Matthew 7

³⁷Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.

¹You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on another. For on whatever grounds you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.

²And we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth.

¹¹Brothers, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against his brother or judges him speaks against the law and judges it. And if you judge the law, you are not a practitioner of the law, but a judge of it.

¹²There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is able to save and destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?

⁴¹Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye but fail to notice the beam in your own eye?

¹⁰Why, then, do you judge your brother? Or why do you belittle your brother? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat.

¹¹It is written: “As surely as I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow before Me; every tongue will confess to God.”

⁵You hypocrite! First take the beam out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

¹³For judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

²⁴He went on to say, “Pay attention to what you hear. With the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and even more will be added to you.

¹⁵For the Day of the Lord is near for all the nations. As you have done, it will be done to you; your recompense will return upon your own head.

³⁸Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.”

²⁵To the faithful You show Yourself faithful, to the blameless You show Yourself blameless;

²⁶to the pure You show Yourself pure, but to the crooked You show Yourself shrewd.

⁶Give back to her as she has done to others; pay her back double for what she has done; mix her a double portion in her own cup.

⁷When they continued to question Him, He straightened up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to cast a stone at her.”

⁸And again He bent down and wrote on the ground.

¹Brothers, if someone is caught in a trespass, you who are spiritual should restore him with a spirit of gentleness. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.

⁴¹Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye but fail to notice the beam in your own eye?

⁴²How can you say, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while you yourself fail to see the beam in your own eye? You hypocrite! First take the beam out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

⁵David burned with anger against the man and said to Nathan: “As surely as the Lord lives, the man who did this deserves to die!

⁶Because he has done this thing and has shown no pity, he must pay for the lamb four times over.”

¹¹The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—swindlers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector.

¹⁶To the wicked, however, God says, “What right have you to recite My statutes and to bear My covenant on your lips?

¹⁷For you hate My instruction and cast My words behind you.

⁴²How can you say, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while you yourself fail to see the beam in your own eye? You hypocrite! First take the beam out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

⁹Hide Your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquities.

¹⁰Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.

¹³Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let in those who wish to enter.

¹⁴

¹⁵“You hypocrites!” the Lord replied. “Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or donkey from the stall and lead it to water?

²³Jesus said to them, “Surely you will quote this proverb to Me: ‘Physician, heal yourself! Do here in Your hometown what we have heard that You did in Capernaum.’”

¹⁸But Jesus knew their evil intent and said, “You hypocrites, why are you testing Me?

⁷He who corrects a mocker brings shame on himself; he who rebukes a wicked man taints himself.

⁸Do not rebuke a mocker, or he will hate you; rebuke a wise man, and he will love you.

⁹Do not speak to a fool, for he will despise the wisdom of your words.

¹⁴And if anyone will not welcome you or heed your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that home or town.

¹⁵Truly I tell you, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.

¹¹As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly.

²⁶But Jesus replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”

⁴⁵But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy, and they blasphemously contradicted what Paul was saying.

⁴⁶Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “It was necessary to speak the word of God to you first. But since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles.

²²If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”

²²and we will receive from Him whatever we ask, because we keep His commandments and do what is pleasing in His sight.

⁷If you remain in Me and My words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

²⁴Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

¹⁸The Lord is near to all who call on Him, to all who call out to Him in truth.

¹⁹He fulfills the desires of those who fear Him; He hears their cry and saves them.

³³But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.

¹⁰I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of Egypt. Open wide your mouth, and I will fill it.

¹⁶But I would feed you the finest wheat; with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”

⁴²Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when You come into Your kingdom!”

⁴³And Jesus said to him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.”

²²And a Canaanite woman from that region came to Him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is miserably possessed by a demon.”

²³But Jesus did not answer a word. So His disciples came and urged Him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.”

¹¹“Get up!” the Lord told him. “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying.

¹⁹His prayer and how God received his plea, as well as all his sin and unfaithfulness, and the sites where he built high places and set up Asherah poles and idols before he humbled himself, they are indeed written in the Records of the Seers.

¹¹What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead?

¹²Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?

¹¹What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead?

¹²Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?

¹⁷Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, with whom there is no change or shifting shadow.

³²He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also, along with Him, freely give us all things?

¹¹For the Lord God is a sun and a shield; the Lord gives grace and glory; He withholds no good thing from those who walk with integrity.

¹⁵“Can a woman forget her nursing child, or lack compassion for the son of her womb? Even if she could forget, I will not forget you!

¹⁶For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

³¹Do to others as you would have them do to you.

⁸Be indebted to no one, except to one another in love. For he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.

⁹The commandments “Do not commit adultery,” “Do not murder,” “Do not steal,” “Do not covet,” and any other commandments, are summed up in this one decree: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

¹³For you, brothers, were called to freedom; but do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh. Rather, serve one another in love.

¹⁴The entire law is fulfilled in a single decree: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

¹⁸Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against any of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.

²⁹Jesus replied, “This is the most important: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One.

³⁰Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’

³⁹And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’

⁴⁰All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

²⁴“Make every effort to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able.

²⁵After the master of the house gets up and shuts the door, you will stand outside knocking and saying, ‘Lord, open the door for us.’ But he will reply, ‘I do not know where you are from.’

²⁵There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.

⁶Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

⁹I am the gate. If anyone enters through Me, he will be saved. He will come in and go out and find pasture.

⁷Let the wicked man forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that He may have compassion, and to our God, for He will freely pardon.

⁶Leave your folly behind, and you will live; walk in the way of understanding.”

²³“Lord,” someone asked Him, “will only a few people be saved?” Jesus answered,

²⁴“Make every effort to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able.

¹⁴For many are called, but few are chosen.”

²⁴Then Jesus told His disciples, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me.

²⁵For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.

²Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

⁸And there will be a highway called the Way of Holiness. The unclean will not travel it—only those who walk in the Way—and fools will not stray onto it.

³⁴Then Jesus called the crowd to Him along with His disciples, and He told them, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me.

¹Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. For many false prophets have gone out into the world.

¹¹and many false prophets will arise and deceive many.

¹Now there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.

²Many will follow in their depravity, and because of them the way of truth will be defamed.

²⁹I know that after my departure, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock.

³⁰Even from your own number, men will rise up and distort the truth to draw away disciples after them.

²²For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and wonders to deceive even the elect, if that were possible.

²³So be on your guard; I have told you everything in advance.

¹If a prophet or dreamer of dreams arises among you and proclaims a sign or wonder to you,

²and if the sign or wonder he has spoken to you comes about, but he says, “Let us follow other gods (which you have not known) and let us worship them,”

⁴³No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit.

⁴⁴For each tree is known by its own fruit. Indeed, figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor grapes from brambles.

¹²My brothers, can a fig tree grow olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.

³³Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is known by its fruit.

²⁰So then, by their fruit you will recognize them.

¹⁰Such punishment is specially reserved for those who indulge the corrupt desires of the flesh and despise authority. Bold and self-willed, they are unafraid to slander glorious beings.

¹¹Yet not even angels, though greater in strength and power, dare to bring such slanderous charges against them before the Lord.

¹⁰These men, however, slander what they do not understand, and like irrational animals, they will be destroyed by the things they do instinctively.

¹¹Woe to them! They have traveled the path of Cain; they have rushed for profit into the error of Balaam; they have perished in Korah’s rebellion.

³³Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is known by its fruit.

³⁴You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.

²²But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

²³gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

⁹for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness, and truth.

³He is like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season, whose leaf does not wither, and who prospers in all he does.

¹⁰so that you may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord and may please Him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God,

¹³Planted in the house of the Lord, they will flourish in the courts of our God.

¹⁴In old age they will still bear fruit; healthy and green they will remain,

¹⁷For the flesh craves what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are opposed to each other, so that you do not do what you want.

⁹Anyone born of God refuses to practice sin, because God’s seed abides in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God.

¹⁰By this the children of God are distinguished from the children of the devil: Anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is anyone who does not love his brother.

¹⁰The axe lies ready at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

²He cuts off every branch in Me that bears no fruit, and every branch that does bear fruit, He prunes to make it even more fruitful.

³You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.

⁹The axe lies ready at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”

⁸But land that produces thorns and thistles is worthless, and its curse is imminent. In the end it will be burned.

⁶Then Jesus told this parable: “A man had a fig tree that was planted in his vineyard. He went to look for fruit on it but did not find any.

⁷So he said to the keeper of the vineyard, ‘Look, for the past three years I have come to search for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Therefore cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?’

¹²These men are hidden reefs in your love feasts, shamelessly feasting with you but shepherding only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried along by the wind; fruitless trees in autumn, twice dead after being uprooted.

¹⁶By their fruit you will recognize them. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?

¹³For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but it is the doers of the law who will be declared righteous.

⁴⁶Why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ but do not do what I say?

²²Be doers of the word, and not hearers only. Otherwise, you are deceiving yourselves.

²⁸But He replied, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.”

¹⁶They profess to know God, but by their actions they deny Him. They are detestable, disobedient, and unfit for any good deed.

⁶Since, then, it remains for some to enter His rest, and since those who formerly heard the good news did not enter because of their disobedience,

²⁵After the master of the house gets up and shuts the door, you will stand outside knocking and saying, ‘Lord, open the door for us.’ But he will reply, ‘I do not know where you are from.’

²⁶Then you will say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’

¹If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a ringing gong or a clanging cymbal.

²If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have absolute faith so as to move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.

¹⁷“They will be Mine,” says the Lord of Hosts, “on the day when I prepare My treasured possession. And I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him.

¹⁸So you will again distinguish between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.”

⁴It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit,

⁵who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age—

¹³Now there were some itinerant Jewish exorcists who tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those with evil spirits. They would say, “I command you by Jesus, whom Paul proclaims.”

¹⁴Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this.

⁸From now on there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but to all who crave His appearing.

⁴¹Then He will say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

⁸Depart from me, all you workers of iniquity, for the Lord has heard my weeping.

²⁷And he will answer, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you are from. Depart from me, all you evildoers.’

²⁵After the master of the house gets up and shuts the door, you will stand outside knocking and saying, ‘Lord, open the door for us.’ But he will reply, ‘I do not know where you are from.’

¹²But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I do not know you.’

¹⁴I am the good shepherd. I know My sheep and My sheep know Me,

⁴⁷I will show you what he is like who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them:

⁴⁸He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid his foundation on the rock. When the flood came, the torrent crashed against that house but could not shake it, because it was well built.

¹⁷If you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.

²⁸But He replied, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.”

¹⁰By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one must be careful how he builds.

¹¹For no one can lay a foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.

¹⁷So too, faith by itself, if it does not result in action, is dead.

¹⁸But someone will say, “You have faith and I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.

³By this we can be sure that we have come to know Him: if we keep His commandments.

¹²Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him.

¹A song of ascents. Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion. It cannot be moved; it abides forever.

²As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds His people, both now and forevermore.

⁷so that the proven character of your faith—more precious than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

⁷rooted and built up in Him, established in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

⁵who through faith are shielded by God’s power for the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.

¹³his workmanship will be evident, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will prove the quality of each man’s work.

¹⁴If what he has built survives, he will receive a reward.

⁹The wise will be put to shame; they will be dismayed and trapped. Since they have rejected the word of the Lord, what wisdom do they really have?

⁴⁹But the one who hears My words and does not act on them is like a man who built his house on ground without a foundation. The torrent crashed against that house, and immediately it fell—and great was its destruction!”

²⁰O foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is worthless?

¹Every wise woman builds her house, but a foolish one tears it down with her own hands.

³⁰Therefore, the Lord, the God of Israel, declares: ‘I did indeed say that your house and the house of your father would walk before Me forever. But now the Lord declares: Far be it from Me! For I will honor those who honor Me, but those who despise Me will be disdained.

¹⁹When anyone hears the message of the kingdom but does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path.

²⁰The seed sown on rocky ground is the one who hears the word and at once receives it with joy.

¹³his workmanship will be evident, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will prove the quality of each man’s work.

²⁰If indeed they have escaped the corruption of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, only to be entangled and overcome by it again, their final condition is worse than it was at first.

²¹It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness than to have known it and then to turn away from the holy commandment passed on to them.

²⁶If we deliberately go on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no further sacrifice for sins remains,

²⁷but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume all adversaries.

⁴³When an unclean spirit comes out of a man, it passes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it.

⁴⁴Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ On its return, it finds the house vacant, swept clean, and put in order.

¹⁰Because they have led My people astray, saying, ‘Peace,’ when there is no peace, and whitewashing any flimsy wall that is built,

¹¹tell those whitewashing the wall that it will fall. Rain will come in torrents, I will send hailstones plunging down, and a windstorm will burst forth.

³²They were astonished at His teaching, because His message had authority.

²²The people were astonished at His teaching, because He taught as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.

⁴⁶“Never has anyone spoken like this man!” the officers answered.

²When the Sabbath came, He began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard Him were astonished. “Where did this man get these ideas?” they asked. “What is this wisdom He has been given? And how can He perform such miracles?

²²All spoke well of Him and marveled at the gracious words that came from His lips. “Isn’t this the son of Joseph?” they asked.

⁵³When Jesus had finished these parables, He withdrew from that place.

⁵⁴Coming to His hometown, He taught the people in their synagogue, and they were astonished. “Where did this man get such wisdom and miraculous powers?” they asked.

¹²For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it pierces even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It judges the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

¹³Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight; everything is uncovered and exposed before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.

⁴The Lord God has given Me the tongue of discipleship, to sustain the weary with a word. He awakens Me morning by morning; He awakens My ear to listen as a disciple.

⁸And Jesus replied, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”

⁴⁶“Beware of the scribes. They like to walk around in long robes, and they love the greetings in the marketplaces, the chief seats in the synagogues, and the places of honor at banquets.

⁴⁷They defraud widows of their houses, and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will receive greater condemnation.”

¹⁸I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. I will put My words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him.

¹⁹And I will hold accountable anyone who does not listen to My words that the prophet speaks in My name.

²⁰For I tell you that unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.