Matthew 6:16 is the sixteenth verse of the sixth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew

Gospel of Matthew

The Gospel According to Matthew is one of the four canonical gospels, one of the three synoptic gospels, and the first book of the New Testament. It tells of the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth...

 in the New Testament

New Testament

The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....

 and is part of the Sermon on the Mount

Sermon on the Mount

The Sermon on the Mount is a collection of sayings and teachings of Jesus, which emphasizes his moral teaching found in the Gospel of Matthew...

. This verse opens the discussion of fasting

Fasting

Fasting is primarily the act of willingly abstaining from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time. An absolute fast is normally defined as abstinence from all food and liquid for a defined period, usually a single day , or several days. Other fasts may be only partially restrictive,...

.

In the King James Version of the Bible

Bible

The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...

 the text reads:

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.

The World English Bible

World English Bible

The World English Bible is a public domain translation of the Bible that is currently in draft form. Work on the World English Bible began in 1997 and was known as the American Standard Version 1997...

 translates the passage as:

“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.

For a collection of other versions see BibRef Matthew 6:16

Previously this chapter has discussed proper procedure for alms

Alms

Alms or almsgiving is a religious rite which, in general, involves giving materially to another as an act of religious virtue.It exists in a number of religions. In Philippine Regions, alms are given as charity to benefit the poor. In Buddhism, alms are given by lay people to monks and nuns to...

 giving and prayer

Prayer

Prayer is a form of religious practice that seeks to activate a volitional rapport to a deity through deliberate practice. Prayer may be either individual or communal and take place in public or in private. It may involve the use of words or song. When language is used, prayer may take the form of...

. In this verse Jesus moves on the third important form of Jewish worship: fasting. Fasting was an important part of piety in this period. All Jews were expected to fast on major holidays, such as the Day of Atonement

Day of Atonement

Day of Atonement may refer to:*Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement* Day of Atonement , a national day established in 1995 by the Nation of Islam...

, but some far more often, sometimes twice a week. Jesus' views on fasting parallels his views of other forms of worship. He decries those that make a public spectacle of their piety, and assures his followers that the reward for such worship is only public adulation, and God will give no reward for this behaviour.

"Disfigure their faces" (aphanizo) literally means "make their faces invisible." It may refer to putting ash on the face to darken one's complexion and make sure that everyone around is aware that one is fasting. This may also reflect the original meaning of hypocrite as actor, as these fasters are putting on a show of suffering.