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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadBob Utley You Can Understand the Bible - Matthew 6:25 - 6:33
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This Chapter Verse Commentaries:
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Mat_6:25-33
25"For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor do they reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? 27And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? 28And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, 29yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. 30But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith! 31Do not worry then, saying, 'What will we eat?'or 'What will we drink?'or 'What will we wear for clothing?'32For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Mat_6:25 "For this reason I say to you" This shows the logical connection with Mat_6:19-24.
▣ "do not be worried about your life'" This is another present imperative with a negative particle, which meant to stop an act that is already in progress. For a parallel passage, see Php_4:6. Mat_6:25 states a general principle in light of the previous verses. The KJV translation, "take no thought for," is unfortunate because it implies, in our day, that any planning about the future is inappropriate. This is surely not the case (cf. 1Ti_5:8). The key thought is "worry" (cf. Mat_6:25; Mat_6:27-28; Mat_6:31; Mat_6:34).
▣ "Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing" Physical life is important but it is not ultimate. This world is simply the training ground for a fuller and more intimate fellowship with God. The biblical truth is that God does care for His children and that He will provide for their basic needs.
Mat_6:26; Mat_6:28 "the birds of the air. . .the lilies of the field" The translation "wild birds" and "wild flowers" is appropriate because the text does not specify a particular kind of bird or flower but simply common ones. Because the setting was the Sermon on the Mount, perhaps Jesus pointed to a flock of wild birds or to the wild flowers nearby. This was a rabbinical hermeneutical argument from the lesser to the greater.
Mat_6:26 "Are you not worth much more than they" This is a rabbinical-type comparison of the lesser to the greater. The Bible is clear that God created and loves animals. But animals cannot fellowship with God as humans made in His image can. Be careful of making the lives of animals more valuable than the lives of humans. Animals were given for food and service after the Fall. They are not eternal, humans are! Evangelism is more important than " animal rights" ! Most of the animal life which was created has gone out of existence. Some groups care more for animals than people! What a warped worldview. Animal rights groups care more for insects than unborn humans!
Just one more word, cruelty to animals says a lot about an uncaring, unfeeling person. God created animals with pain sensors just like us. Animals were part of the original creation of Genesis 1 and will be part of the new creation (cf. Isa_11:6-9).
Mat_6:27
NASB "can add a single hour to his life"
NKJV "can add one cubit to his stature"
NRSV "add a single hour to your span of life"
TEV "live a bit longer"
NJB "add a single cubit to his span of life"
This is literally the Hebrew term "cubit." Cubit referred to the length between a man's elbow and his longest finger. It was an OT measurement used in construction and was normally about eighteen inches. However, there was a royal cubit used in the Temple which measured twenty-one inches. In the New Testament it was used either for height or time: of height in Luk_19:3 (also LXX of Eze_13:18) and of time in Joh_9:21; Joh_9:23 and Heb_11:11. Because it is ridiculous for a person to be able to physically grow over a foot taller, it is either (1) a metaphor for aging or (2) an oriental overstatement (hyperbole).
Mat_6:30 "But if God" This is a first class conditional sentence, which is assumed to be true from the perspective of the speaker or for his literary purposes. God does provide for His creation.
▣ "which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace" A common use for dry grass was to start the fire in small ovens used for baking bread. This was a metaphor for the transience of life, not an eschatological judgment. Believers are worth much more than beautiful wild grasses.
▣ "You of little faith" This phrase occurs several times in the Gospel of Matthew (cf. Mat_8:26; Mat_14:31; Mat_16:8). Jesus' teaching was designed to increase believers'faith.
Mat_6:31 "Do not worry then" This is a negative aorist subjunctive, which meant "do not begin worrying" (cf. Php_4:6). An unhealthy emphasis on how one will provide for his basic needs shows a lack of trust in the God who has promised to provide for believers.
Mat_6:32
NASB "For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things"
NKJV "For after all these things the Gentiles seek"
NRSV "For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things"
TEV "These are the things the pagans are always concerned about"
NJB "It is the gentiles who set their hearts on all these things"
One of the characteristics of fallen mankind is their insatiable desire for things. God knows believers need the things of this world to live. He will provide their needs, not always their wants.
Mat_6:33
NASB, NKJV "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness"
NRSV "But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness"
TEV "Be concerned above everything else with the Kingdom of God"
NJB "Set your heart on his kingdom first, and on God's saving justice"
This is a present imperative which speaks of a habitual command. The truth is that God must be the priority in believers'lives. The phrase "His righteousness" was used here in an ethical sense, not in a legal (forensic) sense as in Paul's writings. This ethical sense can be seen in Mat_5:6; Mat_5:10; Mat_5:20; Mat_6:1, Deu_6:25, Isa_1:27-28, and Dan_4:27. This is not a call to works righteousness; rather, it suggests that once one knows Him, his life will be characterized by good works (cf. Eph_2:10). Positional, imputed righteousness should be reflected in Christlike living. See Special Topics: Kingdom of God at Mat_4:17 and Righteousness at Mat_5:6.
The phrase "His Kingdom" was the concept of God's current reign in human hearts that will one day be consummated over all the earth (cf. Mat_6:10). It was the central focus of Jesus' preaching. This kingdom ethic must be the highest priority. The early Greek manuscripts ( à & B) do not have the genitive phrase "of God" (cf. NRSV and TEV).
The term "first" is used by Jesus several times to illustrate the radical newness of the "new age" of the Spirit, which He inaugurated.
1. Mat_5:24, be reconciled to your brother before worship
2. Mat_6:33, seek the kingdom of God before personal needs/desires
3. Mat_7:5, before judging others evaluate your own faults
4. Mat_23:26, clean the whole life, inner and outer
▣ "and all these things will be added to you" This referred to the physical and normal needs of life. God will not leave believers stranded. This is a general principle, which cannot always answer the specific questions of why this individual or that individual suffers loss or is in need. Sometimes God will provide a time of need in order for believers to trust Him, turn to Him, or to improve their character. This statement is much like the book of Proverbs in the sense that it states general principles. They are not meant to explain every individual, particular occurrence.