1 When He saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain. After He had taken His seat, His disciples came up to Him.
2 Then He opened His mouth and continued to teach them as follows:
3 "Blessed are those who feel poor in spiritual things, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to them.
4 "Blessed are the mourners, for they will be comforted.
5 "Blessed are the lowly in mind, for they will possess the land.
6 "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for being and doing right, for they will be completely satisfied.
7 "Blessed are those who show mercy, for they will have mercy shown them.
8 "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
9 "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called God's sons.
10 "Blessed are those who suffer persecution for being and doing right, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to them.
11 "Blessed are you when people abuse you, and persecute you, and keep on falsely telling all sorts of evil against you for my sake.
12 Keep on rejoicing and leaping for ecstasy, for your reward will be rich in heaven; for this is the way they persecuted the prophets who lived before you.
13 "You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its strength, what can make it salt again? It is good for nothing but to be thrown away and trodden under foot.
14 You are the light of the world. A city that is built upon a hill cannot be hidden.
15 People do not light a lamp and put it under a peck-measure but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all that are in the house.
16 Let your light shine before people in such a way that they may see your good deeds, and praise your Father in heaven.
17 "Do not suppose that I have come to set aside the law or the prophets.
18 I have not come to set them aside but to fill them up to the brim. For I solemnly say to you, heaven and earth would sooner pass away than the dotting of an 'i' or the crossing of a 't' from the law, until it all becomes in force.
19 Whoever, therefore, breaks one of the least of these commands and teaches others so to do, will be ranked as least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices them and teaches others so to do, will be ranked as great in the kingdom of heaven.
20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness far surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never get into the kingdom of heaven at all.
21 "You have heard that it was said to the men of old, 'You must not murder,' and 'Whoever murders will have to answer to the court.'
22 But I say to you: "Everyone who harbors malice against his brother, will have to answer to the court, and whoever speaks contemptuously to his brother, will have to answer to the supreme court; and whoever says to his brother, 'You cursed fool? will have to pay the penalty in the pit of torture.
23 So if, in the very act of presenting your gift at the altar, you remember that your brother has something against you,
24 leave your grit right there at the altar, and first go and make peace with your brother, and then come back and present your gift.
25 Be quick to come to terms with your opponent while you are on the road to court with him, so that he may not turn you over to the judge and the judge turn you over to the officer, and you be put in prison.
26 I solemnly say to you, you will never get out at all until you have paid the last penny.
27 "You have heard it was said, 'You must not commit adultery.'
28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman so as to have an evil desire for her at once has already committed adultery with her in his heart,
29 So if your right eye causes you to do wrong, pluck it out of your way; for it is better to have one part of your body suffer loss than to have your whole body go down to the pit.
30 And if your right hand causes you to do wrong, cut it off and put it out of your way, for it is better to have one part of your body suffer loss than to have your whole body go down to the pit.
31 "It was also said, 'Whoever divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.'
32 But I tell you that whoever divorces his wife for any other ground than unfaithfulness, causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a wife who is thus divorced commits adultery.
33 "Again, you have heard that it was said to the men of old, 'You must not swear falsely, but you must perform your oaths as a religious duty.'
34 But I tell you not to swear at all, either by heaven, for it is God's throne,
35 or by the earth, for it is His footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King.
36 Never swear by your own head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black.
37 But your way of speaking must be a simple 'Yes' or 'No.' Anything beyond this comes from the evil one.
38 "You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.'
39 But I tell you not to resist the one who injures you, but if anyone slaps you on one cheek, turn him the other, too;
40 and if anyone wants to sue you for your shirt, let him have your coat, too.
41 And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two.
42 If anyone, whoever he may be, keeps on begging you, give to him; if anyone wants to borrow from you, do not turn him away.
43 "You have heard that it was said, 'You must love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'
44 But I tell you, practice loving your enemies and praying for your persecutors,
45 to prove that you are sons of your Father in heaven, for He makes His sun rise on bad as well as good people, and makes the rain come down on doers of right and of wrong alike.
46 For if you practice loving only those who love you, what reward will you get? Do not even the tax-collectors practice that?
47 And if you say 'Good morning' to your brothers only, what more than others are you doing?
48 So you, my followers, ought to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is."