Chapter 5

¹When he saw the crowds of people he went up on the mountain. There he seated himself, and when his disciples had come up to him, ²he opened his lips to teach them. And he said,

³“Blessed are those who feel their spiritual need, for the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to them!

⁴“Blessed are the mourners, for they will be consoled!

⁵“Blessed are the humble-minded, for they will possess the land!

⁶“Blessed are those who are hungry and thirsty for uprightness, for they will be satisfied!

⁷“Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy!

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

⁹“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called God’s sons!

¹⁰“Blessed are those who have endured persecution for their uprightness, for the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to them!

¹¹“Blessed are you when people abuse you, and persecute you, and falsely say everything bad of you, on my account. ¹²Be glad and exult over it, for you will be richly rewarded in heaven, for that is the way they persecuted the prophets who went before you!

¹³“You are the salt of the earth! But if salt loses its strength, how can it be made salt again? It is good for nothing but to be thrown away and trodden underfoot. ¹⁴You are the light of the world! A city that is built upon a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵People do not light a lamp and put it under a peck-measure; they put it on its stand and it gives light to everyone in the house. ¹⁶Your light must burn in that way among men so that they will see the good you do, and praise your Father in heaven.

¹⁷“Do not suppose that I have come to do away with the Law or the Prophets. I have not come to do away with them but to enforce them. ¹⁸For I tell you, as long as heaven and earth endure, not one dotting of an i or crossing of a t will be dropped from the Law until it is all observed. ¹⁹Anyone, therefore, who weakens one of the slightest of these commands, and teaches others to do so, will be ranked lowest in the Kingdom of Heaven; but anyone who observes them and teaches others to do so will be ranked high in the Kingdom of Heaven. ²⁰For I tell you that unless your uprightness is far superior to that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never even enter the Kingdom of Heaven!

²¹“You have heard that the men of old were told ‘You shall not murder,’ and ‘Whoever murders will have to answer to the court.’ ²²But I tell you that anyone who gets angry with his brother will have to answer to the court, and anyone who speaks contemptuously to his brother will have to answer to the great council, and anyone who says to his brother ‘You cursed fool!’ will have to answer for it in the fiery pit! ²³So when you are presenting your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother has any grievance against you, ²⁴leave your gift right there before the altar and go and make up with your brother; then come back and present your gift. ²⁵Be quick and come to terms with your opponent while you are on the way to court with him, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you will be thrown into prison. ²⁶I tell you, you will never get out again until you have paid the last penny!

²⁷“You have heard that men were told ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ ²⁸But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman with desire has already committed adultery with her in his heart. ²⁹But if your right eye makes you fall, tear it out and throw it away, for you might better lose one part of your body than have it all thrown into the pit! ³⁰If your right hand makes you fall, cut it off and throw it away, for you might better lose one part of your body than have it all go down to the pit!

³¹“They were told, ‘Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.’ ³²But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife on any ground, except unfaithfulness, makes her commit adultery, and anyone who marries her after she is divorced commits adultery.

³³“Again, you have heard that the men of old were told, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but you must fulfil your oaths to the Lord.’ ³⁴But I tell you not to swear at all, either by heaven, for it is God’s throne, ³⁵or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great king. ³⁶You must not swear by your own head, for you cannot make one single hair white or black. ³⁷But your way of speaking must be ‘Yes’ or ‘No.’ Anything that goes beyond that comes from the evil one.

³⁸“You have heard that they were told, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ ³⁹But I tell you not to resist injury, but if anyone strikes you on your right cheek, turn the other to him too; ⁴⁰and if anyone wants to sue you for your shirt, let him have your coat too. ⁴¹And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go two miles with him. ⁴²If anyone begs from you, give to him, and when anyone wants to borrow from you, do not turn away.

⁴³“You have heard that they were told, ‘You must love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for your persecutors, ⁴⁵so that you may show yourselves true sons of your Father in heaven, for he makes his sun rise on bad and good alike, and makes the rain fall on the upright and the wrongdoers. ⁴⁶For if you love only those who love you, what reward can you expect? Do not the very tax-collectors do that? ⁴⁷And if you are polite to your brothers and no one else, what is there remarkable in that? Do not the very heathen do that? ⁴⁸So you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is.