CHAPTER Iames, and and healeth all Christ begin neth his Sermon in the Mount: declaring who are blessed, who are the salt of the earth, the light of the world, the citie on an hill, the candle: sawe other two brethren, Iames the sonne of Zebedee, and Iohn his brother, in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending their nets: and he called them. And they immediatly left the shippe and their father, and followed him. And Iesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their Synagogues, and preaching the Gospel of the kingdome, and healing all maner of sickenesse, and all maner of disease among the people. And his fame went thorowout all Syria: and they brought unto him all sicke people that were taken with diverse diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunaticke, and those that had the palsie, and he healed them. And there followed him great multitudes of people, from Galilee, and from Decapolis, and from Hierusalem, and from Iudea, and from beyond Iordane. AN CHAPTER V ND seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountaine : and when he was set, his disciples came unto him. And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, Blessed are the poore in spirit: for theirs is the kingdome of heaven. Blessed are they that mourne: for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the mercifull: for they shall obtaine mercie. Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall bee called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousnesse sake: for theirs is the kingdome of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shal say all manner of evill against you falsly for my sake. Reioyce, and be exceeding glad : for great is your reward in heaven: For so persecuted they the Prophets which were before you. Yee are the salt of the earth: But if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? It is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be troden under foote of men. Yee are the light of the world. A citie that is set on an hill, cannot be hid. Neither doe men light a candle, and put it under a bushell: but on a candlesticke, and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good workes, and glorifie your father which is in heaven. Thinke not that I am come to destroy the lawe or the Prophets. CHAPTER V I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth passe, one iote or one title, shall in no that he came to wise passe from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therfore fulfill the Law: shall breake one of these least commaundements, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdome of heaven: but whosoever shall doe, and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdome of heaven. For I say unto you, That except your righteousnesse shall exceede the righteousnesse of the Scribes and Pharisees, yee shall in no case enter into the kingdome of heaven. Yee have heard, that it was saide by them of old time, Thou what it is shalt not kill: and, Whosoever shall kill, shalbe in danger of the to kill, iudgement. But I say unto you, that whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause, shall be in danger of the Iudgement: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Racha, shal be in danger of the counsell: but whosoever shall say, Thou foole, shalbe in danger of hell fire. Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there remembrest that thy brother hath ought against thee: leave there thy gift before the altar, and goe thy way, first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift. Agree with thine adversarie quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him: least at any time the adversarie deliver thee to the iudge, and the iudge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison. Verily I say unto thee, thou shalt by no meanes come out thence, till thou hast payd the uttermost farthing. Yee have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou to commit shalt not commit adulterie. But I say unto you, That whoso- adulterie, ever looketh on a woman to lust after her, hath committed adulterie with her already in his heart. And if thy right eie offend thee, plucke it out, and cast it from thee. For it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee. For it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. It hath beene said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement. But I say unto you, that whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marie her that is divorced, committeth adulterie. Againe, yee have heard that it hath beene said by them of old to sweare: time, Thou shalt not forsweare thy selfe, but shalt performe unto the Lord thine othes. But I say unto you, Sweare not at all, 6: B 9 CHAPTER V Exhorteth to suffer wrong, to love even our enemies, and to labour after perfect nesse. Christ continu eth his Sermon in the Mount, speaking of almes, prayer, neither by heaven, for it is Gods throne: nor by the earth, for it is his footstoole: neither by Hierusalem, for it is the citie of the great king. Neither shalt thou sweare by thy head, because thou canst not make one haire white or blacke. But let your communication bee Yea, yea: Nay, nay: For whatsoever is more then these, commeth of evill. Yee have heard that it hath beene said, An eie for an eie, and a tooth for a tooth. But I say unto you, that yee resist not evill: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheeke, turne to him the other also. And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coate, let him have thy cloake also. And whosoever shall compell thee to goe a mile, goe with him twaine. Give to him that asketh thee: and from him that would borrow of thee, turne not thou away. Yee have heard, that it hath beene said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemie: but I say unto you, Love your enemies, blesse them that curse you, doe good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you that yee may be the children of your father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sunne to rise on the evill and on the good, and sendeth raine on the iust, and on the uniust. For if yee love them which love you, what reward have yee? Doe not even the Publicanes the same? And if yee salute your brethren only, what do you more then others? Doe not even the Publicanes so? Be yee therefore perfect, even as your father, which is in heaven, is perfect. T CHAPTER VI AKE heed that yee doe not your almes before men, to bee seene of them: otherwise yee have no reward of your father which is in heaven. Therefore, when thou doest thine almes, doe not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites doe, in the Synagogues, and in the streetes, that they may have glory of men. Verily, I say unto you, they have their reward. But when thou doest almes, let not thy left hand know, what thy right doeth: that thine almes may be in secret: And thy father which seeth in secret, himselfe shall reward thee openly. And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the Synagogues, and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seene of men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward. But thou when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy doore, pray to thy father which is in secret, and thy father which seeth in secret, CHAPTER VI shall reward thee openly. But when yee pray, use not vaine repetitions, as the heathen doe. For they thinke that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not yee therefore like unto them: For your father knoweth what things yee have neede of, before yee aske him. After this maner therefore pray yee: Our father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdome come. Thy will be done, in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debters. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evill: For thine is the kingdome, and the power, and the glory, for ever, Amen. For, if yee forgive men their trespasses, your forgiving our heavenly father will also forgive you. But, if yee forgive not men brethren, their trespasses, neither will your father forgive your trespasses. Moreover, when yee fast, be not as the Hypocrites, of a sad fasting, countenance for they disfigure their faces, that they may appeare unto men to fast: Verily I say unto you, they have their reward. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face that thou appeare not unto men to fast, but unto thy father which is in secret: and thy father which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly. Lay not up for your selves treasures upon earth, where moth and where our rust doth corrupt, and where theeves breake thorow, and steale. treasure is to be layed up, But lay up for your selves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where theeves doe not breake thorow, nor steale. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. The light of the body is the eye: If therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shalbe full of light. But if thine eye be evill, thy whole body shall be full of darknesse. If therfore the light that is in thee be darkenesse, how great is that darkenesse ? No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one of serving God, and love the other, or else hee will holde to the one, and despise and Mammon, the other. Ye cannot serve God and Mammon. Therfore I say Exhorteth not unto you, Take no thought for your life, what shall eate, or what ye shall drinke, nor yet for your body, what yee shall put on Is not the life more then meate? and the body then raiment Behold the foules of the aire: for they sow not, neither doe they reape, nor gather into barnes, yet your heavenly father feedeth them. Are yee not much better then they? Which of you by taking thought, can adde one cubite unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lillies of the field, how they grow: they toile not, neither doe they spinne. And yet I say unto you, that even Solomon in all his glory, was not arayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grasse of the field, yee to bee carefull for worldly things: ? CHAPTER which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven: shall he not much more clothe you, O yee of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eate? or, what shall we drinke? or wherewithall shall wee be clothed? (for after all these things doe the Gentiles seeke:) for your heavenly father knoweth that have neede of all these things. But seeke ye first the kingdome Gods kingdome. of God, and his righteousnesse, and all these things shalbe added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow for the morrow shall take thought for the things of it selfe: sufficient unto the day is the evill thereof. but to seeke ye CHAPTER VII Christ ending his Sermon in the Mount, reprooveth rash iudgement, Forbiddeth to cast holy things to dogges, Exhorteth to prayer, To enter in at I UDGE not, that ye be not iudged. For with what iudgment ye iudge, yee shall be iudged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you againe. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brothers eye, but considerest not the beame that is in thine owne eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let mee pull out the mote out of thine eye, and beholde, a beame is in thine owne eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beame out of thine owne eye: and then shalt thou see clearely to cast out the mote out of thy brothers eye. Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearles before swine: lest they trample them under their feete, and turne againe and rent you. Aske, and it shalbe given you: seeke, and ye shall finde: knocke, and it shalbe opened unto you. For every one that asketh, receiveth: and he that seeketh, findeth: and to him that knocketh, it shalbe opened. Or what man is there of you, whom if his sonne aske bread, will hee give him a stone? Or if he aske a fish, will hee give him a serpent? If ye then being evill, know how to give good giftes unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven, give good things to them that aske him? Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should doe to you, doe ye even so to them: for this is the Law and the Prophets. Enter ye in at the strait gate, for wide is the gate, and broad is the strait gate, the way that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which goe in thereat because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way which leadeth unto life, and few there be that finde it. To beware of Beware of false prophets which come to you in sheepes clothing, false prophets, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Yee shall knowe them by their fruits: Doe men gather grapes of thornes, or figges of thistles? |