74 matching verse commentaries
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Take heed that ye do not your alms before men,.... Some copies read, "take heed that ye do not your righteousness", c. which is a very good reading: but then, by "righteousness", is not meant righteousness, as comprehending all other righteous acts, as particularly alms, prayer, and fasting, hereafter mentioned but alms only; nothing being more...
Matthew Henry - Complete Commentary - Matthew Henry
Christ having, in the former chapter, armed his disciples against the corrupt doctrines and opinions of the scribes and Pharisees, especially in their expositions of the law (that was called their leaven, ch. xvi. 12), comes in this chapter to warn them against their corrupt practices, against the two sins which, though in their doctrine they did...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. “You cannot expect to be paid twice, if therefore you take your reward in the applause of men, who give you a high character for generosity, you cannot expect to have any reward from God.” We ought to have a single eye...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. Our blessed Lord does not tell his disciples to give alms, but he takes it for granted that they do that. How could they be his disciples if they did not so? But he tells them to take care that they do not do this in...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. The motive which leads a man to give, will form the true estimate of what he does. If he gives to be seen of men then when he is seen of men he has the reward he sought for, and he will never have any other. Let us...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Wherefore, when thou dost thine alms,.... Christ proceeds to give some directions and cautions about giving of alms, that they might be done aright, and answer some valuable purposes for the glory of God, the good of others, and their own: do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do, in the synagogues, and in the streets, that they...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. And they will have no more; there is, in their case, no laying up of any store of good works before God. Whatever they may have done,...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you. They have their reward. So that they will never have another. They have been paid once for it by the approbation of their fellow-men. They will never have any...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
But when thou dost alms,.... Do it so privately, and with so much secrecy, that, if it was possible, thou mightest not know it thyself, much less make it known to others: let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doth; acquaint not thy nearest and dearest friend with it; let not one that sits at thy left hand know what thou art doing with thy...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: “Do it so by stealth as scarcely to know it thyself; think so little of it with regard to thyself that thou shalt scarcely know that thou hast done it. Do it unto God; let him know it.”
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
But when thou doest alms let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly. And when thou prayest, He does not tell his disciples to pray, but again takes it for granted that they do so, and he cannot be a Christian who does not pray. “A...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
That thine alms may be in secret,.... May be done in secret, and be kept a secret. The allusion seems to be to the secret chamber, where money was brought privately for the relief of the poor. "There were two chambers in the sanctuary, the one was לשכת חשאים, "the chamber of secrets", and the other the chamber of vessels: the chamber of secrets...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly. There is a blessed emphasis upon that word “himself” for, if God shall reward us, what a reward it will be! Any praise from his lips, any reward from his hands, will be of priceless value. Oh, to live with an eye to that alone! This exposition...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites,.... As the Scribes and Pharisees; whose posture in prayer, the places they chose to pray in, and the view they had therein, are particularly taken notice of: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues, and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. It was their...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
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 seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. All they will ever get. People say, “What a wonderfully pious man he is to pray up at the street corner.” Ay, but that is the reward. The prayer...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
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 seen of men. We ought to pray in the synagogue, and we may pray at the corners of the streets; but the wrong is to do it to “be seen of men,” that is, to be looking for some present...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet,.... Or "chamber", a secret place, fit for private retirement, meditation, and prayer. And when thou hast shut thy door; see some such like phrases in Isaiah 26:20 where they are used to express security, here secrecy. Our Lord does not mean to exclude and condemn public prayer, in joining with...
Spurgeon - Verse Expositions - Charles H. Spurgeon
But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, Get into some quiet nook — some secret place, no matter where. Mat_6:6. And when thou hast shut thy door, So that nobody can hear you — not wishing anybody to know even that you are at prayer. “When thou hast shut thy door.”