Matthew 5
5
CHAPTER 5
1And Jesus, seeing the people, went up into the hill; and when he was set [or had sat], his disciples came to him.
2And he opened his mouth, and taught them, and said,
3Blessed be poor men in spirit, for the kingdom of heavens is theirs. [Blessed be the poor in spirit, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs.]
4Blessed be mild men, for they shall wield the earth.
5Blessed be they that mourn, for they shall be comforted.
6Blessed be they that hunger and thirst rightwiseness, for they shall be fulfilled.
7Blessed be merciful men [+or Blessed be the merciful], for they shall get mercy.
8Blessed be they that be of clean heart, for they shall see God.
9Blessed be peaceable men, for they shall be called God’s children. [+Blessed be the peaceable, for they shall be called the sons of God.]
10Blessed be they that suffer persecution for rightwiseness, for the kingdom of heavens [or the kingdom of heaven] is theirs.
11Blessed be ye, when men shall curse you, and shall pursue you, and shall say all evil against you lying, for me.
12Joy ye, and be ye glad, for your meed is plenteous in heavens; for so they have pursued also prophets that were before you.
13Ye be salt of the earth; that if the salt vanish away, wherein shall it be salted? To nothing it is worth over, but that it be cast out, and be defouled of men.
14Ye be [the] light of the world; a city set on an hill may not be hid;
15nor men tendeth a lantern, and putteth it under a bushel, but on a candlestick, that it give light to all that be in the house.
16So shine your light before men, that they see your good works, and glorify your Father that is in heavens.
17Do not ye deem, [or guess], that I came to undo [or to destroy] the law, or the prophets; I came not to undo [or to destroy] the law, but to fulfill.
18Forsooth I say to you, till heaven and earth pass, one letter, [or one i, that is, the least letter], or one tittle shall not pass from the law, till all things be done.
19Therefore he that breaketh one of these least commandments, and teach-eth thus men, shall be called the least in the realm of heavens; but he that doeth, and teacheth, shall be called great in the kingdom of heavens.
20And I say to you, that but your rightwiseness be more plenteous than of scribes and of Pharisees, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heavens.
21Ye have heard that it was said to old men, Thou shalt not slay; and he that slayeth, shall be guilty to the doom.
22But I say to you, that each man that is wroth to his brother, shall be guilty to doom; and he that saith to his brother, Fie!, [that is, a word of scorn], shall be guilty to the council; but he that saith Fool, [that is, a word of despising], shall be guilty to the fire of hell.
23Therefore if thou offerest thy gift at the altar, and there thou bethinkest, that thy brother hath somewhat [or something] against thee,
24leave there thy gift before the altar, and go first to be reconciled to thy brother, and then thou shalt come, and shalt offer thy gift.
25Be thou consenting to thine adversary soon, while thou art in the way with him, lest peradventure thine adversary take thee to the doomsman [or the judge], and the doomsman take thee to the minister, and thou be sent into prison.
26Truly I say to thee, Thou shalt not go out from thence, till thou yield the last farthing.
27Ye have heard that it was said to old men, Thou shalt not do lechery.
28But I say to you, that every man that seeth a woman [for] to covet her, hath now done lechery by her in his heart.
29That if thy right eye cause thee to stumble, pull it out, and cast it from thee; for it speedeth to thee, that one of thy members perish, than that all thy body go into hell.
30And if thy right hand cause thee to stumble, cut it away, and cast [it] from thee; for it speedeth to thee, that one of thy members perish, than that all thy body go into hell.
31And it hath been said, Whoever leaveth his wife, give he to her a libel [or a little book] of forsaking.
32But I say to you, that every man that leaveth his wife, except [the] cause of fornication, maketh her to do lechery, and he that weddeth the forsaken wife, doeth adultery.
33Again ye have heard, that it was said to old men, Thou shalt not forswear, but thou shalt yield thine oaths to the Lord.
34But I say to you, that ye swear not for anything; neither by heaven, for it is the throne of God;
35neither by the earth, for it is the stool of his feet; neither by Jerusalem, for it is the city of a great [or the great] king;
36neither thou shalt swear by thine head, for thou mayest not make one hair white, or black;
37but be your word, Yea, yea; Nay, nay; and that that is more than these, is of evil.
38Ye have heard that it hath been said, Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.
39But I say to you, that ye against-stand not an evil man, [or to not against-stand evil]; but if any smite thee in the right cheek, show [or give] to him also the other;
40and to him that will strive with thee in doom, and take away thy coat, leave thou to him also thy mantle [or thine over-cloth];
41and whoever constraineth thee a thousand paces, go thou with him other twain.
42Give thou to him that asketh of thee, and turn thou not away from him that will borrow of thee.
43Ye have heard that it was said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.
44But I say to you, love ye your enemies, do ye well to them that hate you, and pray ye for them that pursue, and slander you;
45that ye be the sons of your Father that is in heavens, that maketh his sun to rise upon good and evil men, and raineth on just men and unjust.
46For if ye love them that love you, what meed shall ye have? whether [the] publicans do not this thing?
47And if ye greet your brethren only, what shall ye do more[over]? do not heathen men [or pagans] this?
48Therefore be ye perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
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Matthew 5: WBMS
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Wycliffe’s Bible with Modern Spelling ©2017
Wycliffe’s Apocrypha ©2013, 2015
Wycliffe’s Bible © 2012, 2015
Wycliffe’s New Testament ©2001, 2011
Wycliffe’s Old Testament ©2001, 2010
Matthew 5
5
The sermon on the mount
1When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on the side of a mountain and sat down.#5.1 sat down: Teachers in the ancient world, including Jewish teachers, usually sat down when they taught.
Blessings
(Luke 6.20-23)
Jesus' disciples gathered around him, 2and he taught them:
3God blesses those people
who depend only on him.
They belong to the kingdom
of heaven!#5.3 They belong to the kingdom of heaven: Or “The kingdom of heaven belongs to them.”
4God blesses those people#Is 61.2.
who grieve.
They will find comfort!
5God blesses those people#Ps 37.11.
who are humble.
The earth will belong
to them!
6God blesses those people#Is 55.1,2.
who want to obey him#5.6 who want to obey him: Or “who want to do right” or “who want everyone to be treated right”.
more than to eat or drink.
They will be given
what they want!
7God blesses those people
who are merciful.
They will be treated
with mercy!
8God blesses those people#Ps 24.3,4.
whose hearts are pure.
They will see him!
9God blesses those people
who make peace.
They will be called
his children!
10God blesses those people#1 P 3.14.
who are treated badly
for doing right.
They belong to the kingdom
of heaven.#5.10 They belong to the kingdom of heaven: See the note at 5.3.
11God will bless you when people insult you, ill-treat you, and tell all kinds of evil lies about you because of me.#1 P 4.14. 12Be happy and excited! You will have a great reward in heaven. People did these same things to the prophets who lived long ago.#2 Ch 36.16; Ac 7.52.
Salt and light
(Mark 9.50; Luke 14.34,35)
Jesus continued:
13You are like salt for everyone on earth. But if salt no longer tastes like salt, how can it make food salty? All it is good for is to be thrown out and walked on.#Mk 9.50; Lk 14.34,35.
14You are like light for the whole world. A city built on top of a hill cannot be hidden,#Jn 8.12; 9.5. 15and no one would light a lamp and put it under a clay pot. A lamp is placed on a lampstand, where it can give light to everyone in the house.#Mk 4.21; Lk 8.16; 11.33. 16Make your light shine, so that others will see the good that you do and will praise your Father in heaven.#1 P 2.12.
The Law of Moses
Jesus continued:
17Don't suppose that I came to do away with the Law and the Prophets.#5.17 the Law and the Prophets: The Jewish Scriptures, that is, the Old Testament. I did not come to do away with them, but to give them their full meaning. 18Heaven and earth may disappear. But I promise you that not even a full stop or comma will ever disappear from the Law. Everything written in it must happen.#Lk 16.17.
19If you reject even the least important command in the Law and teach others to do the same, you will be the least important person in the kingdom of heaven. But if you obey and teach others its commands, you will have an important place in the kingdom. 20You must obey God's commands better than the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law obey them. If you don't, I promise you that you will never get into the kingdom of heaven.
Anger
Jesus continued:
21You know that our ancestors were told, “Do not murder” and “A murderer must be brought to trial.”#Ex 20.13; Dt 5.17. 22But I promise you that if you are angry with someone,#5.22 someone: In verses 22-24 the Greek text has “brother”, which may refer to people in general or to other followers. you will have to stand trial. If you call someone a fool, you will be taken to court. And if you say that someone is worthless, you will be in danger of the fires of hell.
23So if you are about to place your gift on the altar and remember that someone is angry with you, 24leave your gift there in front of the altar. Make peace with that person, then come back and offer your gift to God.
25Before you are dragged into court, make friends with the person who has accused you of doing wrong. If you don't, you will be handed over to the judge and then to the officer who will put you in jail. 26I promise you that you will not get out until you have paid the last penny you owe.
Marriage
Jesus continued:
27You know the commandment which says, “Be faithful in marriage.”#Ex 20.14; Dt 5.18. 28But I tell you that if you look at another woman and want her, you are already unfaithful in your thoughts. 29If your right eye causes you to sin, poke it out and throw it away. It is better to lose one part of your body, than for your whole body to end up in hell.#Mt 18.9; Mk 9.47. 30If your right hand causes you to sin, chop it off and throw it away! It is better to lose one part of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.#Mt 18.8; Mk 9.43.
Divorce
(Matthew 19.9; Mark 10.11,12; Luke 16.18)
Jesus continued:
31You have been taught that a man who divorces his wife must write out divorce papers for her.#5.31 write out divorce papers for her: Jewish men could divorce their wives, but the women could not divorce their husbands. The purpose of writing these papers was to make it harder for a man to divorce his wife. Before this law was made, all a man had to do was to send his wife away and say that she was no longer his wife.#Dt 24.1-4; Mt 19.7; Mk 10.4. 32But I tell you not to divorce your wife unless she has committed some terrible sexual sin.#5.32 some terrible sexual sin: This probably refers to the laws about the wrong kinds of marriages that are forbidden in Leviticus or to some serious sexual sin. If you divorce her, you will cause her to be unfaithful, just as any man who marries her is guilty of taking another man's wife.#Mt 19.9; Mk 10.11,12; Lk 16.18; 1 Co 7.10,11.
Promises
Jesus continued:
33You know that our ancestors were told, “Don't use the Lord's name to make a promise unless you are going to keep it.”#Lv 19.12; Nu 30.2; Dt 23.21. 34But I tell you not to swear by anything when you make a promise! Heaven is God's throne, so don't swear by heaven.#Jas 5.12; Is 66.1; Mt 23.22. 35The earth is God's footstool, so don't swear by the earth. Jerusalem is the city of the great king, so don't swear by it.#Is 66.1; Ps 48.2. 36Don't swear by your own head. You cannot make one hair white or black. 37When you make a promise, say only “Yes” or “No”. Anything else comes from the devil.
Revenge
(Luke 6.29,30)
Jesus continued:
38You know that you have been taught, “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.”#Ex 21.24; Lv 24.20; Dt 19.21. 39But I tell you not to try to get even with a person who has done something to you. When someone slaps your right cheek,#5.39 right cheek: A slap on the right cheek was a bad insult. turn and let that person slap your other cheek. 40If someone sues you for your shirt, give up your coat as well. 41If a soldier forces you to carry his pack one kilometre, carry it two kilometres.#5.41 two kilometres: A Roman soldier had the right to force a person to carry his pack as far as approximately one and a half kilometres. 42When people ask you for something, give it to them. When they want to borrow money, lend it to them.
Love
(Luke 6.27,28,32-36)
Jesus continued:
43You have heard people say, “Love your neighbours and hate your enemies.” 44But I tell you to love your enemies and pray for anyone who ill-treats you. 45Then you will be acting like your Father in heaven. He makes the sun rise on both good and bad people. And he sends rain for the ones who do right and for the ones who do wrong. 46If you love only those people who love you, will God reward you for that? Even tax collectors#5.46 tax collectors: These were usually Jewish people who paid the Romans for the right to collect taxes. They were hated by other Jews who thought of them as traitors to their country and to their religion. love their friends. 47If you greet only your friends, what's so great about that? Don't even unbelievers do that? 48But you must always act like your Father in heaven.#Lv 19.2; Dt 18.13.
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