Matthew
7 “Do not be judging, 2* that you may not be judged; for the judgments that you pass shall be passed upon you, and the measure that you give shall be given to you. 3 And why is it that you can see the particle of straw in your brother’s eye, but do not observe the beam of timber in your own eye? 4 or how will you say to your brother ‘Let me get the particle out of your eye,’ when in your eye there is the timber? 5 Hypocrite, first get the timber out of your eye, and then you will have good eyesight to get the particle out of your brother’s eye.
6* “Do not give sacred things to the dogs, nor throw your pearls before the hogs, for fear they should trample them with their feet and turn and tear you to pieces.
7 “Ask, and you will have things given to you; look, and you will find; knock, and you will be opened to. 8 For every asker receives, and the seeker finds, and the knocker will be opened to. 9* Or what man is there of you that his son will ask for bread and he will hand him a stone? 10 or ask for a fish and he will hand him a snake? 11 So if you, being bad, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
12 “Everything that you want to have men do to you, then, do so yourselves to them; for this is the law and the prophets.
13* “Enter by the narrow gate, because wide and spacious is the road that leads to perdition, and many are they who enter it, 14* because narrow is the gate and contracted the road that leads to life, and few are they who find it. 15 Beware of pretended prophets who come to you in the garb of sheep but are rapacious wolves inside. 16* You will recognize them by their fruits: do people pick grapes from thorns or figs from cockleburs? 17 thus every good tree produces good fruit, but a foul tree produces bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor a foul tree good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not produce good fruit is cut out and thrown into a fire. 20 Hence you will recognize them by their fruits. 21 Not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord’ will get into the Reign of Heaven, but he who does the will of my Father in heaven: 22 many will say to me in that day ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy by your name and expel demons by your name and work many miracles by your name?’ 23 and then ‘I will avow to them ‘I never knew you; begone from me, you that practice wickedness.’
24 “So everyone who hears these words of mine and does them will resemble a sensible man who built his house on the rock; 25 and the rain came down and the rivers ran and the winds blew, and they struck against that house and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. 26 And everyone that hears these words of mine and does not do them will resemble a foolish man who built his house on the sand; 27 and the rain came down and the rivers ran and the winds blew, and they beat against that house and it fell, and its fall was great.”
28 And when Jesus had finished these words the crowds were astonished at his teaching; 29 for he taught them as having authority, and not like their scribes.