Jesus Curses the Fig Tree

^12 (A)On the following day, when they came from Bethany, ^(B)he was hungry. ^13 (C)And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for ^(D)it was not the season for figs. ¹⁴ And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it.

Jesus Cleanses the Temple

^15 (E)And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of ^(F)the money-changers and the seats of those who sold ^(G)pigeons. ¹⁶ And he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple. ¹⁷ And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ^(H)‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But ^(I)you have made it a den of robbers.” ¹⁸ And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and ^(J)were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because ^(K)all the crowd was astonished at his teaching. ^19 (L)And when evening came they^[a] went out of the city.

The Lesson from the Withered Fig Tree

^20 (M)As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. ²¹ And Peter remembered and said to him, ^(N)“Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” ²² And Jesus answered them, “Have ^(O)faith in God. ^23 (P)Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ^(Q)‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not ^(R)doubt in his heart, but ^(S)believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. ²⁴ Therefore I tell you, ^(T)whatever you ask in prayer, ^(U)believe that you ^(V)have received^[b] it, and it will be yours. ²⁵ And whenever ^(W)you stand praying, ^(X)forgive, ^(Y)if you have anything against anyone, so that ^(Z)your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”^[c]

The Authority of Jesus Challenged

^27 (AA)And they came again to Jerusalem. And as he was walking in the temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him, ²⁸ and they said to him, ^(AB)“By what authority are you doing these things, or who gave you this authority to do them?” ²⁹ Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. ³⁰ Was the baptism of John ^(AC)from heaven or from man? Answer me.” ³¹ And they discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ^(AD)‘Why then did you not believe him?’ ³² But shall we say, ‘From man’?”—^(AE)they were afraid of the people, for they all held that John really was ^(AF)a prophet. ³³ So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

The Parable of the Tenants

12 ^(AG)And he began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted ^(AH)a vineyard ^(AI)and put a fence around it and dug a pit for the winepress and built a tower, and ^(AJ)leased it to tenants and ^(AK)went into another country. ² When the season came, he sent a servant^[d] to the tenants to get from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. ^3 (AL)And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. ^4 (AM)Again ^(AN)he sent to them another servant, and ^(AO)they struck him on the head and ^(AP)treated him shamefully. ^5 (AQ)And he sent another, and him they killed. And so with many others: some they beat, and some they killed. ⁶ He had still one other, ^(AR)a beloved son. ^(AS)Finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ ⁷ But those tenants said to one another, ^(AT)‘This is the heir. Come, ^(AU)let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ ⁸ And they took him and killed him and ^(AV)threw him out of the vineyard. ⁹ What will the owner of the vineyard do? ^(AW)He will ^(AX)come and destroy the tenants and ^(AY)give the vineyard to others. ^10 (AZ)Have you not read ^(BA)this Scripture:

¹² And ^(BC)they were seeking to arrest him ^(BD)but feared the people, for they perceived that he had told the parable against them. So they ^(BE)left him and went away.

Paying Taxes to Caesar

^13 (BF)And they sent to him some of ^(BG)the Pharisees and some of ^(BH)the Herodians, to ^(BI)trap him in his talk. ¹⁴ And they came and said to him, “Teacher, ^(BJ)we know that you are true and do not care about anyone's opinion. For ^(BK)you are not swayed by appearances,^[f] but truly teach ^(BL)the way of God. Is it lawful to pay ^(BM)taxes to ^(BN)Caesar, or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?” ¹⁵ But, knowing ^(BO)their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why ^(BP)put me to the test? Bring me ^(BQ)a denarius^[g] and let me look at it.” ¹⁶ And they brought one. And he said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said to him, “Caesar's.” ¹⁷ Jesus said to them, ^(BR)“Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.” And they marveled at him.

Jesus Cleanses the Temple

^12 (A)And Jesus entered the temple^[a] and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of ^(B)the money-changers and the seats of those who sold ^(C)pigeons. ¹³ He said to them, “It is written, ^(D)‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but ^(E)you make it a den of robbers.”

^14 (F)And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he healed them. ^15 (G)But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying out in the temple, ^(H)“Hosanna to the Son of David!” they were indignant, ¹⁶ and they said to him, “Do you hear what these are saying?” And Jesus said to them, “Yes; ^(I)have you never read,

¹⁷ And ^(L)leaving them, he ^(M)went out of the city to ^(N)Bethany and lodged there.

Jesus Curses the Fig Tree

^18 (O)In the morning, as he was returning to the city, ^(P)he became hungry. ^19 (Q)And seeing a fig tree by the wayside, he went to it and found nothing on it but only leaves. And he said to it, “May no fruit ever come from you again!” And the fig tree withered at once.

²⁰ When the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, “How did the fig tree wither at once?” ²¹ And Jesus answered them, ^(R)“Truly, I say to you, ^(S)if you have faith and ^(T)do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ^(U)‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. ²² And ^(V)whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, ^(W)if you have faith.”

The Authority of Jesus Challenged

^23 (X)And when he entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came up to him ^(Y)as he was teaching, and said, ^(Z)“By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” ²⁴ Jesus answered them, “I also will ask you one question, and if you tell me the answer, then I also will tell you by what authority I do these things. ²⁵ The baptism of John, ^(AA)from where did it come? ^(AB)From heaven or from man?” And they discussed it among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ^(AC)‘Why then did you not believe him?’ ²⁶ But if we say, ‘From man,’ ^(AD)we are afraid of the crowd, for they all hold that John was ^(AE)a prophet.” ²⁷ So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And he said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.

The Parable of the Two Sons

^28 (AF)“What do you think? A man had two sons. And he went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in ^(AG)the vineyard today.’ ²⁹ And he answered, ‘I will not,’ but afterward he ^(AH)changed his mind and went. ³⁰ And he went to the other son and said the same. And he answered, ‘I go, sir,’ but 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, ^(AI)the tax collectors and ^(AJ)the prostitutes go into ^(AK)the kingdom of God before you. ³² For John came to you ^(AL)in the way of righteousness, and ^(AM)you did not believe him, but ^(AN)the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him. And even when you saw it, you did not afterward ^(AO)change your minds and believe him.

The Parable of the Tenants

^33 (AP)“Hear another parable. There was a master of a house who planted ^(AQ)a vineyard ^(AR)and put a fence around it and dug a winepress in it and built a tower and ^(AS)leased it to tenants, and ^(AT)went into another country. ³⁴ When the season for fruit drew near, he sent his servants^[b] to the tenants ^(AU)to get his fruit. ^35 (AV)And the tenants took his servants and beat one, killed another, and ^(AW)stoned another. ^36 (AX)Again he sent other servants, more than the first. And they did the same to them. ³⁷ Finally he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ ³⁸ But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, ^(AY)‘This is the heir. Come, ^(AZ)let us kill him and have his inheritance.’ ³⁹ And they took him and ^(BA)threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. ^40 (BB)When therefore the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?” ⁴¹ They said to him, ^(BC)“He will put those wretches to a miserable death and ^(BD)let out the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the fruits in their seasons.”

⁴² Jesus said to them, ^(BE)“Have you never read in the Scriptures:

⁴³ Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God ^(BG)will be taken away from you and given to a people ^(BH)producing its fruits. ⁴⁴ And ^(BI)the one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and ^(BJ)when it falls on anyone, it will crush him.”^[d]

⁴⁵ When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they perceived that he was speaking about them. ⁴⁶ And ^(BK)although they were seeking to arrest him, ^(BL)they feared the crowds, because they held him to be ^(BM)a prophet.

The Parable of the Wedding Feast

22 And again Jesus ^(BN)spoke to them in parables, saying, ^2 (BO)“The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave ^(BP)a wedding feast for his son, ³ and ^(BQ)sent his servants^[e] to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come. ^4 (BR)Again he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, “See, I have prepared my ^(BS)dinner, ^(BT)my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.”’ ⁵ But ^(BU)they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business, ⁶ while the rest seized his servants, ^(BV)treated them shamefully, and ^(BW)killed them. ⁷ The king was angry, and he sent his troops and ^(BX)destroyed those murderers and burned their city. ⁸ Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not ^(BY)worthy. ⁹ Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.’ ¹⁰ And those servants went out into the roads and ^(BZ)gathered all whom they found, both bad and good. So the wedding hall was filled with guests.

¹¹ “But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there ^(CA)a man who had no wedding garment. ¹² And he said to him, ^(CB)‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless. ¹³ Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot and ^(CC)cast him into the outer darkness. In that place ^(CD)there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ ¹⁴ For many are ^(CE)called, but few are ^(CF)chosen.”

Paying Taxes to Caesar

^15 (CG)Then the Pharisees went and plotted how ^(CH)to entangle him in his words. ¹⁶ And they sent ^(CI)their disciples to him, along with ^(CJ)the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, ^(CK)we know that you are true and teach ^(CL)the way of God truthfully, and you do not care about anyone's opinion, for ^(CM)you are not swayed by appearances.^{[f] 17} Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay ^(CN)taxes to ^(CO)Caesar, or not?” ¹⁸ But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why ^(CP)put me to the test, you hypocrites? ¹⁹ Show me the coin for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius.^{[g] 20} And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” ²¹ They said, “Caesar's.” Then he said to them, ^(CQ)“Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.” ²² When they heard it, they marveled. And they ^(CR)left him and went away.

Jesus Cleanses the Temple

^45 (A)And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold, ⁴⁶ saying to them, “It is written, ^(B)‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but ^(C)you have made it a den of robbers.”

^47 (D)And he was teaching daily in the temple. ^(E)The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people were seeking to destroy him, ⁴⁸ but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were hanging on his words.

The Authority of Jesus Challenged

20 ^(F)One day, ^(G)as Jesus^[a] was teaching the people in the temple and preaching the gospel, ^(H)the chief priests and the scribes with the elders came up ² and said to him, “Tell us ^(I)by what authority you do these things, or who it is that gave you this authority.” ³ He answered them, “I also will ask you a question. Now tell me, ⁴ was the baptism of John ^(J)from heaven or from man?” ⁵ And they discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ^(K)‘Why did you not believe him?’ ⁶ But if we say, ‘From man,’ all the people will stone us to death, for they are convinced that John was ^(L)a prophet.” ⁷ So they answered that they did not know where it came from. ⁸ And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

The Parable of the Wicked Tenants

^9 (M)And he began to tell the people this parable: “A man planted ^(N)a vineyard and ^(O)let it out to tenants and ^(P)went into another country for a long while. ¹⁰ When the time came, he sent a servant^[b] to the tenants, so that ^(Q)they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. ^(R)But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. ^11 (S)And ^(T)he sent another servant. But they also beat and ^(U)treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed. ^12 (V)And he sent yet a third. This one also they wounded and cast out. ¹³ Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my ^(W)beloved son; perhaps they will respect him.’ ¹⁴ But when the tenants saw him, they said to themselves, ^(X)‘This is the heir. ^(Y)Let us kill him, so that the inheritance may be ours.’ ¹⁵ And they ^(Z)threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? ^16 (AA)He will ^(AB)come and destroy those tenants and ^(AC)give the vineyard to others.” When they heard this, they said, “Surely not!” ¹⁷ But he ^(AD)looked directly at them and said, “What then is this that is written:

^18 (AF)Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and when it falls ^(AG)on anyone, it will crush him.”

Paying Taxes to Caesar

^19 (AH)The scribes and the chief priests sought to lay hands on him at that very hour, for they perceived that he had told this parable against them, but they feared the people. ^20 (AI)So they ^(AJ)watched him and sent spies, who ^(AK)pretended to be sincere, that they might ^(AL)catch him in something he said, so as to deliver him up to the authority and jurisdiction of ^(AM)the governor. ²¹ So they asked him, “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach rightly, and ^(AN)show no partiality,^[d] but truly teach ^(AO)the way of God. ²² Is it lawful for us to give ^(AP)tribute to ^(AQ)Caesar, or not?” ²³ But he perceived their ^(AR)craftiness, and said to them, ²⁴ “Show me ^(AS)a denarius.^[e] Whose likeness and inscription does it have?” They said, “Caesar's.” ²⁵ He said to them, “Then ^(AT)render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.” ²⁶ And they were not able in the presence of the people ^(AU)to catch him in what he said, but marveling at his answer they became silent.