Matthew 6:1 (DRB)

Passage

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.

Nearby Context

Matthew 6:1 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.

Matthew 6:2 Therefore when thou dost an alms-deed, sound not a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be honoured by men. Amen I say to you, they have received their reward.

Matthew 6:3 But when thou dost alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doth.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "take", "heed", "justice", "before", "seen", "otherwise", "shall", and "reward". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "take" and "heed", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The next verse adds "Therefore when thou dost an alms-deed sound...", so "take" and "heed" should be read forward into that movement. In Matthew context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "take" and "heed" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.