17. “Don’t think that I have come to destroy the law of Moses or the teaching of the prophets. I have not come to destroy their teachings but to do what they said.
18. I tell you the truth. Nothing will disappear from the law until heaven and earth are gone. The law will not lose even the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter until all has happened.
19. Whoever refuses to obey any command and teaches other people not to obey that command will be the least important in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys the law and teaches other people to obey the law will be great in the kingdom of heaven.
20. I tell you that you must do better than the teachers of the law and the Pharisees. If you are not better than they are, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.
21. “You have heard that it was said to our people long ago, ‘You must not murder anyone. Anyone who murders another will be judged.’
22. But I tell you, if you are angry with your brother, you will be judged. And if you say bad things to your brother, you will be judged by the Jewish council. And if you call your brother a fool, then you will be in danger of the fire of hell.
23. “So when you offer your gift to God at the altar, and you remember that your brother has something against you,
24. leave your gift there at the altar. Go and make peace with him. Then come and offer your gift.
25. “If your enemy is taking you to court, become friends with him quickly. You should do that before you go to court. If you don’t become his friend, he might turn you over to the judge. And the judge might give you to a guard to put you in jail.
26. I tell you that you will not leave that jail until you have paid everything you owe.
27. “You have heard that it was said, ‘You must not be guilty of adultery.’
28. But I tell you that if anyone looks at a woman with lust, he has already committed adultery with her in his mind.
29. If your right eye causes you to sin, then take it out and throw it away. It is better to lose one part of your body than to have your whole body thrown into hell.
30. If your right hand causes you to sin, then cut it off and throw it away. It is better to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.
31. “It was also said, ‘Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a written divorce paper.’
32. But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife is causing his wife to be guilty of adultery. The only reason for a man to divorce his wife is if she has been unfaithful to him. And anyone who marries that divorced woman is guilty of adultery.