⭐WEB · Matthew 6:17
What does Matthew 6:17 mean?
"But you, when you fast, anoint your head, and wash your face;"
— Matthew 6:17 (World English Bible)
Surrounding context
“For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
But if you don’t forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
“Moreover when you fast, don’t be like the hypocrites, with sad faces. For they disfigure their faces, that they may be seen by men to be fasting. Most certainly I tell you, they have received their reward.
But you, when you fast, anoint your head, and wash your face;
so that you are not seen by men to be fasting, but by your Father who is in secret, and your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you.
“Don’t lay up treasures for yourselves on the earth, where moth and rust consume, and where thieves break through and steal;
but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consume, and where thieves don’t break through and steal;
Explanation
Matthew 6:17 comes from the Sermon on the Mount, in a section where Jesus is teaching about fasting, one of three spiritual disciplines he addresses alongside giving and praying. In plain language, the verse instructs believers that when they fast, they should groom themselves normally—anointing the head with oil and washing the face—rather than altering their appearance to look distressed or deprived. Anointing with oil was a common, everyday act of personal care in the ancient Near East, comparable to combing one's hair or putting on lotion today. Jesus is telling his listeners to carry on with ordinary self-care even while fasting.
The context is crucial to understanding the instruction. Just before this verse, in Matthew 6:16, Jesus criticizes the "hypocrites" who disfigure their faces so that others will notice they are fasting and admire their piety. Fasting was a well-established Jewish religious practice, often tied to repentance, mourning, or seeking God earnestly, and some religious leaders of Jesus's day had turned it into a public performance—looking gloomy, neglecting their appearance, and drawing attention to their spiritual devotion. Jesus, speaking to his disciples and the crowds gathered on the mountainside, is correcting this tendency by instructing them to do the opposite: appear normal, even cheerful, so that no one but God knows they are fasting.
Theologically, this verse reinforces a major theme running through the Sermon on the Mount: righteousness is to be practiced for God's eyes, not for human approval. The
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