Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.
Jesus' answer to worry — and the surprising promise about everything else.
The episode in a glance.
- 01Worry is the context — Jesus assumes his followers will be anxious.
- 02'Seek first' means priority, not just inclusion.
- 03The promise is that everything else will be added.
- 04This is about ordering your life around the right center.
Read along.
Matthew 6:33 — 'But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.' This is Jesus' summary statement in the middle of his teaching on worry.
He's just talked about birds and lilies. God feeds the birds. God clothes the flowers. And you are more valuable than both. So stop worrying about what you'll eat, drink, or wear.
'Seek first.' Not 'seek also.' Not 'seek in addition.' First. Priority. Before anything else. The kingdom of God — his rule, his will, his purposes — gets the first energy, the first money, the first time, the first attention.
'And his righteousness.' Not just seeking God's kingdom in general, but his righteousness specifically. Justice. Holiness. The right way of living. Seek that. Pursue that. Make that the organizing principle.
And the promise: 'all these things will be added to you.' Food. Clothing. Shelter. The very things you were worried about. Jesus says: make God central, and the rest gets handled. Not always luxuriously. But sufficiently. And without the anxiety.