Matthew 6 "Now you folks make it a habit to hold to close attentiveness so as not to be doing your fairness, equity or rightwised behavior – all which comprise the Way pointed out – in front of people, in order to be observed by them, otherwise you do not continue holding wages (or: having a reward) alongside of (from beside; = from the presence of) your Father – the One in the atmosphere and the firmament, and in union with and within the midst of the heavens.

JMNT⁽ⁱ⁾ ¹ "Now you folks make it a habit to hold to close attentiveness [so as] not to be doing your fairness, equity or rightwised behavior – all which comprise the Way pointed out – in front of people, in order to be observed by them, otherwise you do not continue holding wages (or: having a reward) alongside of (from beside; = from the presence of) your Father – the One in the atmosphere and the firmament, and in union with and within the midst of the heavens. ² "Therefore, whenever, as is your custom you may be making gifts of mercy (be performing acts of mercy; be doing alms or giving to charity), you should not blow a trumpet in front of you (= toot your own horn ahead of your actions) – even as the overly judging and critical folks (hupokrites; or: those who put texts under close inspection to sift and separate and then give an answer, an interpretation, an opinion; or: those who live by separating things yet who under-discern; or: those who make judgments from a low view; or: those who under-estimate reality; or: perverse scholars who focus on tiny distinctions) are constantly doing in the synagogues and on the narrow urban streets and alleys, so that they can receive a reputation from people (be recognized and glorified by humans). I am saying to you truly: They are presently holding their full payment! ³ "So during your customary making gifts of mercy, do not let your left hand become aware of what your right hand continues doing, ⁴ "so that your gift of mercy can continue existing within the hidden [realm; place] (or: may be in hiding), and then your Father – the One continuously looking within the hidden [realm; place] (or: observing amidst the concealed) – will continue giving back to you! ⁵ "And further, whenever you folks may by habit be praying, you will not be as the overly judging and critical folks (hupokrites: see vs. 2, above), because they are constantly liking to be habitually praying while standing in the midst of the synagogues and on the corners of the broad streets and city squares – so that they can be visible to people (or: be manifested and caused to shine for mankind). I am saying to you truly: They are presently holding their full payment! ⁶ "Now as for you, individually, whenever you may by habit be praying, enter into your storeroom (or: barn; granary; chamber) and, upon shutting (locking; barring) your door (or: gate), pray to your Father – the One within the hidden [realm; place]. So then your Father – the One continuously seeing within the secret [realm; place] – will continue giving back to and in you (or: = giving in answer for your expectation; or: will habitually be paying you). ⁷ "Now during praying, you folks should not babble (or: make repetitious utterances; stack up meaningless phrases; or: stutter; speak without thinking; use empty words) – even as those of the ethnic multitudes (pagans; nations). You see, they habitually imagine and continuously suppose that in their much speaking (or: using many words; or: saying the same thing many times) they will be fully heard and really listened to. ⁸ "So then, you folks should not be made to resemble them, for before the occasion for you to ask Him, God, your Father, has seen and thus knows (is aware) of what things you continue having need. ⁹ "Therefore, be continuously praying in this way: 'O our Father – the One within and in union with the heavens! (or: in the midst of the atmosphere and firmament!) Make Your Name to be set-apart and kept holy (or: treated as sacred). ¹⁰ Make Your reign and kingdom come. Make Your will (the effect of Your intent and purpose) come into existence (happen; come to be; be birthed) – as within heaven (or: [the] atmosphere), so also upon earth. ¹¹ Give to us (Provide for us) today our bread (= food) necessary for existence (for being) and for the coming day. ¹² And then, send away the results of our debts for us (let the effects of our obligations flow away in us; cancel our indebtedness), as we also dismiss and send away the debts for those who owe us (let the obligations owed to us flow away; cancel the loans of our debtors). ¹³ Also, may You not bring (or: carry) us into an ordeal or a putting to the proof – neither by trial, nor by temptation, nor by examination. But to the contrary, rescue us away from the bad situation (the wicked person; the miserable condition; the painful labor; the unprofitable endeavor; the malicious man). [later MSS add: because Yours is the reign (kingdom) and the ability (power) and the manifestation which calls forth praise (the reputation; the glory), on into the ages. It is true (Make it so; Amen).]' ¹⁴ "You see, if you folks should (or: can) send away (let flow off; forgive; dismiss) for (or: from) people (or: mankind) the effects of their falling to the side [of the Way; of the Path pointed out] (or: their trespasses; their false steps and offenses; their goof-ups and blunders), your heavenly Father (or: your Father Who inhabits, and can be compared to, the atmosphere) will continue sending away, dismissing, forgiving and letting [things; some MSS add: the effects of your falling to the side] flow off for (or: in) you, as well. ¹⁵ "Yet if you folks should not send away for (or: from) people the effects of their falling to the side, neither will your Father continue sending away (dismissing; forgiving; letting flow away) the effects of your falling to the side, offending or goofing. ¹⁶ "Now whenever you may periodically fast, do not proceed to become sad-faced or stern, gloomy people – as the overly judging and critical folks [see vs. 2, above] for they habitually remove the light from (or: disguise or distort) their faces so that they can continue to be visible to people (or: be manifested for mankind and appear) [as] ones in the process of fasting. I continue saying to you truly: They are presently holding their full payment! ¹⁷ "So you folks, during fasting anoint, rub and massage your head, then wash your face (= groom yourself), ¹⁸ "so that you would not appear to people (or: may not be visible for mankind) [to be] in the midst of fasting, but rather, to (or: for) your Father – the One within the hidden [sphere; place]. And your Father – the One continuously seeing within the hidden [sphere; place] – will continue giving [something] back to (for; in) you! ¹⁹ "Stop (or: Do not continue) accumulating and storing up treasures for yourselves upon the earth (or: on the land) – where moth and corrosion (an eating action) progressively causes [things] to disappear, and where thieves constantly dig (or: tunnel; excavate) through (i.e., as to break in through a wall) and then proceed in stealing. ²⁰ "So you folks be continuously accumulating and storing up for yourselves treasures within heaven (or: [your] atmosphere) – where neither moth nor corrosion causes [things] to disappear, and where thieves do not constantly dig through nor are they repeatedly stealing. ²¹ "You see, where your treasure is, there also will be your heart (= the core of your being). ²² "The eye is the lamp of the body. If, then, your eye may continue being single-fold (or: simple and uncompounded; perhaps: single-focused and suggest being straightforward; may = healthy; may suggest generosity), your whole body will continue being (will continuously exist being) illuminated (enlightened; or: lustrous; luminous; radiant; shining). ²³ "Yet if your eye should continue being in a bad condition (or: wicked; perhaps = diseased or cloudy; may suggest stinginess or being grudging), your whole body will continue being (will continuously exist being) dark (or: in the dark; full of darkness). If, then, the light [which is] within the midst of you is darkness (or: continually exists being dimness and lack of Light), how thick [is] the darkness (or: how great and extensive [will be] the obscurity and gloom of that area of shadows)! ²⁴ "No one continues being able (has habitual power) to continue being, or performing as, a slave for two owners (lords; masters). You see, he will either proceed in hating (or: regarding with ill will) the one and will continue loving the different one, or he will continue holding firmly to and having instead the one, and will proceed despising (having a negative attitude and disposition toward) the different one. You folks are not able (still have no power) to continue being, or performing as, slaves for God and at the same time for money and riches (you can't be enslaved to both God and wealth)! ²⁵ "On this account I continue saying to you: Do not constantly take anxious care, worry or undue concern for your soul-lives (or: your being) – what you can or should eat, or what you folks should or may habitually be drinking; nor, for your body – with what you folks should clothe yourselves. Is not the soul-life (a person's inner being and life) more than nourishment, and the body [more than] clothing? ²⁶ "Make an intent observation into the birds of the sky (or: atmosphere), so as to carefully consider them. [See within their situation] that they are not constantly sowing seeds (planting), neither are they periodically reaping (harvesting) nor gathering [food] together into storehouses (or: barns), and yet your heavenly Father (or: your Father Who inhabits, and can be compared to, the atmosphere) constantly feeds and nourishes them. Are you folks not exceedingly carrying through more, so as to be of more consequence, than they (= Are you not worth much more than they are)? ²⁷ "Now who of you folks, while habitually taking anxious care, undue concern, worry or by fretting, is normally able (progresses in power) to add to his stature one cubit (eighteen inches) or to provide one more arm's reach to his life span? ²⁸ "And so why are you folks constantly worrying or fretting about clothing? Fully learn about, and from, the lilies of the field – how they are progressively growing (or: Learn thoroughly and consider well how the wild anemones continue growing and increasing). They are not constantly working hard or becoming weary from struggle, nor are they habitually spinning to make thread for cloth, ²⁹ "yet I am now saying to you that not even Solomon, in all his splendor and glory clothed or arrayed himself as one of these [flowers]! ³⁰ "So now, if God thus continually dresses and adorns (or: invests) the vegetation of the field (or: countryside) – being in existence today, and tomorrow is being normally thrown into a furnace (or: oven; stove) – [will He] not much more readily and to a greater extent [take care of] you folks who have small faith and little trust? ³¹ "Therefore, you folks should not fret, be anxious, be full of care or be worrying, constantly saying, 'What can we eat?' or, 'What can we drink?' or, 'What can we put on ourselves to wear?' ³² "You see, the ethnic multitudes (the nations; the pagans; the non-Jews) are habitually in eager pursuit of these things – spending all of their energy in seeking them! After all, your heavenly Father (or: your Father Who inhabits, and can be compared to, the atmosphere) has seen and knows that you folks repeatedly have need for all of these things. ³³ "So you people be habitually and constantly seeking God's reign (or: sovereign activity and influence; kingdom) and the fairness and equity from Him, as well as the His justice and rightwised behavior in the Way, which He has pointed out (also: = covenant participation) – and all these things will be added to you! ³⁴ "Therefore, you folks should not fret, be anxious, be full of care or be worrying [with a fixation] into the next day, for the next day will be concerned about itself (or: will have anxiety of its own). Sufficient and adequate for (or: to; in) the day [is] its own situation as it ought not to be (bad quality and worthless condition).