The Parable of the Persistent Widow

18 Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.^{(A) 2} He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. ³ And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice^(B) against my adversary.’

⁴ “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, ⁵ yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’”^(C)

⁶ And the Lord^(D) said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. ⁷ And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out^(E) to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? ⁸ I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man^(F) comes,^(G) will he find faith on the earth?”

The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector

⁹ To some who were confident of their own righteousness^(H) and looked down on everyone else,^(I) Jesus told this parable: ¹⁰ “Two men went up to the temple to pray,^(J) one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. ¹¹ The Pharisee stood by himself^(K) and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. ¹² I fast^(L) twice a week and give a tenth^(M) of all I get.’

¹³ “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast^(N) and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’^(O)

¹⁴ “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”^(P)

The Little Children and Jesus^(Q)

¹⁵ People were also bringing babies to Jesus for him to place his hands on them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. ¹⁶ But Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. ¹⁷ Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child^(R) will never enter it.”

The Rich and the Kingdom of God^(S)

¹⁸ A certain ruler asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”^(T)

¹⁹ “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. ²⁰ You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’^[a]”^(U)

²¹ “All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said.

²² When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor,^(V) and you will have treasure in heaven.^(W) Then come, follow me.”

²³ When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy. ²⁴ Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!^{(X) 25} Indeed, 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.”

²⁶ Those who heard this asked, “Who then can be saved?”

²⁷ Jesus replied, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”^(Y)

²⁸ Peter said to him, “We have left all we had to follow you!”^(Z)

²⁹ “Truly I tell you,” Jesus said to them, “no one who has left home or wife or brothers or sisters or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God ³⁰ will fail to receive many times as much in this age, and in the age to come^(AA) eternal life.”^(AB)

Jesus Predicts His Death a Third Time^(AC)

³¹ Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, “We are going up to Jerusalem,^(AD) and everything that is written by the prophets^(AE) about the Son of Man^(AF) will be fulfilled. ³² He will be delivered over to the Gentiles.^(AG) They will mock him, insult him and spit on him; ³³ they will flog him^(AH) and kill him.^(AI) On the third day^(AJ) he will rise again.”^(AK)

³⁴ The disciples did not understand any of this. Its meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what he was talking about.^(AL)

A Blind Beggar Receives His Sight^(AM)

³⁵ As Jesus approached Jericho,^(AN) a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. ³⁶ When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. ³⁷ They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.”^(AO)

³⁸ He called out, “Jesus, Son of David,^(AP) have mercy^(AQ) on me!”

³⁹ Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”^(AR)

⁴⁰ Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked him, ⁴¹ “What do you want me to do for you?”

“Lord, I want to see,” he replied.

⁴² Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.”^{(AS) 43} Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God.^(AT)

Zacchaeus the Tax Collector

19 Jesus entered Jericho^(AU) and was passing through. ² A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. ³ He wanted to see who Jesus was, but because he was short he could not see over the crowd. ⁴ So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig^(AV) tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.^(AW)

⁵ When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” ⁶ So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.

⁷ All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.”^(AX)

⁸ But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord,^(AY) “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything,^(AZ) I will pay back four times the amount.”^(BA)

⁹ Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham.^{(BB) 10} For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”^(BC)

The Parable of the Ten Minas^(BD)

¹¹ While they were listening to this, he went on to tell them a parable, because he was near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God^(BE) was going to appear at once.^{(BF) 12} He said: “A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return. ¹³ So he called ten of his servants^(BG) and gave them ten minas.^[b] ‘Put this money to work,’ he said, ‘until I come back.’

¹⁴ “But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, ‘We don’t want this man to be our king.’

¹⁵ “He was made king, however, and returned home. Then he sent for the servants to whom he had given the money, in order to find out what they had gained with it.

¹⁶ “The first one came and said, ‘Sir, your mina has earned ten more.’

¹⁷ “‘Well done, my good servant!’^(BH) his master replied. ‘Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.’^(BI)

¹⁸ “The second came and said, ‘Sir, your mina has earned five more.’

¹⁹ “His master answered, ‘You take charge of five cities.’

²⁰ “Then another servant came and said, ‘Sir, here is your mina; I have kept it laid away in a piece of cloth. ²¹ I was afraid of you, because you are a hard man. You take out what you did not put in and reap what you did not sow.’^(BJ)

²² “His master replied, ‘I will judge you by your own words,^(BK) you wicked servant! You knew, did you, that I am a hard man, taking out what I did not put in, and reaping what I did not sow?^{(BL) 23} Why then didn’t you put my money on deposit, so that when I came back, I could have collected it with interest?’

²⁴ “Then he said to those standing by, ‘Take his mina away from him and give it to the one who has ten minas.’

²⁵ “‘Sir,’ they said, ‘he already has ten!’

²⁶ “He replied, ‘I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but as for the one who has nothing, even what they have will be taken away.^{(BM) 27} But those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them—bring them here and kill them in front of me.’”

Jesus Comes to Jerusalem as King^(BN)(BO)

²⁸ After Jesus had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.^{(BP) 29} As he approached Bethphage and Bethany^(BQ) at the hill called the Mount of Olives,^(BR) he sent two of his disciples, saying to them, ³⁰ “Go to the village ahead of you, and as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. ³¹ If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it.’”

³² Those who were sent ahead went and found it just as he had told them.^{(BS) 33} As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, “Why are you untying the colt?”

³⁴ They replied, “The Lord needs it.”

³⁵ They brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. ³⁶ As he went along, people spread their cloaks^(BT) on the road.

³⁷ When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives,^(BU) the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen:

³⁹ Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!”^(BX)

⁴⁰ “I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”^(BY)

⁴¹ As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it^{(BZ) 42} and said, “If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes. ⁴³ The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side.^{(CA) 44} They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls.^(CB) They will not leave one stone on another,^(CC) because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming^(CD) to you.”

Jesus at the Temple^(CE)

⁴⁵ When Jesus entered the temple courts, he began to drive out those who were selling. ⁴⁶ “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be a house of prayer’^[d];^(CF) but you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’^[e]”^(CG)

⁴⁷ Every day he was teaching at the temple.^(CH) But the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the leaders among the people were trying to kill him.^{(CI) 48} Yet they could not find any way to do it, because all the people hung on his words.

The Authority of Jesus Questioned^(CJ)

20 One day as Jesus was teaching the people in the temple courts^(CK) and proclaiming the good news,^(CL) the chief priests and the teachers of the law, together with the elders, came up to him. ² “Tell us by what authority you are doing these things,” they said. “Who gave you this authority?”^(CM)

³ He replied, “I will also ask you a question. Tell me: ⁴ John’s baptism^(CN)—was it from heaven, or of human origin?”

⁵ They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Why didn’t you believe him?’ ⁶ But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ all the people^(CO) will stone us, because they are persuaded that John was a prophet.”^(CP)

⁷ So they answered, “We don’t know where it was from.”

⁸ Jesus said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”

The Parable of the Tenants^(CQ)

⁹ He went on to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard,^(CR) rented it to some farmers and went away for a long time.^{(CS) 10} At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants so they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. ¹¹ He sent another servant, but that one also they beat and treated shamefully and sent away empty-handed. ¹² He sent still a third, and they wounded him and threw him out.

¹³ “Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my son, whom I love;^(CT) perhaps they will respect him.’

¹⁴ “But when the tenants saw him, they talked the matter over. ‘This is the heir,’ they said. ‘Let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ ¹⁵ So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.

“What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? ¹⁶ He will come and kill those tenants^(CU) and give the vineyard to others.”

When the people heard this, they said, “God forbid!”

¹⁷ Jesus looked directly at them and asked, “Then what is the meaning of that which is written:

¹⁸ Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.”^(CW)

¹⁹ The teachers of the law and the chief priests looked for a way to arrest him^(CX) immediately, because they knew he had spoken this parable against them. But they were afraid of the people.^(CY)

Paying Taxes to Caesar^(CZ)

²⁰ Keeping a close watch on him, they sent spies, who pretended to be sincere. They hoped to catch Jesus in something he said,^(DA) so that they might hand him over to the power and authority of the governor.^{(DB) 21} So the spies questioned him: “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach what is right, and that you do not show partiality but teach the way of God in accordance with the truth.^{(DC) 22} Is it right for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”

²³ He saw through their duplicity and said to them, ²⁴ “Show me a denarius. Whose image and inscription are on it?”

“Caesar’s,” they replied.

²⁵ He said to them, “Then give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s,^(DD) and to God what is God’s.”

²⁶ They were unable to trap him in what he had said there in public. And astonished by his answer, they became silent.

The Resurrection and Marriage^(DE)

²⁷ Some of the Sadducees,^(DF) who say there is no resurrection,^(DG) came to Jesus with a question. ²⁸ “Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man must marry the widow and raise up offspring for his brother.^{(DH) 29} Now there were seven brothers. The first one married a woman and died childless. ³⁰ The second ³¹ and then the third married her, and in the same way the seven died, leaving no children. ³² Finally, the woman died too. ³³ Now then, at the resurrection whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?”

³⁴ Jesus replied, “The people of this age marry and are given in marriage. ³⁵ But those who are considered worthy of taking part in the age to come^(DI) and in the resurrection from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage, ³⁶ and they can no longer die; for they are like the angels. They are God’s children,^(DJ) since they are children of the resurrection. ³⁷ But in the account of the burning bush, even Moses showed that the dead rise, for he calls the Lord ‘the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’^{[g](DK) 38} He is not the God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive.”

³⁹ Some of the teachers of the law responded, “Well said, teacher!” ⁴⁰ And no one dared to ask him any more questions.^(DL)

Whose Son Is the Messiah?^(DM)

⁴¹ Then Jesus said to them, “Why is it said that the Messiah is the son of David?^{(DN) 42} David himself declares in the Book of Psalms:

⁴⁴ David calls him ‘Lord.’ How then can he be his son?”

Warning Against the Teachers of the Law

⁴⁵ While all the people were listening, Jesus said to his disciples, ⁴⁶ “Beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets.^{(DP) 47} They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely.”

The Widow’s Offering^(DQ)

21 As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury.^{(DR) 2} He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. ³ “Truly I tell you,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others. ⁴ All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”^(DS)

The Destruction of the Temple and Signs of the End Times^(DT)(DU)

⁵ Some of his disciples were remarking about how the temple was adorned with beautiful stones and with gifts dedicated to God. But Jesus said, ⁶ “As for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another;^(DV) every one of them will be thrown down.”

⁷ “Teacher,” they asked, “when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to take place?”

⁸ He replied: “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them.^{(DW) 9} When you hear of wars and uprisings, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.”

¹⁰ Then he said to them: “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.^{(DX) 11} There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.^(DY)

¹² “But before all this, they will seize you and persecute you. They will hand you over to synagogues and put you in prison, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name. ¹³ And so you will bear testimony to me.^{(DZ) 14} But make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves.^{(EA) 15} For I will give you^(EB) words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict. ¹⁶ You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends,^(EC) and they will put some of you to death. ¹⁷ Everyone will hate you because of me.^{(ED) 18} But not a hair of your head will perish.^{(EE) 19} Stand firm, and you will win life.^(EF)

²⁰ “When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies,^(EG) you will know that its desolation is near. ²¹ Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city.^{(EH) 22} For this is the time of punishment^(EI) in fulfillment^(EJ) of all that has been written. ²³ How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people. ²⁴ They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled^(EK) on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

²⁵ “There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea.^{(EL) 26} People will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken.^{(EM) 27} At that time they will see the Son of Man^(EN) coming in a cloud^(EO) with power and great glory. ²⁸ When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”^(EP)

²⁹ He told them this parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees. ³⁰ When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near. ³¹ Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that the kingdom of God^(EQ) is near.

³² “Truly I tell you, this generation^(ER) will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. ³³ Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.^(ES)

³⁴ “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life,^(ET) and that day will close on you suddenly^(EU) like a trap. ³⁵ For it will come on all those who live on the face of the whole earth. ³⁶ Be always on the watch, and pray^(EV) that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.”

³⁷ Each day Jesus was teaching at the temple,^(EW) and each evening he went out^(EX) to spend the night on the hill called the Mount of Olives,^{(EY) 38} and all the people came early in the morning to hear him at the temple.^(EZ)