Matthew 13-24

New American Standard Bible

Jesus Teaches in Parables

13 On that day Jesus had gone out of ^(A)the house and was sitting ^(B)by the sea. ² And large crowds gathered to Him, so ^(C)He got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd was standing on the beach.

³ And He told them many things in ^(D)parables, saying, “Behold, the sower went out to sow; ⁴ and as he sowed, some seeds fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate them up. ⁵ Others fell on the rocky places, where they did not have much soil; and they sprang up immediately, because they had no depth of soil. ⁶ But after the sun rose, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. ⁷ Others fell ^[a]among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them out. ⁸ But others fell on the good soil and yielded a crop, some a ^(E)hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times as much. ^9 (F)The one who has ears, ^[b]let him hear.”

An Explanation for Parables

¹⁰ And the disciples came up and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” ¹¹ And ^[c]Jesus answered them, “^(G)To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. ^12 (H)For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. ¹³ Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while ^(I)seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. ¹⁴ And ^[d]in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,

^16 (L)But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. ¹⁷ For truly I say to you that ^(M)many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

The Sower Explained

¹⁸ “^(N)Listen then to the parable of the sower. ¹⁹ When anyone hears ^(O)the ^[i]word of the kingdom and does not understand it, ^(P)the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one sown with seed beside the road. ²⁰ The one sown with seed on the rocky places, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; ²¹ yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution occurs because of the ^[j]word, immediately he ^[k](Q)falls away. ²² And the one sown with seed among the thorns, this is the one who hears the word, and the anxiety of ^(R)the ^[l]world and the ^(S)deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it ^[m]becomes unfruitful. ²³ But the one sown with seed on the good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces, some ^(T)a hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times as much.”

Weeds among Wheat

²⁴ Jesus presented another parable to them, saying, “^(U)The kingdom of heaven ^[n]is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. ²⁵ But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed ^[o]weeds among the wheat, and left. ²⁶ And when the ^[p]wheat sprouted and produced grain, then the weeds also became evident. ²⁷ And the slaves of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? ^[q]How then does it have weeds?’ ²⁸ And he said to them, ‘^[r]An enemy has done this!’ The slaves *said to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?’ ²⁹ But he *said, ‘No; while you are gathering up the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. ³⁰ Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and at the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather up the weeds and bind them in bundles to burn them; but ^(V)gather the wheat into my barn.”’”

The Mustard Seed

³¹ He presented another parable to them, saying, “^(W)The kingdom of heaven is like ^(X)a mustard seed, which a person took and sowed in his field; ³² and this is smaller than all the other seeds, but when it is fully grown, it is larger than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that ^(Y)the birds of the sky come and nest in its branches.”

The Leaven

³³ He spoke another parable to them: “^(Z)The kingdom of heaven is like ^[s]leaven, which a woman took and hid in ^(AA)three ^[t]sata of flour until it was all leavened.”

³⁴ All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables, and He did not speak anything to them ^(AB)without a parable. ³⁵ This was so that what was spoken through the prophet would be ^[u]fulfilled:

The Weeds Explained

³⁶ Then He left the crowds and went into ^(AD)the house. And His disciples came to Him and said, “^(AE)Explain to us the parable of the ^[v]weeds of the field.” ³⁷ And He said, “The one who sows the good seed is ^(AF)the Son of Man, ³⁸ and the field is the world; and as for the good seed, these are ^(AG)the sons of the kingdom; and the weeds are ^(AH)the sons of ^(AI)the evil one; ³⁹ and the enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is ^(AJ)the ^[w]end of the age; and the reapers are angels. ⁴⁰ So just as the weeds are gathered up and burned with fire, so shall it be at ^(AK)the ^[x]end of the age. ^41 (AL)The Son of Man ^(AM)will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom ^[y]all ^(AN)stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, ⁴² and they ^(AO)will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place ^(AP)there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. ^43 (AQ)Then the righteous will shine forth like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. ^(AR)The one who has ears, ^[z]let him hear.

Hidden Treasure

⁴⁴ “^(AS)The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from ^[aa]joy over it he goes and ^(AT)sells everything that he has, and buys that field.

A Costly Pearl

⁴⁵ “Again, ^(AU)the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls, ⁴⁶ and upon finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold everything that he had and bought it.

A Dragnet

⁴⁷ “Again, ^(AV)the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered fish of every kind; ⁴⁸ and when it was filled, they pulled it up on the beach; and they sat down and gathered the good fish into containers, but the bad they threw away. ⁴⁹ So it will be at ^(AW)the ^[ab]end of the age: the angels will come forth and remove the wicked from among the righteous, ⁵⁰ and they ^(AX)will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place ^(AY)there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

⁵¹ “Have you understood all these things?” They *said to Him, “Yes.” ⁵² And ^[ac]Jesus said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a head of a household, who brings out of his treasure new things and old.”

Jesus Revisits Nazareth

^53 (AZ)When Jesus had finished these parables, He departed from there. ⁵⁴ And ^(BA)He came to ^[ad]His hometown and ^(BB)began teaching them in their synagogue, with the result that ^(BC)they were astonished, and said, “Where did this man acquire this wisdom and these ^[ae]miraculous powers? ⁵⁵ Is this not the carpenter’s son? Is ^(BD)His mother not called Mary, and His ^(BE)brothers, James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas? ⁵⁶ And ^(BF)His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did this man acquire all these things?” ⁵⁷ And they took ^(BG)offense at Him. But Jesus said to them, “^(BH)A prophet is not dishonored except in his ^[af]hometown and in his own household.” ⁵⁸ And He did not do many ^[ag]miracles there because of their unbelief.

John the Baptist Beheaded

14 ^[ah](BI)At that time ^[ai](BJ)Herod ^[aj]the tetrarch heard the news about Jesus, ² and said to his servants, “^(BK)This is John the Baptist; he himself has been raised from the dead, and that is why miraculous powers are at work in him.”

³ For when ^(BL)Herod had John arrested, he bound him and put him ^(BM)in prison because of ^(BN)Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip. ⁴ For John had been saying to him, “^(BO)It is not lawful for you to have her.” ⁵ Although Herod wanted to put him to death, he feared the crowd, because they regarded ^[ak]John as ^(BP)a prophet.

⁶ But when Herod’s birthday came, the daughter of ^(BQ)Herodias danced ^[al]before them and pleased ^(BR)Herod, ⁷ so much that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked. ⁸ And after being prompted by her mother, she *said, “Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter.” ⁹ And although he was grieved, the king commanded it to be given because of his oaths and ^[am]his dinner guests. ¹⁰ He sent word and had John beheaded in the prison. ¹¹ And his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother. ^12 [an]John’s disciples came and took away the body and buried ^[ao]it; and they went and reported to Jesus.

Five Thousand Men Fed

^13 (BS)Now when Jesus heard about John, He withdrew from there in a boat to a secluded place by Himself; and when the ^[ap]people heard about this, they followed Him on foot from the cities. ¹⁴ When He came ^[aq]ashore, He ^(BT)saw a large crowd, and felt compassion for them and ^(BU)healed their sick.

¹⁵ Now when it was evening, the disciples came to Him and said, “This place is secluded and the hour is already past to eat; send the crowds away, so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” ¹⁶ But Jesus said to them, “They do not need to go; you give them something to eat!” ¹⁷ They *said to Him, “We have nothing here except ^(BV)five loaves and two fish.” ¹⁸ And He said, “Bring them here to Me.” ¹⁹ And ordering the crowds to ^[ar]sit down on the grass, He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looked up toward heaven. He ^(BW)blessed the food and breaking the loaves, He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. ²⁰ And they all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up what was left over of the broken pieces: twelve full ^(BX)baskets. ²¹ There were about five thousand men who ate, besides women and children.

Jesus Walks on the Water

^22 (BY)Immediately afterward He compelled the disciples to get into the boat and to go ahead of Him to the other side, while He sent the crowds away. ²³ After He had sent the crowds away, ^(BZ)He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was there alone. ²⁴ But the boat was already ^[as]a long distance from the land, ^[at]battered by the waves; for the wind was ^[au](CA)contrary. ²⁵ And in ^(CB)the ^[av]fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea. ²⁶ When the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is ^(CC)a ghost!” And they cried out ^[aw]in fear. ²⁷ But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “^(CD)Take courage, ^[ax]it is I; ^(CE)do not be afraid.”

²⁸ Peter responded and said to Him, “Lord, if ^[ay]it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” ²⁹ And He said, “Come!” And Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water, and came toward Jesus. ³⁰ But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and when he began to sink, he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!” ³¹ Immediately Jesus reached out with His hand and took hold of him, and *said to him, “^(CF)You of little faith, why did you doubt?” ³² When they got into the boat, the wind stopped. ³³ And those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, “You are truly ^(CG)God’s Son!”

^34 (CH)When they had crossed over, they came to land at ^(CI)Gennesaret. ³⁵ And when the men of that place ^[az]recognized Him, they sent word into all that surrounding region and brought to Him all who were sick; ³⁶ and they pleaded with Him that they might just touch ^(CJ)the ^[ba]border of His cloak; and all who ^(CK)touched it were cured.

Tradition and Commandment

15 ^(CL)Then some Pharisees and scribes *came to Jesus ^(CM)from Jerusalem and said, ² “Why do Your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they ^(CN)do not wash their hands when they eat bread.” ³ And He answered and said to them, “Why do you yourselves also break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? ⁴ For God said, ‘^(CO)Honor your father and mother,’ and, ‘^(CP)The one who speaks evil of father or mother is to ^[bb]be put to death.’ ⁵ But you say, ‘Whoever says to his father or mother, “Whatever I have that would help you has been ^[bc]given to God,” ⁶ he is not to ^[bd]honor his father or mother.’ And by this you have invalidated the word of God for the sake of your tradition. ⁷ You hypocrites, rightly did Isaiah prophesy about you, by saying:

¹⁰ After Jesus called the crowd to Him, He said to them, “Hear and understand! ^11 (CS)It is not what enters the mouth that defiles the person, but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles the person.”

¹² Then the disciples came and *said to Him, “Do You know that the Pharisees were ^[be]offended when they heard this statement?” ¹³ But He answered and said, “^(CT)Every plant which My heavenly Father did not plant will be uprooted. ¹⁴ Leave them alone; ^(CU)they are blind guides ^[bf]of blind people. And ^(CV)if a person who is blind guides another who is blind, both will fall into a pit.”

The Heart of Man

¹⁵ Peter ^[bg]said to Him, “^(CW)Explain the parable to us.” ^16 [bh]Jesus said, “Are you also still lacking in understanding? ¹⁷ Do you not understand that everything that goes into the mouth passes into the stomach, and is ^[bi]eliminated? ¹⁸ But ^(CX)the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and those things defile the person. ^19 (CY)For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, acts of adultery, other immoral sexual acts, thefts, false testimonies, and ^[bj]slanderous statements. ²⁰ These are the things that defile the person; but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile the person.”

The Faith of a Canaanite Woman

^21 (CZ)Jesus went away from there, and withdrew into the region of ^(DA)Tyre and ^(DB)Sidon. ²² And a Canaanite woman from that region came out and began to cry out, saying, “Have mercy on me, Lord, ^(DC)Son of David; my daughter is severely ^(DD)demon-possessed.” ²³ But He did not answer her with even a word. And His disciples came up and urged Him, saying, “Send her away, because she keeps shouting ^[bk]at us!” ²⁴ But He answered and said, “I was sent only to ^(DE)the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” ²⁵ But she came and ^(DF)began ^[bl]to bow down before Him, saying, “Lord, help me!” ²⁶ Yet He answered and said, “It is not ^[bm]good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” ²⁷ And she said, “Yes, Lord; but please help, for even the dogs feed on the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” ²⁸ Then Jesus said to her, “O woman, ^(DG)your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed ^[bn]at once.

Healing Crowds

^29 (DH)Departing from there, Jesus went along ^(DI)the Sea of Galilee, and after going up on the mountain, He was sitting there. ³⁰ And ^[bo]large crowds came to Him bringing with them those who were limping, had impaired limbs, were blind, or were unable to speak, and many others, and they laid them down at His feet; and ^(DJ)He healed them. ³¹ So the crowd was astonished as they saw those who were unable to speak talking, those with impaired limbs ^[bp]restored, those who were limping walking around, and those who were blind seeing; and they ^(DK)glorified the God of Israel.

Four Thousand Men Fed

^32 (DL)Now Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, “^(DM)I feel compassion for the ^[bq]people, because they ^[br]have remained with Me now for three days and have nothing to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, for they might faint on the way.” ³³ The disciples *said to Him, “Where would we get so many loaves in this desolate place to satisfy such a large crowd?” ³⁴ And Jesus *said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” And they said, “Seven, and a few small fish.” ³⁵ And He directed the ^[bs]people to ^[bt]sit down on the ground; ³⁶ and He took the seven loaves and the fish; and after ^(DN)giving thanks, He broke them and started giving them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. ³⁷ And they all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up what was left over of the broken pieces, seven large ^(DO)baskets full. ³⁸ And those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children.

³⁹ And sending away the crowds, Jesus got into ^(DP)the boat and came to the region of ^(DQ)Magadan.

Pharisees and Sadducees Test Jesus

16 ^(DR)The ^(DS)Pharisees and Sadducees came up, and putting Jesus to the test, they ^(DT)asked Him to show them a ^[bu]sign from heaven. ² But He replied to them, “^[bv](DU)When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ ³ And in the morning, ‘There will be a storm today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ ^(DV)You know how to discern the ^[bw]appearance of the sky, but are you unable to discern the signs of the times? ^4 (DW)An evil and adulterous generation wants a ^[bx]sign; and so a ^[by]sign will not be given to it, except the sign of Jonah.” And He left them and went away.

⁵ And the disciples came to the other side of the sea, but they had forgotten to bring any bread. ⁶ And Jesus said to them, “Watch out and ^(DX)beware of the ^[bz]leaven of the ^(DY)Pharisees and Sadducees.” ⁷ They began to discuss this among themselves, saying, “He said that because we did not bring any bread.” ⁸ But Jesus, aware of this, said, “^(DZ)You men of little faith, why are you discussing among yourselves the fact that you have no bread? ⁹ Do you not yet understand nor remember ^(EA)the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets you picked up? ¹⁰ Nor ^(EB)the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many large baskets you picked up? ¹¹ How is it that you do not understand that I did not speak to you about bread? But ^(EC)beware of the ^[ca]leaven of the ^(ED)Pharisees and Sadducees.” ¹² Then they understood that He did not say to beware of the ^[cb]leaven of bread, but of the teaching of the ^(EE)Pharisees and Sadducees.

Peter’s Confession of Christ

^13 (EF)Now when Jesus came into the region of ^(EG)Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, “Who do people say that ^(EH)the Son of Man is?” ¹⁴ And they said, “Some say ^(EI)John the Baptist; and others, ^[cc](EJ)Elijah; and still others, ^[cd]Jeremiah, or one of the other prophets.” ¹⁵ He *said to them, “But who do you yourselves say that I am?” ¹⁶ Simon Peter answered, “You are ^(EK)the ^[ce]Christ, ^(EL)the Son of ^(EM)the living God.” ¹⁷ And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, ^(EN)Simon ^[cf]Barjona, because ^(EO)flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. ¹⁸ And I also say to you that you are ^[cg](EP)Peter, and upon this ^[ch]rock I will build My church; and the gates of ^(EQ)Hades will not overpower it. ¹⁹ I will give you ^(ER)the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and ^(ES)whatever you ^[ci]bind on earth ^[cj]shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you ^[ck]loose on earth ^[cl]shall have been loosed in heaven.” ^20 (ET)Then He gave the disciples strict orders that they were to tell no one that He was ^(EU)the ^[cm]Christ.

Jesus Foretells His Death

^21 (EV)From that time ^[cn]Jesus began to ^[co]point out to His disciples that it was necessary for Him to go to Jerusalem and to ^(EW)suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and to be killed, and to be raised up on the third day. ²² And yet Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “^[cp]God forbid it, Lord! This shall never ^[cq]happen to You!” ²³ But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, ^(EX)Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on ^[cr]God’s purposes, but men’s.”

Discipleship Is Costly

²⁴ Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself, ^(EY)take up his cross, and follow Me. ²⁵ For ^(EZ)whoever wants to save his ^[cs]life will lose it; but whoever loses his ^[ct]life for My sake will find it. ²⁶ For what good will it do a person if he gains the whole world, but ^[cu]forfeits his soul? Or what will a person give in exchange for his soul? ²⁷ For the ^(FA)Son of Man ^(FB)is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and ^(FC)will then repay every person according to his ^[cv]deeds.

²⁸ “Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the ^(FD)Son of Man ^(FE)coming in His kingdom.”

The Transfiguration

17 ^(FF)Six days later, Jesus *took with Him ^(FG)Peter and ^[cw]James, and his brother John, and *led them up on a high mountain by themselves. ² And He was transfigured before them; and His face shone like the sun, and His garments became as white as light. ³ And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. ⁴ Peter responded and said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If You want, ^(FH)I will make three ^[cx]tabernacles here: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” ⁵ While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, ^(FI)a voice from the cloud said, “^(FJ)This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to Him!” ⁶ When the disciples heard this, they fell ^[cy]face down to the ground and were terrified. ⁷ And Jesus came to them and touched them and said, “Get up, and ^(FK)do not be afraid.” ⁸ And raising their eyes, they saw no one except Jesus Himself alone.

^9 (FL)When they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, “^(FM)Tell the vision to no one until ^(FN)the Son of Man has ^(FO)risen from the dead.” ¹⁰ And His disciples asked Him, “Why then do the scribes say that ^(FP)Elijah must come first?” ¹¹ And He answered and said, “Elijah is coming and will restore all things; ¹² but I say to you that Elijah already came, and they did not recognize him, but did ^[cz]to him whatever they wanted. So also ^(FQ)the Son of Man is going to suffer ^[da]at their hands.” ¹³ Then the disciples understood that He had spoken to them about John the Baptist.

The Demon-possessed Boy

^14 (FR)When they came to the crowd, a man came up to ^[db]Jesus, falling on his knees before Him and saying, ¹⁵ “^[dc]Lord, have mercy on my son, because he ^(FS)has seizures and suffers terribly; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water. ¹⁶ And I brought him to Your disciples, and they could not cure him.” ¹⁷ And Jesus answered and said, “You unbelieving and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him here to Me.” ¹⁸ And Jesus rebuked him, and the demon came out of him, and the boy was healed ^[dd]at once.

¹⁹ Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” ²⁰ And He *said to them, “Because of your meager faith; for truly I say to you, ^(FT)if you have faith ^[de]the size of ^(FU)a mustard seed, you will say to ^(FV)this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and ^(FW)nothing will be impossible for you.^[df]”

^22 (FX)And while they were gathering together in Galilee, Jesus said to them, “The Son of Man is going to be ^[dg]handed over to men; ²³ and ^(FY)they will kill Him, and He will be raised on the third day.” And they were deeply grieved.

The Temple Tax

²⁴ Now when they came to Capernaum, those who collected ^(FZ)the ^[dh]two-drachma tax came to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay ^(GA)the ^[di]two-drachma tax?” ²⁵ He *said, “Yes.” And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect ^(GB)customs or ^[dj](GC)poll-tax, from their sons or from strangers?” ²⁶ When Peter said, “From strangers,” Jesus said to him, “Then the sons are ^[dk]exempt. ²⁷ However, so that we do not ^(GD)offend them, go to the sea and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a ^[dl]stater. Take that and give it to them for you and Me.”

Rank in the Kingdom

18 ^(GE)At that ^[dm]time the disciples came to Jesus and said, “^(GF)Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” ² And He called a child to Himself and set him among them, ³ and said, “Truly I say to you, unless you ^[dn]change and ^(GG)become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. ⁴ So whoever will humble himself like this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. ⁵ And whoever receives one such child in My name, receives Me; ⁶ but ^(GH)whoever ^(GI)causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to ^[do]sin, it is better for him that a ^[dp]heavy millstone be hung around his neck, and that he be drowned in the depths of the sea.

Stumbling Blocks

⁷ “Woe to the world because of its ^[dq]stumbling blocks! For ^(GJ)it is inevitable that ^[dr]stumbling blocks come; but woe to the person through whom the ^[ds]stumbling block comes!

⁸ “And ^(GK)if your hand or your foot is causing you to sin, cut it off and throw it away from you; it is better for you to enter life maimed or without a foot, than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into the eternal fire. ⁹ And ^(GL)if your eye is causing you to sin, tear it out and throw it away from you. It is better for you to enter life with one eye, than to have two eyes and be thrown into the ^[dt](GM)fiery hell.

¹⁰ “See that you do not look down on one of these little ones; for I say to you that ^(GN)their angels in heaven continually see the face of My Father who is in heaven.^[du]

Ninety-nine Plus One

¹² “What do you think? ^(GO)If any man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains, and go and search for the one that is lost? ¹³ And if it turns out that he finds it, truly I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that have not gone astray. ¹⁴ So it is not the will ^[dv]of your Father who is in heaven for one of these little ones to perish.

Discipline and Prayer

¹⁵ “Now ^(GP)if your brother sins^[dw], go and ^[dx]show him his fault ^[dy]in private; if he listens to you, you have gained your brother. ¹⁶ But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that ^(GQ)on the ^[dz]testimony of two or three witnesses every ^[ea]matter may be confirmed. ¹⁷ And if he refuses to listen to them, ^(GR)tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, ^(GS)he is to be to you as ^[eb]a Gentile and ^[ec]a tax collector. ¹⁸ Truly I say to you, ^(GT)whatever you ^[ed]bind on earth ^[ee]shall have been bound in heaven; and whatever you ^[ef]loose on earth ^[eg]shall have been loosed in heaven.

¹⁹ “Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, ^(GU)it shall be done for them ^[eh]by My Father who is in heaven. ²⁰ For where two or three have gathered together in My name, ^(GV)I am there in their midst.”

Forgiveness

²¹ Then Peter came up and said to Him, “Lord, ^(GW)how many times shall my brother sin against me and I still forgive him? Up to ^(GX)seven times?” ²² Jesus *said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to ^[ei](GY)seventy-seven times.

²³ “For this reason ^(GZ)the kingdom of heaven ^[ej]is like a king who wanted to ^(HA)settle accounts with his slaves. ²⁴ And when he had begun to settle them, one who owed him ^[ek]ten thousand talents was brought to him. ²⁵ But since he ^[el](HB)did not have the means to repay, his master commanded that he ^(HC)be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment be made. ²⁶ So the slave fell to the ground and ^(HD)prostrated himself before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you everything.’ ²⁷ And the master of that slave felt compassion, and he released him and ^(HE)forgave him the ^[em]debt. ²⁸ But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred ^[en]denarii; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay back what you owe!’ ²⁹ So his fellow slave fell to the ground and began to plead with him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you.’ ³⁰ But he was unwilling, ^[eo]and went and threw him in prison until he would pay back what was owed. ³¹ So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their master all that had happened. ³² Then summoning him, his master *said to him, ‘You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. ^33 (HF)Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I had mercy on you?’ ³⁴ And his master, moved with anger, handed him over to the ^[ep]torturers until he would repay all that was owed him. ^35 (HG)My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your ^[eq]heart.”

Concerning Divorce

19 ^(HH)When Jesus had finished these words, He left Galilee and ^(HI)came into the region of Judea beyond the Jordan; ² and ^[er]large crowds followed Him, and ^(HJ)He healed them there.

³ Some Pharisees came to ^[es]Jesus, testing Him and ^[et]asking, “^(HK)Is it lawful for a man to ^[eu]divorce his wife for any reason at all?” ⁴ And He answered and said, “Have you not read ^(HL)that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female, ⁵ and said, ‘^(HM)For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother and be joined to his wife, and ^(HN)the two shall become one flesh’? ⁶ So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, no person is to separate.” ⁷ They *said to Him, “^(HO)Why, then, did Moses command to give her a certificate of divorce and send her away?” ⁸ He *said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart Moses permitted you to ^[ev]divorce your wives; but from the beginning it has not been this way. ⁹ And I say to you, ^(HP)whoever ^[ew]divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman ^[ex]commits adultery^[ey].”

¹⁰ The disciples *said to Him, “If the relationship of the man with his wife is like this, it is better not to marry.” ¹¹ But He said to them, “^(HQ)Not all men can accept this statement, but ^(HR)only those to whom it has been given. ¹² For there are eunuchs who were born that way from their mother’s womb; and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by people; and there are also eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. The one who is able to accept this, let him accept it.”

Jesus Blesses Little Children

^13 (HS)Then some children were brought to Him so that He would lay His hands on them and pray; and the disciples rebuked them. ¹⁴ But Jesus said, “^[ez](HT)Leave the children alone, and do not ^[fa]forbid them to come to Me; for ^(HU)the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” ¹⁵ After laying His hands on them, He departed from there.

The Rich Young Ruler

^16 (HV)And someone came to Him and said, “Teacher, what good thing shall I do so that I may obtain ^(HW)eternal life?” ¹⁷ And He said to him, “Why are you asking Me about what is good? There is only One who is good; but ^(HX)if you want to enter life, keep the commandments.” ¹⁸ Then he *said to Him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “^(HY)You shall not commit murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not give false testimony; ^19 (HZ)Honor your father and mother; and ^(IA)You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” ²⁰ The young man *said to Him, “All these I have kept; what am I still lacking?” ²¹ Jesus said to him, “If you want to be ^[fb]complete, go and ^(IB)sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have ^(IC)treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” ²² But when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieving; for he was one who owned much property.

²³ And Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I say to you, ^(ID)it will be hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven. ²⁴ And again I say to you, ^(IE)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.” ²⁵ When the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, “Then who can be saved?” ²⁶ And looking at them, Jesus said to them, “^(IF)With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

The Disciples’ Reward

²⁷ Then Peter responded and said to Him, “Behold, we have left everything and followed You; what then will there be for us?” ²⁸ And Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the ^[fc]regeneration when ^(IG)the Son of Man will sit on ^[fd]His glorious throne, ^(IH)you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. ²⁹ And ^(II)everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother ^[fe]or children or farms on account of My name, will receive ^[ff]many times as much, and will inherit eternal life. ^30 (IJ)But many who are first will be last; and the last, first.

Laborers in the Vineyard

20 “For ^(IK)the kingdom of heaven is like ^[fg]a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his ^(IL)vineyard. ² When he had agreed with the laborers for a ^[fh]denarius for the day, he sent them into his vineyard. ³ And he went out about the ^[fi]third hour and saw others standing idle in the marketplace; ⁴ and to those he said, ‘You go into the vineyard also, and whatever is right, I will give you.’ And so they went. ⁵ Again he went out about the ^[fj]sixth and the ninth hour, and did ^[fk]the same thing. ⁶ And about the ^[fl]eleventh hour he went out and found others standing around; and he *said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here idle all day long?’ ⁷ They *said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’ He *said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’

⁸ “Now when ^(IM)evening came, the ^[fm]owner of the vineyard *said to his ^(IN)foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, starting with the last group to the first.’ ⁹ When those hired about the eleventh hour came, each one received a ^[fn]denarius. ¹⁰ And so when those hired first came, they thought that they would receive more; ^[fo]but each of them also received a denarius. ¹¹ When they received it, they grumbled at the landowner, ¹² saying, ‘These who were hired last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day’s work and the ^(IO)scorching heat.’ ¹³ But he answered and said to one of them, ‘^(IP)Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius? ¹⁴ Take what is yours and go; but I want to give to this last person the same as to you. ¹⁵ Is it not lawful for me to do what I want with what is my own? Or is your ^(IQ)eye ^[fp]envious because I am ^[fq]generous?’ ¹⁶ So ^(IR)the last shall be first, and the first, last.”

Death, Resurrection Foretold

^17 (IS)As Jesus was about to go up to Jerusalem, He took the twelve disciples aside by themselves, and on the road He said to them, ¹⁸ “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man ^(IT)will be ^[fr]handed over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn Him to death, ¹⁹ and they ^(IU)will hand Him over to the Gentiles to mock and flog and crucify, and on ^(IV)the third day He will be raised up.”

Request for Preferred Treatment

^20 (IW)Then the mother of ^(IX)the ^[fs]sons of Zebedee came to ^[ft]Jesus with her sons, ^(IY)bowing down and making a request of Him. ²¹ And He said to her, “What do you desire?” She *said to Him, “Say that in Your kingdom these two sons of mine ^(IZ)shall sit, one at Your right, and one at Your left.” ²² But Jesus replied, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able ^(JA)to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They *said to Him, “We are able.” ²³ He *said to them, “^(JB)My cup you shall drink; but to sit at My right and at My left is not Mine to give, ^(JC)but it is for those for whom it has been ^(JD)prepared by My Father.”

²⁴ And after hearing this, the other ten disciples became indignant with the two brothers. ^25 (JE)But Jesus called them to Himself and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles domineer over them, and ^[fu]those in high position exercise authority over them. ²⁶ It ^[fv]is not this way among you, ^(JF)but whoever wants to become ^[fw]prominent among you shall be your servant, ²⁷ and whoever desires to be first among you shall be your slave; ²⁸ just as ^(JG)the Son of Man ^(JH)did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His ^[fx]life as a ransom for many.”

Sight for Those Who Are Blind

^29 (JI)As they were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed Him. ³⁰ And two people who were blind, sitting by the road, hearing that Jesus was passing by, cried out, “Lord, ^(JJ)have mercy on us, ^(JK)Son of David!” ³¹ But the crowd sternly warned them to be quiet; yet they cried out all the more, “Lord, ^(JL)Son of David, have mercy on us!” ³² And Jesus stopped and called them, and said, “What do you want Me to do for you?” ³³ They *said to Him, “Lord, we want our eyes to be opened.” ³⁴ Moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes; and immediately they regained their sight and followed Him.

The Triumphal Entry

21 ^(JM)When they had approached Jerusalem and had come to Bethphage, at ^(JN)the Mount of Olives, Jesus then sent two disciples, ² saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied there and a colt with it. Untie them and bring them to Me. ³ And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them on immediately.” ⁴ Now ^(JO)this ^[fy]took place so that what was spoken through ^[fz]the prophet would be fulfilled:

⁶ The disciples went and did just as Jesus had instructed them, ⁷ and brought the donkey and the colt, and laid their cloaks on them; and He sat on ^[ga]the cloaks. ⁸ Most of the crowd ^(JQ)spread their cloaks on the road, and others were cutting branches from the trees and spreading them on the road. ⁹ Now the crowds going ahead of Him, and those who followed, were shouting,

¹⁰ When He had entered Jerusalem, all the city was stirred, saying, “Who is this?” ¹¹ And the crowds were saying, “This is ^(JU)Jesus the prophet, from ^(JV)Nazareth in Galilee.”

Cleansing the Temple

^12 (JW)And Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all those who were selling and buying on the temple grounds, and He overturned the tables of the ^(JX)money changers and the seats of those who were selling ^(JY)doves. ¹³ And He *said to them, “It is written: ‘^(JZ)My house will be called a house of prayer’; but you are making it a ^(KA)den of robbers.”

¹⁴ And those who were blind and those who limped came to Him in the temple area, and ^(KB)He healed them. ¹⁵ But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that He had done, and the children who were shouting in the temple area, “^[gd]Hosanna to the ^(KC)Son of David,” they became indignant, ¹⁶ and they said to Him, “Do You hear what these children are saying?” And Jesus *said to them, “Yes. Have you never read, ‘^(KD)From the mouths of infants and nursing babies You have prepared praise for Yourself’?” ¹⁷ And He left them and went out of the city to ^(KE)Bethany, and spent the night there.

The Barren Fig Tree

^18 (KF)Now in the early morning, when He was returning to the city, He became hungry. ¹⁹ And seeing a lone ^(KG)fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it except leaves alone; and He *said to it, “No longer shall there ever be any fruit from you.” And at once the fig tree withered.

²⁰ Seeing this, the disciples were amazed and ^[ge]asked, “How did the fig tree wither all at once?” ²¹ And Jesus answered and said to them, “Truly I say to you, ^(KH)if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ it will happen. ²² And ^(KI)whatever you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive it all.”

Authority Challenged

^23 (KJ)When He entered the temple area, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to Him ^(KK)while He was teaching, and said, “By what authority are You doing these things, and who gave You this authority?” ²⁴ But Jesus responded and said to them, “I will also ask you one ^[gf]question, which, if you tell Me, I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. ²⁵ The baptism of John was from what source: from heaven or from men?” And they began considering the implications among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ ²⁶ But if we say, ‘From men,’ we fear the ^[gg]people; for they all regard John as ^(KL)a prophet.” ²⁷ And answering Jesus, they said, “We do not know.” He also said to them, “Neither am I telling you by what authority I do these things.

Parable of Two Sons

²⁸ “But what do you think? A man had two ^[gh]sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘^[gi]Son, go work today in the ^(KM)vineyard.’ ²⁹ But he replied, ‘I do not want to.’ Yet afterward he regretted it and went. ³⁰ And the man came to his second son and said the same thing; and he replied, ‘I will, sir’; and yet he did not go. ³¹ Which of the two did the will of his father?” They *said, “The first.” Jesus *said to them, “Truly I say to you that ^(KN)the tax collectors and prostitutes ^[gj]will get into the kingdom of God before you. ³² For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but ^(KO)the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not even ^[gk]have second thoughts afterward so as to believe him.

Parable of the Landowner

³³ “Listen to another parable. ^(KP)There was a ^[gl]landowner who ^(KQ)planted a ^(KR)vineyard and put a ^[gm]fence around it, and dug a wine press in it, and built a tower, and he leased it to ^[gn]vine-growers and ^(KS)went on a journey. ³⁴ And when the ^[go]harvest time approached, he ^(KT)sent his slaves to the vine-growers to receive his fruit. ³⁵ And the vine-growers took his slaves and beat one, killed another, and stoned another. ³⁶ Again, he ^(KU)sent other slaves, more than the first; and they did the same things to them. ³⁷ But afterward he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ ³⁸ But when the vine-growers saw the son, they said among themselves, ‘This is the heir; come, let’s kill him and take possession of his inheritance!’ ³⁹ And they took him and threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. ⁴⁰ Therefore, when the ^[gp]owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vine-growers?” ⁴¹ They *said to Him, “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end and ^(KV)lease the vineyard to other vine-growers, who will pay him the fruit in the proper seasons.”

⁴² Jesus *said to them, “Did you never read in the Scriptures,

⁴³ Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a ^[gr]people producing its fruit. ⁴⁴ And ^(KX)the one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and on whomever it falls, it will crush him.”

⁴⁵ When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard His parables, they understood that He was speaking about them. ⁴⁶ And although they sought to arrest Him, they ^(KY)feared the crowds, since they considered Him to be a ^(KZ)prophet.

Parable of the Marriage Feast

22 Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying, ² “^(LA)The kingdom of heaven ^[gs]is like ^[gt]a king who ^[gu]held a ^(LB)wedding feast for his son. ³ And he ^(LC)sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding feast, and they were unwilling to come. ⁴ Again he ^(LD)sent other slaves, saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited, “Behold, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and my fattened cattle are all butchered and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast!”’ ⁵ But they paid no attention and went their separate ways, one to his own ^[gv]farm, another to his business, ⁶ and the rest seized his slaves and treated them abusively, and then killed them. ⁷ Now the king was angry, and he sent his armies and destroyed those murderers and set their city on fire. ⁸ Then he *said to his slaves, ‘The wedding feast is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. ⁹ So go to ^(LE)the main roads, and invite whomever you find there to the wedding feast.’ ¹⁰ Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good; and the wedding hall was filled with ^[gw]dinner guests.

¹¹ “But when the king came in to look over the ^[gx]dinner guests, he saw ^(LF)a man there who was not dressed in wedding clothes, ¹² and he *said to him, ‘^(LG)Friend, how did you get in here without wedding clothes?’ And the man was speechless. ¹³ Then the king said to the servants, ‘Tie his hands and feet, and throw him into ^(LH)the outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth in that place.’ ¹⁴ For many are ^[gy](LI)called, but few are ^(LJ)chosen.”

Poll-tax to Caesar

^15 (LK)Then the Pharisees went and ^[gz]plotted together how they might trap Him ^[ha]in what He said. ¹⁶ And they *sent their disciples to Him, along with the ^(LL)Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that You are truthful and teach the way of God in truth, and ^[hb]do not care what anyone thinks; for You ^[hc]are not partial to anyone. ¹⁷ Tell us then, what do You think? Is it ^[hd]permissible to pay a ^[he](LM)poll-tax to ^(LN)Caesar, or not?” ¹⁸ But Jesus perceived their ^[hf]malice, and said, “Why are you testing Me, you hypocrites? ¹⁹ Show Me the ^(LO)coin used for the poll-tax.” And they brought Him a ^[hg]denarius. ²⁰ And He *said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?” ²¹ They *said to Him, “Caesar’s.” Then He *said to them, “^(LP)Then pay to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s; and to God the things that are God’s.” ²² And hearing this, they were amazed; and ^(LQ)they left Him and went away.

Jesus Answers the Sadducees

^23 (LR)On that day some ^(LS)Sadducees (who say ^(LT)there is no resurrection) came to ^[hh]Jesus and questioned Him, ²⁴ saying, “Teacher, Moses said, ‘^(LU)If a man dies having no children, his brother as next of kin shall marry his wife, and raise up ^[hi]children for his brother.’ ²⁵ Now there were seven brothers among us; and the first married and died, and having no ^[hj]children, he left his wife to his brother. ²⁶ It was the same also with the second brother, and the third, down to the seventh. ²⁷ Last of all, the woman died. ²⁸ In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife of the seven will she be? For they all had her in marriage.”

²⁹ But Jesus answered and said to them, “You are mistaken, ^(LV)since you do not ^[hk]understand the Scriptures nor the power of God. ³⁰ For in the resurrection they neither ^(LW)marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. ³¹ But regarding the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God: ³² ‘^(LX)I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead, but of the living.” ³³ When the crowds heard this, ^(LY)they were astonished at His teaching.

^34 (LZ)But when the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced ^(MA)the Sadducees, they gathered together. ³⁵ And one of them, ^[hl](MB)a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him: ³⁶ “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” ³⁷ And He said to him, “‘^(MC)You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ ³⁸ This is the great and ^[hm]foremost commandment. ³⁹ The second is like it, ‘^(MD)You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ ^40 (ME)Upon these two commandments ^[hn]hang the whole Law and the Prophets.”

^41 (MF)Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question: ⁴² “What do you think about the ^[ho]Christ? Whose son is He?” They *said to Him, “^(MG)The son of David.” ⁴³ He *said to them, “Then ^[hp]how does David ^[hq](MH)in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord,’ saying,

⁴⁵ Therefore, if David calls Him ‘Lord,’ ^[hr]how is He his son?” ^46 (MJ)No one was able to offer Him a word in answer, nor did anyone dare from that day on to ask Him any more questions.

Hypocrisy Exposed

23 ^(MK)Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, ² saying: “^(ML)The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses. ³ Therefore, whatever they tell you, do and ^[hs]comply with it all, but do not do ^[ht]as they do; for they say things and do not do them. ⁴ And ^(MM)they tie up heavy burdens and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as their finger. ⁵ And they do all their deeds ^(MN)to be noticed by other people; for they ^(MO)broaden their ^[hu]phylacteries and lengthen ^(MP)the tassels of their garments. ⁶ And they ^(MQ)love the place of honor at banquets, and the seats of honor in the synagogues, ⁷ and personal greetings in the marketplaces, and being called ^[hv](MR)Rabbi by the people. ⁸ But as for you, ^(MS)do not be called ^[hw](MT)Rabbi; for only One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers and sisters. ⁹ And do not call anyone on earth your father; for only ^(MU)One is your Father, He who is in heaven. ¹⁰ And do not be called ^[hx]leaders; for only One is your Leader, that is, Christ. ^11 (MV)But the greatest of you shall be your servant. ^12 (MW)Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled, and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.

Eight Woes

¹³ “^(MX)But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, ^(MY)because you shut the kingdom of heaven in front of people; for you do not enter it yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.^[hy]

¹⁵ “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one ^[hz](MZ)proselyte; and when he becomes one, you ^[ia]make him twice as much a son of ^[ib](NA)hell as yourselves.

¹⁶ “Woe to you, ^(NB)blind guides, who say, ‘^(NC)Whoever swears by the ^[ic]temple, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the ^[id]temple is obligated.’ ¹⁷ You fools and blind men! ^(ND)Which is ^[ie]more important, the gold or the ^[if]temple that sanctified the gold? ¹⁸ And you say, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the ^[ig]offering that is on it is obligated.’ ¹⁹ You blind men, ^(NE)which is ^[ih]more important, the ^[ii]offering or the altar that sanctifies the ^[ij]offering? ²⁰ Therefore, the one who swears by the altar, swears both by ^[ik]the altar and by everything on it. ²¹ And the one who swears by the ^[il]temple, swears both by ^[im]the temple and by Him who ^(NF)dwells in it. ²² And the one who swears by ^[in]heaven, ^(NG)swears both by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it.

²³ “^(NH)Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and ^[io]cumin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the Law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. ²⁴ You ^(NI)blind guides, who ^[ip]strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!

²⁵ “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ^(NJ)you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full ^[iq]of robbery and self-indulgence. ²⁶ You blind Pharisee, first ^(NK)clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the ^[ir]outside of it may also become clean.

²⁷ “^(NL)Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. ²⁸ So you too, outwardly appear righteous to people, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

²⁹ “^(NM)Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs for the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous, ³⁰ and you say, ‘If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ ³¹ So you testify against yourselves, that you ^(NN)are ^[is]sons of those who murdered the prophets. ^32 [it]Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers. ³³ You snakes, ^(NO)you ^[iu]offspring of vipers, how ^[iv]will you escape the ^[iw]sentence of ^[ix](NP)hell?

³⁴ “^(NQ)Therefore, behold, ^(NR)I am sending you prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will ^(NS)flog in your synagogues, and ^(NT)persecute from city to city, ³⁵ so that upon you will fall the guilt of all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous ^(NU)Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the ^(NV)son of Berechiah, whom ^(NW)you murdered between the ^[iy]temple and the altar. ³⁶ Truly I say to you, all these things will come upon ^(NX)this generation.

Grieving over Jerusalem

³⁷ “^(NY)Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who ^(NZ)kills the prophets and stones those who have been sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, ^(OA)the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling. ³⁸ Behold, ^(OB)your house is being left to you desolate! ³⁹ For I say to you, from now on you will not see Me until you say, ‘^(OC)Blessed is the One who comes in the name of the Lord!’”

Signs of Christ’s Return

24 ^(OD)Jesus ^(OE)left the temple area and was going on His way ^[iz]when His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him. ² But He responded and said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, ^(OF)not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down.”

³ And as He was sitting on ^(OG)the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of ^(OH)Your coming, and of the ^[ja]end of the age?”

⁴ And Jesus answered and said to them, “^(OI)See to it that no one ^[jb]misleads you. ⁵ For ^(OJ)many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the ^[jc]Christ,’ and they will ^[jd]mislead many people. ⁶ And you will be hearing of ^(OK)wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. ⁷ For ^(OL)nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be ^(OM)famines and earthquakes in various places. ^8 (ON)But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pains.

⁹ “^(OO)Then they will hand you over to tribulation and kill you, and ^(OP)you will be hated by all nations because of My name. ¹⁰ And at that time many will ^[je](OQ)fall away, and they will ^[jf]betray one another and hate one another. ¹¹ And many ^(OR)false prophets will rise up and ^[jg]mislead many people. ¹² And because lawlessness is increased, ^[jh]most people’s love will become cold. ^13 (OS)But the one who endures to the end is the one who will be saved. ¹⁴ This ^(OT)gospel of the kingdom ^(OU)shall be preached in the whole ^[ji](OV)world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.

Perilous Times

¹⁵ “Therefore when you see the ^(OW)abomination of desolation which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in ^(OX)the holy place—^[jj](OY)let the ^[jk]reader understand— ¹⁶ then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains. ^17 [jl]Whoever is on ^(OZ)the ^[jm]housetop must not go down to get things out of his house. ¹⁸ And ^[jn]whoever is in the field must not turn back to get his cloak. ¹⁹ But ^(PA)woe to those women who are pregnant, and to those who are nursing babies in those days! ²⁰ Moreover, pray that ^[jo]when you flee, it will not be in the winter, or on a Sabbath. ²¹ For then there will be a ^(PB)great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will again. ²² And if those days had not been cut short, no ^[jp]life would have been saved; but for ^(PC)the sake of the ^[jq]elect those days will be cut short. ^23 (PD)Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the ^[jr]Christ,’ or ‘He is over here,’ do not believe him. ²⁴ For false christs and ^(PE)false prophets will arise and will provide great ^[js](PF)signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even ^(PG)the ^[jt]elect. ²⁵ Behold, I have told you in advance. ²⁶ So if they say to you, ‘Behold, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe them. ^27 (PH)For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will the ^(PI)coming of the ^(PJ)Son of Man ^[ju]be. ^28 (PK)Wherever the corpse is, there the ^[jv]vultures will gather.

The Glorious Return

²⁹ “But immediately after the ^(PL)tribulation of those days ^(PM)the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and ^(PN)the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. ³⁰ And then ^(PO)the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see ^(PP)the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory. ³¹ And ^(PQ)He will send forth His angels with ^(PR)a great trumpet blast, and they will gather together His ^[jw](PS)elect from ^(PT)the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.

Parable of the Fig Tree

³² “Now learn the parable from the fig tree: as soon as its branch has become tender and sprouts its leaves, you know that summer is near; ³³ so you too, when you see all these things, ^[jx]recognize that ^[jy]He is near, right ^(PU)at the ^[jz]door. ³⁴ Truly I say to you, ^(PV)this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. ^35 (PW)Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.

³⁶ “But ^(PX)about that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. ³⁷ For ^[ka]the ^(PY)coming of the Son of Man will be ^(PZ)just like the days of Noah. ³⁸ For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, ^(QA)marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that ^(QB)Noah entered the ark, ³⁹ and they did not ^[kb]understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the ^(QC)coming of the Son of Man be. ⁴⁰ At that time there will be two men in the field; one ^[kc]will be taken and one ^[kd]will be left. ^41 (QD)Two women will be grinding at the ^[ke](QE)mill; one ^[kf]will be taken and one ^[kg]will be left.

Be Ready for His Coming

⁴² “Therefore ^(QF)be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. ⁴³ But ^[kh]be sure of this, that ^(QG)if the head of the house had known ^(QH)at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. ⁴⁴ For this reason ^(QI)you must be ready as well; for ^(QJ)the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.

⁴⁵ “^(QK)Who then is the ^(QL)faithful and ^(QM)sensible slave whom his ^[ki]master ^(QN)put in charge of his household slaves, to give them their food at the proper time? ⁴⁶ Blessed is that slave whom his ^[kj]master finds so doing when he comes. ⁴⁷ Truly I say to you that ^(QO)he will put him in charge of all his possessions. ⁴⁸ But if that evil slave says in his heart, ‘My ^[kk]master ^[kl]is not coming for a long time,’ ⁴⁹ and he begins to beat his fellow slaves, and he eats and drinks with those habitually drunk; ⁵⁰ then the ^[km]master of that slave will come on a day that he does not expect, and at an hour that he does not know, ⁵¹ and he will ^[kn]cut him in two and assign ^[ko]him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be ^(QP)weeping and gnashing of teeth.