4. Human respect.
“Take heed that you do not your justice before men to be seen by them: otherwise you shall not have a reward of your Father who is in heaven. Therefore when thou dost an almsdeed, sound not a trumpet[1] before thee, as the hypocrites[2] do in the streets, that they may be honoured by men: Amen, I say to you, they have received [3] their reward. But when thou dost alms, let not thy left hand[4] know what thy right hand doth. That thy alms may be in secret, and thy Father who seeth in secret will repay thee.
“And when ye pray, you shall not be as the hypocrites, that love to pray in the synagogues and corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men: Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward. But thou, when thou shalt pray, enter into thy chamber, and, having shut the door, pray to thy Father in secret, and thy Father who seeth in secret will repay thee.
“And when you fast, be not, as the hypocrites, sad. For they disfigure their faces[5] that they may appear unto men to fast: Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thy head and wash thy face. That thou appear not to men to fast, but to thy Father who is in secret, and thy Father who seeth in secret will repay thee.”
COMMENTARY.
God is Omnipresent and Omniscient. He is, as our Lord teaches us, in secret, and sees in secret. He knows all our thoughts and our most hidden intentions.
The Justice of God. He will reward the just, if not in this world, certainly in the next.
- ↑ Trumpet. Do not try to make them known.
- ↑ Hypocrites. Thus He styles the Scribes and Pharisees, because they made out that they were seeking God’s glory, whereas they were really seeking their own.
- ↑ Received. And have therefore no further reward to hope for. If they do good works to win praise from men and not for God's glory, they must not expect that God will reward them. The praise of men is their object, and must be also their reward.
- ↑ Thy left hand. Keep it hidden even from yourself, not speculating about your good work, even in your own mind.
- ↑ Their faces. They put on a sorrowful face, and neglect to wash and cleanse themselves, so that every one may perceive how hungry they are, and how severe their penance is.
