Matthew 6:27 (GNV)

Passage

Which of you by taking care is able to adde one cubite vnto his stature?

Nearby Context

Matthew 6:25 Therefore I say vnto you, be not carefull for your life, what ye shall eate, or what ye shall drinke: nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more worth then meate? and the bodie then raiment?

Matthew 6:26 Behold the foules of the heauen: for they sowe not, neither reape, nor carie into the barnes: yet your heauenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better then they?

Matthew 6:27 Which of you by taking care is able to adde one cubite vnto his stature?

Matthew 6:28 And why care ye for raiment? Learne howe the lilies of the fielde doe growe: they are not wearied, neither spinne:

Matthew 6:29 Yet I say vnto you, that euen Salomon in all his glorie was not arayed like one of these.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "taking", "care", "able", "adde", "cubite", "vnto", and "stature". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "taking" and "care", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 26's "Behold the foules of the heauen for..." into verse 28's "And why care ye for raiment Learne...", so "taking" and "care" belong inside that flow. In Matthew context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

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