1 aWhen Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on bthe mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. 2 aHe opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying, 3 "aBlessed are the poor in spirit, for btheirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 "Blessed are athose who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 5 "Blessed are athe gentle, for they shall inherit the earth. 6 "Blessed are athose who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. 7 "Blessed are athe merciful, for they shall receive mercy. 8 "Blessed are athe pure in heart, for bthey shall see God. 9 "Blessed are the peacemakers, for athey shall be called sons of God. 10 "Blessed are those who have been apersecuted for the sake of righteousness, for btheirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 "Blessed are you when people ainsult 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 ain the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. 13 "You are the salt of the earth; but aif the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men. 14 "You are athe light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; 15 anor 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 asee your good works, and bglorify your Father who is in heaven. 17 "Do not think that I came to abolish the aLaw or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. 18 "For truly I say to you, auntil heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 19 "Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least ain the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 "For I say to you that unless your arighteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. 21 "aYou have heard that the ancients were told, 'bYOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER' and 'Whoever commits murder shall be liable to cthe court.' 22 "But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before athe court; and whoever says to his brother, 'You good-for-nothing,' shall be guilty before bthe supreme court; and whoever says, 'You fool,' shall be guilty enough to go into the cfiery hell. 23 "Therefore if you are apresenting 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 areconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering. 25 "aMake 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, ayou will not come out of there until you have paid up the last cent. 27 "aYou have heard that it was said, 'bYOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY'; 28 but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman awith lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 "aIf 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 for your whole body to be thrown into bhell. 30 "aIf 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 for your whole body to go into bhell. 31 "It was said, 'aWHOEVER SENDS HIS WIFE AWAY, LET HIM GIVE HER A CERTIFICATE OF DIVORCE'; 32 abut I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except for the reason of unchastity, makes her commit adultery; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery. 33 "Again, ayou have heard that the ancients were told, 'bYOU SHALL NOT MAKE FALSE VOWS, BUT SHALL FULFILL YOUR VOWS TO THE Lord.' 34 "But I say to you, amake no oath at all, either by heaven, for it is bthe throne of God, 35 or by the earth, for it is the afootstool of His feet, or by Jerusalem, for it is bTHE CITY OF THE GREAT KING. 36 "Nor shall you make an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 "But let your statement be, 'Yes, yes' or 'No, no'; anything beyond these is of aevil. 38 "aYou have heard that it was said, 'bAN EYE FOR AN EYE, AND A TOOTH FOR A TOOTH.' 39 "But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but awhoever 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 "aGive to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you. 43 "aYou have heard that it was said, 'bYOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR cand hate your enemy.' 44 "But I say to you, alove your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be asons 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 aif 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 ayou are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.