Historical
Childlike Humility
18 At that hour the disciples came to Yeshua, saying, “Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
2 And He called a child to Himself, set him in the midst of them, 3 and said, “Amen, I tell you, unless you turn and become like children, you shall never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whoever then shall humble himself like this child, this one is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5 And whoever welcomes one such child in My name, welcomes Me.
6 “But whoever causes one of these little ones who trust in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone hung around his neck and to be sunk in the depth of the sea! 7 Woe to the world because of snares! For snares must come, but woe to that man through whom the snare comes!
8 “And if your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away from you. It’s better for you to enter into life crippled or lame than, having two hands or two feet, to be thrown into fiery Gehenna. 9 If your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out and throw it away from you. It’s better for you to enter into life with one eye than, having two eyes, to be thrown into fiery Gehenna.
Parable of the Lost Sheep
10 “See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I tell you that their angels in heaven continually see the face of My Father in heaven. (11 )[a]
12 “What do you think? If a certain man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, won’t he leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go looking for the one that is straying? 13 And if he finds it, amen I tell you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that didn’t stray. 14 Even so, it’s not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.”
Restoring a Lost Brother
15 “Now if your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault while you’re with him alone. If he listens to you, you have won your brother. 16 But if he does not listen, take with you one or two more, so that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may stand.’ [b] 17 But if he refuses to listen to them, tell it to Messiah’s community. And if he refuses to listen even to Messiah’s community, let him be to you as a pagan and a tax collector.
18 “Amen, I tell you, whatever you forbid on earth will have been forbidden in heaven and what you permit on earth will have been permitted in heaven. 19 Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there I am in their midst.”
Lessons about Forgiveness
21 Then Peter came to Him and said, “Master, how often shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?”
22 Yeshua said to him, “No, not up to seven times, I tell you, but seventy times seven! [c] 23 Therefore, the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wanted to settle accounts with his slaves. 24 When he had begun to settle up, a man was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. [d] 25 But since he didn’t have the money to repay, his master ordered him to be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. 26 Then the slave fell on his knees and begged him, saying, ‘Be patient with me, and I’ll repay you everything.’ 27 And the master of that slave, filled with compassion, released him and forgave him the debt.
28 “Now that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii. And he grabbed him and started choking him, saying, ‘Pay back what you owe!’
29 “So his fellow slave fell down and kept begging him, saying, ‘Be patient with me, and I’ll pay you back.’ 30 Yet he was unwilling. Instead, he went off and threw the man into prison until he paid back all he owed.
31 “So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply distressed. They went to their master and reported in detail all that had happened. 32 Then summoning the first slave, his master said to him, ‘You wicked slave! I forgave all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33 Wasn’t it necessary for you also to show mercy to your fellow slave, just as I showed mercy to you?’ 34 Enraged, the master handed him over to the torturers until he paid back all he owed.
35 “So also My heavenly Father will do to you, unless each of you, from your hearts, forgives his brother.”
Marriage and Covenant Faithfulness
19 Now when Yeshua had finished these words, He moved on from the Galilee and entered the region of Judea beyond the Jordan. 2 Large crowds followed Him, and He healed them there. 3 Pharisees came up to Yeshua, testing Him and saying, “Is it permitted for a man to divorce his wife for any reason at all?”
4 “Haven’t you read?” He answered. “He who created them from the beginning ‘made them male and female’ [e] 5 and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ [f] 6 So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no man separate.”
7 They said to Him, “Why then did Moses command to ‘give her a certificate of divorce and put her away?’”[g]
8 Yeshua said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart Moses permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. 9 Now I tell you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery.”[h]
10 The disciples said to Him, “If that’s the case for a man and his wife, it’s better not to marry!”
11 But He said to them, “Not everyone can accept this saying—only those to whom it has been given. 12 For there are eunuchs who were born that way from their mother’s womb; and there are eunuchs who were made that way by men; and there are eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who can accept this, let him accept it.”
Receiving the Kingdom of Heaven
13 Then little children were brought to Yeshua so that He might lay hands upon them and pray. Then the disciples rebuked those who brought them. [i] 14 But Yeshua said, “Let the little children come to Me and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” 15 After laying His hands upon them, He went on from there.
16 Now behold, one came to Him and said, “Teacher, what good shall I do to have eternal life?”
17 “Why do you ask Me about what is good?” Yeshua said to him. “There is only One who is good; but if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”
18 “Which ones?” he said.
Yeshua said, “‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, 19 honor your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’”[j]
20 “All these I’ve kept,” the young man said to Him. “What do I still lack?”
21 Yeshua said to him, “If you wish to be perfect, go, sell what you own, and give to the poor; and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me.” 22 But when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieving, for he had much property.
23 Then Yeshua said to His disciples, “Amen, I tell you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
25 When the disciples heard this, they were utterly astonished and said, “Then who can be saved?”
26 And looking, Yeshua said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”[k]
27 Then Peter said to Him, “Look, we’ve left everything to follow You! So what will we have?”
28 And Yeshua said to them, “Amen, I tell you, when the Son of Man sits on His glorious throne in the new world,[l] you who have followed Me shall also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or property, for My name’s sake, will receive a hundred times as much, and will inherit eternal life. 30 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”
Parable of the Day Laborers
20 “For the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household, who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. 2 Now when he had agreed with the workers for a denarius per day, he sent them into his vineyard. 3 And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing in the marketplace, idle. 4 And to them he said, ‘You go into the vineyard too, and I’ll give you whatever is right.’ 5 So they went. Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour and did the same. 6 And about the eleventh hour, he went out and found others standing around. And he said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here idle the whole day?’
7 “‘Because no one hired us,’ they said to him.
“He said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard, too.’
8 “Now when evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning from the last to the first.’ 9 And those who had come about the eleventh hour each received a denarius. 10 And when the first came, they supposed that they would receive more; yet they too received a denarius.
11 “But when they received it, they began to grumble against the master of the house, 12 saying, ‘These last guys did one hour, and you’ve made them equal to us, who bore the burden and scorching heat of the day!’
13 “But answering, he said to one of them, ‘Friend, I’m doing you no wrong. Didn’t you agree with me on a denarius? 14 Take what is yours and go. But I want to give this last guy the same as you. 15 Am I not permitted to do what I want with what belongs to me? Or is your eye evil because I am good?’
16 “So the last will be first, and the first last.”
Third Prediction: Death and Resurrection
17 Now as Yeshua was going up to Jerusalem, He took the Twelve aside privately; and on the way he told them, 18 “Look, we’re going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the ruling kohanim and Torah scholars. They will condemn Him to death 19 and hand Him over to the Gentiles to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify. Yet on the third day, He will be raised up.”[m]
Leading by Serving
20 Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came with her sons to Yeshua, and she was kneeling down and asking something from Him.
21 “What do you want?” He said to her.
She said to Him, “Declare that these two sons of mine might sit, one on Your right and one on Your left, in Your kingdom.”
22 But Yeshua replied, “You don’t know what you’re asking! Are you able to drink the cup I am about to drink?”
“We are able,” they say to Him.
23 He said to them, “You shall indeed drink My cup. But to sit on My right and left, this isn’t Mine to grant. Rather, it’s for those for whom it has been prepared by My Father.”
24 Now when the ten heard, they became indignant with the two brothers. 25 But Yeshua called them over and said, “You know that the rulers of the nations lord it over them, and their great ones play the tyrant over them. 26 It shall not be this way among you. But whoever wants to be great among you shall be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first among you shall be your slave— 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”
What Do You Want Me to Do for You?
29 Now as they were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed Him. 30 And here two blind men sitting by the roadside, when they heard that Yeshua was passing by, cried out, saying, “Have mercy on us, O Master, Ben-David!” 31 The crowd warned them to be quiet, but they cried out all the more, saying, “Have mercy on us, O Master, Ben-David!”[n]
32 Yeshua stopped and called out to them. “What do you want Me to do for you?” He said.
33 They said to Him, “Master, let our eyes be opened!” 34 Moved with compassion, Yeshua touched their eyes. Instantly they regained their sight and followed Him.[o]
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.