All Things Made New

21 Now ^(A)I saw a new heaven and a new earth, ^(B)for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. ² Then I, ^[a]John, saw ^(C)the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared ^(D)as a bride adorned for her husband. ³ And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, ^(E)the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. ^4 (F)And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; ^(G)there shall be no more death, ^(H)nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”

Symbol of the Linen Sash

13 Thus the Lord said to me: “Go and get yourself a linen sash, and put it ^[a]around your waist, but do not put it in water.” ² So I got a ^[b]sash according to the word of the Lord, and put it around my waist.

³ And the word of the Lord came to me the second time, saying, ⁴ “Take the ^[c]sash that you acquired, which is ^[d]around your waist, and arise, go to the ^[e]Euphrates, and hide it there in a hole in the rock.” ⁵ So I went and hid it by the Euphrates, as the Lord commanded me.

⁶ Now it came to pass after many days that the Lord said to me, “Arise, go to the Euphrates, and take from there the sash which I commanded you to hide there.” ⁷ Then I went to the Euphrates and dug, and I took the ^[f]sash from the place where I had hidden it; and there was the sash, ruined. It was profitable for nothing.

⁸ Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ⁹ “Thus says the Lord: ‘In this manner ^(A)I will ruin the pride of Judah and the great ^(B)pride of Jerusalem. ¹⁰ This evil people, who ^(C)refuse to hear My words, who ^(D)follow^[g] the dictates of their hearts, and walk after other gods to serve them and worship them, shall be just like this sash which is profitable for nothing. ¹¹ For as the sash clings to the waist of a man, so I have caused the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah to cling to Me,’ says the Lord, ‘that ^(E)they may become My people, ^(F)for renown, for praise, and for ^(G)glory; but they would ^(H)not hear.’

Jesus Again Predicts His Death and Resurrection

³⁰ Then they departed from there and passed through Galilee, and He did not want anyone to know it. ^31 (A)For He taught His disciples and said to them, “The Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of men, and they will ^(B)kill Him. And after He is killed, He will ^(C)rise the third day.” ³² But they ^(D)did not understand this saying, and were afraid to ask Him.

Who Is the Greatest?^(E)

^33 (F)Then He came to Capernaum. And when He was in the house He asked them, “What was it you ^[a]disputed among yourselves on the road?” ³⁴ But they kept silent, for on the road they had ^(G)disputed among themselves who would be the ^(H)greatest. ³⁵ And He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, ^(I)“If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.” ³⁶ Then ^(J)He took a little child and set him in the midst of them. And when He had taken him in His arms, He said to them, ³⁷ “Whoever receives one of these little children in My name receives Me; and ^(K)whoever receives Me, receives not Me but Him who sent Me.”

Jesus Forbids Sectarianism^(L)

^38 (M)Now John answered Him, saying, “Teacher, we saw someone who does not follow us casting out demons in Your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow us.”

³⁹ But Jesus said, “Do not forbid him, ^(N)for no one who works a miracle in My name can soon afterward speak evil of Me. ⁴⁰ For ^(O)he who is not against ^[b]us is on ^[c]our side. ^41 (P)For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in My name, because you belong to Christ, assuredly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.

Jesus Warns of Offenses^(Q)

^42 (R)“But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me ^[d]to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea.