Section Cluster
6:1–18
Do not do good deeds for people to praise you
In 5:20 Jesus said that his disciples’ righteousness must surpass the righteousness of the Pharisees and the scribes. In 5:21–48 he gave examples of what he meant by this command. But now, beginning in 6:1, Jesus warned his disciples not to do righteous acts with the hope that others will see them and think how good they are. Instead, they are to do their righteous acts secretly, and then God will reward them.
In 6:1–18 Jesus talked about three acts of righteousness:
(a) giving to poor people (6:1–4)
(b) prayer (6:5–15)
(c) fasting (6:16–18)
Each of these acts of righteousness are discussed in separate sections below.
Section 6:1–4
Jesus taught about giving to poor people
In this section, Jesus taught his disciples that when they give money to poor people, they should do so secretly.
Here are some other possible headings for this section:
Giving to the needy
-or-
Giving alms
Paragraph 6:1
Verse 6:1 is a summary of 6:1–18. It gives the general rule: Jesus’ disciples should want God’s approval, not human praise.
6:1a
Even though a new chapter begins at 6:1, Jesus continued “the Sermon on the Mount” which he began in chapter 5. In some languages, no introduction is necessary here. In other languages, it may be natural to begin this chapter with something like:
⌊Jesus continued,⌋
-or-
⌊Jesus continued to teach and said,⌋
-or-
⌊But Jesus warned them,⌋
Be careful not to perform: The Greek clause that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Be careful not to perform is a strong way to say “Do not do.” The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Be careful refers to being alert or on guard about something. Here the warning is to be alert “not to do something.”
Some languages have other ways to strengthen a command. For example:
Make certain you do not perform (Good News Translation)
-or-
Be careful not to do (New International Version)
-or-
You must never do
your righteous acts: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as your righteous acts refers to right/good deeds that are done to honor and worship God. In this context, the phrase specifically refers to giving to the poor (6:2–4), praying (6:5–15), and fasting (6:16–18). It includes other good actions as well.
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
your good deeds (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)
-or-
your deeds which honor God
-or-
your religious duties (Good News Translation)
-or-
something good/upright
The word righteous also occurs in 5:6a.
Jesus expected his followers to do good deeds. His warning here was against doing good works for the wrong reason. In some languages, it may be more natural to first state what Jesus expected, and then state the warning. For example:
When you do good deeds, be careful never to do them only so that other people will see you.
before men: The phrase before men refers to doing something “openly” or “in an obvious way.”
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
in public (Good News Translation)
-or-
to attract attention (God’s Word)
-or-
⌊in order that⌋ people see you
-or-
to impress people
The word men is used in general way in this phrase and refers to people, both men and women.
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
before other people (English Standard Version)
-or-
in front of others (New International Version)
6:1b
to be seen by them: The clause to be seen by them implies more than just being seen by other people’s eyes. It implies a desire to be praised by people. In some languages, it may be necessary to make this explicit. For example:
to be seen ⌊and honored/praised⌋ by them
-or-
to be admired (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
to impress people
The clause to be seen by them is passive.
Here are some other ways to translate this clause:
• Use a passive verb. For example:
in order that you are seen by them
• Use an active verb. For example:
so that they/people will see you
6:1c
If you do: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as If you do can also be translated as “for then” (as in the English Standard Version). It refers to doing good deeds in order that people will see you.
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
If you do that (New Century Version)
-or-
In that case
-or-
because then (New Living Translation (1996))
-or-
If you do those deeds in that ⌊wrong⌋ way
you will have no reward from your Father in heaven: This clause is like a passive clause. In some languages, it is more natural to use an active clause. For example:
your Father in heaven will not give a reward to you
reward: The word reward refers to a gift given for behavior that God approves of. It could be a special honor or blessing that God gives to that kind of person.
In some languages, it is more natural to use a verb or clause to express this idea. For example:
your Father in heaven will not reward you. (God’s Word)
-or-
your Father in heaven will not honor/bless you
This word also occurs in 5:46a.
your Father in heaven: In this verse, Jesus spoke of God as your Father. Jesus further described God and distinguished him from our earthly father by saying in heaven.
In some languages, the phrase your Father would imply that God was only the father of those to whom Jesus was speaking, but not Jesus’ father. If that is so in your language, you may want to translate this phrase as:
our(incl.) heavenly father
-or-
⌊God⌋ our(incl.) father who lives in heaven
This phrase also occurs in 5:45a. You should translate it here as you did there.
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