The Little Children and Jesus^(A)

¹³ People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. ¹⁴ When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.^{(B) 15} Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”^{(C) 16} And he took the children in his arms,^(D) placed his hands on them and blessed them.

The Rich and the Kingdom of God^(E)

¹⁷ As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees^(F) before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”^(G)

¹⁸ “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone.

¹⁷ “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.”^(A)

¹⁸ “Which ones?” he inquired.

Jesus replied, “‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery,^(B) you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, ¹⁹ honor your father and mother,’^[a](C) and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’^[b]”^(D)

²⁰ “Teacher,” he declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.”

²¹ Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor,^(A) and you will have treasure in heaven.^(B) Then come, follow me.”^(C)

²² At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.

²³ Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich^(D) to enter the kingdom of God!”

²⁴ The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, “Children, how hard it is^[a] to enter the kingdom of God!^{(E) 25} It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”^(F)

²⁶ The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved?”

²⁷ Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”^(G)

²⁷ Peter answered him, “We have left everything to follow you!^(A) What then will there be for us?”

²⁸ Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne,^(B) you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.^(C)

²⁹ “Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel ³⁰ will fail to receive a hundred times as much^(A) in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come^(B) eternal life.^{(C) 31} But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”^(D)

The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard

20 “For the kingdom of heaven is like^(A) a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard.^{(B) 2} He agreed to pay them a denarius^[a] for the day and sent them into his vineyard.

³ “About nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. ⁴ He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ ⁵ So they went.

“He went out again about noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing. ⁶ About five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’

⁷ “‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered.

“He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’

⁸ “When evening came,^(C) the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’

⁹ “The workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius. ¹⁰ So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. ¹¹ When they received it, they began to grumble^(D) against the landowner. ¹² ‘These who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat^(E) of the day.’

¹³ “But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend.^(F) Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? ¹⁴ Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. ¹⁵ Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’^(G)

¹⁶ “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”^(H)