Ye have heard also that it was said unto the ancients, Lie not, but perform unto God in thy oaths: but I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne; nor by the earth, for it is a footstool under his feet; nor yet by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, for thou canst not make in it one lock of hair black or white. But your word shall be either Yea or Nay, and what is in excess of this is of the evil one.
[6, 7] Ye have heard that it was said, Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth: but I say unto you, Stand not in opposition to the evil; but whosoever smiteth thee on thy right cheek, turn to him also the other. And he that would sue thee, and take thy tunic, leave to him also thy wrapper. And whosoever compelleth thee one mile, go with [Arabic, p. 35] him twain. And he that asketh thee, give unto him: and he that would borrow of thee, prevent him not. And prosecute not him that taketh thy substance. And as ye desire that men should do to you, so do ye also to them.
[12, 13] Ye have heard that it was said, Love thy neighbour and hate thine enemy: but I say unto you, Love your enemies, and pray for those that curse you, and deal well with those that hate you, and pray for those who take you with violence and persecute you; that ye may be sons of your heavenly Father, who maketh his sun to rise on the good and the evil, and sendeth down his rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If ye love them that love you, what reward shall ye have? for the publicans and sinners also love those that love them. And if ye do a kindness to those who treat you well, where is your superiority? for sinners also do likewise. And if ye lend to him of whom ye hope for a reward, where is your superiority? for the sinners also lend to sinners, seeking recompense from them. But love your enemies, and do good to them, and lend, and cut not off the hope of any man; that your reward may be great, and ye may be the children of the Highest: for he is lenient towards the wicked and the ungrateful. Be ye merciful, even as your Father also is merciful. And if ye inquire for the good of your brethren only, what more have ye done than others? is not this the conduct of the publicans also? Be ye now perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
Consider your alms; do them not before men to let them see you: and if it be not so, ye have no reward before your Father which is in the heavens. When then thou givest an alms now, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as do the people of hypocrisy, [Arabic, p. 36] in the synagogues and the marketplaces, that men may praise them. And verily say I unto you, They have received their reward. But thou, when thou doest alms, let thy left hand not know what thy right hand doeth; that thine alms may be concealed: and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
And whenever thou prayest, be not as the hypocrites, who love to stand in the synagogues and in the corners of the marketplaces for prayers, that men may behold them. And verily say I unto you, They have received their reward. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and fasten thy door, and pray to thy Father in secret, and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. And whenever ye pray, be not babblers, as the heathen; for they think that by the abundance of their words they shall be heard. Then be not ye now like unto them: for your Father knoweth your request before ye ask him. One of his disciples said unto him, Our Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples. Jesus said unto them, Thus now pray ye now: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy [33, 34] name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so on earth. Give us the food of to-day. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgave those that trespassed against us. And bring us not into temptations, but deliver us from the evil one. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. If ye forgive [Arabic, p. 37] men their wrong-doing, your Father which is in heaven will forgive you. But if ye forgive not men, neither will your Father pardon your wrong-doing.
When ye fast, do not frown, as the hypocrites; for they make their faces austere, that they may be seen of men that they are fasting. Verily I say unto you, They have received their reward. But when thou fastest, wash thy face and anoint thy head; that thou make not an appearance to men of fasting, but to thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee.
Be not agitated, little flock; for your Father hath delighted to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions, and give in alms; take to yourselves purses that wax not old. Lay not up treasure on earth, where moth and worm corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: but lay up for yourselves treasure in heaven, where moth and worm do not corrupt, nor thieves break through nor steal: for where your treasure is, there also will your heart be. The lamp of the body is the eye: if then thine eye now be sound, thy whole body also shall be light. But if thine eye be evil, all thy body shall be dark. And if the light which is in thee is darkness, how great is thy darkness! Be watchful that the light which is in thee be not darkness. Because that, if thy whole body is light, and have no part dark, it shall all be light, as the lamp giveth light to thee with its flame.
Section X
[Arabic, p. 38] No man can serve two masters; and that because it is necessary that he hate one of them and love the other, and honour one of them and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and possessions. And because of this I say unto you, Be not anxious for yourselves, what ye shall eat and what ye shall drink; neither for your bodies, what ye shall put on. Is not the life better than the food, and the body than the raiment? Consider the birds of the heaven, which sow not, nor reap, nor store in barns; and yet your Father which is in heaven feedeth them. Are not ye better than they? Who of you when he trieth is able to add to his stature one cubit? If then ye are not able for a small thing, why are ye anxious about the [6, 7] rest? Consider the wild lily, how it grows, although it toils not, nor spins; and I say unto you that Solomon in the greatness of his glory was not clothed like one of them. And if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to-day is, and to-morrow is cast into the oven, how much more shall be unto you, O ye of little faith! Be not anxious, so as to say, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, With what shall we be clothed? Neither let your minds be perplexed in this: all these things the nations of the world seek; and your Father which is in heaven knoweth your need of all these things. Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; [Arabic, p. 39] and all these shall come to you as something additional for you. Be not anxious for the morrow; for the morrow shall be anxious for what belongs to it. Sufficient unto the day is its evil.
Judge not, that ye be not judged: condemn not, that ye be not condemned: forgive, and it shall be forgiven you: release, and ye shall be released: give, that ye may be given unto; with good measure, abundant, full, they shall thrust into your bosoms. With what measure ye measure it shall be measured to you. See to it what ye hear: with what measure ye measure it shall be measured to you; and ye shall be given more. I say unto those that hear, He that hath shall be given unto; and he that hath not, that which he regards as his shall be taken from him.
And he spake unto them a parable, Can a blind man haply guide a blind man? shall they not both fall into a hollow? A disciple is not better than his master; every perfect man shall be as his master. Why lookest thou at the mote which is in the eye of thy brother, but considerest not the column that is in thine own eye? Or how canst thou say to thy brother, Brother, I will take out the mote from thine eye; and the column which is in thine eye thou seest not? Thou hypocrite, take out first the column from thine eye; and then shalt thou see to take out the mote from the eye of thy brother.
Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast your pearls before the swine, lest they trample them with their feet, and return and wound you.
And he said unto them, Who of you, that hath a friend, goeth to him at midnight, and saith unto him, My friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend hath come to me from a journey, and I have nothing to offer to him: and that friend shall [Arabic, p. 40] answer him from within, and say unto him, Trouble me not; for the door is shut, and my children are with me in bed, and I cannot rise and give thee? And verily I say unto you, If he will not give him because of friendship, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him what he seeketh. And I also say unto you, Ask, and ye shall be given unto; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. Every one that asketh receiveth, and he that seeketh findeth, and he that knocketh, it shall be opened to him. What father of you, shall his son ask for bread—will he, think you, give him a stone? and if he ask of him a fish, will he, think you, instead of the fish give him a serpent? and if he ask him for an egg, will he, think you, extend to him a scorpion? If ye then, although being evil, know the gifts which are good, and give them to your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him? Whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: this is the law and the prophets.
Enter ye by the narrow gate; for the wide gate and the broad way lead to destruction, and many they be which go therein. How narrow is the gate and straitened the way leading to life! and few be they that find it.
Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, while within they are ravening wolves. But by their fruits ye shall know them. For every tree is known by its fruit. For figs are not gathered of thorns, neither are grapes plucked of briers. Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit, but the evil tree bringeth [Arabic, p. 41] forth evil fruit. The good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can the evil tree bring forth good fruit. The good man from the good treasures that are in his heart bringeth forth good things; and the evil man from the evil treasures that are in his heart bringeth forth evil things: and from the overflowings of the heart the lips speak. Every tree that beareth not good fruit is cut down and cast [40, 41] into the fire. Therefore by their fruits ye shall know them. Not all that say unto me, My Lord, my Lord, shall enter the kingdom of the heavens; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many shall say unto me in that day, My Lord, my Lord, did we not prophesy in thy name, and in thy name cast out devils, and in thy name do many powers? Then shall I say unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye servants of iniquity. Every man that cometh unto me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to what he is like: he is like the wise man which built a house, and digged and went deep, and laid the foundations on a rock: and the rain came down, and the rivers overflowed, and the winds blew, and shook that house, and it fell not: for its foundation was laid on rocks. And every one that heareth these my words, and doeth them not, is like the foolish man which built his house on sand, without foundation: and the rain descended, and the rivers overflowed, and the winds blew, and smote upon that house, and it fell: and the fall of it was great.
Section XI
[Arabic, p. 42] And when Jesus finished these sayings, the multitudes were astonished at his teaching; and that because he was teaching them as one having authority, not as their scribes and the Pharisees.
And when he descended from the mountain, great multitudes followed him.
And when Jesus entered Capernaum, the servant of one of the chiefs was in an evil case, and he was precious to him, and he was at the point of death. And he heard of Jesus, and came to him with the elders of the Jews; and he besought him, and said, My Lord, my boy is laid in the house paralysed, and he is suffering grievous torment. And the elders urgently requested of him, and said, He is worthy that this should be done unto him: for he loveth our people, and he also built the synagogue [9, 10] for us. Jesus said unto him, I will come and heal him. That chief answered and said, My Lord, I am not worthy that my roof should shade thee; but it sufficeth that thou speak a word, and my lad shall be healed. And I also am a man in obedience to authority, having under my hand soldiers: and I say to this one, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant that he do this, and he doeth it. And when Jesus heard that, he marvelled at him, and turned and said unto the multitude that were coming with him, Verily I say unto you, I have not found in Israel the like of this faith. I say unto you, that many shall come from the east and the west, and shall recline with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob [Arabic, p. 43] in the kingdom of heaven: but the children of the kingdom shall be cast forth into the outer darkness: and there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. And Jesus said to that chief, Go thy way; as thou hast believed, so shall it be unto thee. And his lad was healed in that hour. And that chief returned to the house and found that sick servant healed.
And the day after, he was going to a city called Nain, and his disciples with him, and a great multitude. And when he was come near the gate of the city, he saw a crowd accompanying one that was dead, the only son of his mother; and his mother was a widow: and there was with her a great multitude of the people of the city. And when Jesus saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not. And he went and advanced to the bier, and the bearers of it stood still; and he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And that dead man sat up and began to speak; and he gave him to his mother. And fear came on all the people: and they praised God, and said, There hath risen among us a great prophet: and, God hath had regard to his people. And this news concerning him spread in all Judæa, and in all the region which was about them.
And when Jesus saw great multitudes surrounding him, he commanded them to depart to the other side. And while they were going in the way, there came one of the scribes and said unto him, My Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest. Jesus said unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the heaven have nests; but the Son of man hath not a place in which to lay his head. And he said unto another, Follow me. And he said unto him, My Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father. Jesus said unto him, Leave the dead to bury their dead; but thou, follow me and preach the kingdom of God. And another said unto him, I will follow [Arabic, p. 44] thee, my Lord; but first suffer me to go and salute my household and come. Jesus said unto him, There is no one who putteth his hand to the plough and looketh behind him, and yet is fit for the kingdom of God.
And he said to them on that day in the evening, Let us go over to the other side of the lake; and he left the multitudes. And Jesus went up and sat in the ship, he and his disciples, and there were with them other ships. And there occurred on the sea a great tempest of whirlwind and wind, and the ship was on the point of sinking from the greatness of the waves. But Jesus was sleeping on a cushion in the stern of the ship; and his disciples came and awoke him, and said unto him, Our Lord, save us; lo, we perish. And he rose, and rebuked the winds and the turbulence of the water, and said to the sea, Be still, for thou art rebuked; and the wind was still, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye thus afraid? and why have ye no faith? And they feared greatly. And they marvelled, and said one to another, Who, think you, is this, who commandeth also the wind and the waves and the sea, and they obey him?
And they departed and came to the country of the Gadarenes, which is on the other side, opposite the land of Galilee. And when he went out of the ship to the land, there met him from among the tombs a man who had a devil for a long time, and wore no clothes, neither dwelt in a house, but among the tombs. And no man was [Arabic, p. 45] able to bind him with chains, because any time that he was bound with chains and fetters he cut the chains and loosened the fetters; and he was snatched away of the devil into the desert, and no man was able to quiet him; and at all times, in the night and in the day, he would be among the tombs and in the mountains; and no man was able to pass by that way; and he would cry out and wound himself with stones. And when he saw Jesus at a distance, he hastened and worshipped him, and cried with a loud voice and said, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God, torment me not. And Jesus commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man: and he had suffered a long time since the time when he came into captivity to it. And Jesus asked him, What is thy name? He said unto him, Legion; for there had entered into him many devils. And they besought him that he would not command them to depart into the depths. And there was there a herd of many swine, feeding in the mountain, and those devils besought him to give them leave to enter the swine; and he gave them leave. And the devils went out of the man and entered into the swine. And that herd hastened to the summit and fell down into the midst of the sea, about two thousand, and they were choked in the water. And when the keepers saw what happened, they fled, and told those in the cities and villages. And the people went out to see what had happened; and they came to Jesus, and found the man whose [Arabic, p. 46] devils had gone out, clothed, modest, seated at the feet of Jesus; and they feared. And they reported what they saw, and how the man was healed who had a devil, and concerning those swine also.