Read the New Testament in 24 Weeks
A Lost Sheep, a Lost Coin(A)
15 The tax collectors [C who were despised because they worked for the Roman rulers and were notorious for corruption and extortion] and sinners all ·came [drew near] to listen to Jesus. 2 But the Pharisees and the ·teachers of the law [scribes] began to ·complain [murmur; grumble]: “Look, this man ·welcomes [associates with; receives] sinners and even eats with them [C indicating social acceptance].”
3 ·Then [So] Jesus told them this ·story [parable]: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep but loses one of them. ·Then he will [L Won’t he…?] leave the other ninety-nine sheep in the ·open field [wilderness; desert] and go out and look for the lost sheep until he finds it. 5 And when he finds it, he ·happily [joyfully] puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. He calls ·to [together] his friends and neighbors and says, ‘·Be happy [Rejoice] with me because I found my lost sheep.’ 7 In the same way, I tell you there is more joy in heaven over one sinner who ·changes his heart and life [repents], than over ninety-nine ·good [righteous; C self-righteous] people who don’t need to ·change [repent].
8 “[L Or] Suppose a woman has ten silver coins [C Greek: drachmas; each equal to about a day’s wage], but loses one. ·She will [Won’t she…?] light a lamp, sweep the house, and ·look [search] carefully for the coin until she finds it. 9 And when she finds it, she will call her friends and neighbors and say, ‘·Be happy [Rejoice] with me because I have found the ·coin [L drachma] that I lost.’ 10 In the same way, [L I tell you] there is joy in the presence of the angels of God when one sinner ·changes his heart and life [repents].”
The Son Who Left Home
11 Then Jesus said, “A man had two sons. 12 The younger son said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the ·property [estate; C his inheritance].’ So the father divided the ·property [wealth; assets; L life] between his two sons. 13 ·Then [Some time later; L After not many days] the younger son gathered up all that was his and traveled ·far away to another [to a distant] country. There he ·wasted [squandered; scattered] his money in ·foolish [wild; reckless] living. 14 After he had spent everything, a time came when there was ·no food anywhere [L a severe famine] in the country, and the son ·was poor and hungry [L began to be in need]. 15 So he ·got a job with [hired himself out to] one of the citizens there who sent the son into the fields to feed pigs [C degrading work, since pigs were ritually unclean and detestable animals to Jews]. 16 The son was so hungry that he wanted to ·eat [or fill his stomach with] the pods the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything. 17 When he ·realized what he was doing [came to his senses; L came to himself], he thought, ‘All of my father’s ·servants [hired workers] have ·plenty of [more than enough; abundant] ·food [bread]. But I am here, ·almost dying [perishing] with hunger. 18 I will ·leave and return [get up and go] to my father and say to him, “Father, I have sinned against ·God [L heaven; C Jews often used “heaven” for “God” out of reverence for the divine Name] and against you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son, but ·let me be [make me] like one of your ·servants [hired workers].”’ 20 So the son left and went to his father.
“While the son was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt ·sorry [compassion] for his son. So the father ran to him [C an undignified act for a family patriarch; evidence of his unrestrained love] and hugged and kissed him. 21 The son said, ‘Father, I have sinned against ·God [L heaven; v. 18] and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’[a] 22 But the father said to his ·servants [slaves], ‘Hurry! Bring the ·best clothes [L first/best robe; C either the father’s own, or a ceremonial robe for an honored guest] and put them on him. Also, put a ring on his finger [C probably a signet ring indicating sonship and authority; Gen. 41:42] and sandals on his feet [C slaves went barefoot]. 23 And get our ·fat [fattened; C prepared for slaughter] calf and kill it [C people only occasionally ate meat; such a large animal indicates a major celebration] so we can have a feast and celebrate. 24 My son was dead, but now he is alive again! He was lost, but now he is found!’ So they began to celebrate.
25 “The older son was in the field, and as he came closer to the house, he heard the sound of music and dancing. 26 So he ·called to [summoned] one of the [household] servants and asked what all this meant. 27 The servant said, ‘Your brother has come back, and your father killed the ·fat [fattened; v. 23] calf, because your brother came home ·safely [healthy; safe and sound].’ 28 The older son was angry and ·would not [had no desire to] go in to the feast. So his father went out and ·begged [urged; encouraged] him to come in. 29 But the older son ·said to [answered] his father, ‘[L Look; T Behold] I have served you like a slave for many years and have ·always obeyed [never disobeyed; L never neglected] your commands. But you never gave me even a young goat to ·have at a feast [celebrate] with my friends. 30 But ·your other son [L this son of yours], who ·wasted [squandered; devoured] ·all your money [your property; L your life] on prostitutes, comes home, and you kill the fat [fattened; v. 23] calf for him!’ 31 The father said to him, ‘·Son [Child], you ·are always with [or have always stood by] me, and all that I have is yours. 32 [L But] We had to celebrate and ·be happy [rejoice] because ·your brother [L this brother of yours; v. 30] was dead, but ·now he is alive [has come back to life]. He was lost, but now he is found.’”
True Wealth
16 Jesus also said to his ·followers [disciples], “Once there was a rich man who had a manager to take care of his business. This manager was accused of ·cheating him [wasting/squandering his assests/possessions]. 2 So he called the manager in and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give me a ·report [accounting] of ·what you have done with my money [L your management], because you ·can’t be my manager any longer [are going to be fired].’ 3 The manager thought to himself, ‘What will I do since my master is ·taking my job away from [about to fire] me? I am not strong enough to ·dig ditches [or work the soil; L dig], and I am ashamed to beg. 4 I know what I’ll do so that when I ·lose my job [L am removed from management] people will welcome me into their homes.’
5 “So the manager called in everyone who owed the master any money. He asked the first one, ‘How much do you owe [L my master]?’ 6 He answered, ‘Eight hundred gallons [C Greek: one hundred batoi; a batos was about eight gallons] of olive oil.’ The manager said to him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and write ·four hundred gallons [Greek: fifty (batoi)].’ 7 Then the manager asked another one, ‘How much do you owe?’ He answered, ‘·One thousand bushels [Greek: one hundred koroi; a koros was about ten bushels] of wheat.’ Then the manager said to him, ‘Take your bill and write eight hundred bushels [C Greek: eighty (koroi)].’ 8 So, the master praised the ·dishonest [unrighteous; unjust] manager for being ·clever [shrewd; prudent]. Yes, ·worldly people [L the children of this age] are more ·clever [shrewd; prudent] with their own ·kind [contemporaries; generation] than ·spiritual people [L the children of light] are.
9 “I tell you, make friends for yourselves using ·worldly riches [L the mammon/wealth of unrighteousness] so that when those riches ·are gone [fail; run out], you will be welcomed in ·those homes that continue forever [eternal dwellings/tents; C God’s presence]. 10 Whoever ·can be trusted [is faithful] with a little ·can also be trusted [is also faithful] with a lot, and whoever is ·dishonest [unjust] with a little is ·dishonest [unjust] with a lot. 11 If [L therefore] you ·cannot be trusted [have not been faithful] with ·worldly riches [L unrighteous mammon], then who will trust you with true riches? 12 And if you ·cannot be trusted [have not been faithful] with things that belong to someone else, who will give you things of your own?
13 “No servant can serve two ·masters [lords]. [L For] The servant will hate one master and love the other, or will ·follow [be devoted/loyal to] one master and ·refuse to follow [despise] the other. You cannot serve both God and ·worldly riches [money; L mammon].”
God’s Law Cannot Be Changed
14 The Pharisees, who loved money, were listening to all these things and ·made fun of [derided; ridiculed] Jesus. 15 He said to them, “You ·make yourselves look good [justify yourselves] in front of people, but God knows what is really in your hearts. What is ·important to [exalted/esteemed by] people is ·hateful [detestable; an abomination] in God’s sight.
16 “The law of Moses and the writings of the prophets [C the Old Testament] ·were preached [or were in force; L were] until John [C the Baptist] came [3:1–20; C John is the transitional figure between the age of promise and the age of salvation]. Since then the ·Good News [Gospel] about the kingdom of God is being ·told [preached; proclaimed], and everyone ·tries to enter it by force [or is eager to get into it; or is strongly urged to enter it]. 17 It would be easier for heaven and earth to ·pass away [disappear] than for ·the smallest part [L one stroke] of a letter in the law to ·be changed [drop out; Matt. 5:18; 11:12–13].
Divorce and Remarriage(B)
18 “If a man divorces his wife and marries another woman, he ·is guilty of [commits] adultery, and the man who marries a divorced woman ·is also guilty of [commits] adultery.”
The Rich Man and Lazarus
19 Jesus said, “There was a rich man who always dressed in ·the finest clothes [L purple and fine linen] and ·lived in luxury [or feasted sumptuously] every day. 20 And a very poor man named Lazarus, whose body was covered with sores, was laid at the rich man’s gate. 21 He ·wanted [longed] to eat ·only the small pieces of food that fell [L what fell] from the rich man’s table. ·And [Even] the dogs would come and lick his sores [C dogs were viewed as despicable scavengers, not household pets]. 22 ·Later [L Now it happened that], Lazarus died, and the angels carried him to ·the arms of Abraham [L Abraham’s side/T bosom; C the imagery of a banquet, with Abraham as host and Lazarus as honored guest]. The rich man died, too, and was buried. 23 In ·the place of the dead [L Hades], he was in ·much pain [torment]. ·Looking up [L Lifting up his eyes,], the rich man saw Abraham far away with Lazarus ·at his side [T in his bosom]. 24 He called, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me! Send Lazarus to dip his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am ·suffering [in agony] in this fire [Is. 66:24]!’ 25 But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember when you were alive you had the good things in life, but bad things happened to Lazarus. Now he is comforted here, and you are ·suffering [in agony]. 26 Besides [L all this], there is a ·big pit [great gulf/chasm set in place] between you and us, so no one can cross over to you, and no one can leave there and come ·here [L to us].’ 27 The rich man said, ‘Father, then ·please [I ask/beg you to] send Lazarus to my father’s house. 28 [L For] I have five brothers, and Lazarus could warn them so that they will not come to this place of ·pain [torment].’ 29 But Abraham said, ‘They have ·the law of Moses and the writings of the prophets [L Moses and the prophets]; let them ·learn from [listen to] them.’ 30 The rich man said, ‘No, father Abraham! [L But] If someone goes to them from the dead, they would ·believe and change their hearts and lives [L repent].’ 31 But Abraham said to him, ‘If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, they will not ·listen to [L be persuaded/convinced by] someone who comes back from the dead.’”
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