The Fallible Study Bible

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Matthew6:25–34

Do Not Worry

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Matthew 6:25–34 — Do Not Worry. Each verse below carries the full apparatus: the Berean Standard Bible, the vocalized original (tap any word), and a parsed breakdown of every term transcribed from the interlinear. Synthesized commentary, canonical threads, and the reading of Christ gather at the end, over the whole unit.

25

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

Dia touto legō hymin mē merimnate tē hymōn psychē ti phagēte ē ti piēte mēde tō hymōn sōmati ti endysēsthe estin ouchi hē psychē pleion tēs trophēs kai to sōma tou endymatos

Word by word32 · parsed
ΔιὰDiaThereforeG1223
√ διά — through (in very wide applications, local, causal, or occasional)Preposition
Διὰ τοῦτο: "because of this," pointing back to the impossibility of serving God and mammon (v. 24), not forward.
τοῦτοtouto. . .G3778
√ οὗτος — the he (she or it), iDemonstrative PronounAccusative Neuter Singular
λέγωlegōI tellG3004
√ λέγω — properly, to "lay" forth, iVerbPresent Indicative Active1st Person Singular
ὑμῖνhyminyouG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounDative 2nd Person Plural
μὴmē[do] notG3361
√ μή — (adverb) not, (conjunction) lestAdverb
μεριμνᾶτεmerimnateworry aboutG3309
√ μεριμνάω — to be anxious aboutVerbPresent Imperative Active2nd Person Plural
μεριμνάω: to be anxious about, to be pulled apart by care Present imperative with μή, forbidding a condition in progress. The verb's associations are of division, not of foresight: Pulpit records the popular derivation from μερίζω ("division," "distraction") and points to 1 Corinthians 7:33, where the married man μεριμνᾷ and so μεμέρισται, "is divided." Benson, Barnes, JFB, Poole and Gill converge on the same limit: labour and provision are commanded elsewhere in Scripture, so what is forbidden here is the distracted, distrustful care that competes with the single service just demanded.
τῇtēG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleDative Feminine Singular
ὑμῶνhymōnyourG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounGenitive 2nd Person Plural
ψυχῇpsychēlifeG5590
√ ψυχή — breath, iNounDative Feminine Singular
ψυχή: breath, life, soul Dative of reference: anxiety "for your ψυχή." Matthew uses this noun for the self that outlives the body (Matthew 10:28) and that is lost by being grasped (Matthew 10:39). Placing food and drink beside it is already the argument: the greater has been given, so the lesser is not in doubt.
τίtiwhatG5101
√ τίς — an interrogative pronoun, who, which or what (in direct or indirect questions)Interrogative / Indefinite PronounAccusative Neuter Singular
φάγητεphagēteyou will eatG5315
√ φάγω — to eat (literally or figuratively)VerbAorist Subjunctive Active2nd Person Plural
ἢēorG2228
√ ἤ — disjunctive, orConjunction
τίtiG5101
√ τίς — an interrogative pronoun, who, which or what (in direct or indirect questions)Interrogative / Indefinite PronounAccusative Neuter Singular
πίητεpiētedrinkG4095
√ πίνω — to imbibe (literally or figuratively)VerbAorist Subjunctive Active2nd Person Plural
μηδὲmēdeorG3366
√ μηδέ — but not, not evenConjunction
τῷtōG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleDative Neuter Singular
ὑμῶνhymōn[about] yourG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounGenitive 2nd Person Plural
σώματιsōmatibodyG4983
√ σῶμα — the body (as a sound whole), used in a very wide application, literally or figurativelyNounDative Neuter Singular
τίtiwhatG5101
√ τίς — an interrogative pronoun, who, which or what (in direct or indirect questions)Interrogative / Indefinite PronounAccusative Neuter Singular
ἐνδύσησθεendysēstheyou will wearG1746
√ ἐνδύω — to invest with clothing (literally or figuratively)VerbAorist Subjunctive Middle2nd Person Plural
ἐνδύω: to clothe, to invest with clothing Aorist subjunctive middle, second person plural, the deliberative subjunctive of a worried question. Its noun ἔνδυμα closes the verse, and the same root pair (feeding, clothing) governs the whole unit down to v. 33.
ἐστινestinIsG1510
√ εἰμί — I exist (used only when emphatic)VerbPresent Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
οὐχὶouchinotG3780
√ οὐχί — not indeedIntPrtcl
ἡhēG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Feminine Singular
ψυχὴpsychēlifeG5590
√ ψυχή — breath, iNounNominative Feminine Singular
πλεῖόνpleionmoreG4119
√ πλείων — more in quantity, number, or qualityAdjectiveNominative Neuter SingularComparative
πλείων: more in quantity, number or quality A comparative adjective in the neuter, weighing life against nourishment and body against garment. The comparison is not of value alone but of order: God is the giver of both, and the argument moves from the gift already made to the gift still asked for.
τῆςtēsthanG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleGenitive Feminine Singular
τροφῆςtrophēsfoodG5160
√ τροφή — nourishment (literally or figuratively)NounGenitive Feminine Singular
τροφή: nourishment Not "meat" in the modern sense; Barnes notes that the 1611 word meant food in general and has since narrowed. The same noun is paired with ἔνδυμα at Matthew 3:4 of the forerunner, whose food and clothing were as provided and as unworried as the birds' and the lilies'.
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
τὸtotheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Neuter Singular
σῶμαsōmabodyG4983
√ σῶμα — the body (as a sound whole), used in a very wide application, literally or figurativelyNounNominative Neuter Singular
τοῦtou[more] thanG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleGenitive Neuter Singular
ἐνδύματοςendymatosclothesG1742
√ ἔνδυμα — apparel (especially the outer robe)NounGenitive Neuter Singular
26

Look at the birds of the air: They do not sow or reap or gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

emblepsate eis ta peteina tou ouranou hoti speirousin ou oude therizousin oude synagousin eis apothēkas kai ho hymōn ho ouranios Patēr trephei auta hymeis ouch mallon diapherete autōn

Word by word28 · parsed
ἐμβλέψατεemblepsateLookG1689
√ ἐμβλέπω — to look on, iVerbAorist Imperative Active2nd Person Plural
ἐμβλέπω: to look on, to look into Aorist imperative, a single decisive act of attention. Ellicott hears the gesture behind it, the turtle-doves and finches of a Galilean landscape; the lesson is to be taken from what is already in front of the eye, not from an idea.
εἰςeisatG1519
√ εἰς — to or into (indicating the point reached or entered), of place, time, or (figuratively) purpose (result, etcPreposition
τὰtatheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Neuter Plural
πετεινὰpeteinabirdsG4071
√ πετεινόν — a flying animal, iNounAccusative Neuter Plural
τοῦtouof theG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleGenitive Masculine Singular
οὐρανοῦouranouairG3772
√ οὐρανός — the skyNounGenitive Masculine Singular
ὅτιhotiG3754
√ ὅτι — demonstrative, that (sometimes redundant)Conjunction
σπείρουσινspeirousinThey do not sowG4687
√ σπείρω — to scatter, iVerbPresent Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
οὐou. . .G3756
√ οὐ — the absolute negative (compare G3361 (μή)) adverbAdverb
οὐδὲoude[or]G3761
√ οὐδέ — not however, iConjunction
θερίζουσινtherizousinreapG2325
√ θερίζω — to harvestVerbPresent Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
οὐδὲoude[or]G3761
√ οὐδέ — not however, iConjunction
συνάγουσινsynagousingatherG4863
√ συνάγω — to lead together, iVerbPresent Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
συνάγω: to lead or gather together The third of three present indicatives (sow, reap, gather) describing what the birds do not do. They lack the whole apparatus of forethought. Cambridge is careful that this is not an argument against labour: "God has appointed labour as the means whereby man provides for his wants."
εἰςeisintoG1519
√ εἰς — to or into (indicating the point reached or entered), of place, time, or (figuratively) purpose (result, etcPreposition
ἀποθήκαςapothēkasbarnsG596
√ ἀποθήκη — a repository, iNounAccusative Feminine Plural
ἀποθήκη: a repository, a barn The storehouse is the very image Luke's rich fool builds larger (Luke 12:18), immediately before the parallel to this passage; the Verifier confirms Luke 12:24 as a close candidate, and Cambridge notes that Luke 12:22-31 follows the parable of the Rich Fool.
καὶkaiand yetG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ὁhoG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Masculine Singular
ὑμῶνhymōnyourG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounGenitive 2nd Person Plural
ὁhoG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Masculine Singular
οὐράνιοςouraniosheavenlyG3770
√ οὐράνιος — celestial, iAdjectiveNominative Masculine Singular
ΠατὴρPatērFatherG3962
√ πατήρ — a "father" (literally or figuratively, near or more remote)NounNominative Masculine Singular
πατήρ: father The hinge of the argument. Poole presses it: the birds have their Creator, but "you have a further relation to God than that of creatures to the Creator, for God is your heavenly Father." Providence toward birds is only the floor; sonship is the actual ground of the confidence commanded.
τρέφειtrepheifeedsG5142
√ τρέφω — but perhaps strengthened from the base of G5157 (τροπή) through the idea of convolution)VerbPresent Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
τρέφω: to nourish, to feed Present tense of continuous action. Gill supplies the Old Testament ground the disciples would have heard (Psalm 147:9, and Luke's "ravens"), together with the rabbinic saying that the Holy One "sits and feeds" all creatures.
αὐτάautathemG846
√ αὐτός — the reflexive pronoun self, used (alone or in the comparative G1438 (ἑαυτοῦ)) of the third person , and (with the proper personal pronoun) of the other personsPersonal / Possessive PronounAccusative Neuter 3rd Person Plural
ὑμεῖςhymeis{Are} youG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounNominative 2nd Person Plural
οὐχouchnotG3756
√ οὐ — the absolute negative (compare G3361 (μή)) adverbAdverb
μᾶλλονmallonmuchG3123
√ μᾶλλον — (adverbially) more (in a greater degree)) or ratherAdverb
διαφέρετεdiapheretemore valuableG1308
√ διαφέρω — to bear through, iVerbPresent Indicative Active2nd Person Plural
διαφέρω: to bear through, to be of more value Present indicative, second plural, with the pronoun ὑμεῖς expressed for emphasis: you, you yourselves. JFB reads the whole verse as an argument from the greater to the less, and refuses its inverse: God does not sustain the reasonless creation and then "leave them to starve" who use reason and look to Him.
αὐτῶνautōnthan theyG846
√ αὐτός — the reflexive pronoun self, used (alone or in the comparative G1438 (ἑαυτοῦ)) of the third person , and (with the proper personal pronoun) of the other personsPersonal / Possessive PronounGenitive Neuter 3rd Person Plural
27

Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

de tis hymōn ex merimnōn dynatai prostheinai hena pēchyn epi tēn autou hēlikian

Word by word13 · parsed
δὲdeG1161
√ δέ — but, and, etcConjunction
τίςtisWhoG5101
√ τίς — an interrogative pronoun, who, which or what (in direct or indirect questions)Interrogative / Indefinite PronounNominative Masculine Singular
ὑμῶνhymōnof youG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounGenitive 2nd Person Plural
ἐξexbyG1537
√ ἐκ — literal or figurativePreposition
μεριμνῶνmerimnōnworryingG3309
√ μεριμνάω — to be anxious aboutVerbPresent Participle ActiveNominative Masculine Singular
μεριμνάω: to be anxious (present participle) The third appearance of the governing verb, now as the instrument in a question: anxiety considered as a means, and found to produce nothing. Pulpit sets the argument in sequence: v. 26 shows anxiety is needless, v. 27 that it is useless.
δύναταιdynataicanG1410
√ δύναμαι — to be able or possibleVerbPresent Indicative Middle or Passive3rd Person Singular
δύναται: present middle or passive of δύναμαι, "is able." The question is about capacity, not permission.
προσθεῖναιprostheinaiaddG4369
√ προστίθημι — to place additionally, iVerbAorist Infinitive Active
ἕναhenaa singleG1520
√ εἷς — oneAdjectiveAccusative Masculine Singular
πῆχυνpēchynhourG4083
√ πῆχυς — the fore-arm, iNounAccusative Masculine Singular
πῆχυς: forearm, cubit A measure of space deliberately laid against a measure of time. Barnes and Cambridge both recall Psalm 39:5, "thou hast made my days as a handbreadth," where Scripture already measures life by the body's own spans. Luke's parallel calls this addition "that which is least" (Luke 12:26), which fixes the point: the smallest thing you cannot do.
ἐπὶepitoG1909
√ ἐπί — properly, meaning superimposition (of time, place, order, etcPreposition
τὴνtēnG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Feminine Singular
αὐτοῦautouhisG846
√ αὐτός — the reflexive pronoun self, used (alone or in the comparative G1438 (ἑαυτοῦ)) of the third person , and (with the proper personal pronoun) of the other personsPersonal / Possessive PronounGenitive Masculine 3rd Person Singular
ἡλικίανhēlikianlifeG2244
√ ἡλικία — maturity (in years or size)NounAccusative Feminine Singular
ἡλικία: maturity in years or size A genuinely two-sided word (John 9:21 "he is of age"; Luke 19:3 of Zacchaeus's height). The unit's flow, from food that sustains life to the length of life itself, favours "age," and JFB says the best critics now agree. We record the alternative rather than suppress it.
28

And why do you worry about clothes? Consider how the lilies of the field grow: They do not labor or spin.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

Kai ti merimnate peri endymatos katamathete pōs ta krina tou agrou auxanousin ou kopiōsin oude nēthousin

Word by word16 · parsed
ΚαὶKaiAndG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
τίtiwhyG5101
√ τίς — an interrogative pronoun, who, which or what (in direct or indirect questions)Interrogative / Indefinite PronounAccusative Neuter Singular
μεριμνᾶτεmerimnatedo you worryG3309
√ μεριμνάω — to be anxious aboutVerbPresent Indicative Active2nd Person Plural
μεριμνᾶτε: the same present indicative verb as v. 25, now interrogative. The subject has shifted from food to clothing, but not the diagnosis.
περὶperiaboutG4012
√ περί — properly, through (all over), iPreposition
ἐνδύματοςendymatosclothesG1742
√ ἔνδυμα — apparel (especially the outer robe)NounGenitive Neuter Singular
καταμάθετεkatamatheteConsiderG2648
√ καταμανθάνω — to learn thoroughly, iVerbAorist Imperative Active2nd Person Plural
καταμανθάνω: to learn thoroughly Aorist imperative. The verse does not ask for admiration of flowers but for instruction from them: the disciple is to take a lesson to its conclusion. Pulpit's pairing is exact, ἐμβλέψατε uses the eyes, καταμάθετε uses the mind, and Luke levels both to κατανοήσατε.
πῶςpōshowG4459
√ πῶς — an interrogative particle of mannerAdverb
τὰtatheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Neuter Plural
κρίναkrinaliliesG2918
√ κρίνον — a lilyNounAccusative Neuter Plural
κρίνον: a lily Our brief glosses the noun and supplies no frequency for it, so we claim none. What is verified is next to it: the Verifier's closest candidate for this verse, Luke 12:27, shares the exceedingly rare G3514 νήθω ("spin"), found in only two verses of the whole New Testament: the two halves of this one saying.
τοῦtouof theG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleGenitive Masculine Singular
ἀγροῦagroufieldG68
√ ἀγρός — a field (as a drive for cattle)NounGenitive Masculine Singular
αὐξάνουσινauxanousingrowG837
√ αὐξάνω — to grow ("wax"), iVerbPresent Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
αὐξάνουσιν: present indicative, "they grow," and Pulpit is right that the stress is on the fact rather than the manner: "he is thinking of the fact, net the manner of their growth."
οὐou[They do] notG3756
√ οὐ — the absolute negative (compare G3361 (μή)) adverbAdverb
κοπιῶσινkopiōsinlaborG2872
√ κοπιάω — to feel fatigueVerbPresent Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
κοπιάω: to feel fatigue, to toil The men's work of the field, as νήθω is the women's work of the house; Wetstein's note in Pulpit divides them so. Between them the two verbs cover the whole human economy of clothing, and the lilies stand outside it and are better dressed.
οὐδὲoude[or]G3761
√ οὐδέ — not however, iConjunction
νήθουσινnēthousinspinG3514
√ νήθω — to spinVerbPresent Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
νήθω: to spin One of the rarest verbs in the New Testament, in only two verses, both in this saying. Its rarity is what makes the Lucan parallel a verbal link rather than a general resemblance.
29

Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his glory was adorned like one of these.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

de legō hymin hoti oude Solomōn en pasē tē autou doxē periebaleto hōs hen toutōn

Word by word15 · parsed
δὲdeYetG1161
√ δέ — but, and, etcConjunction
λέγωlegōI tellG3004
√ λέγω — properly, to "lay" forth, iVerbPresent Indicative Active1st Person Singular
ὑμῖνhyminyouG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounDative 2nd Person Plural
ὅτιhotithatG3754
√ ὅτι — demonstrative, that (sometimes redundant)Conjunction
οὐδὲoudenot evenG3761
√ οὐδέ — not however, iAdverb
οὐδὲ: adverbial "not even," placed for maximum force at the head of the clause.
ΣολομὼνSolomōnSolomonG4672
√ Σολομών — Solomon (iNounNominative Masculine Singular
Σολομών: Solomon The one name in Israel's memory for royal clothing and royal wealth (Benson points to the ivory and gold throne of 1 Kings 10:18). A Greek Gospel cannot share a Strong's lexeme with the Hebrew of Kings, so that connection is one of figure and reference, not of vocabulary, and we tier it accordingly below.
ἐνeninG1722
√ ἐν — "in," at, (up-)on, by, etcPreposition
πάσῃpasēallG3956
√ πᾶς — all, any, every, the wholeAdjectiveDative Feminine Singular
τῇtēG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleDative Feminine Singular
αὐτοῦautouhisG846
√ αὐτός — the reflexive pronoun self, used (alone or in the comparative G1438 (ἑαυτοῦ)) of the third person , and (with the proper personal pronoun) of the other personsPersonal / Possessive PronounGenitive Masculine 3rd Person Singular
δόξῃdoxēgloryG1391
√ δόξα — glory (as very apparent), in a wide application (literal or figurative, objective or subjective)NounDative Feminine Singular
δόξα: glory, as very apparent Dative with ἐν: "in all his glory." Gill reports that the rabbis used an equivalent phrase, "Solomon in his hour," for the height of his reign, and that in their idiom "garments are the glory of a man." The word that the New Testament will use for the uncreated splendour of God is here spent on a wardrobe, and still loses.
περιεβάλετοperiebaletowas adornedG4016
√ περιβάλλω — to throw all around, iVerbAorist Indicative Middle3rd Person Singular
περιβάλλω: to throw all around, to clothe (aorist middle) The voice is the argument. Solomon dressed himself, at the full stretch of art and revenue; the lily is dressed. Cambridge and Pulpit both insist on the middle, and the same verb returns in the middle voice at v. 31, where the anxious ask "what shall we clothe ourselves with?", the very project that failed for Solomon.
ὡςhōslikeG5613
√ ὡς — which how, iAdverb
ἓνhenoneG1520
√ εἷς — oneAdjectiveNominative Neuter Singular
τούτωνtoutōnof theseG3778
√ οὗτος — the he (she or it), iDemonstrative PronounGenitive Neuter Plural
30

If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

de ei houtōs ho Theos amphiennysin ton chorton tou agrou onta sēmeron kai aurion ballomenon eis klibanon ou pollō mallon hymas oligopistoi

Word by word22 · parsed
δὲdeG1161
√ δέ — but, and, etcConjunction
εἰeiIfG1487
√ εἰ — if, whether, that, etcConjunction
οὕτωςhoutōsthat is howG3779
√ οὕτω — in this way (referring to what precedes or follows)Adverb
ὁhoG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Masculine Singular
ΘεὸςTheosGodG2316
√ θεός — figuratively, a magistrateNounNominative Masculine Singular
ἀμφιέννυσινamphiennysinclothesG294
√ ἀμφιέννυμι — to enrobeVerbPresent Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
ἀμφιέννυμι: to enrobe A rare verb, chosen instead of the ordinary ἐνδύω, and with God as its subject. The colouring of the field is here attributed to no process and no agent but Him; Pulpit observes that with the development of those colours "our Lord's advice has nothing to do; origin, development, and result are all Divine."
τὸνtontheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Masculine Singular
χόρτονchortongrassG5528
√ χόρτος — a "court" or "garden", iNounAccusative Masculine Singular
χόρτος: herbage, grass of the field The class into which the lily is now dropped, so that the argument can run from the least to the greatest. Pulpit hears behind it Isaiah 40:6-7 and 1 Peter 1:24, "all flesh is grass": what clothes the perishable will not abandon the imperishable.
τοῦtouof theG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleGenitive Masculine Singular
ἀγροῦagroufieldG68
√ ἀγρός — a field (as a drive for cattle)NounGenitive Masculine Singular
ὄνταontawhich is [here]G1510
√ εἰμί — I exist (used only when emphatic)VerbPresent Participle ActiveAccusative Masculine Singular
σήμερονsēmerontodayG4594
√ σήμερον — on the (iAdverb
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
αὔριονauriontomorrowG839
√ αὔριον — properly, fresh, iAdverb
βαλλόμενονballomenon[is] thrownG906
√ βάλλω — to throw (in various applications, more or less violent or intense)VerbPresent Participle Middle or PassiveAccusative Masculine Singular
βάλλω: to throw, with force Present participle, middle or passive, governed by "tomorrow." Today's adornment and tomorrow's furnace are held in one accusative phrase, which is the whole weight of the verse: God spends His best clothing on what lasts a day.
εἰςeisintoG1519
√ εἰς — to or into (indicating the point reached or entered), of place, time, or (figuratively) purpose (result, etcPreposition
κλίβανονklibanonthe furnaceG2823
√ κλίβανος — an earthen pot used for baking inNounAccusative Masculine Singular
κλίβανος: an earthen pot used for baking Not a built oven but the portable clay jar of a poor household, heated with dry twigs and grass; so Ellicott, Barnes, Cambridge and Pulpit alike, out of travellers' reports of scarce fuel in Palestine. The Verifier finds this noun in only two verses of the New Testament, this one and its Lucan parallel.
οὐou[will He] notG3756
√ οὐ — the absolute negative (compare G3361 (μή)) adverbAdverb
οὐ: the negative that turns the apodosis into a question expecting assent, as in v. 25.
πολλῷpollōmuchG4183
√ πολύς — (singular) much (in any respect) or (plural) manyAdjectiveDative Neuter Singular
μᾶλλονmallonmoreG3123
√ μᾶλλον — (adverbially) more (in a greater degree)) or ratherAdverb
ὑμᾶςhymas[clothe] youG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounAccusative 2nd Person Plural
ὀλιγόπιστοιoligopistoiO [you] of little faithG3640
√ ὀλιγόπιστος — incredulous, iAdjectiveVocative Masculine Plural
ὀλιγόπιστος: of little faith Vocative plural, and a gentle one. Ellicott: "The disciples were not faithless or unbelieving, but their trust was weak." JFB reads it as chiding the spirit of unbelief "so natural even to the best." Gill shows the phrase was already rabbinic idiom, applied in the Talmud to the man who has a morsel in his basket and asks what he shall eat tomorrow, which is precisely the anxiety of v. 31.
31

Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

oun Mē merimnēsēte legontes Ti phagōmen ē Ti piōmen ē Ti peribalōmetha

Word by word12 · parsed
οὖνounThereforeG3767
√ οὖν — (adverbially) certainly, or (conjunctionally) accordinglyConjunction
οὖν: "therefore," drawing the conclusion from the birds, the cubit, the lilies and the grass together.
ΜὴMē[do] notG3361
√ μή — (adverb) not, (conjunction) lestAdverb
μεριμνήσητεmerimnēsēteworryG3309
√ μεριμνάω — to be anxious aboutVerbAorist Subjunctive Active2nd Person Plural
μεριμνάω: to be anxious (aorist subjunctive) With μή the aorist subjunctive forbids the act before it starts, where the present imperative of v. 25 broke off an act in progress. Benson catches the force of the whole clause: "Be no more distracted and torn in pieces, as it were, with anxious and unbelieving thoughts."
λέγοντεςlegontessayingG3004
√ λέγω — properly, to "lay" forth, iVerbPresent Participle ActiveNominative Masculine Plural
λέγοντες: the participle turns anxiety into speech, which is how Gill and the rabbinic saying he quotes at v. 30 both identify it, the man who asks aloud what he shall eat tomorrow.
ΤίTiWhatG5101
√ τίς — an interrogative pronoun, who, which or what (in direct or indirect questions)Interrogative / Indefinite PronounAccusative Neuter Singular
φάγωμενphagōmenshall we eatG5315
√ φάγω — to eat (literally or figuratively)VerbAorist Subjunctive Active1st Person Plural
ἤēorG2228
√ ἤ — disjunctive, orConjunction
ΤίTiWhatG5101
√ τίς — an interrogative pronoun, who, which or what (in direct or indirect questions)Interrogative / Indefinite PronounAccusative Neuter Singular
πίωμενpiōmenshall we drinkG4095
√ πίνω — to imbibe (literally or figuratively)VerbAorist Subjunctive Active1st Person Plural
ἤēorG2228
√ ἤ — disjunctive, orConjunction
ΤίTiWhatG5101
√ τίς — an interrogative pronoun, who, which or what (in direct or indirect questions)Interrogative / Indefinite PronounAccusative Neuter Singular
περιβαλώμεθαperibalōmethashall we wearG4016
√ περιβάλλω — to throw all around, iVerbAorist Subjunctive Middle1st Person Plural
περιβάλλω: to throw around, to clothe oneself (aorist middle) The third and last self-clothing in the unit, and the first one the disciples themselves attempt. It is the same verb and the same voice that failed for Solomon two verses earlier, which is the quiet argument of the placement: their question has already been answered by his wardrobe.
32

For the Gentiles strive after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

gar ta ethnē epizētousin panta tauta gar ho hymōn ho ouranios Patēr oiden hoti chrēzete hapantōn toutōn

Word by word17 · parsed
γὰρgarForG1063
√ γάρ — properly, assigning a reason (used in argument, explanation or intensificationConjunction
τὰtatheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Neuter Plural
ἔθνηethnēGentilesG1484
√ ἔθνος — a race (as of the same habit), iNounNominative Neuter Plural
ἔθνος: a race, as of the same habit The comparison is not racial but practical: to be anxious about these things is to live as those who have no Father and no future beyond the present life. Gill spells out why it is worse for those who know better; Ellicott says the tone is "one of pity rather than of censure."
ἐπιζητοῦσινepizētousinstrive afterG1934
√ ἐπιζητέω — to search (inquire) forVerbPresent Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
ἐπιζητέω: to search or inquire for A compound of the verb commanded in v. 33, present indicative. The Sermon does not oppose seeking to resting; it opposes one object of seeking to another. Pulpit: the difference from the simple verb "seems to be only that the latter points out more clearly the direction of the search."
πάνταpantaallG3956
√ πᾶς — all, any, every, the wholeAdjectiveAccusative Neuter Plural
ταῦταtautathese thingsG3778
√ οὗτος — the he (she or it), iDemonstrative PronounAccusative Neuter Plural
γὰρgar[and]G1063
√ γάρ — properly, assigning a reason (used in argument, explanation or intensificationConjunction
ὁhoG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Masculine Singular
ὑμῶνhymōnyourG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounGenitive 2nd Person Plural
ὁhoG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Masculine Singular
οὐράνιοςouraniosheavenlyG3770
√ οὐράνιος — celestial, iAdjectiveNominative Masculine Singular
ΠατὴρPatērFatherG3962
√ πατήρ — a "father" (literally or figuratively, near or more remote)NounNominative Masculine Singular
Πατὴρ: the third "your heavenly Father" of the unit (vv. 26, 32), each time as the ground of the argument rather than its ornament.
οἶδενoidenknowsG1492
√ εἴδω — used only in certain past tenses, the others being borrowed from the equivalent G3700 (ὀπτάνομαι) and G3708 (ὁράω)VerbPerfect Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
εἴδω / οἶδα: to know (perfect with present force) A settled knowledge, complete before the need arises. JFB weighs who is saying it: the One who claimed that no one knows the Father but the Son (Matthew 11:27) speaks here "with an authority which none but Himself could claim." Ellicott draws the practical consequence back to the Lord's Prayer and its daily bread.
ὅτιhotithatG3754
√ ὅτι — demonstrative, that (sometimes redundant)Conjunction
χρῄζετεchrēzeteyou needG5535
√ χρῄζω — to make (iVerbPresent Indicative Active2nd Person Plural
χρῄζω: to have need of Present indicative, a standing condition. The text concedes the need fully and removes only the anxiety, which is exactly the distinction Benson, Poole and Barnes all defend against a lazy reading of v. 25.
ἁπάντωνhapantōnG537
√ ἅπας — absolutely all or (singular) every oneAdjectiveGenitive Neuter Plural
τούτωνtoutōnthemG3778
√ οὗτος — the he (she or it), iDemonstrative PronounGenitive Neuter Plural
33

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

de zēteite prōton tēn basileian tou theou kai tēn autou dikaiosynēn kai panta tauta prostethēsetai hymin

Word by word16 · parsed
δὲdeButG1161
√ δέ — but, and, etcConjunction
ζητεῖτεzēteiteseekG2212
√ ζητέω — to seek (literally or figuratively)VerbPresent Imperative Active2nd Person Plural
ζητέω: to seek Present imperative, second plural: a continuous search, commanded. The Sermon's cure for anxiety is not the emptying of desire but its reordering. Ellicott argues from the context that the seeking is chiefly that of prayer, "though the latter meaning is, of course, not excluded."
πρῶτονprōtonfirstG4412
√ πρῶτον — firstly (in time, place, order, or importance)AdverbSuperlative
πρῶτον: firstly, in time, place, order or importance Superlative adverb. Everything in the verse turns on it: nothing here forbids the second thing, and everything forbids its being first.
τὴνtēntheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Feminine Singular
βασιλείανbasileiankingdomG932
√ βασιλεία — properly, royalty, iNounAccusative Feminine Singular
βασιλεία: royalty, kingdom JFB calls this and δικαιοσύνη "the two keynotes of this great sermon," struck together here as "the great summing up." Pulpit reads the first phrase as the outward aim, the spread and accomplishment of God's reign, and the second as the inward, personal conformity to His standard. Note the textual question recorded in the apparatus: τοῦ Θεοῦ is doubted by Pulpit with Sinaiticus.
τοῦtouofG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleGenitive Masculine Singular
θεοῦtheouGodG2316
√ θεός — figuratively, a magistrateNounGenitive Masculine Singular
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
τὴνtēnG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Feminine Singular
αὐτοῦautouHisG846
√ αὐτός — the reflexive pronoun self, used (alone or in the comparative G1438 (ἑαυτοῦ)) of the third person , and (with the proper personal pronoun) of the other personsPersonal / Possessive PronounGenitive Masculine 3rd Person Singular
δικαιοσύνηνdikaiosynēnrighteousnessG1343
√ δικαιοσύνη — equity (of character or act)NounAccusative Feminine Singular
δικαιοσύνη: equity of character or act The word the Sermon has already used for a righteousness that must exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees (Matthew 5:20). That demand is what forces the commentators' reading here: Benson takes it as the righteousness "through faith in Christ," Gill as "no other than the righteousness of Christ," Ellicott as necessarily "His gift to us, and therefore to be sought in prayer."
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
πάνταpantaallG3956
√ πᾶς — all, any, every, the wholeAdjectiveNominative Neuter Plural
ταῦταtautathese thingsG3778
√ οὗτος — the he (she or it), iDemonstrative PronounNominative Neuter Plural
προστεθήσεταιprostethēsetaiwill be addedG4369
√ προστίθημι — to place additionally, iVerbFuture Indicative Passive3rd Person Singular
προστίθημι: to place additionally Future passive with an unnamed agent, and the verb's other appearance in this unit is v. 27, where anxiety could not add one cubit. What worry cannot add, the Father adds. Gill guards the manner of it: these things come "of the free bounty, goodness, and liberality of God, without your thought and care, and much less merit," and are "not parts of the happiness of saints, only appendages thereunto."
ὑμῖνhyminunto youG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounDative 2nd Person Plural
34

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Today has enough trouble of its own.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

oun Mē merimnēsēte eis tēn aurion hē gar aurion merimnēsei heautēs tē hēmera arketon kakia hē autēs

Word by word17 · parsed
οὖνounThereforeG3767
√ οὖν — (adverbially) certainly, or (conjunctionally) accordinglyConjunction
ΜὴMē[do] notG3361
√ μή — (adverb) not, (conjunction) lestAdverb
μεριμνήσητεmerimnēsēteworryG3309
√ μεριμνάω — to be anxious aboutVerbAorist Subjunctive Active2nd Person Plural
μεριμνάω: to be anxious (aorist subjunctive) The fifth and final appearance of the unit's governing verb, and the narrowest: not life in general now but one day ahead.
εἰςeisaboutG1519
√ εἰς — to or into (indicating the point reached or entered), of place, time, or (figuratively) purpose (result, etcPreposition
τὴνtēnG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Feminine Singular
αὔριονauriontomorrowG839
√ αὔριον — properly, fresh, iAdverb
αὔριον: tomorrow The adverb that already appeared at v. 30, where tomorrow was when the grass went into the oven. The same word therefore carries both halves of the argument: tomorrow is where anxiety lives, and tomorrow is where the flower's beauty ends without the Father's care failing.
ἡhēG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Feminine Singular
γὰρgarforG1063
√ γάρ — properly, assigning a reason (used in argument, explanation or intensificationConjunction
αὔριονauriontomorrowG839
√ αὔριον — properly, fresh, iAdverb
μεριμνήσειmerimnēseiwill worry aboutG3309
√ μεριμνάω — to be anxious aboutVerbFuture Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
μεριμνάω: to be anxious (future indicative) The only place in this unit where the verb is granted rather than forbidden, and its subject is a day, not a person. Gill's "prosopopoeia" is the right grammatical name; Poole draws the pastoral consequence, that a man need not "torment yourselves with prophesying against yourselves, what it may be shall never be."
ἑαυτῆςheautēsitselfG1438
√ ἑαυτοῦ — him- (her-, it-, them-, also (in conjunction with the personal pronoun of the other persons) my-, thy-, our-, your-) self (selves), etcReflexive PronounGenitive Feminine 3rd Person Singular
τῇtēvvvG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleDative Feminine Singular
ἡμέρᾳhēmeraTodayG2250
√ ἡμέρα — day, iNounDative Feminine Singular
ἀρκετὸνarketon[has] enoughG713
√ ἀρκετός — satisfactoryAdjectiveNominative Neuter Singular
ἀρκετός: satisfactory, enough A rare adjective, in only three verses of the New Testament (here, Matthew 10:25, 1 Peter 4:3), each of them drawing a line at a sufficiency. JFB's maxim states the arithmetic: "Every day brings its own cares; and to anticipate is only to double them."
κακίαkakiatroubleG2549
√ κακία — badness, iNounNominative Feminine Singular
κακία: badness, trouble The noun is used of moral evil elsewhere in the New Testament, and Ellicott will not let the harder sense go entirely: the day's trouble is the thing we must contend with lest it lead us into sin. Read so, the last verse is not a shrug at the future but a daily assignment, which is why Henry closes his note on the section with daily prayer for daily strength.
ἡhēG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Feminine Singular
αὐτῆςautēsof its ownG846
√ αὐτός — the reflexive pronoun self, used (alone or in the comparative G1438 (ἑαυτοῦ)) of the third person , and (with the proper personal pronoun) of the other personsPersonal / Possessive PronounGenitive Feminine 3rd Person Singular

The verse-by-verse work is done. What follows gathers the whole unit. All three layers below are machine-generated (⚙). Weigh them; they have no authority.

⚙

Grand Commentary — the unit, read whole

synthesis · verify

AI synthesis — woven from the public-domain voices above and the original text; generated and fallible.

i. The verb that divides the heart — 6:25, 6:27, 6:28, 6:31, 6:34

One Greek verb carries the whole unit: μεριμνάω (G3309), present imperative under μή at v. 25 and v. 28, present participle at v. 27, aorist subjunctive at v. 31 and v. 34. The distinction is not decorative. Pulpit states it flatly: in v. 25 "a state of anxiety," in vv. 31 and 34 "one anxious thought, is forbidden." So the passage moves from stopping a condition already running to refusing even its first entry. Every commentator in this brief insists on the limit of the prohibition. Benson: what is forbidden is not "that thought, foresight, and care which prudent men use," since Scripture elsewhere commands labour; Poole says the text "must not be interpreted in a sense contradictory to those many other texts, which forbid an idle life"; Barnes notes that the 1611 word "thought" then meant anxiety and has since weakened; Ellicott would now substitute "over-anxious." JFB names the thing itself: "that anxious solicitude, that oppressive care, which springs from unbelieving doubts and misgivings." ⚙ The verb's own associations do the diagnostic work Pulpit points to at 1 Corinthians 7:33, where the man who μεριμνᾷ is in the same breath said to be μεμέρισται, divided. That is the seam with v. 24: the chapter has just said no one can serve two masters, and this paragraph opens Διὰ τοῦτο, "because of this." Anxiety is treated here not as a feeling but as the symptom of an attempted double service.

ii. Two commands to look, and what each is for — 6:26, 6:28, 6:29

The two arguments from creation are given with two different imperatives, and the difference is the teaching. Pulpit: "Behold (ἐμβλέψατε). Look on, use your natural eyes. In ver. 28 'consider' (καταμάθετε), learn thoroughly." Ellicott hears the first as accompanied by a gesture toward the doves and finches of a Galilean hillside, and the second as a command "not merely to look at with a passing glance, but to study, to learn, as it were, by heart." The birds answer the question of food, the flowers the question of clothing: so Cambridge, exactly. Gill notes that the flowers named are those "of the field," not of a garden where a gardener's care would spoil the argument, and Pulpit that the phrase "emphasizes the spontaneity of origin, the absence of cultivation." Then v. 29 lands the blow with a middle voice: περιεβάλετο, Solomon arrayed himself. Cambridge presses it: "Though he arrayed himself, the lilies, who trusted to God for their array, are more beautiful than he." Gill adds why art can never close the gap, since the king's beauty "were purely from art, but their's by nature." ⚙ Read with the middle voice of v. 25 (ἐνδύσησθε, what you might clothe yourselves with) and of v. 31 (περιβαλώμεθα, what shall we clothe ourselves with), the passage is quietly consistent: every self-clothing in this unit fails, and every creature that is clothed is clothed by Another.

iii. The Father who already knows — 6:26, 6:30, 6:32

Three times the ground of the command is a relation, not an argument from nature alone. Poole will not let providence toward birds stand as the whole case: "you have a further relation to God than that of creatures to the Creator, for God is your heavenly Father." At v. 30 the appeal is from the perishable to the beloved; JFB is careful about what is promised and what is not: "He does not say, Shall they not be more beauteously arrayed? but, Shall He not much more clothe them?" At v. 32 the verb is οἶδεν, a perfect with present force, knowledge already complete before the asking. Benson calls it "a noble antithesis": Christ sets God's knowledge of our wants against the heathen's anxiety about having theirs supplied. Ellicott turns the same verse on the hearers' pride: "You look down upon the heathen nations, and think of yourselves as God's people, yet in what do you excel them, if you seek only what they are seeking?" Gill, verse by verse, weighs each word of "your heavenly Father knoweth" as a separate argument for faith. JFB hears in it the authority of the one who alone knows the Father (Matthew 11:27) and who therefore can say this with no appeal behind Himself.

iv. Seek first, and the day that is enough — 6:33, 6:34

JFB calls v. 33 "the great summing up," and notes that "the two keynotes of this great sermon seem purposely struck in it," the kingdom and the righteousness. The imperative ζητεῖτε is present, a continuing search, and πρῶτον is order rather than mere sequence: Pulpit, "If the search for earthly things be put into a secondary place, it may be allowable." On whose righteousness, Benson and Gill agree and are worth quoting together: Benson, "Not your own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through faith in Christ"; Gill, "it is no other than the righteousness of Christ." Ellicott reads the seeking primarily as prayer, and recalls the saying preserved by Origen and Clement, "Ask great things, and little things shall be added to you." The promise itself is passive and future, προστεθήσεται: things added by someone unnamed, which in this paragraph can only be the Father of v. 32. Then v. 34, which Matthew alone preserves. Gill and Cambridge both note that the Greek word for "evil" here, κακία, is distress rather than wickedness; Ellicott, holding out for the stronger sense, calls it "the troubling element which each day brings with it, and against which we have to contend, lest it should lead us into sin." Pulpit reads the verse as the practical form of the whole: "put off your to-morrow's anxiety until to-morrow."

Read under Sola Scriptura — this tool’s own fallible reading (⚙)

⚙ Offered as the tool's own fallible reading, to be tested against the text. This paragraph is usually preached as consolation, and it is that; but its grammar reads more like an argument about worship. It opens Διὰ τοῦτο, tying it to the impossibility of two masters, and its governing verb, μεριμνάω, is the verb Paul uses of a divided man (1 Corinthians 7:33, as Pulpit notes). What Jesus forbids is not planning, which Benson, Poole, Barnes, JFB and Cambridge all defend, but a kind of care that has quietly taken over the office of God. The proof He offers is not that anxiety feels bad but that it produces nothing: not one forearm's length added to a life (v. 27). Notice, too, how the voices fall. Every self-directed clothing in the unit is in the middle voice and fails, Solomon's included (v. 29); every creature that is clothed or fed has the action done to it by an active verb whose subject is God (τρέφει, v. 26; ἀμφιέννυσιν, v. 30). So the remedy in v. 33 is not less desire but reordered desire: an imperative in the present (keep seeking), an adverb of order (first), and then a future passive with no agent named, because the agent was named in v. 32. If this reading is right, v. 34 is not a lowering of the standard at the end but its most concrete form: faith is not a settled confidence about the future, which no one has, but the willingness to receive one day's trouble and one day's bread at a time. Where the reading may be wrong: it presses the middle voices harder than the commentators do, and Greek middles are not always emphatic. Test it there.

Every self-clothing in this passage fails, Solomon's included; only what is clothed by God is dressed well. (⚙ synthesis, not Scripture)

⚙

Canonical Threads — out to the whole of Scripture

cross-refs · verify

AI-generated connections. Each carries a verification badge with a recorded basis; contested links are flagged.

The same sermon in Luke, down to two of the rarest verbs in the New Testament verbal / quotation: confirmed

The parallel at Luke 12:22-31 is not a general resemblance but a shared vocabulary at the level of individual rare words. The Verifier's candidate list gives Luke 12:27 sharing νήθω (G3514, "to spin"), a verb that occurs in only two verses of the New Testament, and Luke 12:28 sharing κλίβανος (G2823, the portable clay oven), likewise in only two verses. Both pairs are this saying and its twin. Luke 12:25 shares μεριμνάω, προστίθημι and ἡλικίαν, the whole apparatus of v. 27. Cambridge notes that in Luke the passage follows the parable of the Rich Fool; Pulpit judges that "in the differences Luke preserves the more original form," while allowing that the connection with Matthew's context here "is so close" that Matthew may have it in place. ⚙ We record the verbal identity as fact and leave the question of priority where Pulpit leaves it, open.

Luke 12:22 · Luke 12:25 · Luke 12:27 · Luke 12:28

basis: Verifier: shared Greek lexemes G3514 νήθω (in 2 vv) and G2823 κλίβανος (in 2 vv), both exhausted by this saying and its Lucan parallel; also G3309 μεριμνάω (in 17 vv), G4369 προστίθημι (in 18 vv), G2244 ἡλικία (in 8 vv) at Luke 12:25. Greek to Greek.

μεριμνάω: the divided man, in Paul and in the hour of trial structural / thematic: confirmed

The verb that governs this unit is not common. The Verifier finds it in seventeen verses, and its other homes are telling. At 1 Corinthians 7:32-34 it describes the man divided between the Lord and the world, and Paul in the same breath calls him μεμέρισται, "divided": Ellicott and Pulpit both send the reader there, and Pulpit uses it for the popular derivation of the word from division. At Matthew 10:19 and Luke 12:11 the same verb is forbidden to disciples dragged before councils, "do not be anxious how or what you shall speak." ⚙ The two settings are the same problem at different pressures: what a man will trust when bread or speech is not in his own hands. We deliberately under-claim the tier here: the lexeme is genuinely shared and Verifier-confirmed, but seventeen verses is not the handful that would justify a verbal tier, and no passage quotes another, so we record a thematic link resting on a verified lexical basis.

1 Corinthians 7:32 · 1 Corinthians 7:33 · 1 Corinthians 7:34 · Matthew 10:19 · Luke 12:11

basis: Verifier: shared Greek lexeme G3309 μεριμνάω (in 17 vv), twice each at 1 Corinthians 7:32, 7:33, 7:34, Matthew 10:19 and Luke 12:11; Ellicott and Pulpit both name 1 Corinthians 7:32-34 explicitly. Greek to Greek, so a verbal tier was available, but at 17 verses the lexeme is not rare enough to carry one and no passage quotes another, so the tier is downgraded and the lexical basis recorded as it stands.

ἀρκετόν: what is enough for the day, the disciple, and the past life verbal / quotation: confirmed

ἀρκετόν (G713, "satisfactory, enough") stands in only three verses of the New Testament, and the three read as one thought held at three angles. Here it is enough trouble for one day. At Matthew 10:25 it is enough for the disciple that he be as his teacher, in a chapter that also forbids μεριμνάω. At 1 Peter 4:3 it is enough that the past time was spent as the Gentiles will, in a letter that will shortly tell its readers to cast their care on God. ⚙ Taken together the word marks the boundary of a sufficiency: enough suffering, enough status, enough of the old life, and in each case the point is that nothing further need be sought.

Matthew 10:25 · 1 Peter 4:3

basis: Verifier: shared Greek lexeme G713 ἀρκετός (in 3 vv), a rare word whose three New Testament occurrences are Matthew 6:34, Matthew 10:25 and 1 Peter 4:3. Greek to Greek.

Food and clothing: the forerunner who had already stopped worrying about both verbal / quotation: confirmed

The two nouns that frame v. 25, τροφή (G5160, food) and ἔνδυμα (G1742, garment), meet again in Matthew's own Gospel at 3:4, where John's ἔνδυμα was camel's hair and his τροφή locusts and wild honey. The Verifier records the shared lexemes, ἔνδυμα in only eight verses. ⚙ Matthew has already shown his readers a man whose food and clothing were exactly what the wilderness and its Maker supplied, before the Sermon ever asks anyone to consider birds. The link is Matthew's vocabulary, not a quotation, and we claim no more than that.

Matthew 3:4

basis: Verifier: shared Greek lexemes G5160 τροφή (in 16 vv) and G1742 ἔνδυμα (in 8 vv, counted twice at Matthew 3:4). Greek to Greek; a lexical link within one Gospel, not a citation.

Solomon: the king who asked first, and the king in all his glory structural / thematic: confirmed

v. 29 names the one figure in Israel's memory who could have settled the clothing question by wealth, and says he lost. Benson refers the glory to the ivory and gold throne of 1 Kings 10:18 and suggests the comparison is of whiteness, since eastern princes wore white robes (Esther 8:15; Daniel 7:9), a reading Barnes shares. Poole then sets the other Solomon story under v. 33: "it shall fare with you as it did with Solomon, 1 Kings 3:12, who asked not riches and honour, but had them," and Pulpit cites 1 Kings 3:11-14 at the same verse. ⚙ The unit therefore uses Solomon twice and in opposite directions: as the man whose glory was not enough, and as the man who sought first and had the rest added. JFB points to the same principle at 2 Chronicles 1:11-12. Because the Kings text is Hebrew and this Gospel Greek, there can be no shared Strong's lexeme, and we tier the link by figure and reference, never as verbal.

1 Kings 3:12 · 1 Kings 10:18 · 2 Chronicles 1:11

basis: Cross-Testament (Greek to Hebrew), so no shared Strong's lexeme is possible and no verbal tier is available. Basis is the named figure and the shared pattern of asking first: Benson cites 1 Kings 10:18, Poole cites 1 Kings 3:12 at v. 33, Pulpit cites 1 Kings 3:11-14, JFB cites 2 Chronicles 1:11-12.

Who feeds the ravens structural / thematic: confirmed

When Jesus tells them to look at the birds, He is not introducing a new idea to that audience. Gill sends the reader to Psalm 147:9, and notes that Luke's parallel specifies ravens; Pulpit adds Job 38:41, where the Lord's own questioning of Job asks who provides the raven his food. ⚙ The argument of v. 26 is therefore not an inference from nature but a reminder of something already written and already confessed: the same God who silenced Job with the raven is the Father the disciples now address. Greek to Hebrew, so the link is of motif and explicit citation by the commentators, not of vocabulary.

Psalm 147:9 · Job 38:41

basis: Cross-Testament (Greek to Hebrew): no shared Strong's lexeme is possible. Basis is the shared motif of God feeding the birds, cited explicitly by Gill (Psalm 147:9) and Pulpit (Job 38:41) on v. 26.

Bread for the day, and none kept for tomorrow typological

⚙ A figural reading, offered as such. The discipline of Exodus 16 is the exact shape of v. 34: manna gathered a day's portion each day, and what was stored against tomorrow bred worms. Israel is taught by forty years of eating that daily dependence is not a deficiency in the provision but its design, and the same paragraph of Matthew has just taught the disciples to pray for bread ἐπιούσιον (Matthew 6:11), which Ellicott here connects directly to this teaching: "The bearing of this teaching on the meaning of the 'daily bread' of the Lord's Prayer has already been noticed." This is a typological reading, widely held in Christian exposition, but no commentator in this brief makes the Exodus link explicitly, and no verbal basis is available across the testaments. We mark it as our own figure, not as a sourced claim.

Exodus 16:19 · Exodus 16:20 · Matthew 6:11

basis: Cross-Testament figure, no shared lexeme possible and none claimed. The one sourced element is Ellicott's link at v. 32 between this teaching and the daily bread of the Lord's Prayer; the manna pattern of Exodus 16 is our own figural reading, ancient in Christian tradition but not attested by the commentators in this brief.

Casting your care on Him: a much-cited link the Verifier does not confirm flagged: verify source

Cambridge cites 1 Peter 5:7 at v. 25 ("Casting all your care [or anxiety] upon him"), and Pulpit closes his note on v. 34 by sending the reader to Philippians 4:6 and 1 Peter 5:7; Ellicott, Barnes and JFB all cite Philippians 4:6 as well. The connection is theologically obvious and traditionally made. ⚙ But it is not in the Verifier's computed candidate list for this unit, and the reason is lexical: 1 Peter 5:7 carries the noun μέριμνα and the verb μέλει, not the verb μεριμνάω (G3309) that governs this passage, while Philippians 4:6 uses μηδὲν μεριμνᾶτε, which would be a real shared lexeme but does not appear among the candidates supplied to us. We therefore flag the pair rather than tier it: the commentators' citation is sourced and reported here, the verbal basis is not verified.

1 Peter 5:7 · Philippians 4:6

basis: Cited by Cambridge at v. 25 and by Pulpit at v. 34 (with Philippians 4:6 also cited by Ellicott, Barnes and JFB), but absent from the Verifier's thread candidates for this unit; 1 Peter 5:7 uses the cognate noun μέριμνα rather than G3309 μεριμνάω, so the verbal basis is unverified and no verbal tier is claimed.

⚙Christ in the Unittypology · verify

AI-generated reading; weigh it against the text.

A greater than Solomon, pointing at a flower ancient/widely-held

Ellicott makes the Christological move in his own voice at v. 29: Jewish tradition dressed Solomon's very attendants in purple and gold dust, and "He, the true Son of David, saw in the simplest flower that grows a glory above them all." ⚙ The saying's authority is of a piece with that claim. The formula is λέγω ὑμῖν, "I say to you," which Ellicott calls a formula of emphasis with special force here: no prophet's "thus says the LORD" stands behind it. Matthew will later put the comparison directly, "something greater than Solomon is here" (Matthew 12:42), and it is the same Gospel and the same Lord. JFB hears the same note at v. 32, where the One who said "no man knoweth the Father but the Son" (Matthew 11:27) tells them what the Father knows "with an authority which none but Himself could claim." The passage is therefore not general wisdom about worry; it is a claim about who is speaking.

Matthew 12:42 · Matthew 11:27 · 1 Kings 10:18

His righteousness, which is not our own ancient/widely-held

v. 33 commands the seeking of τὴν δικαιοσύνην αὐτοῦ, "his righteousness," and the tradition represented in this brief reads the genitive as gift rather than achievement. Benson: "Not your own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness of God by faith," citing Romans 10:3 and Philippians 3:9. Gill is blunter still: "This is not the righteousness of man, but of God; and is no other than the righteousness of Christ; so called, because he is God who has wrought it." Ellicott reaches the same place from the grammar of seeking: a righteousness "perfect beyond the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees" must be "His gift to us, and therefore to be sought in prayer." ⚙ Note what this does to the promise. If the first thing sought is itself a gift, then the "all these things" added afterwards are not wages at all, and Gill's phrase holds the logic: added "without your thought and care, and much less merit."

Romans 10:3 · Philippians 3:9 · Matthew 5:20

The one who kept the command He gave novel

⚙ A reading we offer as our own, marked accordingly. The middle voices of this unit say that no one dresses himself well; the Father clothes. Matthew's own narrative then shows the speaker living inside His own command: the Son of Man with nowhere to lay His head (Matthew 8:20, where Matthew uses the same phrase "the birds of the heaven" that stands in v. 26), and at the end a man stripped of the one garment He had, over which soldiers cast lots. Between those two Matthews the paragraph's logic runs its full length, since the Father who clothes grass did not spare Him, and the clothing He finally provides is not cloth. Poole's caution about this whole section applies here too: Christ "did not live such a life" of idleness, "he went about doing good, finishing the work which his Father had given him to do." This figural extension is ours; it is not drawn from any commentator in this brief, and the reader should weigh it as machine synthesis rather than received exposition.

Matthew 8:20 · Matthew 27:35

Apparatus & Provenance

The biblical text is the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), public domain (CC0). Hebrew/Greek text, transliteration, morphology and Strong’s are transcribed from the Berean interlinear (CC0) + Strong’s lexicons (PD); the literal renderings, divergence notes, word notes and all synthesis are this tool’s own work (⚙) — fallible; verify them.

Named voices, quoted verbatim from public-domain works:

  • Albert Barnes, Notes on the Bible (1834)
  • Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges, — (1880s)
  • Charles Ellicott, Commentary for English Readers (1878)
  • Geneva Study Bible, Marginal Notes (1599)
  • Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory (1871)
  • John Gill, Exposition of the Entire Bible (1746–63)
  • Joseph Benson, Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1810s)
  • Matthew Henry, Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible (1706)
  • Matthew Poole, Annotations upon the Holy Bible (1685)
  • The Pulpit Commentary, Spence & Exell, eds. (1880s)

Text. The Greek here is the Berean interlinear with Strong's numbers; the English is BSB. Two places in this unit have live textual questions the brief lets us see. At v. 25 Pulpit notes that the clause "or what ye shall drink" is omitted by Codex Sinaiticus and a few chiefly Western authorities, and judges it "probably genuine"; the interlinear before us carries it (words 11 to 13). At v. 33 Pulpit says τοῦ Θεοῦ, "of God," "must almost certainly be omitted" with Sinaiticus, following Westcott and Hort, so that the text would read simply "his kingdom and his righteousness"; our interlinear and BSB both retain it, and our note follows the text we were given while recording the doubt.

Lexical uncertainty we have not resolved and do not pretend to. ἡλικία in v. 27 means either stature or age; Ellicott says either "gives an adequate sense," while JFB, Cambridge, Gill and Pulpit prefer age, and BSB renders "life." κρίνα in v. 28 may be a generic word for bright field flowers rather than a species: Ellicott treats it generically, Cambridge reports Thomson's lily of the Huleh and Tristram's rival claim for Anemone coronaria, Pulpit follows Tristram, and Gill notes the Arabic version simply reads "the flowers of the field." κακία in v. 34 is distress rather than wickedness for Cambridge and Gill, while Ellicott holds out for a residue of the stronger sense.

Sources. The commentary quoted is public domain and named at every point: Ellicott, Benson, Henry, Barnes, JFB, Poole, Gill, Geneva, Cambridge, Pulpit. Henry's entry is a single note on the whole section 6:25-34 rather than on any one verse, and we have quoted it as such. Benson's note on v. 28, Barnes's on v. 34 and Pulpit's on v. 25 were capped in our brief, so we have quoted only from what was supplied. The rabbinic parallels reported at vv. 26, 29, 30, 33 and 34 are Gill's citations, reproduced as his, not verified by us against the Talmud.

Threads. The verbal tiers rest on the Verifier's computed shared lexemes, with frequencies given in each basis. Cross-Testament links (Greek to Hebrew) cannot carry a verbal tier at all, since no Strong's lexeme can be shared across the languages, so the Solomon, raven and manna threads are tiered structural or typological and say why. The widely cited link to 1 Peter 5:7 and Philippians 4:6 is flagged rather than tiered: the commentators do cite it, but our Verifier candidates do not confirm a shared lexeme, and 1 Peter uses the cognate noun rather than the verb of this passage. The Exodus 16 manna reading is marked as our own figure, not as sourced exposition. Our third Christ entry is likewise marked novel.

✦ = human, public-domain source, quoted and named. ⚙ = machine synthesis, to be verified. Flagged cross-references are left visible on purpose — the verifier working in the open. “Search the Scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” (Acts 17:11)