Peter Confesses Jesus as the Christ^(A)

¹³ When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, ^(B)“Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?”

¹⁴ So they said, ^(C)“Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or ^(D)one of the prophets.”

¹⁵ He said to them, “But who do ^(E)you say that I am?”

¹⁶ Simon Peter answered and said, ^(F)“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

¹⁷ Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, ^(G)for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but ^(H)My Father who is in heaven. ¹⁸ And I also say to you that ^(I)you are Peter, and ^(J)on this rock I will build My church, and ^(K)the gates of Hades shall not ^[a]prevail against it. ^19 (L)And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth ^[b]will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

^20 (M)Then He commanded His disciples that they should tell no one that He was Jesus the Christ.

Jesus Predicts His Death and Resurrection^(N)

²¹ From that time Jesus began ^(O)to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.

²² Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, ^[c]“Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!”

²³ But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, ^(P)Satan! ^(Q)You are ^[d]an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men.”

Take Up the Cross and Follow Him^(A)

³⁴ When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, ^(B)“Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. ³⁵ For ^(C)whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it. ³⁶ For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? ³⁷ Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? ^38 (D)For whoever ^(E)is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”

The Transfiguration of Christ^(F)

9 And He said to them, ^(G)“Assuredly, I say to you that there are some standing here who will not taste death till they see ^(H)the kingdom of God ^[a]present with power.”

Jesus Transfigured on the Mount^(A)

17 Now ^(B)after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves; ² and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light. ³ And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. ⁴ Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, ^[a]let us make here three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”

^5 (C)While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, ^(D)“This is My beloved Son, ^(E)in whom I am well pleased. ^(F)Hear Him!” ^6 (G)And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid. ⁷ But Jesus came and ^(H)touched them and said, “Arise, and do not be afraid.” ⁸ When they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.

⁹ Now as they came down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, “Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man is risen from the dead.”

¹⁰ And His disciples asked Him, saying, ^(I)“Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?”

¹¹ Jesus answered and said to them, “Indeed, Elijah is coming ^[b]first and will ^(J)restore all things. ^12 (K)But I say to you that Elijah has come already, and they ^(L)did not know him but did to him whatever they wished. Likewise ^(M)the Son of Man is also about to suffer at their hands.” ^13 (N)Then the disciples understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptist.

A Boy Is Healed^(O)

^14 (P)And when they had come to the multitude, a man came to Him, kneeling down to Him and saying, ¹⁵ “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is ^[c]an epileptic and suffers severely; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water. ¹⁶ So I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not cure him.”

¹⁷ Then Jesus answered and said, “O ^[d]faithless and ^(Q)perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to Me.” ¹⁸ And Jesus ^(R)rebuked the demon, and it came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour.

¹⁹ Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?”

²⁰ So Jesus said to them, “Because of your ^[e]unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, ^(S)if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. ^21 [f]However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.”

³⁶ When the voice had ceased, Jesus was found alone. ^(A)But they kept quiet, and told no one in those days any of the things they had seen.

A Boy Is Healed^(A)

^14 (B)And when He came to the disciples, He saw a great multitude around them, and scribes disputing with them. ¹⁵ Immediately, when they saw Him, all the people were greatly amazed, and running to Him, greeted Him. ¹⁶ And He asked the scribes, “What are you discussing with them?”

¹⁷ Then ^(C)one of the crowd answered and said, “Teacher, I brought You my son, who has a mute spirit. ¹⁸ And wherever it seizes him, it throws him down; he foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth, and becomes rigid. So I spoke to Your disciples, that they should cast it out, but they could not.”

¹⁹ He answered him and said, “O ^(D)faithless^[a] generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I ^[b]bear with you? Bring him to Me.” ²⁰ Then they brought him to Him. And ^(E)when he saw Him, immediately the spirit convulsed him, and he fell on the ground and wallowed, foaming at the mouth.

²¹ So He asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?”

And he said, “From childhood. ²² And often he has thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.”

²³ Jesus said to him, ^(F)“If^[c] you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.”

²⁴ Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; ^(G)help my unbelief!”

²⁵ When Jesus saw that the people came running together, He ^(H)rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, “Deaf and dumb spirit, I command you, come out of him and enter him no more!” ²⁶ Then the spirit cried out, convulsed him greatly, and came out of him. And he became as one dead, so that many said, “He is dead.” ²⁷ But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose.

^28 (I)And when He had come into the house, His disciples asked Him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?”

²⁹ So He said to them, “This kind can come out by nothing but ^(J)prayer ^[d]and fasting.”

Jesus Again Predicts His Death and Resurrection

³⁰ Then they departed from there and passed through Galilee, and He did not want anyone to know it. ^31 (K)For He taught His disciples and said to them, “The Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of men, and they will ^(L)kill Him. And after He is killed, He will ^(M)rise the third day.” ³² But they ^(N)did not understand this saying, and were afraid to ask Him.

Who Is the Greatest?^(O)

^33 (P)Then He came to Capernaum. And when He was in the house He asked them, “What was it you ^[e]disputed among yourselves on the road?” ³⁴ But they kept silent, for on the road they had ^(Q)disputed among themselves who would be the ^(R)greatest. ³⁵ And He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, ^(S)“If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.” ³⁶ Then ^(T)He took a little child and set him in the midst of them. And when He had taken him in His arms, He said to them, ³⁷ “Whoever receives one of these little children in My name receives Me; and ^(U)whoever receives Me, receives not Me but Him who sent Me.”

Jesus Forbids Sectarianism^(V)

^38 (W)Now John answered Him, saying, “Teacher, we saw someone who does not follow us casting out demons in Your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow us.”

³⁹ But Jesus said, “Do not forbid him, ^(X)for no one who works a miracle in My name can soon afterward speak evil of Me. ⁴⁰ For ^(Y)he who is not against ^[f]us is on ^[g]our side. ^41 (Z)For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in My name, because you belong to Christ, assuredly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.

Jesus Warns of Offenses^(AA)

^42 (AB)“But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me ^[h]to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea. ^43 (AC)If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life ^[i]maimed, rather than having two hands, to go to ^[j]hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched— ^44 [k]where

⁴⁵ And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame, rather than having two feet, to be cast into ^[l]hell, ^[m]into the fire that shall never be quenched— ⁴⁶ where

⁴⁷ And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into ^[n]hell fire— ⁴⁸ where

Tasteless Salt Is Worthless

⁴⁹ “For everyone will be ^(AH)seasoned with fire, ^(AI)and^[o] every sacrifice will be seasoned with salt. ^50 (AJ)Salt is good, but if the salt loses its flavor, how will you season it? ^(AK)Have salt in yourselves, and ^(AL)have peace with one another.”

Peter and His Master Pay Their Taxes

^24 (A)When they had come to ^[a]Capernaum, those who received the ^[b]temple tax came to Peter and said, “Does your Teacher not pay the temple tax?”

²⁵ He said, “Yes.”

And when he had come into the house, Jesus anticipated him, saying, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth take customs or taxes, from their sons or from ^(B)strangers?”

²⁶ Peter said to Him, “From strangers.”

Jesus said to him, “Then the sons are free. ²⁷ Nevertheless, lest we offend them, go to the sea, cast in a hook, and take the fish that comes up first. And when you have opened its mouth, you will find a ^[c]piece of money; take that and give it to them for Me and you.”

Who Is the Greatest?^(C)

18 At ^(D)that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

² Then Jesus called a little ^(E)child to Him, set him in the midst of them, ³ and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, ^(F)unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. ^4 (G)Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. ^5 (H)Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me.

Jesus Warns of Offenses^(I)

^6 (J)“But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea. ⁷ Woe to the world because of ^[d]offenses! For ^(K)offenses must come, but ^(L)woe to that man by whom the offense comes!

^8 (M)“If your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life lame or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet, to be cast into the everlasting fire. ⁹ And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into ^[e]hell fire.

The Parable of the Lost Sheep^(N)

¹⁰ “Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven ^(O)their angels always ^(P)see the face of My Father who is in heaven. ^11 (Q)For^[f] the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.

^12 (R)“What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying? ¹³ And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray. ¹⁴ Even so it is not the ^(S)will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.

Dealing with a Sinning Brother

¹⁵ “Moreover ^(T)if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, ^(U)you have gained your brother. ¹⁶ But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that ^(V)‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.’ ¹⁷ And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a ^(W)heathen and a tax collector.

¹⁸ “Assuredly, I say to you, ^(X)whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

^19 (Y)“Again^[g] I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, ^(Z)it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. ²⁰ For where two or three are gathered ^(AA)together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.”

The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant

²¹ Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? ^(AB)Up to seven times?”

²² Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, ^(AC)up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. ²³ Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. ²⁴ And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. ²⁵ But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded ^(AD)that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made. ²⁶ The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, ‘Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.’ ²⁷ Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt.

²⁸ “But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, ‘Pay me what you owe!’ ²⁹ So his fellow servant fell down ^[h]at his feet and begged him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you ^[i]all.’ ³⁰ And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt. ³¹ So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done. ³² Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you ^(AE)all that debt because you begged me. ³³ Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?’ ³⁴ And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him.

^35 (AF)“So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother ^[j]his trespasses.”