Matthew 6:30
Encyclopedia
Matthew 6:30 is the thirtieth verse of the sixth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew
in the New Testament
and is part of the Sermon on the Mount
. This verse continues the discussion of worry about material provisions.
In the King James Version of the Bible
the text reads:
The World English Bible
translates the passage as:
For a collection of other versions see BibRef Matthew 6:30
Jesus has been discussing the lilies in the field, and how even these simple flowers are more finely clothed than Solomon
. In this verse he states that if God clothes the lowly flowers so grandly, he will certainly ensure that his human followers are properly clad. This is very similar to Matthew 6:26
, with lilies and clothes in place of birds and food.
The grass of the field of this verse is presumed to be the lilies of Matthew 6:27
, implying that Jesus was speaking of the abundant wild flowers that will fill local fields. Wood
has always been in short supply in Palestine and the burning of grasses was an important source of fuel. Barclay states that they were typically thrown into the clay ovens of the region when it was necessary to rapidly increase the heat. These ovens would be used to bake the bread the populace subsided on.
There are two lessons generally read into this verse. The first is that beauty and the physical are fleeting, what is splendid one day can be thrown into the fire the next. This perhaps links with Matthew 6:20, where Jesus contrasts the impermanence of physical things with the eternal nature of the spiritual. Harrington links this verse to Isaiah 40:6-8, which also discussed the fleeting nature of grass and flowers. Secondly it shows how unimportant these flowers are. They are commonly sacrificed en masse for the simple task of baking bread, yet God provides them with beautiful raiments. If God provides for such lowly flowers, he would surely do so for the humans made in his image.
The Gospel of Thomas
contains a version of this verse, but it comes to a very different conclusion, arguing that clothing is useless and should be dispensed with.
"O ye of little faith" appears several times in the New Testament. It is one of Jesus' strongest admonitions of his disciples.
Gospel of Matthew
The Gospel According to Matthew is one of the four canonical gospels, one of the three synoptic gospels, and the first book of the New Testament. It tells of the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth...
in the New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
and is part of the Sermon on the Mount
Sermon on the Mount
The Sermon on the Mount is a collection of sayings and teachings of Jesus, which emphasizes his moral teaching found in the Gospel of Matthew...
. This verse continues the discussion of worry about material provisions.
In the King James Version of the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
the text reads:
- 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?
The World English Bible
World English Bible
The World English Bible is a public domain translation of the Bible that is currently in draft form. Work on the World English Bible began in 1997 and was known as the American Standard Version 1997...
translates the passage as:
- But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which
- today exists, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven,
- won’t he much more clothe you, you of little faith?
For a collection of other versions see BibRef Matthew 6:30
Jesus has been discussing the lilies in the field, and how even these simple flowers are more finely clothed than Solomon
Solomon
Solomon , according to the Book of Kings and the Book of Chronicles, a King of Israel and according to the Talmud one of the 48 prophets, is identified as the son of David, also called Jedidiah in 2 Samuel 12:25, and is described as the third king of the United Monarchy, and the final king before...
. In this verse he states that if God clothes the lowly flowers so grandly, he will certainly ensure that his human followers are properly clad. This is very similar to Matthew 6:26
Matthew 6:26
Matthew 6:26 is the twenty-sixth verse of the sixth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament and is part of the Sermon on the Mount. This verse continues the discussion of worry about material provisions...
, with lilies and clothes in place of birds and food.
The grass of the field of this verse is presumed to be the lilies of Matthew 6:27
Matthew 6:27
Matthew 6:27 is the twenty-seventh verse of the sixth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament and is part of the Sermon on the Mount...
, implying that Jesus was speaking of the abundant wild flowers that will fill local fields. Wood
Wood
Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
has always been in short supply in Palestine and the burning of grasses was an important source of fuel. Barclay states that they were typically thrown into the clay ovens of the region when it was necessary to rapidly increase the heat. These ovens would be used to bake the bread the populace subsided on.
There are two lessons generally read into this verse. The first is that beauty and the physical are fleeting, what is splendid one day can be thrown into the fire the next. This perhaps links with Matthew 6:20, where Jesus contrasts the impermanence of physical things with the eternal nature of the spiritual. Harrington links this verse to Isaiah 40:6-8, which also discussed the fleeting nature of grass and flowers. Secondly it shows how unimportant these flowers are. They are commonly sacrificed en masse for the simple task of baking bread, yet God provides them with beautiful raiments. If God provides for such lowly flowers, he would surely do so for the humans made in his image.
The Gospel of Thomas
Gospel of Thomas
The Gospel According to Thomas, commonly shortened to the Gospel of Thomas, is a well preserved early Christian, non-canonical sayings-gospel discovered near Nag Hammadi, Egypt, in December 1945, in one of a group of books known as the Nag Hammadi library...
contains a version of this verse, but it comes to a very different conclusion, arguing that clothing is useless and should be dispensed with.
"O ye of little faith" appears several times in the New Testament. It is one of Jesus' strongest admonitions of his disciples.