Matthew 6

File:Cosimo Rosselli - The Sermon on the Mount.jpg

Cosimo Rosselli's The Sermon on the Mount

Matthew 6 is the sixth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. This chapter contains the middle portion of the Sermon on the Mount.

The chapter opens with a discussion of how Christians should properly worship. It goes over the three most important outward expressions of Jewish piety, alms giving, prayer, and fasting. Jesus endorses the standard teachings that these acts are important. Throughout this section he stresses that worship and piety should not be ostentatious, and ideally should be done in secret. He strongly condemns those who make public displays of their piety, stating that those who are pious to impress others will only impress people, and will do nothing to impress God.

The first discussion of alms giving, from 6:1 to 6:4 argues that one's charitable giving is best kept secret from others. The second discussion, from 6:5 to Matthew 6:15, is of prayer. Here Jesus compares proper prayer with the incorrect forms of the pagans. In this section Jesus also includes an example prayer, which has become known as the Lord's Prayer and is one of the best known and most recited sections of the entire New Testament. The third section, from 6:16 to 6:18, is on fasting. It repeats the same warnings against ostentatious piety.

The second half of the chapter is an attack on materialism. In this portion Jesus argues that the pursuit of wealth and worldly goods is pointless, illogical, and counterproductive to the ultimate goal of attaining salvation. He counsels his followers to not worry about the future as God will provide for them. Template:Chapters in the Gospel of Matthew

Verses

Matthew 6:1 Matthew 6:2 Matthew 6:3 Matthew 6:4 Matthew 6:5 Matthew 6:6 Matthew 6:7 Matthew 6:8 Matthew 6:9

Matthew 6:10 Matthew 6:11 Matthew 6:12 Matthew 6:13 Matthew 6:14 Matthew 6:15 Matthew 6:16 Matthew 6:17 Matthew 6:18

Matthew 6:19 Matthew 6:20 Matthew 6:21 Matthew 6:22 Matthew 6:23 Matthew 6:24 Matthew 6:25 Matthew 6:26

Matthew 6:27 Matthew 6:28 Matthew 6:29 Matthew 6:30 Matthew 6:31 Matthew 6:32 Matthew 6:33 Matthew 6:34

References

• Albright, W.F. and C.S. Mann. "Matthew." The Anchor Bible Series. New York: Doubleday & Company, 1971.
• Betz, Hans Dieter. Essays on the Sermon on the Mount. translations by Laurence Welborn. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1985.
• Clarke, Howard W. The Gospel of Matthew and its Readers: A Historical Introduction to the First Gospel. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2003.
• France, R.T. The Gospel According to Matthew: an Introduction and Commentary. Leicester: Inter-Varsity, 1985.
• Gundry, Robert H. Matthew a Commentary on his Literary and Theological Art. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1982.
• Hill, David. The Gospel of Matthew. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1981
• Kissinger, Warren S. The Sermon on the Mount: A History of Interpretation and Bibliography. Metuchen: Scarecrow Press, 1975.
• Kodjak, Andrej. A Structural Analysis of the Sermon on the Mount. New York: M. de Gruyter, 1986.
• Lapide, Pinchas. The Sermon on the Mount, Utopia or Program for Action? translated from the German by Arlene Swidler. Maryknoll: Orbis Books, 1986.
• McArthur, Harvey King. Understanding the Sermon on the Mount. Westport: Greenwood Press, 1978.
• Schweizer, Eduard. The Good News According to Matthew. Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1975

Chapters of the New Testament
Preceded by: Matthew 5	Gospel of Matthew	Followed by: Matthew 7