Matthew 18:1-21:46

ISV(i) 1 True Greatness
At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom from heaven?”
2 Calling a little child forward, he had him stand among them. 3 Then he said, “I tell all of you with certainty, unless you change and become like little children, you will never get into the kingdom from heaven. 4 Therefore, whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom from heaven, 5 and whoever receives a little child like this in my name receives me.”
6 Causing Others to Sin
“If anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a large millstone were hung around his neck and he were drowned at the bottom of the sea. 7 How terrible it will be for the world due to its temptations to sin! Temptations to sin are bound to happen, but how terrible it will be for that person who causes someone to sin!
8 “So if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life injured or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9 And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell fire.
10 “See to it that you do not despise one of these little ones, because I tell you, their angels in heaven always have access to my Father in heaven. 11 For the Son of Man came to save the lost.”
12 The Parable about the Faithful Shepherd
“What do you think? If a man has 100 sheep and one of them strays, he leaves the 99 in the hills and goes to look for the one that has strayed, doesn’t he? 13 If he finds it, I tell all of you with certainty that he rejoices over it more than over the 99 that haven’t strayed. 14 In the same way, it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.”
15 Dealing with a Brother who Sins
“If your brother sins against you, go and confront him while the two of you are alone. If he listens to you, you have won back your brother. 16 But if he doesn’t listen, take one or two others with you so that ‘every word may be confirmed by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ 17 If, however, he ignores them, tell it to the congregation. If he also ignores the congregation, regard him as an unbeliever and a tax collector.
18 “I tell all of you with certainty, whatever you prohibit on earth will have been prohibited in heaven, and whatever you permit on earth will have been permitted in heaven. 19 Furthermore, I tell all of you with certainty that if two of you agree on earth about anything you request, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven, 20 because where two or three have come together in my name, I am there among them.”
21 The Parable about an Unforgiving ServantThen Peter came up and asked him, “Lord, how many times may my brother sin against me and I have to forgive him? Seven times?”
22 Jesus told him, “I tell you, not just seven times, but 77 times! 23 “That is why the kingdom from heaven may be compared to a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24 When he had begun to settle the accounts, a person who owed him 10,000 talents was brought to him. 25 Because he couldn’t pay, his master ordered him, his wife, his children, and everything that he owned to be sold so that payment could be made. 26 Then the servant fell down and bowed low before him, saying, ‘Be patient with me, and I will repay you everything!’ 27 The master of that servant had compassion and released him, canceling his debt.
28 “But when that servant went away, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him, seized him by the throat, and said, ‘Pay what you owe!’ 29 Then his fellow servant fell down and began begging him, ‘Be patient with me and I will repay you!’ 30 But he refused and had him thrown into prison until he could repay the debt.
31 “When his fellow servants saw what had happened, they were very disturbed and went and reported to their master everything that had occurred. 32 Then his master sent for him and told him, ‘You evil servant! I canceled that entire debt for you because you begged me. 33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ 34 In anger his master handed him over to the jailers until he could repay the entire debt. 35 This is how my heavenly Father will treat each one of you unless you forgive your brother from your hearts.”
19 1 Teaching about Divorce
When Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went to the territory of Judea on the other side of the Jordan. 2 Large crowds followed him, and he healed them there.
3 Some Pharisees came to him in order to test him. They asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?”
4 He answered them, “Haven’t you read that the one who made them at the beginning ‘made them male and female’ 5 and said, ‘That is why a man will leave his father and mother and be united with his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? 6 So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, man must never separate.”
7 They asked him, “Why, then, did Moses order us ‘to give a certificate of divorce and divorce her’?”
8 He told them, “It was because of your hardness of heart that Moses allowed you to divorce your wives. But from the beginning it was not this way. 9 I tell you that whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.”
10 His disciples asked him, “If that is the relationship of a man with his wife, it’s not worth getting married!”
11 “Not everyone can accept this saying,” he replied, “except those to whom celibacy has been granted, 12 because some men are celibate from birth, while some are celibate because they have been made that way by others. Still others are celibate because they have made themselves that way for the sake of the kingdom from heaven. Let anyone accept this who can.”
13 Jesus Blesses the Little Children
Then some little children were brought to him so that he might lay his hands on them and pray. But the disciples rebuked those who brought them. 14 Jesus, however, said, “Let the little children come to me, and stop keeping them away, because the kingdom from heaven belongs to people like these.” 15 When he had laid his hands on them, he went on from there.
16 A Rich Man Comes to Jesus
Just then a man came up to Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what good deed should I do to have eternal life?”
17 Jesus asked him, “Why ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you want to get into that life, you must keep the commandments.”
18 The young man asked him, “Which ones?”
Jesus said, “‘You must not murder, you must not commit adultery, you must not steal, you must not give false testimony, 19 honor your father and mother,’ and, ‘you must love your neighbor as yourself.’”
20 The young man told him, “I have kept all of these. What do I still lack?”
21 Jesus told him, “If you want to be perfect, go and sell what you own and give the money to the destitute, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come back and follow me.” 22 But when the young man heard this statement he went away sad, because he had many possessions.
23 Salvation and Reward
Then Jesus told his disciples, “I tell all of you with certainty, it will be hard for a rich person to get into the kingdom from heaven. 24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to squeeze through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to get into the kingdom of God.”
25 When the disciples heard this, they were completely astonished. “Who, then, can be saved?” they asked.
26 Jesus looked at them intently and said, “For humans this is impossible, but for God all things are possible.”
27 “Look!” Peter replied. “We have left everything and followed you. So what will we get?”
28 Jesus told them, “I tell all of you with certainty, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne in the renewed creation, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, governing the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 In fact, everyone who has left his homes, brothers, sisters, father, mother, children, or fields because of my name will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. 30 But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.”
20 1 The Workers in the Vineyard “The kingdom from heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. 2 After agreeing to pay the workers one denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. 3 When he went out about nine o’clock, he saw others standing in the marketplace without work. 4 He told them, ‘You go into the vineyard, too, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ 5 So off they went. He went out again about noon and about three o’clock and did the same thing. 6 About five o’clock he went out and found some others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why are you standing here all day long without work?’ 7 They told him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He told them, ‘You go into the vineyard as well.’
8 “When evening came, the owner of the vineyard told his manager, ‘Call the workers and give them their wages, beginning with the last and ending with the first.’ 9 Those who were hired at five o’clock came, and each received a denarius.
10 “When the first came, they thought they would receive more, but each received a denarius as well. 11 When they received it, they began to complain to the landowner, 12 ‘These last fellows worked only one hour, but you paid them the same as us, and we’ve been working all day, enduring the scorching heat!’
13 “But he told one of them, ‘Friend, I’m not treating you unfairly. You did agree with me for a denarius, didn’t you? 14 Take what is yours and go. I want to give this last man as much as I gave you. 15 I am allowed to do what I want with my own money, am I not? Or are you envious because I’m generous?’
16 “In the same way, the last will be first, and the first will be last, because many are called, but few are chosen.”
17 Jesus Predicts His Death and Resurrection a Third Time
When Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside and told them as they were walking along, 18 “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the high priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death. 19 Then they will hand him over to unbelievers to be mocked, whipped, and crucified, but on the third day he will be raised.”
20 The Request of James and John
Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Jesus with her sons. She bowed down in front of him to ask him for a favor. 21 He asked her, “What do you want?”
She told him, “Promise that in your kingdom these two sons of mine will sit on your right and on your left.”
22 Jesus replied, “You don’t realize what you’re asking. Can you drink from the cup that I’m going to drink from?”
They told him, “We can.”
23 He told them, “You will indeed drink from my cup. But it’s not up to me to grant you a seat at my right hand or at my left. These positions have already been prepared for others by my Father.”
24 When the ten heard this, they became furious with the two brothers. 25 But Jesus called the disciples and said, “You know that the rulers of the unbelievers lord it over them and their superiors act like tyrants over them. 26 That’s not the way it should be among you. Instead, whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave. 28 That’s the way it is with the Son of Man. He did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many people.”
29 Jesus Heals Two Blind Men
As they were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed Jesus. 30 When two blind men who were sitting by the roadside heard that Jesus was passing by, they shouted, “Have mercy on us, Lord, Son of David!” 31 When the crowd told them harshly to be silent, they shouted even louder, “Have mercy on us, Lord, Son of David!”
32 Jesus stopped and called them, saying, “What do you want me to do for you?”
33 They told him, “Lord, we want to be able to see!” 34 Then Jesus, deeply moved with compassion, touched their eyes, and at once they could see again. So they followed him.
21 1 The King Enters Jerusalem
When they came near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples on ahead and 2 told them, “Go into the village ahead of you. At once 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, tell him, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and that person will send them at once.”
4 Now this happened to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet when he said, 5 “Tell the daughter of Zion, ‘Look, your king is coming to you! He is humble and mounted on a donkey, even on a colt of a donkey.’”
6 So the disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and put their coats on them, and he sat upon them. 8 Many people in the crowd spread their own coats on the road, while others began cutting down branches from the trees and spreading them on the road. 9 Both the crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed him kept shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! How blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
10 When he came into Jerusalem, the whole city was trembling with excitement. The people were asking, “Who is this?”
11 The crowds kept saying, “This is the prophet Jesus, the man from Nazareth in Galilee.”
12 Confrontation in the Temple over Money
Then Jesus went into the Temple, threw out everyone who was selling and buying in the Temple, and overturned the moneychangers’ tables and the chairs of those who sold doves. 13 He told them, “It is written, ‘My house is to be called a house of prayer,’ but you are turning it into a hideout for bandits!”
14 Blind and lame people came to him in the Temple, and he healed them. 15 But when the high priests and the scribes saw the amazing things that he had done and the children shouting in the Temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they became furious 16 and asked him, “Do you hear what these people are saying?”
Jesus told them, “Yes! Haven’t you ever read, ‘From the mouths of infants and nursing babies you have created praise’?” 17 Then he left them and went out of the city to Bethany and spent the night there.
18 Jesus Curses a Fig Tree
In the morning, as Jesus was returning to the city, he became hungry. 19 Seeing a fig tree by the roadside, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. He told it, “May fruit never come from you again!” And immediately the fig tree dried up.
20 When the disciples saw this, they were amazed. “How did the fig tree dry up so quickly?” they asked.
21 Jesus answered them, “I tell all of you with certainty, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only will you be able to do what has been done to the fig tree, but you will also say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. 22 You will receive whatever you ask for in prayer, if you believe.”
23 Jesus’ Authority is Challenged
Then Jesus went into the Temple. While he was teaching, the high priests and the elders of the people came to him and asked, “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?”
24 Jesus answered them, “I, too, will ask you one question. If you answer it for me, I will also tell you by what authority I am doing these things. 25 Where did John’s authority to baptize come from? From heaven or from humans?”
They began discussing this among themselves: “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask us, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 26 But if we say, ‘From humans,’ we are afraid of the crowd, because everyone regards John as a prophet.” 27 So they told Jesus, “We don’t know.”
He in turn told them, “Then I won’t tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”
28 The Parable about Two Sons“But what do you think? A man had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ 29 His son replied, ‘I don’t want to,’ but later he changed his mind and went. 30 Then the father went to the other son and told him the same thing. He replied, ‘I will, sir,’ but he didn’t go. 31 Which of the two did the father’s will?”
They answered, “The first one.”
Jesus told them, “I tell all of you with certainty, tax collectors and prostitutes will get into God’s kingdom ahead of you! 32 John came to you living a righteous life, and you didn’t believe him, but the tax collectors and prostitutes did. But even when you saw that, you didn’t change your minds at last and believe him.”
33 The Parable about the Tenant Farmers
“Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a wall around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenant farmers and went abroad. 34 When harvest time approached, he sent his servants to the tenant farmers to collect his produce. 35 But the farmers took his servants and beat one, killed another, and attacked another with stones. 36 Again, he sent other servants to them, a greater number than the first, but the tenant farmers treated them the same way. 37 Finally, he sent his son to them, thinking, ‘They will respect my son.’ 38 But when the tenant farmers saw his son, they told one another, ‘This is the heir. Come on, let’s kill him and get his inheritance!’ 39 So they grabbed him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. 40 Now when the owner of the vineyard returns, what will he do to those farmers?”
41 They told him, “He will put those horrible men to a horrible death. Then he will lease the vineyard to other farmers who will give him his produce at harvest time.”
42 Jesus asked them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures, ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This was the Lord’s doing, and it is amazing in our eyes.’?
43 That is why I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce fruit for it. 44 The person who falls over this stone will be broken to pieces, but it will crush anyone on whom it falls.”
45 When the high priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they knew that he was talking about them. 46 Although they wanted to arrest him, they were afraid of the crowds, who considered Jesus to be a prophet.