➡️ The Didache
The Gospel of Thomas
A Simplified Version
These are secret sayings that the living Jesus spoke and that Didymos Judas Thomas wrote down.
1 He said, “Whoever understands these sayings will not taste death.”
2 Jesus said, “Keep searching until you find. When you find, you will be upset. When you are upset, you will be amazed. Then you will rule over everything.”
3 Jesus said, “If leaders say, ‘The kingdom is in the sky,’ the birds will get there before you. If they say, ‘It is in the sea,’ the fish will get there first. The kingdom is inside you and outside you. When you know yourself, you will be known, and you will realize you are children of the living Father. If you do not know yourself, you live in poverty, and you are that poverty.”
4 Jesus said, “An old man will ask a seven-day-old child about the place of life and will live. Many who are first will become last, and they will all become one.”
5 Jesus said, “Notice what is right in front of you, and what is hidden will be revealed. Nothing hidden will stay hidden.”
6 His disciples asked, “Should we fast? How should we pray? Should we give alms? What should we eat?”
Jesus said, “Do not lie, and do not do what you hate. Everything is visible to heaven. Nothing hidden will fail to be revealed.”
7 Jesus said, “Blessed is the lion that a human eats, so the lion becomes human. Cursed is the human whom a lion eats, and the lion becomes human.”
8 He said, “A wise fisherman cast a net and pulled up many small fish. He found one large, good fish. He threw the small fish back and kept the large one. Whoever has ears, listen.”
9 Jesus said, “A sower scattered seed. Some fell on the path, and birds ate it. Some on rock, where it had no root and produced no grain. Some among thorns, which choked it. Some on good soil, which bore abundant fruit—sixty and one hundred twenty per measure.”
10 Jesus said, “I have thrown fire on the world, and I am guarding it until it blazes.”
11 Jesus said, “This heaven will pass away, and the one above it will pass away. The dead are not alive, and the living will not die. When you ate what is dead, you made it alive. When you live in the light, what will you do? When you were one, you became two. When you are two, what will you do?”
12 The disciples said, “We know you will leave us. Who will lead us?”
Jesus said, “Go to James the Just, for his sake heaven and earth came to be.”
13 Jesus said to them, “Compare me and say who I am like.”
Simon Peter said, “You are like a righteous angel.”
Matthew said, “You are like a wise philosopher.”
Thomas said, “Teacher, my mouth cannot say who you are like.”
Jesus said, “I am not your teacher. Because you have drunk, you are drunk from the spring I measured out.”
He took Thomas aside and told him three things. When Thomas returned, the others asked, “What did he tell you?”
Thomas said, “If I tell even one, you will stone me, and fire will come from the stones and burn you.”
14 Jesus said, “If you fast, you will bring sin upon yourselves. If you pray, you will be judged. If you give alms, you will harm your spirits. When you enter a town, if they receive you, eat what they give and heal their sick. What goes into your mouth does not defile you; what comes out of your mouth does.”
15 Jesus said, “When you see one not born of a woman, fall down and worship. That one is your Father.”
16 Jesus said, “People think I came to bring peace. I came to bring division—fire, sword, and war. In one house there will be five: three against two, two against three, father against son and son against father. They will stand alone.”
17 Jesus said, “I will give you what no eye has seen, no ear has heard, no hand has touched, and what no mind has imagined.”
18 The disciples said, “Tell us about our end.”
Jesus said, “Have you found the beginning that you ask about the end? The end is where the beginning is. Blessed is the one who stands at the beginning; that one will know the end and not taste death.”
19 Jesus said, “Blessed is the one who existed before coming to be. If you become my disciples and listen to my words, even these stones will serve you. In Paradise there are five trees that do not change in summer or winter, and their leaves do not fall. Whoever knows them will not taste death.”
20 The disciples said, “What is the kingdom like?”
He said, “A mustard seed, the smallest seed; when it falls on prepared soil it becomes a great plant and a shelter for birds.”
21 Mary said, “What are your disciples like?”
He said, “Children who settled in a field not theirs. When the owners come and say, ‘Give it back,’ they undress in front of them to return the field. If a homeowner knows a thief is coming, he will keep watch and not let him break in. Be on guard against the world. Arm yourselves with strength, for what you expect will happen. Let there be a person of understanding among you. When the grain ripened, he quickly harvested it with his sickle. Whoever has ears, listen.”
22 Jesus saw infants nursing. He said, “Those who enter the kingdom are like these infants.”
They asked, “Shall we enter as children?”
Jesus said, “When you make the two one; make inside like outside and outside like inside; above like below; and male and female into a single one—so that male is not male and female not female; and you place an eye in place of an eye, a hand for a hand, a foot for a foot, a likeness for a likeness—then you will enter the kingdom.”
23 Jesus said, “I will choose you—one out of a thousand and two out of ten thousand—and they will stand as one.”
24 The disciples said, “Show us where you are, for we must seek it.”
He said, “Whoever has ears, listen. There is light within a person of light, and it lights the whole world. If he does not shine, he is darkness.”
25 Jesus said, “Love your brother like your own life. Guard him like the pupil of your eye.”
26 Jesus said, “You see the speck in your brother’s eye but not the beam in your own. Remove the beam from your eye, then you will see to remove the speck from your brother’s.”
27 Jesus said, “If you do not fast from the world, you will not find the kingdom. If you do not keep the Sabbath as a true Sabbath, you will not see the Father.”
28 Jesus said, “I stood in the world in a body. I found everyone drunk; none were thirsty. My heart grieved for people, blind in their hearts. They came empty and try to leave empty. But for now they are drunk. When they sober up, they will change.”
29 Jesus said, “If flesh came from spirit, that is amazing. If spirit came from the body, that is the greatest wonder. I am amazed that such wealth lives in this poverty.”
30 Jesus said, “Where there are three gods, they are gods. Where there are two or one, I am with that one.”
31 Jesus said, “A prophet is not accepted in his own village; a doctor does not heal those who know him.”
32 Jesus said, “A city on a high mountain, well-fortified, cannot fall or be hidden.”
33 Jesus said, “Proclaim from your roofs what you hear in private. No one lights a lamp to hide it. He puts it on a stand so all who come in and go out see its light.”
34 Jesus said, “If a blind person leads a blind person, both fall into a pit.”
35 Jesus said, “You cannot plunder a strong man’s house unless you tie him up first; then you can take his goods.”
36 Jesus said, “Do not worry, morning to evening and evening to morning, about clothing.”
37 His disciples asked, “When will you reveal yourself to us?”
Jesus said, “When you undress without shame and trample your clothes like children, then you will see the Son of the Living One and not be afraid.”
38 Jesus said, “Many have wanted to hear these words, and had no one to tell them. Days are coming when you will look for me and not find me.”
39 Jesus said, “The Pharisees and scribes hid the keys of knowledge. They did not enter, and they blocked those who wanted to. You, be wise as snakes and innocent as doves.”
40 Jesus said, “A vine planted apart from the Father is unsound; it will be pulled up and destroyed.”
41 Jesus said, “Whoever has will receive more; whoever has nothing will lose even the little he has.”
42 Jesus said, “Be passers-by.”
43 The disciples said, “Who are you to say these things to us?”
Jesus said, “You do not recognize me by what I say. You have become like those who love the tree and hate its fruit or love the fruit and hate the tree.”
44 Jesus said, “Anyone who speaks against the Father will be forgiven, and against the Son will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven on earth or in heaven.”
45 Jesus said, “You do not pick grapes from thorns or figs from thistles. A good person brings out good from a good storehouse. An evil person brings out evil from an evil storehouse in the heart. The mouth speaks from the heart’s overflow.”
46 Jesus said, “Among those born of women, from Adam to John the Baptist, no one is greater than John. Yet whoever becomes a child will know the kingdom and be greater than John.”
47 Jesus said, “You cannot ride two horses or draw two bows. A servant cannot serve two masters: he will honor one and insult the other. No one who drinks old wine immediately wants new. New wine is not put in old skins, or they burst; old wine is not put in a new skin, or it spoils it. You do not sew an old patch on a new garment, or it tears.”
48 Jesus said, “If two make peace in this one house, they can say to a mountain, ‘Move,’ and it will move.”
49 Jesus said, “Blessed are the solitary and the chosen; you will find the kingdom. You are from it and will return to it.”
50 Jesus said, “If they ask, ‘Where did you come from?’ say, ‘From the Light, which came to be by itself and revealed itself in its image.’ If they ask, ‘Are you it?’ say, ‘We are its children, the chosen of the living Father.’ If they ask for the Father’s sign in you, say, ‘It is movement and rest.’”
51 The disciples asked, “When will the rest of the dead happen, and the new world come?”
He said, “What you expect has already come, but you do not recognize it.”
52 The disciples said, “Twenty-four prophets spoke in Israel, and they all spoke in you.”
He said, “You have ignored the one who is alive before you and spoken only of the dead.”
53 The disciples asked, “Is circumcision useful?”
He said, “If it were, people would be born circumcised. The real circumcision is of the spirit and is completely beneficial.”
54 Jesus said, “Blessed are the poor, for yours is the kingdom of heaven.”
55 Jesus said, “Whoever does not hate father and mother cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not hate brothers and sisters and carry the cross in my way is not worthy of me.”
56 Jesus said, “Whoever understands the world finds only a corpse; whoever finds a corpse is above the world.”
57 Jesus said, “The kingdom is like a man who sowed good seed. An enemy sowed weeds at night. He would not let his workers pull them up, fearing they would pull the wheat too. At harvest the weeds will show clearly; they will be pulled and burned.”
58 Jesus said, “Blessed is the one who suffered and found life.”
59 Jesus said, “Seek the Living One while you live, so you do not die and seek him without finding him.”
60 They saw a Samaritan carrying a lamb to Judea. Jesus said, “He is circling the lamb.”
They said, “To kill and eat it.”
He said, “He will not eat it alive, only when it is dead.”
They said, “There is no other way.”
He said, “Find a place of rest for yourselves, or you will become a corpse and be eaten.”
61 Jesus said, “Two will rest on a bed: one will die, the other will live.”
Salome said, “Who are you, man? You have climbed on my couch and eaten at my table.”
Jesus said, “I am the one who exists from the undivided. I received things from my Father.”
“I am your disciple.”
“If he is whole, he will be filled with light; if he is divided, he will be filled with darkness.”
62 Jesus said, “I tell my mysteries to those worthy of them. Do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.”
63 Jesus said, “A rich man planned to invest, sow, reap, plant, and fill his barns so he would lack nothing. That same night he died. Whoever has ears, listen.”
64 Jesus said, “A man prepared a dinner and sent his servant to invite guests.
One said, ‘I have business with merchants tonight; excuse me.’
Another said, ‘I bought a house and am busy.’
Another said, ‘I must prepare a wedding banquet.’
Another said, ‘I bought a farm and must collect rent.’
The servant reported this. The master said, ‘Go into the streets and bring whoever you find to dine.’ Businesspeople and merchants will not enter my Father’s places.”
65 He said, “A good man owned a vineyard and leased it to tenants. He sent a servant to collect fruit; they beat him. He sent another; they beat him too. He sent his son; knowing he was the heir, they killed him. Whoever has ears, listen.”
66 Jesus said, “Show me the stone the builders rejected; that is the cornerstone.”
67 Jesus said, “If someone knows everything yet feels lacking, he is completely lacking.”
68 Jesus said, “Blessed are you when people hate and persecute you. Where you were persecuted, they will find no place.”
69 Jesus said, “Blessed are those persecuted within themselves; they truly know the Father. Blessed are the hungry, for the one who desires will be filled.”
70 Jesus said, “What you have within you will save you if you bring it out. What you do not have within will kill you.”
71 Jesus said, “I will destroy this house, and no one will be able to rebuild it.”
72 A man said, “Tell my brothers to divide my father’s estate with me.”
He said, “Who made me a divider?” Then to his disciples: “Am I a divider?”
73 Jesus said, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord to send workers.”
74 He said, “Many gather around the trough, but there is nothing in the cistern.”
75 Jesus said, “Many stand at the door, but only the solitary will enter the bridal chamber.”
76 Jesus said, “The kingdom is like a merchant who found a pearl. He sold all his goods and bought the pearl. Seek the lasting treasure where moth and worm do not destroy.”
77 Jesus said, “I am the light above all. I am the All. Everything came from me, and everything returns to me. Split wood—I am there. Lift a stone—you will find me there.”
78 Jesus said, “Why did you go into the wilderness? To see a reed in the wind? To see someone dressed like kings? They wear fine clothes, yet cannot see the truth.”
79 A woman said, “Blessed is the womb that bore you and the breasts that nursed you.”
He said, “Blessed are those who hear the Father’s word and truly keep it. Days will come when people will say, ‘Blessed are the barren and the breasts that never nursed.’”
80 Jesus said, “Whoever recognizes the world finds a body; whoever finds a body is above the world.”
81 Jesus said, “Let the one who has become rich rule, and the one with power renounce it.”
82 Jesus said, “Whoever is near me is near fire; whoever is far from me is far from the kingdom.”
83 Jesus said, “Images are visible to people, but the light within them remains hidden—hidden by the Father’s light. He will become visible, but his image is hidden by his light.”
84 Jesus said, “When you see your likeness, you rejoice. But when you see your images that existed before you, which do not die or appear, you will have much to bear.”
85 Jesus said, “Adam came from great power and wealth, yet he was not worthy of you. If he had been worthy, he would not have died.”
86 Jesus said, “Foxes have holes and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to rest.”
87 Jesus said, “Unhappy is the body that depends on another body; unhappy is the soul that depends on both.”
88 Jesus said, “Angels and prophets will come and give you what you already have. You also give them what you have, and say to yourselves, ‘When will they come to take their own?’”
89 Jesus said, “Why wash only the outside of the cup? The one who made the inside made the outside too.”
90 Jesus said, “Come to me. My yoke is easy and my rule is gentle, and you will find rest.”
91 They said, “Tell us who you are so we may believe.”
He said, “You read the sky and earth but do not recognize the one before you or read this moment.”
92 Jesus said, “Seek and you will find. What you asked me before and I did not tell you—now I want to tell you, but you are not asking.”
93 Jesus said, “Do not give what is holy to dogs, or they will throw it on the dung heap. Do not cast pearls before pigs, or they will trample them.”
94 Jesus said, “Whoever seeks will find; whoever knocks will be let in.”
95 Jesus said, “If you have money, do not lend at interest. Give to those from whom you do not expect it back.”
96 Jesus said, “The kingdom is like a woman who hid a little yeast in dough until it became large loaves. Whoever has ears, listen.”
97 Jesus said, “The kingdom is like a woman carrying a jar of meal. The handle broke; the meal spilled along the road without her noticing. At home she set the jar down and found it empty.”
98 Jesus said, “The kingdom is like a man who wanted to kill a powerful opponent. At home he tested his hand by striking the wall with his sword. Then he killed the powerful man.”
99 The disciples said, “Your mother and brothers are outside.”
He said, “Those who do my Father’s will are my mother and my brothers; they will enter my Father’s kingdom.”
100 They showed Jesus a coin and said, “Caesar demands taxes.”
He said, “Give Caesar what is Caesar’s, give God what is God’s, and give me what is mine.”
101 Jesus said, “Whoever does not hate father and mother like I do cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not love father and mother like I do cannot be my disciple. My earthly mother, but my true mother gave me life.”
102 Jesus said, “Woe to the Pharisees. They are like a dog in an ox manger—neither eating nor letting the oxen eat.”
103 Jesus said, “Happy is the person who knows where robbers will enter, so he can rise, guard his house, and be ready.”
104 They said, “Let us pray and fast today.”
Jesus said, “What sin have I committed, or how have I been defeated? When the bridegroom leaves the bridal chamber, then they should fast and pray.”
105 Jesus said, “Whoever knows father and mother will be called the child of a prostitute.”
106 Jesus said, “When you make the two one, you will become sons of man. Then you will say to the mountain, ‘Move,’ and it will move.”
107 Jesus said, “The kingdom is like a shepherd with a hundred sheep. The largest one went astray. He left the ninety-nine and sought it until he found it. After all that effort he said, ‘I love you more than the ninety-nine.’”
108 Jesus said, “Whoever drinks from my mouth will become like me; I myself will become that person, and hidden things will be revealed to him.”
109 Jesus said, “The kingdom is like a man with treasure hidden in his field. He died and left it to his son, who did not know. The son sold the field. The buyer plowed and found the treasure and began lending at interest to whomever he wished.”
110 Jesus said, “Whoever finds the world and becomes rich should renounce the world.”
111 Jesus said, “Heaven and earth will roll up before you. Whoever lives from the Living One will not see death. Did I not say, ‘Whoever finds himself is greater than the world’?”
112 Jesus said, “Woe to the flesh that depends on the soul; woe to the soul that depends on the flesh.”
113 The disciples asked, “When will the kingdom come?”
Jesus said, “It will not come by watching for it. People will not say, ‘Here it is’ or ‘There it is.’ The Father’s kingdom is spread out over the earth, and people do not see it.”
114 Simon Peter said, “Let Mary leave us, for women are not worthy of life.”
Jesus said, “I will guide her to become male, so she too may become a living spirit like you males. Every woman who makes herself male will enter the kingdom of heaven.”
Dedicated to the public domain.