Matthew 20:20-28

New Century Version

A Mother Asks Jesus a Favor

²⁰ Then the wife of Zebedee came to Jesus with her sons. She bowed before him and asked him to do something for her.

²¹ Jesus asked, “What do you want?”

She said, “Promise that one of my sons will sit at your right side and the other will sit at your left side in your kingdom.”

²² But Jesus said, “You don’t understand what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I am about to drink?”^[a]

The sons answered, “Yes, we can.”

²³ Jesus said to them, “You will drink from my cup. But I cannot choose who will sit at my right or my left; those places belong to those for whom my Father has prepared them.”

²⁴ When the other ten followers heard this, they were angry with the two brothers.

²⁵ Jesus called all the followers together and said, “You know that the rulers of the non-Jewish people love to show their power over the people. And their important leaders love to use all their authority. ²⁶ But it should not be that way among you. Whoever wants to become great among you must serve the rest of you like a servant. ²⁷ Whoever wants to become first among you must serve the rest of you like a slave. ²⁸ In the same way, the Son of Man did not come to be served. He came to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many people.”