Matthew 5:26 (WEB)

Passage

Most certainly I tell you, you shall by no means get out of there, until you have paid the last penny.

Nearby Context

Matthew 5:24 leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

Matthew 5:25 Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are with him on the way; lest perhaps the prosecutor deliver you to the judge, and the judge deliver you to the officer, and you be cast into prison.

Matthew 5:26 Most certainly I tell you, you shall by no means get out of there, until you have paid the last penny.

Matthew 5:27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery;’Exodus 20:14

Matthew 5:28 but I tell you that everyone who gazes at a woman to lust after her has committed adultery with her already in his heart.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "most", "certainly", "tell", "shall", "means", "until", "paid", and "last". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "most" and "certainly", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 25's "Agree with your adversary quickly while you..." into verse 27's "You have heard that it was said...", so "most" and "certainly" 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 "most" and "certainly" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.