From Jesus’s interpretation of torah, Matthew turns to Jesus’s teaching on Jewish religious practices (expressed as “righteousness” [Greek dikaiosynē]; 6:1; cf. 5:20) of giving to the poor (6:2–4), prayer (6:5–15), and fasting (6:16–18). These three practices are joined in Tobit 12:8, along with “righteousness,” indicating their centrality in Jewish piety. The three sections are each structured by a prohibition, a command, and a promise. The common thread is a warning against doing acts of righteousness for human, instead of divine, approval (6:2, 5, 16). Jesus promises future reward to those who give, pray, and fast “in secret” rather than act to be seen by others (6:4, 6, 18).

The Lord’s Prayer (6:9–13) falls within the sectio…