And he said unto his disciples, Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat; neither for the body, what ye shall put on.
Jesus is speaking to his twelve closest followers — called disciples — in the middle of a longer teaching about money, possessions, and where we place our trust. Just before this verse, he told a story about a man who spent his life storing up great wealth, only to die before he could enjoy it. Jesus then turns directly to his disciples and begins what becomes one of his most well-known teachings on anxiety. The word "therefore" connects this command back to that story: because life is worth far more than what you can accumulate, do not let the basics — food, clothing, survival — become what your heart is organized around. Jesus is not saying those needs do not matter. He is addressing the corrosive worry that takes over when they feel uncertain.
Jesus, you know exactly what I am worried about right now. You are not asking me to pretend it does not matter — you are asking me to trust you with it. Help me loosen my grip on the things I am trying to control. Remind me that I am more than what I have or do not have. Amen.
What do you think about when you cannot sleep? For most people, it is a short list: money, health, the future, whether they have done enough, whether they will be okay. Jesus says do not worry — and you might want to argue with him, because worry is not always irrational. The bills are real. The uncertainty is real. The vulnerability of a body that can get sick, a job that can disappear — that is not paranoia, that is Tuesday. So why does he say this? Because worry treats your survival as the whole story. Jesus is insisting that it is not. The invitation here is not to pretend hard things are not hard, or to float above real needs with cheerful optimism. It is to refuse to let anxiety be your operating system. Worry says: if I think about this hard enough, I can control it. But you cannot think your way into security. What Jesus is offering is a different center of gravity — one where your deepest okay-ness does not rise and fall with your circumstances. That is not easy. But he seems to think you are capable of it.
Jesus uses the word "therefore" to connect this command to his story about the man who stored up wealth and died. What is the logical link between that story and the command not to worry?
What specific worry tends to take up the most space in your mind right now — and how long have you been carrying it?
Do not worry can feel dismissive to someone facing real scarcity or crisis. How do you think Jesus's words land for someone who genuinely does not know where their next meal is coming from?
How does your worry — or your peace — affect the people around you, including your family, friends, or the people you work with?
What is one concrete practice you could try this week to interrupt anxious thinking and redirect your attention toward trusting God with the outcome?
Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
Matthew 6:34
Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
Philippians 4:6
Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.
Psalms 37:5
Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
Matthew 6:25
Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.
1 Peter 5:7
And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things:
Luke 10:41
Commit thy works unto the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established.
Proverbs 16:3
Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.
Psalms 55:22
Jesus said to His disciples, "For this reason I tell you, do not worry about your life, as to what you will eat; or about your body, as to what you will wear.
AMP
And he said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on.
ESV
And He said to His disciples, 'For this reason I say to you, do not worry about [your] life, [as to] what you will eat; nor for your body, [as to] what you will put on.
NASB
Do Not Worry Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear.
NIV
Then He said to His disciples, “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on.
NKJV
Then, turning to his disciples, Jesus said, “That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life — whether you have enough food to eat or enough clothes to wear.
NLT
He continued this subject with his disciples. "Don't fuss about what's on the table at mealtimes or if the clothes in your closet are in fashion.
MSG