New American Standard Bible (NASB)

The Transfiguration

1 Six days later Jesus took with Him Peter and James and John his brother, and led them up on a high mountain by themselves.

2 And He was transfigured before them; and His face shone like the sun, and His garments became as white as light.

3 And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him.

4 Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, I will make three tabernacles here, one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”

5 While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!”

6 When the disciples heardthis,they fell face down to the ground and were terrified.

7 And Jesus came tothemand touched them and said,”Get up, and do not be afraid.”

8 And lifting up their eyes, they saw no one except Jesus Himself alone.

9 As they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying,”Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man has risen from the dead.”

10 And His disciples asked Him, “Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?”

11 And He answered and said,”Elijah is coming and will restore all things;

12 but I say to you that Elijah already came, and they did not recognize him, but did to him whatever they wished. So also the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands.”

13 Then the disciples understood that He had spoken to them about John the Baptist.

The Demoniac

14 When they came to the crowd, a man came up to Jesus, falling on his knees before Him and saying,

15 “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is a lunatic and is very ill; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water.

16 I brought him to Your disciples, and they could not cure him.”

17 And Jesus answered and said,”You unbelieving and perverted generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him here to Me.”

18 And Jesus rebuked him, and the demon came out of him, and the boy was cured at once.

19 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not drive it out?”

20 And He said to them,”Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.

21 [But this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.”]

22 And while they were gathering together in Galilee, Jesus said to them,”The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men;

23 and they will kill Him, and He will be raised on the third day.”And they were deeply grieved.

The Tribute Money

24 When they came to Capernaum, those who collected thetwo-drachmataxcame to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay the two-drachmatax?”

25 He said, “Yes.” And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying,”What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect customs or poll-tax, from their sons or from strangers?”

26 When Peter said, “From strangers,” Jesus said to him,”Then the sons are exempt.

27 However, so that we do not offend them, go to the sea and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will finda shekel. Take that and give it to them for you and Me.”

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/MAT/17-bde00b69b47e7b8b96c995bae1f03279.mp3?version_id=100—

Rank in the Kingdom

1 At that time the disciples came to Jesus and said, “Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

2 And He called a child to Himself and set him before them,

3 and said,”Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.

4 Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

5 And whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me;

6 but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone hung around his neck, and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.

Stumbling Blocks

7 “Woe to the world because ofitsstumbling blocks! For it is inevitable that stumbling blocks come; but woe to that man through whom the stumbling block comes!

8 “If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; it is better for you to enter life crippled or lame, than to have two hands or two feet and be cast into the eternal fire.

9 If your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out and throw it from you. It is better for you to enter life with one eye, than to have two eyes and be cast into the fiery hell.

10 “See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven continually see the face of My Father who is in heaven.

11 [For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.]

Ninety-nine Plus One

12 “What do you think? If any man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go and search for the one that is straying?

13 If it turns out that he finds it, truly I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine which have not gone astray.

14 So it is notthewill of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones perish.

Discipline and Prayer

15 “If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother.

16 But if he does not listento you,take one or two more with you, so thatby the mouth of two orthree witnesses everyfact may be confirmed.

17 If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.

18 Truly I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.

19 “Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven.

20 For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst.”

Forgiveness

21 Then Peter came and said to Him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?”

22 Jesus said to him,”I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.

23 “For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves.

24 When he had begun to settlethem,one who owed himten thousand talents was brought to him.

25 But since he did not havethe meansto repay, his lord commanded him to be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment to be made.

26 So the slave fellto the groundand prostrated himself before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you everything.’

27 And the lord of that slave felt compassion and released him and forgave him the debt.

28 But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundreddenarii; and he seized him andbeganto chokehim,saying, ‘Pay back what you owe.’

29 So his fellow slave fellto the groundandbeganto plead with him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you.’

30 But he was unwilling and went and threw him in prison until he should pay back what was owed.

31 So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their lord all that had happened.

32 Then summoning him, his lord said to him, ‘You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me.

33 Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I had mercy on you?’

34 And his lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him.

35 My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart.”

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/MAT/18-09ff513221eb05bcf1656a6e1e3f09be.mp3?version_id=100—

Concerning Divorce

1 When Jesus had finished these words, He departed from Galilee and came into the region of Judea beyond the Jordan;

2 and large crowds followed Him, and He healed them there.

3 SomePharisees came to Jesus, testing Him and asking, “Is it lawfulfor a manto divorce his wife for any reason at all?”

4 And He answered and said,”Have you not read that He who createdthemfrom the beginningmade them male and female,

5 and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife,andthe two shall become one flesh’?

6 So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.”

7 They said to Him, “Why then did Moses command togive her a certificate of divorce and sendheraway?”

8 He said to them,”Because of your hardness of heart Moses permitted you to divorce your wives; but from the beginning it has not been this way.

9 And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.”

10 The disciples said to Him, “If the relationship of the man with his wife is like this, it is better not to marry.”

11 But He said to them,”Not all mencanaccept this statement, butonlythose 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 eunuchs by men; and there arealsoeunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who is able to acceptthis,let him acceptit.”

Jesus Blesses Little Children

13 Thensomechildren were brought to Him so that He might lay His hands on them and pray; and the disciples rebuked them.

14 But Jesus said,”Let the children alone, and do not hinder them from coming to Me; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”

15 After laying His hands on them, He departed from there.

The Rich Young Ruler

16 And someone came to Him and said, “Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may obtain eternal life?”

17 And He said to him,”Why are you asking Me about what is good? There isonlyOne who is good; but if you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.”

18 Thenhe said to Him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said,”You shall not commit murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness;

19 Honor your father and mother; and You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

20 The young man said to Him, “All these things I have kept; what am I still lacking?”

21 Jesus said to him,”If you wish to be complete, goandsell your possessions and give tothepoor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

22 But when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieving; for he was one who owned much property.

23 And Jesus said to His disciples,”Truly I say to you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.

24 Again I say to 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 heardthis,they were very astonished and said, “Then who can be saved?”

26 And looking atthemJesus said to them,”With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

The Disciples’ Reward

27 Then Peter said to Him, “Behold, we have left everything and followed You; what then will there be for us?”

28 And Jesus said to them,”Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

29 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or motheror children or farms for My name’s sake, will receive many times as much, and will inherit eternal life.

30 But manywho arefirst will be last; andthelast, first.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/MAT/19-ec45847e415cb418dc2844eeb0c84330.mp3?version_id=100—

Laborers in the Vineyard

1 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard.

2 When he had agreed with the laborers for adenarius for the day, he sent them into his vineyard.

3 And he went out about thethird hour and saw others standing idle in the market place;

4 and to those he said, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.’ Andsothey went.

5 Again he went out about thesixth and the ninth hour, and did the same thing.

6 And about theeleventhhourhe went out and found others standingaround;and he said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here idle all day long?’

7 They said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’

8 “When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the lastgroupto the first.’

9 When thosehiredabout the eleventh hour came, each one received adenarius.

10 When thosehiredfirst came, they thought that they would receive more; but each of them also received a denarius.

11 When they received it, they grumbled at the landowner,

12 saying, ‘These last men have workedonlyone hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day.’

13 But he answered and said to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius?

14 Take what is yours and go, but I wish to give to this last man the same as to you.

15 Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous?’

16 So the last shall be first, and the first last.”

Death, Resurrection Foretold

17 As Jesus was about to go up to Jerusalem, He took the twelvedisciplesaside by themselves, and on the way He said to them,

18 “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem; and the Son of Man will be delivered to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn Him to death,

19 and will hand Him over to the Gentiles to mock and scourge and crucifyHim,and on the third day He will be raised up.”

Preferment Asked

20 Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to Jesus with her sons, bowing down and making a request of Him.

21 And He said to her,”What do you wish?”She said to Him, “Command that in Your kingdom these two sons of mine may sit one on Your right and one on Your left.”

22 But Jesus answered,”You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?”They said to Him, “We are able.”

23 He said to them,”My cup you shall drink; but to sit on My right and onMyleft, this is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by My Father.”

24 And hearingthis,the ten became indignant with the two brothers.

25 But Jesus called them to Himself and said,”You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, andtheirgreat men exercise authority over them.

26 It is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant,

27 and whoever wishes 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 a ransom for many.”

Sight for the Blind

29 As they were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed Him.

30 And two blind men sitting by the road, hearing that Jesus was passing by, cried out, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!”

31 The crowd sternly told them to be quiet, but they cried out all the more, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!”

32 And Jesus stopped and called them, and said,”What do you want Me to do for you?”

33 They said to Him, “Lord,we wantour eyes to be opened.”

34 Moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes; and immediately they regained their sight and followed Him.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/MAT/20-759a8f08b1da775267e9d32f5e750af1.mp3?version_id=100—

The Triumphal Entry

1 When they had approached Jerusalem and had come to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples,

2 saying to them,”Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tiedthereand a colt with her; untie them and bring them to Me.

3 If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and immediately he will send them.”

4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:

5 “Say to the daughter ofZion,

‘Behold yourKing is coming to you,

Gentle,and mounted on a donkey,

Even on a colt,the foal of a beast of burden.'”

6 The disciples went and did just as Jesus had instructed them,

7 and brought the donkey and the colt, and laid their coats on them; and He sat on the coats.

8 Most of the crowd spread their coats in the road, and others were cutting branches from the trees and spreading them in the road.

9 The crowds going ahead of Him, and those who followed, were shouting,

“Hosanna to the Son of David;

Blessed isHe who comes in the name of theLord;

Hosanna in the highest!”

10 When He had entered Jerusalem, all the city was stirred, saying, “Who is this?”

11 And the crowds were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth in Galilee.”

Cleansing the Temple

12 And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves.

13 And He said to them,”It is written, ‘Myhouse shall be called a house of prayer’; but you are making it arobbers’den.”

14 Andtheblind andthelame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them.

15 But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that He had done, and the children who were shouting in the temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they became indignant

16 and said to Him, “Do You hear what thesechildrenare saying?” And Jesus said to them,”Yes; have you never read, ‘Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babiesYou have prepared praise forYourself’?”

17 And He left them and went out of the city to Bethany, and spent the night there.

The Barren Fig Tree

18 Now in the morning, when He was returning to the city, He became hungry.

19 Seeing a lone fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it except leaves only; and He said to it,”No longer shall there ever beanyfruit from you.”And at once the fig tree withered.

20 Seeingthis,the disciples were amazed and asked, “How did the fig tree witherallat once?”

21 And Jesus answered and said to them,”Truly I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ it will happen.

22 And all things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”

Authority Challenged

23 When He entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to Him while He was teaching, and said, “By what authority are You doing these things, and who gave You this authority?”

24 Jesus said to them,”I will also ask you one thing, which if you tell Me, I will also tell you by what authority I do these things.

25 The baptism of John was from whatsource,from heaven or from men?”And theybeganreasoning among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’

26 But if we say, ‘From men,’ we fear the people; for they all regard John as a prophet.”

27 And answering Jesus, they said, “We do not know.” He also said to them,”Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.

Parable of Two Sons

28 “But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go work today in the vineyard.’

29 And he answered, ‘I will not’; but afterward he regretted it and went.

30 The man came to the second and said the same thing; and he answered, ‘Iwill,sir’; but he did not go.

31 Which of the two did the will of his father?”They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them,”Truly I say to you that the tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you.

32 For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and you, seeingthis,did not even feel remorse afterward so as to believe him.

Parable of the Landowner

33 “Listen to another parable. There was a landowner whoplanted avineyard and put a wall around it and dug a wine press in it,and built a tower, and rented it out to vine-growers and went on a journey.

34 When the harvest time approached, he sent his slaves to the vine-growers to receive his produce.

35 The vine-growers took his slaves and beat one, and killed another, and stoned a third.

36 Again he sent another group of slaves larger than the first; and they did the same thing to them.

37 But afterward he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’

38 But when the vine-growers saw the son, they said among themselves, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.’

39 They took him, and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.

40 Therefore when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vine-growers?”

41 They said to Him, “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end, and will rent out the vineyard to other vine-growers who will pay him the proceeds at theproperseasons.”

42 Jesus said to them,”Did you never read in the Scriptures,’The stone which the builders rejected,This became the chief cornerstone;This came about from theLord,And it is marvelous in our eyes’?

43 Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people, producing the fruit of it.

44 And he who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; but on whomever it falls, it will scatter him like dust.”

45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard His parables, they understood that He was speaking about them.

46 When they sought to seize Him, they feared the people, because they considered Him to be a prophet.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/MAT/21-bef8ede7222d2fa15096908aa84a2780.mp3?version_id=100—

Parable of the Marriage Feast

1 Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying,

2 “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son.

3 And he sent out his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding feast, and they were unwilling to come.

4 Again he sent out other slaves saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited, “Behold, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and my fattened livestock areallbutchered and everything is ready; come to the wedding feast.”‘

5 But they paid no attention and went their way, one to his own farm, another to his business,

6 and the rest seized his slaves and mistreated them and killed them.

7 But the king was enraged, and he sent his armies and destroyed those murderers and set their city on fire.

8 Then he said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy.

9 Go therefore to the main highways, and as many as you findthere,invite to the wedding feast.’

10 Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered together all they found, both evil and good; and the wedding hall was filled with dinner guests.

11 “But when the king came in to look over the dinner guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed in wedding clothes,

12 and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you come in here without wedding clothes?’ And the man was speechless.

13 Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

14 For many are called, but fewarechosen.”

Tribute to Caesar

15 Then the Pharisees went and plotted together how they might trap Him in what He said.

16 And they sent their disciples to Him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that You are truthful and teach the way of God in truth, and defer to no one; for You are not partial to any.

17 Tell us then, what do You think? Is it lawful to give a poll-tax to Caesar, or not?”

18 But Jesus perceived their malice, and said,”Why are you testing Me, you hypocrites?

19 Show Me the coinusedfor the poll-tax.”And they brought Him a denarius.

20 And He said to them,”Whose likeness and inscription is this?”

21 They said to Him, “Caesar’s.” Then He said to them,”Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s; and to God the things that are God’s.”

22 And hearingthis,they were amazed, and leaving Him, they went away.

Jesus Answers the Sadducees

23 On that daysomeSadducees (who say there is no resurrection) came to Jesus and questioned Him,

24 asking, “Teacher, Moses said, ‘If a man dies having no children,his brother as next of kin shall marry his wife, and raise up children for his brother.’

25 Now there were seven brothers with us; and the first married and died, and having no children left his wife to his brother;

26 so also the second, and the third, down to the seventh.

27 Last of all, the woman died.

28 In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife of the seven will she be? For they all hadmarriedher.”

29 But Jesus answered and said to them,”You are mistaken, not understanding the Scriptures nor the power of God.

30 For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.

31 But regarding the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God:

32 ‘Iam theGod ofAbraham,and theGod ofIsaac,and theGod ofJacob’? He is not the God of the dead but of the living.”

33 When the crowds heardthis,they were astonished at His teaching.

34 But when the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered themselves together.

35 One of them,a lawyer, asked Hima question,testing Him,

36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?”

37 And He said to him,” ‘You shall love theLord yourGod with all your heart,and with all your soul,and with all your mind.’

38 This is the great and foremost commandment.

39 The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’

40 On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”

41 Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question:

42 “What do you think about the Christ, whose son is He?”They said to Him, “The sonof David.”

43 He said to them,”Then how does David in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord,’ saying,

44 ‘TheLord said to myLord,

“Sit atMy right hand,

UntilIputYour enemies beneathYour feet”‘?

45 If David then calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his son?”

46 No one was able to answer Him a word, nor did anyone dare from that day on to ask Him another question.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/MAT/22-68f8d8dbc5fe53f88087a7e7057c4c32.mp3?version_id=100—

Pharisaism Exposed

1 Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples,

2 saying:”The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses;

3 therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they saythingsand do not dothem.

4 They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them withso much asa finger.

5 But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden theirphylacteries and lengthen the tasselsof their garments.

6 They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues,

7 and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men.

8 But do not be called Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers.

9 Do not callanyoneon earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.

10 Do not be called leaders; for One is your Leader,that is,Christ.

11 But the greatest among you shall be your servant.

12 Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.

Eight Woes

13 “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut off the kingdom of heaven from people; for you do not enter in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.

14 [Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive greater condemnation.]

15 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.

16 “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple,thatis nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple is obligated.’

17 You fools and blind men! Which is more important, the gold or the temple that sanctified the gold?

18 And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar,thatis nothing, but whoever swears by the offering on it, he is obligated.’

19 You blind men, which is more important, the offering, or the altar that sanctifies the offering?

20 Therefore, whoever swears by the altar, swearsbothby the altar and by everything on it.

21 And whoever swears by the temple, swearsbothby the temple and by Him who dwells within it.

22 And whoever swears by heaven, swearsbothby the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it.

23 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others.

24 You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!

25 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence.

26 You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also.

27 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness.

28 So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

29 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous,

30 and say, ‘If we had beenlivingin the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them insheddingthe blood of the prophets.’

31 So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.

32 Fill up, then, the measureof the guiltof your fathers.

33 You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell?

34 “Therefore, behold, I am sending you prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city,

35 so that upon you may fallthe guilt ofall the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.

36 Truly I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.

Lament over Jerusalem

37 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling.

38 Behold, your house is being left to you desolate!

39 For I say to you, from now on you will not see Me until you say, ‘Blessed isHe who comes in the name of theLord!'”

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/MAT/23-9399e581f9d2436e3b9dc58a84fbfa5d.mp3?version_id=100—

Signs of Christ’s Return

1 Jesus came out from the temple and was going away when His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him.

2 And He said to them,”Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down.”

3 As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and whatwill bethe sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”

4 And Jesus answered and said to them,”See to it that no one misleads you.

5 For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will mislead many.

6 You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, forthose thingsmust take place, butthatis not yet the end.

7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes.

8 But all these things aremerelythe beginning of birth pangs.

9 “Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name.

10 At that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another.

11 Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many.

12 Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold.

13 But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved.

14 This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.

Perilous Times

15 “Therefore when you see theabomination of desolationwhich was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place(let the reader understand),

16 then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains.

17 Whoever is on the housetop must not go down to get the things out that are in his house.

18 Whoever is in the field must not turn back to get his cloak.

19 But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days!

20 But pray that your flight will not be in the winter, or on a Sabbath.

21 For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will.

22 Unless those days had been cut short, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.

23 Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ‘ThereHe is,’ do not believehim.

24 For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect.

25 Behold, I have told you in advance.

26 So if they say to you, ‘Behold, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out,or,’Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believethem.

27 For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes even to the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man be.

28 Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.

The Glorious Return

29 “But immediately after the tribulation of those daysthe sun will be darkened,and the moon will not give its light,andthe stars will fallfrom the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.

30 And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son ofMan coming on the clouds of the skywith power and great glory.

31 And He will send forth His angels witha great trumpetandthey will gather togetherHis elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.

Parable of the Fig Tree

32 “Now learn the parable from the fig tree: when its branch has already become tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near;

33 so, you too, when you see all these things, recognize that He is near,rightat the door.

34 Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.

35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.

36 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.

37 For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah.

38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark,

39 and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be.

40 Then there will be two men in the field; one will be taken and one will be left.

41 Two womenwill begrinding at the mill; one will be taken and one will be left.

Be Ready for His Coming

42 “Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming.

43 But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into.

44 For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not thinkHe will.

45 “Who then is the faithful and sensible slave whom his master put in charge of his household to give them their food at the proper time?

46 Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes.

47 Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions.

48 But if that evil slave says in his heart, ‘My master is not coming for a long time,’

49 and begins to beat his fellow slaves and eat and drink with drunkards;

50 the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expecthimand at an hour which he does not know,

51 and will cut him in pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/MAT/24-4105b8c0639f03648629cad44c25d532.mp3?version_id=100—

Parable of Ten Virgins

1 “Then the kingdom of heaven will be comparable to ten virgins, who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.

2 Five of them were foolish, and five were prudent.

3 For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them,

4 but the prudent took oil in flasks along with their lamps.

5 Now while the bridegroom was delaying, they all got drowsy andbeganto sleep.

6 But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meethim.’

7 Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps.

8 The foolish said to the prudent, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’

9 But the prudent answered, ‘No, there will not be enough for us and youtoo;go instead to the dealers and buysomefor yourselves.’

10 And while they were going away to make the purchase, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast; and the door was shut.

11 Later the other virgins also came, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open up for us.’

12 But he answered, ‘Truly I say to you, I do not know you.’

13 Be on the alert then, for you do not know the day nor the hour.

Parable of the Talents

14 “Forit isjust like a manaboutto go on a journey, who called his own slaves and entrusted his possessions to them.

15 To one he gave five talents, to another, two, and to another, one, each according to his own ability; and he went on his journey.

16 Immediately the one who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and gained five more talents.

17 In the same manner the one whohad receivedthe twotalentsgained two more.

18 But he who received the onetalentwent away, and duga holein the ground and hid his master’s money.

19 “Now after a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them.

20 The one who had received the five talents came up and brought five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you entrusted five talents to me. See, I have gained five more talents.’

21 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’

22 “Also the one whohad receivedthe two talents came up and said, ‘Master, you entrusted two talents to me. See, I have gained two more talents.’

23 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’

24 “And the one also who had received the one talent came up and said, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow and gathering where you scattered noseed.

25 And I was afraid, and went away and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what is yours.’

26 “But his master answered and said to him, ‘You wicked, lazy slave, you knew that I reap where I did not sow and gather where I scattered noseed.

27 Then you ought to have put my money in the bank, and on my arrival I would have received mymoneyback with interest.

28 Therefore take away the talent from him, and give it to the one who has the ten talents.’

29 “For to everyone who has,moreshall be given, and he will have an abundance; but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away.

30 Throw out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

The Judgment

31 “But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne.

32 All the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats;

33 and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left.

34 “Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

35 For I was hungry, and you gave Mesomethingto eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Mesomethingto drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in;

36 naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.’

37 Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give Yousomethingto drink?

38 And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You?

39 When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’

40 The King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine,eventhe leastof them,you did it to Me.’

41 “Then He will also say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels;

42 for I was hungry, and you gave Menothingto eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink;

43 I was a stranger, and you did not invite Me in; naked, and you did not clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.’

44 Then they themselves also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not take care of You?’

45 Then He will answer them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’

46 These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/MAT/25-b0cf7f845c8a7448a4d8394d319fe956.mp3?version_id=100—

The Plot to Kill Jesus

1 When Jesus had finished all these words, He said to His disciples,

2 “You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man isto behanded over for crucifixion.”

3 Then the chief priests and the elders of the people were gathered together in the court of the high priest, named Caiaphas;

4 and they plotted together to seize Jesus by stealth and kill Him.

5 But they were saying, “Not during the festival, otherwise a riot might occur among the people.”

The Precious Ointment

6 Now when Jesus was in Bethany, at the home of Simon the leper,

7 a woman came to Him with an alabaster vial of very costly perfume, and she poured it on His head as He reclinedat the table.

8 But the disciples were indignant when they sawthis,and said, “Why this waste?

9 For thisperfumemight have been sold for a high price andthe moneygiven to the poor.”

10 But Jesus, aware of this, said to them,”Why do you bother the woman? For she has done a good deed to Me.

11 For you always have the poor with you; but you do not always have Me.

12 For when she poured this perfume on My body, she did it to prepare Me for burial.

13 Truly I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be spoken of in memory of her.”

Judas’s Bargain

14 Then one of the twelve, named Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests

15 and said, “What are you willing to give me to betray Him to you?” And they weighed out thirty pieces of silver to him.

16 From then on hebeganlooking for a good opportunity to betray Jesus.

17 Now on the firstdayof Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Where do You want us to prepare for You to eat the Passover?”

18 And He said,”Go into the city to a certain man, and say to him, ‘The Teacher says, “My time is near; Iam tokeep the Passover at your house with My disciples.”‘”

19 The disciples did as Jesus had directed them; and they prepared the Passover.

The Last Passover

20 Now when evening came, Jesus was recliningat the tablewith the twelve disciples.

21 As they were eating, He said,”Truly I say to you that one of you will betray Me.”

22 Being deeply grieved, they each one began to say to Him, “Surely not I, Lord?”

23 And He answered,”He who dipped his hand with Me in the bowl is the one who will betray Me.

24 The Son of Manis togo, just as it is written of Him; but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.”

25 And Judas, who was betraying Him, said, “Surely it is not I, Rabbi?” Jesus said to him,”You have saidityourself.”

The Lord’s Supper Instituted

26 While they were eating, Jesus tooksomebread, and after a blessing, He brokeitand gaveitto the disciples, and said,”Take, eat; this is My body.”

27 And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gaveitto them, saying,”Drink from it, all of you;

28 for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.

29 But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.”

30 After singing a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

31 Then Jesus said to them,”You will all fall away because of Me this night, for it is written, ‘Iwill strike down the shepherd,and the sheep of theflock shall bescattered.’

32 But after I have been raised, I will go ahead of you to Galilee.”

33 But Peter said to Him, “Eventhough all may fall away because of You, I will never fall away.”

34 Jesus said to him,”Truly I say to you that thisverynight, before a rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.”

35 Peter said to Him, “Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You.” All the disciples said the same thing too.

The Garden of Gethsemane

36 Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to His disciples,”Sit here while I go over there and pray.”

37 And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be grieved and distressed.

38 Then He said to them,”My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch with Me.”

39 And He went a little beyondthem,and fell on His face and prayed, saying,”My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will.”

40 And He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter,”So, youmencould not keep watch with Me for one hour?

41 Keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

42 He went away again a second time and prayed, saying,”My Father, if this cannot pass away unless I drink it, Your will be done.”

43 Again He came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy.

44 And He left them again, and went away and prayed a third time, saying the same thing once more.

45 Then He came to the disciples and said to them,”Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, the hour is at hand and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners.

46 Get up, let us be going; behold, the one who betrays Me is at hand!”

Jesus’ Betrayal and Arrest

47 While He was still speaking, behold, Judas, one of the twelve, came up accompanied by a large crowd with swords and clubs,who camefrom the chief priests and elders of the people.

48 Now he who was betraying Him gave them a sign, saying, “Whomever I kiss, He is the one; seize Him.”

49 Immediately Judas went to Jesus and said, “Hail, Rabbi!” and kissed Him.

50 And Jesus said to him,”Friend,dowhat you have come for.”Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and seized Him.

51 And behold, one of those who were with Jesus reached and drew out his sword, and struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his ear.

52 Then Jesus said to him,”Put your sword back into its place; for all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword.

53 Or do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelvelegions of angels?

54 How then will the Scriptures be fulfilled,which saythat it must happen this way?”

55 At that time Jesus said to the crowds,”Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me asyou wouldagainst a robber? Every day I used to sit in the temple teaching and you did not seize Me.

56 But all this has taken place to fulfill the Scriptures of the prophets.”Then all the disciples left Him and fled.

Jesus before Caiaphas

57 Those who had seized Jesus led Him away to Caiaphas, the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were gathered together.

58 But Peter was following Him at a distance as far as the courtyard of the high priest, and entered in, and sat down with the officers to see the outcome.

59 Now the chief priests and the whole Council kept trying to obtain false testimony against Jesus, so that they might put Him to death.

60 They did not findany,even though many false witnesses came forward. But later on two came forward,

61 and said, “This man stated, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and to rebuild it in three days.'”

62 The high priest stood up and said to Him, “Do You not answer? What is it that these men are testifying against You?”

63 But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest said to Him, “I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God.”

64 Jesus said to him,”You have said ityourself;nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will seetheSon ofMan sitting at the right hand ofPower, andcoming on the clouds of heaven.”

65 Then the high priest tore his robes and said, “He has blasphemed! What further need do we have of witnesses? Behold, you have now heard the blasphemy;

66 what do you think?” They answered, “He deserves death!”

67 Then they spat in His face and beat Him with their fists; and others slapped Him,

68 and said, “Prophesy to us, You Christ; who is the one who hit You?”

Peter’s Denials

69 Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard, and a servant-girl came to him and said, “You too were with Jesus the Galilean.”

70 But he denieditbefore them all, saying, “I do not know what you are talking about.”

71 When he had gone out to the gateway, anotherservant-girlsaw him and said to those who were there, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.”

72 And again he denieditwith an oath, “I do not know the man.”

73 A little later the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Surely you too areoneof them; for even the way you talk gives you away.”

74 Then he began to curse and swear, “I do not know the man!” And immediately a rooster crowed.

75 And Peter remembered the word which Jesus had said,”Before a rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.”And he went out and wept bitterly.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/MAT/26-cb2a57527cee5426c56431c7efe30186.mp3?version_id=100—