Matius 5:27-28

Adultery

5:27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ ¹  5:28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to desire her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

Matius 6:1-7

Pure-hearted Giving

6:1 “Be ²  careful not to display your righteousness merely to be seen by people. ³  Otherwise you have no reward with your Father in heaven. 6:2 Thus whenever you do charitable giving, ⁴  do not blow a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in synagogues ⁵  and on streets so that people will praise them. I tell you the truth, ⁶  they have their reward. 6:3 But when you do your giving, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 6:4 so that your gift may be in secret. And your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you. ⁷ 

Private Prayer

6:5 “Whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, because they love to pray while standing in synagogues ⁸  and on street corners so that people can see them. Truly I say to you, they have their reward. 6:6 But whenever you pray, go into your room, ⁹  close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you. ¹⁰  6:7 When ¹¹  you pray, do not babble repetitiously like the Gentiles, because they think that by their many words they will be heard.

[5:27]  ¹ sn A quotation from Exod 20:14; Deut 5:17.

[6:1]  ² tc ‡ Several mss (א L Z Θ Ë¹ 33 892 1241 1424 al) have δέ (de, “but, now”) at the beginning of this verse; the reading without δέ is supported by B D W 0250 ˹³ Ï lat. A decision is difficult, but apparently the conjunction was added by later scribes to indicate a transition in the thought-flow of the Sermon on the Mount. NA²⁷ has δέ in brackets, indicating reservations about its authenticity.

[6:1]  ³ tn Grk “before people in order to be seen by them.”

[6:2]  ⁴ tn Grk “give alms,” but this term is not in common use today. The giving of alms was highly regarded in the ancient world (Deut 15:7-11).

[6:2]  ⁵ sn See the note on synagogues in 4:23.

[6:2]  ⁶ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[6:4]  ⁷ tc L W Θ 0250 Ï it read ἐν τῷ φανερῷ (en tw fanerw, “openly”) at the end of this verse, giving a counterweight to what is done in secret. But this reading is suspect because of the obvious literary balance, because of detouring the point of the passage (the focus of vv. 1-4 is not on two kinds of public rewards but on human vs. divine approbation), and because of superior external testimony that lacks this reading (א B D Z Ë^1,13 33 al).

[6:5]  ⁸ sn See the note on synagogues in 4:23.

[6:6]  ⁹ sn The term translated room refers to the inner room of a house, normally without any windows opening outside, the most private location possible (BDAG 988 s.v. ταμεῖον 2).

[6:6]  ¹⁰ tc See the tc note on “will reward you” in 6:4: The problem is the same and the ms support differs only slightly.

[6:7]  ¹¹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.