Matthew 6
1
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.
2
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.
3
But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:
4
That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.
5
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. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
6
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.
7
But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.
8
Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.
9
After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
10
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
11
Give us this day our daily bread.
12
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
13
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
14
For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
15
But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
16
Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
17
But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face;
18
That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.
19
Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
20
But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
21
For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
22
The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.
23
But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!
24
No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
25
Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
26
Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
27
Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?
28
And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:
29
And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
30
Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?
31
Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?
32
(For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.
33
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
34
Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
Arcana Coelestia #8480
8480. 'And some did leave part of it until the morning' means the abuse of God's goodness, in that they wished to obtain it of themselves. This is clear from the meaning of 'leaving it until the morning' as being anxious to acquire good of themselves, dealt with above in 8478, which is therefore the abuse of God's goodness. It is called an abuse when something of a like nature to outward appearances arises, yet springs from a contrary origin. Good arises from a contrary origin when it springs from man, not from the Lord. For the Lord is absolute Good and therefore the source of all good. Good that originates in Him has the Divine within it, and so is good right through to its inmost or prime being. But good that originates in man is not good, because in himself man is nothing but evil. Consequently good originating in him is primarily and in essence evil, though to outward appearance it may look like good. These things are like flowers portrayed in a picture compared to flowers that grow in the garden. The latter flowers are beautiful through to their inmost parts, for the more they open out the more beautiful they become. But flowers portrayed in a picture are beautiful merely in outward appearance; for inwardly they are nothing other than clay and a mass of particles of earth lying in disorder within it. This is also what the Lord teaches when He says,
Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of the lilies of the field. Matthew 6:29.
[2] So it is with good that originates in man and good that originates in the Lord. Man cannot know that those kinds of good are so greatly different from each other because he judges by external appearances. But angels have a clear perception of where man's good originates and what it is therefore like. The angels with a person are present and so to speak dwelling in good originating in the Lord. They are unable to be present in good originating in man; they get as far away from it as they can, since inmostly it is evil. For good originating in the Lord has heaven within it; that good images the form of heaven, concealing in itself inmostly the Lord Himself. For in all good that comes from the Lord there is a likeness of Him and therefore a likeness of heaven. But in all good that comes from man there is a likeness of man; and since man in himself is nothing but evil it is a likeness of hell. This is how greatly different good originating in the Lord is from good originating in man.
Good originating in the Lord exists with those who love the Lord above all things and their neighbour as themselves; but good originating in man exists with those who love themselves above all things and despise their neighbour in comparison with themselves. The latter are also those who are concerned for the morrow because they trust in themselves, whereas the former are those who are unconcerned for the morrow because they trust in the Lord, a matter dealt with above in 8478. Those who trust in the Lord are constantly receiving good from Him; for whatever happens to them, whether it seems to be advantageous or not advantageous, is nevertheless good, for it serves as a means contributing to their eternal happiness. But those who trust in themselves are constantly bringing evil on themselves, for whatever happens to them, even if it seems to be advantageous and fortunate, is nevertheless bad, and consequently acts as a means contributing to their eternal unhappiness. These are the things that are meant when it says that they were to leave none of the manna till the morning, and that any they did leave bred worms and putrified.
