The Sermon on the Mount; The Beatitudes

1Now when Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the [a]mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. 2And He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying,

3“[b]Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

5“Blessed are the [c]gentle, for they will inherit the earth.

6“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.

7“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

8“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

9“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.

10“Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11“Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. 12Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in this same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Disciples and the World

13“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how [d]can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by people.

14“You are the light of the world. A city set on a [e]hill cannot be hidden; 15nor do people light a lamp and put it under a [f]basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16Your light must shine before people in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.

17“Do not presume that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. 18For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not [g]the smallest letter or stroke of a letter shall pass from the Law, until all is accomplished! 19Therefore, whoever nullifies one of the least of these commandments, and teaches [h]others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever [i]keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

20“For I say to you that unless your righteousness far surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.

Personal Relationships

21“You have heard that [j]the ancients were told, ‘YOU SHALL NOT MURDER,’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be answerable to the court.’ 22But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be answerable to the court; and whoever says to his brother, ‘[k]You good-for-nothing,’ shall be answerable to [l]the supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be guilty enough to go into the [m]fiery hell. 23Therefore, if you are presenting your [n]offering at the altar, and there you remember that your brother has something against you, 24leave your [o]offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your [p]offering. 25[q]Come to good terms with your accuser quickly, while you are with him on the way to court, so that your accuser will not hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the officer, and you will not be thrown into prison. 26Truly I say to you, you will not come out of there until you have paid up the last [r]quadrans.

27“You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY’; 28but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29Now if your right eye is causing you to sin, tear it out and throw it away from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, [s]than for your whole body to be thrown into [t]hell. 30And if your right hand is causing you to sin, cut it off and throw it away from you; for it is better for you [u]to lose one of the parts of your body, [v]than for your whole body to go into [w]hell.

31“Now it was said, ‘WHOEVER SENDS HIS WIFE AWAY IS TO GIVE HER A CERTIFICATE OF DIVORCE’; 32but I say to you that everyone who [x]divorces his wife, except for the reason of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery; and whoever marries a [y]divorced woman commits adultery.

33“Again, you have heard that [z]the ancients were told, ‘[aa]YOU SHALL NOT [ab]MAKE FALSE VOWS, BUT SHALL FULFILL YOUR [ac]VOWS TO THE LORD.’ 34But I say to you, take no oath at all, neither by heaven, for it is the throne of God, 35nor by the earth, for it is the footstool of His feet, nor [ad]by Jerusalem, for it is THE CITY OF THE GREAT KING. 36Nor shall you take an oath by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black. 37But make sure your statement is, ‘[ae]Yes, yes’ or ‘No, no’; anything beyond these is [af]of evil origin.

38“You have heard that it was said, ‘EYE FOR EYE, and TOOTH FOR TOOTH.’ 39But I say to you, do not show opposition against an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other toward him also. 40And if anyone wants to sue you and take your [ag]tunic, let him have your [ah]cloak also. 41Whoever [ai]forces you to go one mile, go with him two. 42Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you.

43“You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.’ 44But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45so that you may prove yourselves to be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Even the tax collectors, do they not do the same? 47And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Even the Gentiles, do they not do the same? 48Therefore you shall be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

[a] 1 Or hill
[b] 3 I.e., fortunate or prosperous, and so through v 11
[c] 5 Or humble, meek
[d] 13 Lit will
[e] 14 Or mountain
[f] 15 Lit peck-measure
[g] 18 Lit one iota (Heb yodh) or one projection (serif)
[h] 19 Lit people
[i] 19 Lit does
[j] 21 Lit it was said to the ancients
[k] 22 Or You empty-head; Gr Raka (Raca) from Aramaic reqa
[l] 22 Lit the Sanhedrin; i.e., Jewish High Court
[m] 22 Lit Gehenna of fire
[n] 23 Or gift
[o] 24 Or gift
[p] 24 Or gift
[q] 25 I.e., settle the case
[r] 26 A small Roman copper coin, worth about 164 of a laborer’s daily wage
[s] 29 Lit and that your whole body not be
[t] 29 Gr Gehenna
[u] 30 Lit that one...be lost
[v] 30 Lit and not your whole body
[w] 30 Gr Gehenna
[x] 32 Lit sends away, the Heb term for divorce
[y] 32 Lit woman sent away
[z] 33 Lit it was said to the ancients
[aa] 33 you and your are singular here
[ab] 33 Or break your vows
[ac] 33 Lit oaths
[ad] 35 Or toward
[ae] 37 I.e., a clear “yes” or “no”
[af] 37 Or from the evil one
[ag] 40 A long shirt worn next to the skin
[ah] 40 Or outer garment
[ai] 41 Lit will force