Measuring Your Measure
7 “Stop judging, so that you may not be judged. 2 For with the judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
3 “Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the beam in your own eye? 4 Or how will you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and look, the beam is in your own eye? 5 Hypocrite, first take the beam out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.
6 “Do not give what is holy to dogs or throw your pearls before pigs; otherwise they will trample them under their feet, then turn and rip you to shreds.
7 “Ask, and it shall be given to you. Seek, and you shall find. Knock, and it shall be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it shall be opened.
9 “For what man among you, when his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or when he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you then, being evil, 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 So in all things, do to others what you would want them to do to you—for this is the Torah and the Prophets.
13 “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and those who enter through it are many. 14 How narrow is the gate and difficult the way that leads to life, and those who find it are few.”
Judging the Fruit
15 “Watch out for false prophets,[a] who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. 16 You will recognize them by their fruit. Grapes aren’t gathered from thorn bushes or figs from thistles, are they? 17 Even so, every good tree produces good fruit, but the rotten tree produces bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a rotten tree produce good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire. 20 So then, you will recognize them by their fruit.
21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord!’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in Your name, and drive out demons in Your name, and perform many miracles in Your name?’ 23 Then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you. Get away from Me, you workers of lawlessness!’”[b]
Building on a Firm Foundation
24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house; and yet it did not fall, for its foundation had been built on the rock. 26 Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.”
28 Now when Yeshua had finished these words, the crowds were astounded at His teaching, 29 for He was teaching them as one having authority and not as their Torah scholars.
Footnotes
- Matthew 7:15 cf. Deut. 18:20-22; Isa. 28:7-13; Jer. 5:30-31; 6:13-15; 14:13-15; Ezek. 13; Mic. 3:5-8.
- Matthew 7:23 cf. Ps. 6:9(8).