Matthew 18-19

Holman Christian Standard Bible

Who Is the Greatest?

18 At that time^[a](A) the disciples^(B) came to Jesus and said, “Who is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”^(C)

² Then He called a child to Him and had him stand among them. ³ “I assure you,” He said, “unless you are converted^[b] and become like children,^(D) you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.^{(E) 4} Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child—this one is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. ⁵ And whoever welcomes^[c] one child like this in My name welcomes Me.

⁶ “But whoever causes the downfall of one of these little ones who believe in Me—it would be better for him if a heavy millstone^[d] were hung around his neck and he were drowned in the depths of the sea!^{(F) 7} Woe to the world because of offenses. For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes.^{(G) 8} If your hand or your foot causes your downfall, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or lame, than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into the eternal fire.^{(H) 9} And if your eye causes your downfall, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye, rather than to have two eyes and be thrown into hellfire!^[e](I)

The Parable of the Lost Sheep

¹⁰ “See that you don’t look down on one of these little ones,^(J) because I tell you that in heaven their angels^(K) continually view the face of My Father in heaven.^(L) [¹¹ For the Son of Man^(M) has come to save the lost.]^{[f] 12} What do you think?^(N) If a man has 100 sheep, and one of them goes astray, won’t he leave the 99 on the hillside and go and search for the stray?^{(O) 13} And if he finds it, I assure you: He rejoices over that sheep^[g] more than over the 99 that did not go astray. ¹⁴ In the same way, it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones perish.

Restoring a Brother

¹⁵ “If your brother sins against you,^[h] go and rebuke him in private.^[i] If he listens to you, you have won your brother.^{(P) 16} But if he won’t listen, take one or two more with you, so that by the testimony^[j] of two or three witnesses every fact may be established.^{(Q)[k] 17} If he pays no attention to them, tell the church.^[l](R) But if he doesn’t pay attention even to the church, let him be like an unbeliever^[m] and a tax collector to you.^{(S) 18} I assure you: Whatever you bind on earth is already bound^[n] in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth is already loosed^[o] in heaven.^{(T) 19} Again, I assure you: If two of you on earth agree about any matter that you^[p] pray for, it will be done for you^[q] by My Father in heaven. ²⁰ For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there among them.”

The Parable of the Unforgiving Slave

²¹ Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how many times could my brother sin against me and I forgive him? As many as seven times?”^(U)

²² “I tell you, not as many as seven,” Jesus said to him, “but 70 times seven.^{[r] 23} For this reason, the kingdom of heaven can be compared to a king who wanted to settle accounts with his slaves. ²⁴ When he began to settle accounts, one who owed 10,000 talents^[s] was brought before him. ²⁵ Since he had no way to pay it back, his master commanded that he, his wife, his children, and everything he had be sold to pay the debt.^(V)

²⁶ “At this, the slave fell facedown before him and said, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you everything!’ ²⁷ Then the master of that slave had compassion, released him, and forgave him the loan.

²⁸ “But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him 100 denarii.^[t](W) He grabbed him, started choking him, and said, ‘Pay what you owe!’

²⁹ “At this, his fellow slave fell down^[u] and began begging him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’ ³⁰ But he wasn’t willing. On the contrary, he went and threw him into prison until he could pay what was owed. ³¹ When the other slaves saw what had taken place, they were deeply distressed and went and reported to their master everything that had happened.

³² “Then, after he had summoned him, his master said to him, ‘You wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. ³³ Shouldn’t you also have had mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you?’^{(X) 34} And his master got angry and handed him over to the jailers to be tortured until he could pay everything that was owed. ³⁵ So My heavenly Father will also do to you if each of you does not forgive his brother^[v] from his^[w] heart.”^(Y)

The Question of Divorce

19 When Jesus had finished this instruction,^(Z) He departed from Galilee and went to the region of Judea across the Jordan.^{(AA) 2} Large crowds followed Him, and He healed them there.^{(AB) 3} Some Pharisees approached Him to test Him. They asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife on any grounds?”^(AC)

⁴ “Haven’t you read,” He replied, “that He who created^[x] them in the beginning made them male and female,”^{(AD)[y] 5} and He also said:

⁶ So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, man must not separate.”

⁷ “Why then,” they asked Him, “did Moses command us to give divorce papers^(AF) and to send her away?”

⁸ He told them, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because of the hardness of your hearts. But it was not like that from the beginning. ⁹ And I tell you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery.”^[aa](AG)

¹⁰ His disciples^(AH) said to Him, “If the relationship of a man with his wife is like this, it’s better not to marry!”

¹¹ But He told them, “Not everyone can accept this saying, but only those it has been given^(AI) to. ¹² For there are eunuchs who were born that way from their mother’s womb, there are eunuchs who were made by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves that way because of the kingdom of heaven. Let anyone accept this who can.”

Blessing the Children

¹³ Then children were brought to Him so He might put His hands on them and pray. But the disciples rebuked them.^{(AJ) 14} Then Jesus said, “Leave the children alone, and don’t try to keep them from coming to Me, because the kingdom of heaven is made up of people like this.”^{[ab](AK) 15} After putting His hands on them, He went on from there.

The Rich Young Ruler

¹⁶ Just then someone came up and asked Him,^(AL) “Teacher, what good must I do to have eternal life?”^(AM)

¹⁷ “Why do you ask Me about what is good?”^[ac] He said to him. “There is only One who is good.^[ad] If you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”^(AN)

¹⁸ “Which ones?” he asked Him. Jesus answered:

²⁰ “I have kept all these,”^[af] the young man told Him. “What do I still lack?”

²¹ “If you want to be perfect,”^[ag] Jesus said to him, “go, sell your belongings and give to the poor,^(AQ) and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me.”

²² When the young man heard that command, he went away grieving, because he had many possessions.

Possessions and the Kingdom

²³ Then Jesus said to His disciples, “I assure you: It will be hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven!^{(AR) 24} Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”^(AS)

²⁵ When the disciples heard this, they were utterly astonished and asked, “Then who can be saved?”

²⁶ But Jesus looked at them and said, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”^(AT)

²⁷ Then Peter responded to Him, “Look, we have left everything and followed You. So what will there be for us?”

²⁸ Jesus said to them, “I assure you: In the Messianic Age,^[ah](AU) when the Son of Man sits on His glorious throne,^(AV) you who have followed Me will also sit on 12 thrones, judging the 12 tribes of Israel. ²⁹ And everyone who has left houses, brothers or sisters, father or mother,^[ai] children, or fields because of My name will receive 100 times more and will inherit eternal life.^{(AW) 30} But many who are first will be last, and the last first.^(AX)