearted Fast Fasting Food Full Gloomy Hypocrites Looks Moreover Neglect Noticed Order Received Reward Sad Show Solemnly Sour Truth Verily WheneverMatthew 6 1. Giving to the Needy5. The Lord's Prayer 16. Proper Fasting 19. Store up Treasures in Heaven 25. Do Not Worry 33. but seek God's kingdom. (16) When ye fast.--Fasting had risen under the teaching of the Pharisees into a new prominence. Under the Law there had been but the one great fast of the Day of Atonement, on which men were "to afflict their souls" (Leviticus 23:27; Numbers 29:7) and practice had interpreted that phrase as meaning total abstinence from food. Other fasts were occasional, in times of distress or penitence, as in Joel 1:14; Joel 2:15; or as part of a policy affecting to be religious zeal (1Kings 21:9; 1Kings 21:12); or as the expression of personal sorrow (1Samuel 20:34; 2Samuel 12:16; Ezra 10:6; Nehemiah 1:4; et al.). These were observed with an ostentatious show of affliction which called forth the indignant sarcasm of the prophets (Isaiah 58:5). The "sackcloth" took the place of the usual raiment, "ashes" on the head, of the usual unguents (Nehemiah 9:1; Psalm 35:13). The tradition of the Pharisees starting from the true principle that fasting was one way of attaining self-control, and that as a discipline it was effectual in proportion as it was systematic, fixed on the fasts "twice in the week," specified in the prayer of the Pharisee (Luke 18:12); and the second and fifth days of the week were fixed, and connected with some vague idea that Moses went up Mount Sinai on the one, and descended on the other. Our Lord, we may note, does not blame the principle, or even the rule, on which the Pharisees acted. He recognises fasting, as He recognises almsgiving and prayer, and is content to warn His disciples against the ostentation that vitiates all three, the secret self-satisfaction under the mask of contrition, the "pride that apes humility." The very words, "when thou fastest" contain an implied command. . . . Verses 16-18. - Matthew only. Verse 16. - Fasting. The third in the series of recognized religious duties (ver. 1, note). (On the prominence given to fasting, see 'Psalms of Solomon,' 3:9, with Ryle's and James's note, and Schurer, II. 2:118; cf. Matthew 9:14.) Observe (1) Christ does not abolish it, but regulates it; (2) yet fasting is mentioned much less often in the true text of the New Testament than in that which, developed contemporaneously with eccle-siasticism, became the Received Text. Be not as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance. The Revised Version, by inserting a comma between "not" and "as," shows that the true emphasis of the warning lies, not on resemblance to the hypocrites themselves, but on being of a sad countenance, as in fact also the hypocrites were. The hypocrites (ver. 2, note; cf. also 'Didache,' § 8, "But let not your fasts be with the hypocrites," where, however, the thought is rather of hypocrites as representing the Pharisaic, the typically Jewish party). The early Jewish Christians are bidden in the 'Didache' to avoid the fasting-days chosen by the Jews. Be not. Our Lord does not forbid even this sad countenance if it be, so to speak, natural; but do not, because you fast, therefore purposely become so (μὴ γίνεσθε), i.e. in sign of your supposed sorrow for sin (cf. Ecclus. 19:26). Of a sad countenance (σκυθρωποί); gloomy, especially- in knitting the brows. In Daniel 1:10 (Thee-dotion) used of merely physically bad looks (cf. 'Test. XII. Patr.,' § 4, of the look of a man whose liver is out of order). In the New Testament elsewhere only Luke 24:17, "And they stood still, looking sad," Revised Version (cf. Genesis 40:7; Ecclus. 25:23). For they disfigure. The play on the words (ἀφανίζουσιν. . . ὅπως φανῶσιν, hardly to be reproduced in English," They disfigure... that they may figure before men as fasting") points to the 'Gospel having been originally composed in Greek (see Introduction, p. 13.). It is curious that ἀφανίζω comes elsewhere in Matthew only in vers. 19, 20, while in the whole of the New Testament it only comes twice besides: Acts 13:41 (from the LXX.) and James 4:14 (ἀφανισμός, Hebrews 8:13). As ver. 19 is peculiar to Matthew, and ver. 20 is a corollary to it though in part found also in Luke 12:33, the whole passage vers. 16-20 is probably either due to the author of the First Gospel or else derived by him from some one source. In this connexion it may be noticed that κρυφαῖος comes in the New Testament only in ver. 18 (twice). Physical disfigurement, common in many nations as a sign of grief, such as tearing or marking the flesh, is not to be thought of, since this was forbidden (Leviticus 19:28; Deuteronomy 14:1). Ἀφανίζειν, too, has no such connotation, but rather hiding out of sight, hence causing to vanish, destroy (ver. 19); here, in the sense of giving a strange, unpleasant appearance, e.g. by ashes, or by not washing, or even by covering part of the face or the head (cf. Ezekiel 24:17; 2 Samuel 15:30; Esther 6:12). That they may appear unto men to fast; Revised Version, that they may be seen, etc.; i.e. not the mere appearance, as though there were appearance only, but the being seen as fasting - conspicuousness, not mere semblance. Hence νηστεύοντες is expressed (contrast ver. 5), since while in ver. 5 not the praying but the piety that induced it is to be made apparent, here it is the very fact itself of fasting, which, except for these external signs, might escape human notice. They have (ver. 2, note). Greek WhenὍταν (Hotan) Conjunction Strong's 3752: When, whenever. From hote and an; whenever; also causatively inasmuch as. you fast, νηστεύητε (nēsteuēte) Verb - Present Subjunctive Active - 2nd Person Plural Strong's 3522: To fast, abstain from food. From nestis; to abstain from food. [do] not μὴ (mē) Adverb Strong's 3361: Not, lest. A primary particle of qualified negation; not, lest; also (whereas ou expects an affirmative one) whether. be γίνεσθε (ginesthe) Verb - Present Imperative Middle or Passive - 2nd Person Plural Strong's 1096: A prolongation and middle voice form of a primary verb; to cause to be, i.e. to become, used with great latitude. somber σκυθρωποί (skythrōpoi) Adjective - Nominative Masculine Plural Strong's 4659: From skuthros and a derivative of optanomai; angry-visaged, i.e. Gloomy or affecting a mournful appearance. like ὡς (hōs) Adverb Strong's 5613: Probably adverb of comparative from hos; which how, i.e. In that manner. the οἱ (hoi) Article - Nominative Masculine Plural Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the. hypocrites, ὑποκριταὶ (hypokritai) Noun - Nominative Masculine Plural Strong's 5273: From hupokrinomai; an actor under an assumed character, i.e. a dissembler for γὰρ (gar) Conjunction Strong's 1063: For. A primary particle; properly, assigning a reason. they disfigure ἀφανίζουσιν (aphanizousin) Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural Strong's 853: From aphanes; to render unapparent, i.e. consume, or disappear. their αὐτῶν (autōn) Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive Masculine 3rd Person Plural Strong's 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons. faces πρόσωπα (prosōpa) Noun - Accusative Neuter Plural Strong's 4383: From pros and ops; the front, i.e. The countenance, aspect, appearance, surface; by implication, presence, person. to show φανῶσιν (phanōsin) Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Passive - 3rd Person Plural Strong's 5316: Prolongation for the base of phos; to lighten, i.e. Show. men ἀνθρώποις (anthrōpois) Noun - Dative Masculine Plural Strong's 444: A man, one of the human race. From aner and ops; man-faced, i.e. A human being. they are fasting. νηστεύοντες (nēsteuontes) Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Plural Strong's 3522: To fast, abstain from food. From nestis; to abstain from food. Truly ἀμὴν (amēn) Hebrew Word Strong's 281: Of Hebrew origin; properly, firm, i.e. trustworthy; adverbially, surely. I tell λέγω (legō) Verb - Present Indicative Active - 1st Person Singular Strong's 3004: (a) I say, speak; I mean, mention, tell, (b) I call, name, especially in the pass., (c) I tell, command. you, ὑμῖν (hymin) Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Dative 2nd Person Plural Strong's 4771: You. The person pronoun of the second person singular; thou. they already have ἀπέχουσιν (apechousin) Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural Strong's 568: To have in full, be far, it is enough. From apo and echo; to have out, i.e. Receive in full; to keep away, i.e. Be distant. their αὐτῶν (autōn) Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive Masculine 3rd Person Plural Strong's 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons. reward. μισθὸν (misthon) Noun - Accusative Masculine Singular Strong's 3408: (a) pay, wages, salary, (b) reward, recompense, punishment. Apparently a primary word; pay for service, good or bad. Links Matthew 6:16 NIVMatthew 6:16 NLT Matthew 6:16 ESV Matthew 6:16 NASB Matthew 6:16 KJV Matthew 6:16 BibleApps.com Matthew 6:16 Biblia Paralela Matthew 6:16 Chinese Bible Matthew 6:16 French Bible Matthew 6:16 Catholic Bible NT Gospels: Matthew 6:16 Moreover when you fast don't be like (Matt. Mat Mt) |
    |