¹⁶ You’ll recognize them by their fruit.^(A) Are grapes gathered from thornbushes or figs from thistles?^{(B) 17} In the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree produces bad fruit. ¹⁸ A good tree can’t produce bad fruit; neither can a bad tree produce good fruit. ¹⁹ Every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.^{(C) 20} So you’ll recognize them by their fruit.^(D)

A Tree and Its Fruit

⁴³ “A good tree doesn’t produce bad fruit; on the other hand, a bad tree doesn’t produce good fruit.^{[a](A) 44} For each tree is known by its own fruit. Figs aren’t gathered from thornbushes, or grapes picked from a bramble bush. ⁴⁵ A good person produces good out of the good stored up in his heart. An evil person produces evil out of the evil stored up in his heart, for his mouth speaks from the overflow of the heart.