The Pharisees and Sadducees Demand Signs

16 ^(A)And the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and ^(B)to test him ^(C)they asked him to show them ^(D)a sign from heaven. ² He answered them,^{[a] (E)}“When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ ³ And in the morning, ‘It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ ^(F)You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret ^(G)the signs of the times. ^4 (H)An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” So ^(I)he left them and departed.

The Leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees

⁵ When the disciples reached the other side, they had forgotten to bring any bread. ⁶ Jesus said to them, “Watch and ^(J)beware of ^(K)the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” ⁷ And they began discussing it among themselves, saying, “We brought no bread.” ⁸ But ^(L)Jesus, aware of this, said, ^(M)“O you of little faith, why are you discussing among yourselves the fact that you have no bread? ^9 (N)Do you not yet perceive? Do you not remember ^(O)the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? ¹⁰ Or ^(P)the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? ¹¹ How is it that you fail to understand that I did not speak about bread? ^(Q)Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” ^12 (R)Then they understood that he did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of ^(S)the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

Peter Confesses Jesus as the Christ

^13 (T)Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” ¹⁴ And they said, “Some say ^(U)John the Baptist, others say ^(V)Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” ¹⁵ He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” ¹⁶ Simon Peter replied, ^(W)“You are ^(X)the Christ, ^(Y)the Son of ^(Z)the living God.” ¹⁷ And Jesus answered him, ^(AA)“Blessed are you, ^(AB)Simon Bar-Jonah! For ^(AC)flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, ^(AD)but my Father who is in heaven. ¹⁸ And I tell you, ^(AE)you are Peter, and ^(AF)on this rock^[b] I will build my church, and ^(AG)the gates of ^(AH)hell^[c] shall not prevail against it. ¹⁹ I will give you ^(AI)the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and ^(AJ)whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed^[d] in heaven.” ^20 (AK)Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ.

Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection

^21 (AL)From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that ^(AM)he must go to Jerusalem and ^(AN)suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on ^(AO)the third day be raised. ²² And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord!^[e] This shall never happen to you.” ²³ But he turned and said to Peter, ^(AP)“Get behind me, Satan! You are ^(AQ)a hindrance^[f] to me. For you ^(AR)are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

Take Up Your Cross and Follow Jesus

²⁴ Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him ^(AS)deny himself and ^(AT)take up his cross and follow me. ²⁵ For ^(AU)whoever would save his life^[g] will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. ²⁶ For ^(AV)what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or ^(AW)what shall a man give in return for his soul? ^27 (AX)For the Son of Man is going to come with ^(AY)his angels in the glory of his Father, and ^(AZ)then he will repay each person according to what he has done. ²⁸ Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not ^(BA)taste death ^(BB)until they see the Son of Man ^(BC)coming in his kingdom.”

Peter Confesses Jesus as the Christ

^18 (A)Now it happened that as he was praying alone, the disciples were with him. And he asked them, “Who do the crowds say that I am?” ¹⁹ And they answered, ^(B)“John the Baptist. But others say, ^(C)Elijah, and others, that one of the prophets of old has risen.” ²⁰ Then he said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” And Peter answered, ^(D)“The Christ of God.”

Jesus Foretells His Death

^21 (E)And he strictly charged and commanded them to tell this to no one, ^22 (F)saying, ^(G)“The Son of Man must ^(H)suffer many things and ^(I)be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on ^(J)the third day be raised.”

Take Up Your Cross and Follow Jesus

²³ And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him ^(K)deny himself and ^(L)take up his cross ^(M)daily and follow me. ²⁴ For ^(N)whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. ^25 (O)For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? ²⁶ For ^(P)whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed ^(Q)when he comes in ^(R)his glory and the glory of the Father and of ^(S)the holy angels. ²⁷ But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not ^(T)taste death ^(U)until they see the kingdom of God.”

The Transfiguration

^28 (V)Now about eight days after these sayings he took with him ^(W)Peter and John and James and ^(X)went up on the mountain to pray. ²⁹ And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was ^(Y)altered, and ^(Z)his clothing became dazzling white. ³⁰ And behold, two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah, ³¹ who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure,^[a] which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. ³² Now Peter and those who were with him ^(AA)were heavy with sleep, but when they became fully awake ^(AB)they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. ³³ And as the men were parting from him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good that we are here. Let us make three ^(AC)tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah”—^(AD)not knowing what he said. ³⁴ As he was saying these things, ^(AE)a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. ³⁵ And ^(AF)a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, ^(AG)my Chosen One;^{[b] (AH)}listen to him!” ³⁶ And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. ^(AI)And they kept silent and told no one in those days anything of what they had seen.