Would-be Followers

18 Now when[a] Jesus saw many crowds[b] around him, he gave orders to depart to the other side.[c] 19 And a scribe approached and[d] said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go!” 20 And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” 21 And another of the disciples[e] said to him, “Lord, allow me first to go and bury my father.” 22 But Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead!”

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 8:18 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“saw”) which is understood as temporal
  2. Matthew 8:18 Some manuscripts have “a crowd”
  3. Matthew 8:18 That is, the other side of the Sea of Galilee
  4. Matthew 8:19 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“approached”) has been translated as a finite verb
  5. Matthew 8:21 Some manuscripts have “of his disciples”

Discipleship Tested

18 Now when Jesus saw a crowd around Him, (A)He gave orders to depart to the other side of the sea. 19 (B)Then a scribe came and said to Him, “Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go.” 20 And Jesus *said to him, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the sky have nests, but (C)the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” 21 And another of the disciples said to Him, “Lord, allow me first to go and bury my father.” 22 But Jesus *said to him, (D)Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”

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