Matthew 21
Common English Bible
Entry into Jerusalem
21 When they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus gave two disciples a task. 2 He said to them, “Go into the village over there. As soon as you enter, you will find a donkey tied up and a colt with it. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, say that their master needs them.” He sent them off right away. 4 Now this happened to fulfill what the prophet said, 5 Say to Daughter Zion, “Look, your king is coming to you, humble and riding on a donkey, and on a colt the donkey’s offspring.”[a] 6 The disciples went and did just as Jesus had ordered them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and laid their clothes on them. Then he sat on them.
8 Now a large crowd spread their clothes on the road. Others cut palm branches off the trees and spread them on the road. 9 The crowds in front of him and behind him shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord![b]Hosanna in the highest!” 10 And when Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up. “Who is this?” they asked. 11 The crowds answered, “It’s the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee.”
Cleansing the temple
12 Then Jesus went into the temple and threw out all those who were selling and buying there. He pushed over the tables used for currency exchange and the chairs of those who sold doves. 13 He said to them, “It’s written, My house will be called a house of prayer.[c] But you’ve made it a hideout for crooks.”
14 People who were blind and lame came to Jesus in the temple, and he healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and legal experts saw the amazing things he was doing and the children shouting in the temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” they were angry. 16 They said to Jesus, “Do you hear what these children are saying?”
“Yes,” he answered. “Haven’t you ever read, From the mouths of babies and infants you’ve arranged praise for yourself? [d]” 17 Then he left them and went out of the city to Bethany and spent the night there.
Cursing the fig tree
18 Early in the morning as Jesus was returning to the city, he was hungry. 19 He saw a fig tree along the road, but when he came to it, he found nothing except leaves. Then he said to it, “You’ll never again bear fruit!” The fig tree dried up at once.
20 When the disciples saw it, they were amazed. “How did the fig tree dry up so fast?” they asked.
21 Jesus responded, “I assure you that if you have faith and don’t doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree. You will even say to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the lake.’ And it will happen. 22 If you have faith, you will receive whatever you pray for.”
Jesus’ authority questioned
23 When Jesus entered the temple, the chief priests and elders of the people came to him as he was teaching. They asked, “What kind of authority do you have for doing these things? Who gave you this authority?”
24 Jesus replied, “I have a question for you. If you tell me the answer, I’ll tell you what kind of authority I have to do these things. 25 Where did John get his authority to baptize? Did he get it from heaven or from humans?”
They argued among themselves, “If we say ‘from heaven,’ he’ll say to us, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 26 But we can’t say ‘from humans’ because we’re afraid of the crowd, since everyone thinks John was a prophet.” 27 Then they replied, “We don’t know.”
Jesus also said to them, “Neither will I tell you what kind of authority I have to do these things.
Parable of two sons
28 “What do you think? A man had two sons. Now he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’
29 “‘No, I don’t want to,’ he replied. But later he changed his mind and went.
30 “The father said the same thing to the other son, who replied, ‘Yes, sir.’ But he didn’t go.
31 “Which one of these two did his father’s will?”
They said, “The first one.”
Jesus said to them, “I assure you that tax collectors and prostitutes are entering God’s kingdom ahead of you. 32 For John came to you on the righteous road, and you didn’t believe him. But tax collectors and prostitutes believed him. Yet even after you saw this, you didn’t change your hearts and lives and you didn’t believe him.
Parable of the tenant farmers
33 “Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a fence around it, dug a winepress in it, and built a tower. Then he rented it to tenant farmers and took a trip. 34 When it was time for harvest, he sent his servants to the tenant farmers to collect his fruit. 35 But the tenant farmers grabbed his servants. They beat some of them, and some of them they killed. Some of them they stoned to death.
36 “Again he sent other servants, more than the first group. They treated them in the same way. 37 Finally he sent his son to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said.
38 “But when the tenant farmers saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the heir. Come on, let’s kill him and we’ll have his inheritance.’ 39 They grabbed him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him.
40 “When the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenant farmers?”
41 They said, “He will totally destroy those wicked farmers and rent the vineyard to other tenant farmers who will give him the fruit when it’s ready.”
42 Jesus said to them, “Haven’t you ever read in the scriptures, The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. The Lord has done this, and it’s amazing in our eyes?[e] 43 Therefore, I tell you that God’s kingdom will be taken away from you and will be given to a people who produce its fruit. 44 Whoever falls on this stone will be crushed. And the stone will crush the person it falls on.”
45 Now when the chief priests and the Pharisees heard the parable, they knew Jesus was talking about them. 46 They were trying to arrest him, but they feared the crowds, who thought he was a prophet.
Matthew 21
Tree of Life Version
Baruch Ha-Ba! Blessed Is He Who Comes!
21 Now as they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Yeshua sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go into the village before you. Right away, you’ll find a donkey tied up and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to Me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Master needs them.’ And right away he will send them.”
4 This happened to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet, saying,
5 “Say to the daughter of Zion,
‘See, your King is coming to you,
humble and sitting on a donkey,
a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”[a]
6 The disciples went and did as Yeshua had directed them. 7 They brought the donkey and colt and put their clothing on them, and He sat on the clothing. 8 Most of the crowd spread their clothing on the road, and others began cutting branches from the trees and spreading them on the road. 9 The crowds going before Him and those following kept shouting, saying,
“Hoshia-na to Ben-David!
Baruch ha-ba b’shem Adonai!
Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hoshia-na in the highest!”[b]
10 When He entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds kept saying, “This is the prophet Yeshua, from Natzeret in the Galilee.”
12 Then Yeshua entered the Temple[c] and drove out all those selling and buying in the Temple. He overturned the tables of the moneychangers[d] and the seats of those selling doves. [e] 13 And He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’[f] but you are making it ‘a den of thieves’!”[g]
14 The blind and lame came to Him in the Temple, and He healed them. 15 But when the ruling kohanim and Torah scholars saw the wonders He performed, and the children crying out in the Temple and saying, “Hoshia-na to Ben-David,” they became indignant. 16 And they said to Him, “Do You hear what these children are saying?” “Yes,” Yeshua said to them. “Haven’t you ever read,
‘Out of the mouth of babes and nursing toddlers
You have prepared praise for Yourself’?”[h]
17 Then He left them and went out of the city to Bethany, and He spent the night there.
Faith Moves Mountains
18 Now early in the morning, as He was returning to the city, He became hungry. 19 Seeing a lone fig tree by the road, He came up to it and found nothing on it except leaves only. And He said to it, “May no fruit ever come from you again!” And the fig tree shriveled up at once.
20 When the disciples saw it they were astonished. “How did the fig tree shrivel on the spot?” they asked.
21 Yeshua answered them, “Amen, I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only will you do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. 22 And whatever you ask in prayer, trusting, you shall receive.”
Questions about Yeshua’s Authority
23 Now when He entered the Temple, the ruling kohanim and the elders of the people came to Him while He was teaching, saying, “By what authority are You doing these things? Who gave You this authority?”
24 Yeshua replied to them, “I also will ask you one question. If you tell Me, I likewise will tell you by what authority I do these things. 25 John’s immersion, where was it from? From heaven or from men?”
They began to dialogue among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 26 But if we say, ‘From men,’ we fear the crowd, for all hold up John as a prophet.” 27 So answering Yeshua, they said, “We don’t know.”
Then He said to them, “Neither am I telling you by what authority I do these things.”
A Parable about Intentions and Actions
28 “Now what do you think? A man had two sons, and he went to the first and said, ‘Son, go work in the vineyard today.’ 29 The son answered, ‘I won’t,’ but afterward he had a change of heart and went. 30 The man went to the second son and said the same thing. But he answered, ‘I will, sir,’ and didn’t go. 31 Which of the two did the will of the father?”
“The first,” they said.
Yeshua said to them, “Amen, I tell you, the tax collectors and prostitutes are going ahead of you into the kingdom of God. 32 For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him. But the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and even after you saw this, you had no change of heart to believe him.”
Parable of the Vineyard
33 “Listen to another parable. There was a master of a household who planted a vineyard. He put a hedge around it, dug a winepress in it, and built a tower.[i] Then He leased it to some tenant farmers and went on a journey. 34 Now when fruit season drew near, he sent his servants to the tenants to collect his fruit. 35 But grabbing his servants, the tenants beat up one, killed another, and stoned still another. 36 Again the master sent other servants, even more than the first, and they did the same thing to them. 37 Finally he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’
38 “But when the tenants saw the son, they said among themselves, ‘This is the heir! Come on, let’s kill him and get his inheritance!’ 39 So grabbing him, they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. 40 Therefore when the master of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?”
41 “He will bring those miserable men to a miserable end,” they said to Him, “and will lease the vineyard to other tenants, who will give him his share of the fruits in their seasons.” 42 Yeshua said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures[j]?
‘The stone which the builders rejected,
this has become the chief cornerstone.
This came from Adonai,
and it is marvelous in our eyes.’[k]
43 Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to people producing its fruits. 44 Whoever falls on this stone will be shattered; but the one upon whom it falls, it will crush him.”[l]
45 When the ruling kohanim and Pharisees heard Yeshua’s parables, they realized He was talking about them. 46 Although they were trying to seize Him, they feared the crowds, because they regarded Him as a prophet.
Footnotes
- Matthew 21:5 Isa. 62:11; Zech. 9:9(9:9 LXX); cf. Gen. 49:10-11.
- Matthew 21:9 cf. Ps. 118:25-26.
- Matthew 21:12 Some mss. add: of God.
- Matthew 21:12 cf. Deut. 14:24-26.
- Matthew 21:13 cf. Lev. 1:14; 5:7; 12:8.
- Matthew 21:13 Isa. 56:7.
- Matthew 21:13 Jer. 7:11.
- Matthew 21:16 Ps. 8:3(2).
- Matthew 21:33 cf. Isa. 5:1-2.
- Matthew 21:42 Lit. Writings.
- Matthew 21:42 Ps. 118:22-23 (117:22-23 LXX).
- Matthew 21:44 cf. Isa. 28:16; Dan. 2:34, 44-45. Some manuscripts omit verse 44.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.