The Scofield Bible Commentary, by Cyrus Ingerson Scofield, [1917], at sacred-texts.com
Matthew Chapter 6
alms
Or, righteous acts. The word refers to religious externalities. These may be seen of men, but that must not be the motive.
reward
That is, the reward they have sought.
reward
That is, the praise of men.
kingdom come
Verses (Mat 11:27-30); (Luk 1:31-33); (Co1 15:24).
(See Scofield) - (Mat 3:2).
we forgive our debtors
This is legal ground, (compare (Eph 4:32), which is grace. Under law forgiveness is conditioned upon a like spirit in us; under grace we are forgiven for Christ's sake, and exhorted to forgive because we have been forgiven. (Mat 18:32); (Mat 26:28).
(See Scofield) - (Mat 26:28).
debts
sin
(See Scofield) - (Rom 3:23).
reward
That is, the praise of men.
take no thought
Or, have no anxiety. (Mat 6:34).
kingdom of God
The kingdom of God is to be distinguished from the kingdom of heaven
(See Scofield) - (Mat 3:2),
in five respects:
(1) The kingdom of God is universal, including all moral intelligences willingly subject to the will of God, whether angels, the Church, or saints of past or future dispensations (Luk 13:28-29); (Heb 12:22-23) while the kingdom of heaven is Messianic, mediatorial, and Davidic, and has for its object the establishment of the kingdom of God in the earth
(See Scofield) - (Mat 3:2). (Co1 15:24-25).
(2) The kingdom of God is entered only by the new birth (Joh 3:3); (Joh 3:5-7) the kingdom of heaven, during this age, is the sphere of a profession which may be real or false.
(See Scofield) - (Mat 13:3); (Mat 25:1; Mat 25:11-12).
(3) Since the kingdom of heaven is the earthly sphere of the universal kingdom of God, the two have almost all things in common. For this reason many parables and other teachings are spoken of the kingdom of heaven in Matthew, and of the kingdom of God in Mark and Luke. It is the omissions which are significant. The parables of the wheat and tares, and of the net (Mat 13:24-30); (Mat 13:36-43); (Mat 13:47-50) are not spoken of the kingdom of God. In that kingdom there are neither tares nor bad fish. But the parable of the leaven (Mat 13:33) is spoken of the kingdom of God also, for, alas, even the true doctrines of the kingdom are leavened with the errors of which the Pharisees, Sadducees, and the Herodians were the representatives.
(See Scofield) - (Mat 13:33), margin reference).
(4) The kingdom of God "comes not with outward show" (Luk 17:20) but is chiefly that which is inward and spiritual (Rom 14:17) while the kingdom of heaven is organic, and is to be manifested in glory on the earth.
(See "Kingdom (Old Testament)," (Zac 12:8); note; (New Testament), (Luk 1:31-33); (Co1 15:24); note; (Mat 17:2); note.)
(See Scofield) - (Zac 12:8), (Luk 1:31-33).
(See Scofield) - (Co1 15:24).
(See Scofield) - (Mat 17:2).
(5) The kingdom of heaven merges into the kingdom of God when Christ, having put all enemies under his feet, "shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father" (Co1 15:24-28).
(See Scofield) - (Mat 3:2).