What did Jesus say about Peacemaking?

³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.

⁴ Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

⁵ Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.

⁶ Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.

⁷ Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

⁸ Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

⁹ Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.

¹⁰ Blessed are those who have been persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.

¹¹ “Blessed are you when people reproach you, persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely, for my sake.

¹² Rejoice, and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven. For that is how they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

²¹ “You have heard that it was said to the ancient ones, ‘You shall not murder;’ and ‘Whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’

²² But I tell you that everyone who is angry with his brother without a cause will be in danger of the judgment. Whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’ will be in danger of the council. Whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of Gehenna.

²³ “If therefore you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has anything against you,

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.

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.

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

¹⁵ “If your brother sins against you, go, show him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained back your brother.

¹⁶ But if he doesn’t listen, take one or two more with you, that at the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.

¹⁷ If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the assembly. If he refuses to hear the assembly also, let him be to you as a Gentile or a tax collector.

¹⁸ Most certainly I tell you, whatever things you bind on earth will have been bound in heaven, and whatever things you release on earth will have been released in heaven.

¹⁹ Again, assuredly I tell you, that if two of you will agree on earth concerning anything that they will ask, it will be done for them by my Father who is in heaven.

²⁰ For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there I am in the middle of them.”

²⁶ “If anyone comes to me, and doesn’t disregard his own father, mother, wife, children, brothers, and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he can’t be my disciple.

²⁷ Whoever doesn’t bear his own cross and come after me, can’t be my disciple.

²⁸ For which of you, desiring to build a tower, doesn’t first sit down and count the cost, to see if he has enough to complete it?

²⁹ Or perhaps, when he has laid a foundation and isn’t able to finish, everyone who sees begins to mock him,

³⁰ saying, ‘This man began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’

³¹ Or what king, as he goes to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand?

³² Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends an envoy and asks for conditions of peace.

³³ So therefore, whoever of you who doesn’t renounce all that he has, he can’t be my disciple.

²⁷ “But I tell you who hear: love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,

²⁸ bless those who curse you, and pray for those who mistreat you.

²⁹ To him who strikes you on the cheek, offer also the other; and from him who takes away your cloak, don’t withhold your coat also.

³⁰ Give to everyone who asks you, and don’t ask him who takes away your goods to give them back again.

³¹ “As you would like people to do to you, do exactly so to them.

³² “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them.

³³ If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same.

³⁴ If you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive back as much.

³⁵ But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing back; and your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for he is kind toward the unthankful and evil.

³⁶ “Therefore be merciful, even as your Father is also merciful.

⁴³ “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’

⁴⁴ But I tell you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who mistreat you and persecute you,

⁴⁵ that you may be children of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust.

⁴⁶ For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Don’t even the tax collectors do the same?

⁴⁷ If you only greet your friends, what more do you do than others? Don’t even the tax collectors do the same?

⁴⁸ Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.

²³ Therefore the Kingdom of Heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.

²⁴ When he had begun to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.

²⁵ But because he couldn’t pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, with his wife, his children, and all that he had, and payment to be made.

²⁶ The servant therefore fell down and knelt before him, saying, ‘Lord, have patience with me, and I will repay you all!’

²⁷ The lord of that servant, being moved with compassion, released him and forgave him the debt.

²⁸ “But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him one hundred denarii, and he grabbed him and took him by the throat, saying, ‘Pay me what you owe!’

²⁹ “So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will repay you!’

³⁰ He would not, but went and cast him into prison until he should pay back that which was due.

³¹ So when his fellow servants saw what was done, they were exceedingly sorry, and came and told their lord all that was done.

³² Then his lord called him in and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me.

³³ Shouldn’t you also have had mercy on your fellow servant, even as I had mercy on you?’

³⁴ His lord was angry, and delivered him to the tormentors until he should pay all that was due to him.

³⁵ So my heavenly Father will also do to you, if you don’t each forgive your brother from your hearts for his misdeeds.”

¹¹ “A certain man had two sons.

¹² The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of your property.’ So he divided his livelihood between them.

¹³ Not many days after, the younger son gathered all of this together and traveled into a far country. There he wasted his property with riotous living.

¹⁴ When he had spent all of it, there arose a severe famine in that country, and he began to be in need.

¹⁵ He went and joined himself to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed pigs.

¹⁶ He wanted to fill his belly with the pods that the pigs ate, but no one gave him any.

¹⁷ But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many hired servants of my father’s have bread enough to spare, and I’m dying with hunger!

¹⁸ I will get up and go to my father, and will tell him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight.

¹⁹ I am no more worthy to be called your son. Make me as one of your hired servants.”’

²⁰ “He arose and came to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was moved with compassion, and ran, fell on his neck, and kissed him.

²¹ The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’

²² “But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet.

²³ Bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let’s eat and celebrate;

²⁴ for this, my son, was dead and is alive again. He was lost and is found.’ Then they began to celebrate.

²⁵ “Now his elder son was in the field. As he came near to the house, he heard music and dancing.

²⁶ He called one of the servants to him and asked what was going on.

²⁷ He said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and healthy.’

²⁸ But he was angry and would not go in. Therefore his father came out and begged him.

²⁹ But he answered his father, ‘Behold, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed a commandment of yours, but you never gave me a goat, that I might celebrate with my friends.

³⁰ But when this your son came, who has devoured your living with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him.’

³¹ “He said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.

³² But it was appropriate to celebrate and be glad, for this, your brother, was dead, and is alive again. He was lost, and is found.’”

⁴² “Whoever will cause one of these little ones who believe in me to stumble, it would be better for him if he were thrown into the sea with a millstone hung around his neck.

⁴³ If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, rather than having your two hands to go into Gehenna, into the unquenchable fire,

⁴⁴ ‘where their worm doesn’t die, and the fire is not quenched.’

⁴⁵ If your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life lame, rather than having your two feet to be cast into Gehenna, into the fire that will never be quenched—

⁴⁶ ‘where their worm doesn’t die, and the fire is not quenched.’

⁴⁷ If your eye causes you to stumble, throw it out. It is better for you to enter into God’s Kingdom with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into the Gehenna of fire,

⁴⁸ ‘where their worm doesn’t die, and the fire is not quenched.’

⁴⁹ For everyone will be salted with fire, and every sacrifice will be seasoned with salt.

⁵⁰ Salt is good, but if the salt has lost its saltiness, with what will you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.”

² “The harvest is indeed plentiful, but the laborers are few. Pray therefore to the Lord of the harvest, that he may send out laborers into his harvest.

³ Go your ways. Behold, I send you out as lambs among wolves.

⁴ Carry no purse, nor wallet, nor sandals. Greet no one on the way.

⁵ Into whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house.’

⁶ If a son of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you.

⁷ Remain in that same house, eating and drinking the things they give, for the laborer is worthy of his wages. Don’t go from house to house.

⁸ Into whatever city you enter and they receive you, eat the things that are set before you.

⁹ Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘God’s Kingdom has come near to you.’

¹⁰ But into whatever city you enter and they don’t receive you, go out into its streets and say,

¹¹ ‘Even the dust from your city that clings to us, we wipe off against you. Nevertheless know this, that God’s Kingdom has come near to you.’

¹² I tell you, it will be more tolerable in that day for Sodom than for that city.

³⁴ “Don’t think that I came to send peace on the earth. I didn’t come to send peace, but a sword.

³⁵ For I came to set a man at odds against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.

³⁶ A man’s foes will be those of his own household.

³⁷ He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and he who loves son or daughter more than me isn’t worthy of me.

³⁸ He who doesn’t take his cross and follow after me isn’t worthy of me.

³⁹ He who seeks his life will lose it; and he who loses his life for my sake will find it.