Matthew 16
Common English Bible
Demand for a sign
16 The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus. In order to test him they asked him to show them a sign from heaven.
2 But he replied, “At evening you say, ‘It will be nice weather because the sky is bright red.’ 3 And in the morning you say, ‘There will be bad weather today because the sky is cloudy.’ You know how to make sense of the sky’s appearance. But you are unable to recognize the signs that point to what the time is. 4 An evil and unfaithful generation searches for a sign. But it won’t receive any sign except Jonah’s sign.” Then he left them and went away.
Yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees
5 When the disciples arrived on the other side of the lake, they had forgotten to bring bread. 6 Jesus said to them, “Watch out and be on your guard for the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
7 They discussed this among themselves and said, “We didn’t bring any bread.”
8 Jesus knew what they were discussing and said, “You people of weak faith! Why are you discussing among yourselves the fact that you don’t have any bread? 9 Don’t you understand yet? Don’t you remember the five loaves that fed the five thousand and how many baskets of leftovers you gathered? 10 And the seven loaves that fed the four thousand and how many large baskets of leftovers you gathered? 11 Don’t you know that I wasn’t talking about bread? But be on your guard for the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” 12 Then they understood that he wasn’t telling them to be on their guard for yeast used in making bread. No, he was telling them to watch out for the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
Peter’s declaration about Jesus
13 Now when Jesus came to the area of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Human One[a] is?”
14 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.”
15 He said, “And what about you? Who do you say that I am?”
16 Simon Peter said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17 Then Jesus replied, “Happy are you, Simon son of Jonah, because no human has shown this to you. Rather my Father who is in heaven has shown you. 18 I tell you that you are Peter.[b] And I’ll build my church on this rock. The gates of the underworld won’t be able to stand against it. 19 I’ll give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Anything you fasten on earth will be fastened in heaven. Anything you loosen on earth will be loosened in heaven.” 20 Then he ordered the disciples not to tell anybody that he was the Christ.
First prediction of Jesus’ death and resurrection
21 From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he had to go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and legal experts, and that he had to be killed and raised on the third day. 22 Then Peter took hold of Jesus and, scolding him, began to correct him: “God forbid, Lord! This won’t happen to you.” 23 But he turned to Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan. You are a stone that could make me stumble, for you are not thinking God’s thoughts but human thoughts.”
Saving and losing life
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “All who want to come after me must say no to themselves, take up their cross, and follow me. 25 All who want to save their lives will lose them. But all who lose their lives because of me will find them. 26 Why would people gain the whole world but lose their lives? What will people give in exchange for their lives? 27 For the Human One[c] is about to come with the majesty of his Father with his angels. And then he will repay each one for what that person has done. 28 I assure you that some standing here won’t die before they see the Human One[d] coming in his kingdom.”
Footnotes
- Matthew 16:13 Or Son of Man
- Matthew 16:18 Peter means rock.
- Matthew 16:27 Or Son of Man
- Matthew 16:28 Or Son of Man
Matthew 16
Modern English Version
The Demand for a Sign(A)
16 The Pharisees and Sadducees came and, testing Him, asked Him to show them a sign from heaven.
2 He answered them, “When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ 3 and in the morning, ‘It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and overcast.’ O you hypocrites, you can discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times. 4 A wicked and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.” So He left them and departed.
The Yeast of Pharisees and Sadducees(B)
5 But when His disciples reached the other side, they had forgotten to take bread. 6 Then Jesus said to them, “Take heed and beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
7 They reasoned among themselves, saying, “It is because we have taken no bread.”
8 But when Jesus perceived it, He said to them, “O you of little faith, why reason among yourselves, that it is because you have brought no bread? 9 Do you not yet understand or remember the five loaves of the five thousand and how many baskets you collected? 10 Or the seven loaves of the four thousand and how many baskets you collected? 11 How is it that you do not understand that I spoke to you not concerning bread, but that you should beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees?” 12 Then they understood that He did not tell them to beware of the yeast of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
Peter’s Declaration About Jesus(C)
13 When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?”
14 They said, “Some say that You are John the Baptist, others say 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, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17 Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” 20 Then He commanded His disciples to tell no one that He was Jesus the Christ.
Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection(D)
21 From that time on, Jesus began to show 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 on the third day.
22 Then Peter took Him and began rebuking Him, saying, “Far be it from You, Lord! This shall not happen to You.”
23 But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things that are of God, but those that are of men.”
24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. 25 For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. 26 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? 27 For the Son of Man shall come with His angels in the glory of His Father, and then He will repay every man according to his works. 28 Truly I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.”
Matthew 16
Evangelical Heritage Version
A Sign From Heaven
16 The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus and, as a test, they asked him to show them a sign from heaven. 2 But he answered them, “When it is evening you say, ‘It will be fair weather because the sky is red.’ 3 In the morning you say, ‘It will be stormy weather today because the sky is red and threatening.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times! 4 An evil and adulterous generation seeks a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” He left them and went away.
Watch Out for the Teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees
5 When his disciples came to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread along. 6 Jesus said to them, “Watch out and be on guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
7 They were discussing this among themselves and said, “It is because we did not bring any bread.”
8 Since Jesus knew what they were saying, he said, “You of little faith! Why are you discussing among yourselves the fact that you brought no bread? 9 Do you still not understand? Do you not remember the five loaves for the five thousand and how many basketfuls you picked up? 10 Or the seven loaves for the four thousand and how many basketfuls you picked up? 11 How is it that you do not understand that I was not talking to you about bread? But be on guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
12 Then they understood that he was not warning them about the yeast in bread, but about the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
Jesus Is the Christ
13 When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”
14 They said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
15 He said to them, “But you, who do you say that I am?”
16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17 Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell[a] will not overpower it.[b] 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth will be[c] bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” 20 Then he commanded the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Christ.
Jesus Predicts His Death and Resurrection
21 From that time, Jesus began to show his disciples that he had to go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and experts in the law, and be killed, and on the third day be raised again.
22 Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “May you receive mercy, Lord! This will never happen to you.”
23 But Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a snare[d] to me because you are not thinking the things of God, but the things of men.”
Take Up the Cross
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone wants to follow me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. 25 In fact whoever wants to save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 26 After all, what will it benefit a person if he gains the whole world, but forfeits his soul? Or what can a person give in exchange for his soul? 27 For the Son of Man will come in the glory of his Father together with his angels, and then he will repay everyone according to his actions. 28 Amen I tell you: Some who are standing here will certainly not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”
Footnotes
- Matthew 16:18 Greek hades
- Matthew 16:18 Or stand up against it
- Matthew 16:19 Or will have been
- Matthew 16:23 Or stumbling block
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.