Commentary - Matthew 6:16-18

Bird's-eye view

In this section of the Sermon on the Mount, Christ continues His master class on the nature of true righteousness, contrasting it with the cheap, theatrical piety of the hypocrites. Having already addressed giving (Matt. 6:1-4) and prayer (Matt. 6:5-15), He now turns His attention to the spiritual discipline of fasting. The central point is consistent throughout: genuine Christian living is done before an audience of one, God the Father. The Lord has no interest in spiritual showboating. The issue is not whether we perform righteous acts, but for whom we perform them. Are we playing to the cheap seats, seeking the applause of men? Or are we seeking the approval of our Father who is in secret? This passage strikes at the very heart of performative religion and calls us to a piety that is deep, genuine, and oriented entirely toward God's glory.

Christ assumes His disciples will fast, just as He assumes they will give and pray. The command is not "if you fast," but "whenever you fast." He is not instituting a new rule but reforming an existing practice that had been corrupted by pride. The hypocrites used fasting as a tool for self-promotion, disfiguring their faces to advertise their supposed holiness. But Jesus teaches that such public displays have already received their paltry reward in full, the fleeting praise of men. The true disciple, in contrast, fasts in secret. He takes measures to appear normal, even festive, anointing his head and washing his face. The goal is to be unseen by men, but seen by the Father. And the Father, who sees all that is done in secret, promises a reward that is of an entirely different order, a reward that is real and eternal.

Outline

Context In Matthew

This passage on fasting is the third part of a thematic unit (Matt. 6:1-18) that deals with three traditional expressions of Jewish piety: almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. In each case, Jesus follows the same pattern. He warns against practicing righteousness "before other people in order to be seen by them" (Matt. 6:1). He then describes the behavior of the "hypocrites," who crave public recognition and receive a worthless, temporal reward. Finally, He instructs His disciples on the proper, God-centered way to perform these acts, emphasizing secrecy and the promise of a reward from the Father.

This entire section is embedded within the broader context of the Sermon on the Mount, where Jesus is defining the character and conduct of citizens of the kingdom of heaven. He is not abolishing the law but fulfilling it by revealing its true, heart-level intent. The righteousness He demands exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees (Matt. 5:20) precisely because it is not a matter of external performance but of internal transformation that results in deeds done for the glory of God alone.

Clause-by-Clause Commentary

v. 16 “Now whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full."

"Now whenever you fast..." Jesus begins with an assumption. He expects that His followers will engage in the discipline of fasting. He does not say "if," but "when." Fasting, which is the practice of abstaining from food for a period to humble oneself before God, was an established part of Jewish life (see Ezra 8:21; Isa. 58:3). Jesus is not questioning the practice itself, but rather its motivation and execution. This is not a legalistic requirement, but a tool for seeking God, and Christ here purifies its use.

"...do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do..." The first instruction is a negative one. The word for hypocrite is a stage-term, referring to an actor playing a part. These religious actors put on a "gloomy face," a sad countenance, as part of their costume. They wanted everyone to know how deeply spiritual they were, and they measured piety by the length of one's face. But true piety is not measured by our emotional assumptions, but by the Word of God. The Bible connects true religion with joy, gladness, and feasting, not with a perpetual funereal demeanor.

"...for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting." Here is the motive laid bare. They intentionally disfigure their faces, perhaps leaving them unwashed, smeared with ashes, or with hair unkempt. The goal was simple: public relations. They wanted to appear to men to be fasting. Their entire focus was horizontal. The discipline that was meant to bring them low before God was twisted into a platform for elevating themselves before men.

"Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full." Jesus uses the solemn phrase, "Truly I say to you," to underscore the certainty of His verdict. The reward they sought, they received. The Greek here can be understood as a commercial term, like signing a receipt: "paid in full." They wanted the admiration of their peers, and they got it. But that is all they will get. The transaction is complete. There is no further payment from the Father, because the Father was never the one they were trying to please.

v. 17 "But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face"

"But you, when you fast..." Christ now turns from the negative example to the positive command for His disciples. The contrast is sharp and direct. Your fasting must be of a completely different character.

"...anoint your head and wash your face..." This is a command to look normal, even festive. Anointing the head with oil and washing the face were signs of grooming, health, and gladness. In other words, when you are humbling yourself inwardly before God, you are to present a cheerful and ordinary countenance to the world. Your piety is not a public performance. It is a secret transaction between you and your God. This is a powerful blow against all forms of dour, grim, and gloomy religiosity. The Christian life is to be characterized by a deep and abiding joy, even in our most solemn disciplines.

v. 18 "so that your fasting will not be noticed by men, but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you."

"so that your fasting will not be noticed by men..." Here is the purpose of washing your face and anointing your head. The aim is concealment from a human audience. We are to actively avoid drawing attention to our acts of devotion. This runs contrary to our natural, fallen inclination, which is to seek validation and applause for everything we do. The gospel reorients our entire life, including our spiritual disciplines, away from the watching world and toward the watching Father.

"...but by your Father who is in secret..." While the fast is hidden from men, it is not hidden from God. Our Father is "in secret." This doesn't mean He is hiding, but that He dwells in the unseen realm and sees all things. He is the sole audience for our secret piety. This is a profound comfort and a solemn warning. Nothing is hidden from Him. The hypocrite's performance is seen, and the disciple's faithful secrecy is also seen. The question is, which observer are you trying to please?

"...and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you." The promise is repeated for the third time in this chapter (vv. 4, 6, 18). God is a rewarder. There is a false spirituality that pretends to be above the idea of rewards, but Scripture is plain. Our Father is pleased to reward the faithfulness of His children. This is not the crass earning of wages, as though we could put God in our debt. It is the gracious gift of a loving Father to His obedient children. The hypocrite gets his fleeting reward now, paid in the cheap currency of human praise. The believer waits for the eternal reward from the Father, paid in the solid gold of His "well done, good and faithful servant."

Application

The central application of this text is a radical call to re-evaluate our motives in everything we do. The problem Jesus addresses is not fasting, but hypocrisy. The temptation to perform for a human audience is a subtle and constant one, especially in an age of social media where every thought and deed can be curated for public consumption. We must constantly ask ourselves: "For whom am I doing this?" Is it for the "likes" of men, or for the pleasure of our Father in heaven?

This passage also teaches us that true Christian piety is characterized by a deep, internal reality, not by external show. God is concerned with the heart. A fast that is motivated by pride is an abomination to Him, no matter how much suffering it involves. A simple act of secret obedience, motivated by love for God, is a sweet-smelling aroma. We should cultivate the secret life of devotion, the prayers that no one else hears, the giving that no one else sees, and the fasting that no one else knows about. It is in that secret place where true fellowship with God is cultivated.

Finally, we must embrace the truth that our God is a rewarding God. We do not serve Him for nothing. While the hypocrite settles for the immediate, flimsy reward of public acclaim, we are called to fix our eyes on an eternal weight of glory. This is not selfishness; it is faith. It is believing that God is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him (Heb. 11:6). Let us therefore live and serve and worship and fast before an audience of One, confident that our Father sees in secret and will one day reward us openly.