The Beginning of the Sermon on the Mount

51 When Jesus saw the crowds , He went up on the mountain ; and after He sat down , His disciples came to Him. 2 He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying ,

The Beatitudes

3 " Blessed are the poor in spirit , for theirs is the kingdom of heaven . 4 "Blessed are those who mourn , for they shall be comforted . 5 "Blessed are the gentle , for they shall inherit the earth . 6 "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness , for they shall be satisfied . 7 "Blessed are the merciful , for they shall receive mercy . 8 "Blessed are the pure in heart , for they shall see God . 9 "Blessed are the peacemakers , for they shall be called sons of God . 10 "Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness , for theirs is the kingdom of heaven . 11 "Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. 12 "Rejoice and be glad , for your reward in heaven is great ; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

The Salt of the Earth

13 "You are the salt of the earth ; but if the salt has become tasteless , how e can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything , except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men .

The Light of the World

14 "You are the light of the world . A city set on a hill cannot e be hidden ; 15  nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket , but on the lampstand , and it gives light to all who are in the house . 16 "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works , and glorify your Father who is in heaven .

Jesus' Attitude toward the Law

17 "Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets ; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill . 18 "For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away , not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished . 19 "Whoever e then annuls one of the least of these commandments , and teaches others to do the same , shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven ; but whoever e keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven . 20 "For I say to you that unless e your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees , you will not enter the kingdom of heaven .

Jesus' Attitude toward Anger

21 " You have heard that the ancients were told , ' YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER ' and 'Whoever e commits murder shall be liable to the court .' 22 "But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court ; and whoever e says to his brother , 'You good-for-nothing ,' shall be guilty before the supreme court ; and whoever e says , 'You fool ,' shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell . 23 "Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar , and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your offering there before the altar and go ; first be reconciled to your brother , and then come and present your offering . 25 " Make friends quickly with your opponent at law while you are with him on the way , so that your opponent may not hand you over to the judge , and the judge to the officer , and you be thrown into prison . 26 "Truly I say to you, you will not come out of there until you have paid up the last cent .

Jesus' Attitude toward Adultery

27 " You have heard that it was said , ' YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY '; 28 but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart . 29 " If your right eye makes you stumble , tear it out and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than e for your whole body to be thrown into hell . 30 " If your right hand makes you stumble , cut it off and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than e for your whole body to go into hell .

Jesus' Attitude toward Divorce

31 "It was said , ' WHOEVER e SENDS HIS WIFE AWAY , LET HIM GIVE HER A CERTIFICATE OF DIVORCE '; 32  but I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife , except for the reason of unchastity , makes her commit adultery ; and whoever e marries a divorced woman commits adultery .

Jesus' Attitude toward Oaths

33 "Again , you have heard that the ancients were told , ' YOU SHALL NOT MAKE FALSE VOWS , BUT SHALL FULFILL YOUR VOWS TO THE Lord .' 34 "But I say to you, make no oath at all , either by heaven , for it is the throne of God , 35 or by the earth , for it is the footstool of His feet , or by Jerusalem , for it is THE CITY OF THE GREAT KING . 36 "Nor shall you make an oath by your head , for you cannot e make one hair white or black . 37 "But let your statement be, 'Yes , yes ' or 'No , no '; anything beyond these is of evil .

Love for Enemies

38 " You have heard that it was said , ' AN EYE FOR AN EYE , AND A TOOTH FOR A TOOTH .' 39 "But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek , turn the other to him also . 40 "If anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt , let him have your coat also . 41 "Whoever forces you to go one mile , go with him two . 42 " Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you.

43 " You have heard that it was said , ' YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy .' 44 "But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven ; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good , and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous . 46 "For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have ? Do not even the tax collectors do the same ? 47 "If you greet only your brothers , what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same ? 48 "Therefore you are to be perfect , as your heavenly Father is perfect .

The Preaching of John the Baptist

31 Now in those days John the Baptist came , preaching in the wilderness of Judea , saying , 2 " Repent , for the kingdom of heaven is at hand ." 3 For this is the one referred to by Isaiah the prophet when he said , " THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS , ' MAKE READY THE WAY OF THE Lord , MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT !' " 4 Now John himself had a garment of camel's hair and a leather belt around his waist ; and his food was locusts and wild honey . 5 Then Jerusalem was going out to him, and all Judea and all the district around the Jordan ; 6 and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River , as they confessed their sins .

7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism , he said to them, "You brood of vipers , who warned you to flee from the wrath to come ? 8 " Therefore bear fruit in keeping with repentance ; 9 and do not suppose that you can say to yourselves , ' We have Abraham for our father '; for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham . 10 "The axe is already laid at the root of the trees ; therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire . 11 "As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance , but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals ; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire . 12 "His winnowing fork is in His hand , and He will thoroughly clear His threshing floor ; and He will gather His wheat into the barn , but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire ."

The Baptism of Jesus

13 Then Jesus arrived from Galilee at the Jordan coming to John , to be baptized by him. 14 But John tried to prevent Him, saying , "I have need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?" 15 But Jesus answering said to him, "Permit it at this time ; for in this way it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness ." Then he permitted Him. 16 After being baptized , Jesus came up immediately from the water ; and behold , the heavens were opened , and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him, 17 and behold , a voice out of the heavens said , " This is My beloved Son , in whom I am well-pleased ."