Matthew 18:1-20

Legacy Standard Bible

Who Is Greatest in Heaven?

18 ^(A)At that ^[a]time the disciples came to Jesus and said, “^(B)Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” ² And He called a child to Himself and set him ^[b]before them, ³ and said, “Truly I say to you, unless you ^[c]are converted and ^(C)become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. ⁴ Whoever therefore will humble himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. ⁵ And whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me; ⁶ but ^(D)whoever ^(E)causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it is better for him that a ^[d]heavy millstone be hung around his neck, and that he be drowned in the depth of the sea.

Stumbling Blocks

⁷ “Woe to the world because of its stumbling blocks! For ^(F)it is inevitable that stumbling blocks come; nevertheless, woe to that man through whom the stumbling block comes!

⁸ “^(G)And if your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; it is better for you to enter life crippled or lame, than, having two hands or two feet, to be cast into the eternal fire. ^9 (H)And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out and throw it from you. It is better for you to enter life with one eye, than, having two eyes, to be cast into the ^[e](I)fiery hell.

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

The Parable of the Lost Sheep

¹² “What do you think? ^(L)If any man has one hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go and search for the one that is straying? ¹³ And if it turns out that he finds it, truly I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine which have not gone astray. ¹⁴ In this way, it is not the will ^[g]of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones perish.

If Your Brother Sins

¹⁵ “^(M)Now if your brother sins^[h], go and ^[i]show him his fault, between you and him alone; if he listens to you, you have won your brother. ¹⁶ But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that ^(N)by the mouth of two or three witnesses every ^[j]fact may be confirmed. ¹⁷ And if he refuses to listen to them, ^(O)tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, ^(P)let him be to you as the Gentile and the tax collector. ¹⁸ Truly I say to you, ^(Q)whatever you ^[k]bind on earth ^[l]shall have been bound in heaven; and whatever you ^[m]loose on earth ^[n]shall have been loosed in heaven.

¹⁹ “Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, ^(R)it shall be done for them ^[o]by My Father who is in heaven. ²⁰ For where two or three have gathered together in My name, ^(S)I am there in their midst.”