Matthew 20:20-28

Living Bible

²⁰ Then the mother of James and John, the sons of Zebedee, brought them to Jesus and respectfully asked a favor.

²¹ “What is your request?” he asked. She replied, “In your Kingdom, will you let my two sons sit on two thrones^[a] next to yours?”

²² But Jesus told her, “You don’t know what you are asking!” Then he turned to James and John and asked them, “Are you able to drink from the terrible cup I am about to drink from?”

“Yes,” they replied, “we are able!”

²³ “You shall indeed drink from it,” he told them. “But I have no right to say who will sit on the thrones next to mine. Those places are reserved for the persons my Father selects.”

²⁴ The other ten disciples were indignant when they heard what James and John had asked for.

²⁵ But Jesus called them together and said, “Among the heathen, kings are tyrants and each minor official lords it over those beneath him. ²⁶ But among you it is quite different. Anyone wanting to be a leader among you must be your servant. ²⁷ And if you want to be right at the top, you must serve like a slave. ²⁸ Your attitude^[b] must be like my own, for I, the Messiah, did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give my life as a ransom for many.”