Matthew 6:17

But *thou*, [when] fasting, anoint thy head and wash thy face,

Darby Translation

In The King James Version

But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face;

In Context

16And when ye fast, be not as the hypocrites, downcast in countenance; for they disfigure their faces, so that they may appear fasting to men: verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

18so that thou mayest not appear fasting unto men, but to thy Father who is in secret; and thy Father who sees in secret shall render [it] to thee.

Read all of Matthew 6

Cross References

Ruth 3:3Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thyself, and put thy raiment upon thee, and go down to the floor; make not thyself known to the man, until he shall have done eating and drinking.

2 Samuel 14:2And Joab sent to Tekoah, and fetched thence a wise woman, and said to her, I pray thee, feign thyself to be a mourner, and put on mourning garments, I pray, and anoint not thyself with oil, but be as a woman that hath a long time mourned for the dead;

Daniel 10:2In those days I Daniel was mourning three full weeks:

Matthew Henry on Matthew 6:17-19

The Sermon on the Mount. 16 Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 17 But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; 18 That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly. We are here cautioned against hypocrisy in fasting, as before in almsgiving, and in… Read the whole commentary →

This Verse In Other Editions

Study Matthew 6:17