Translation:Matthew

Chapter 1
This is the written record of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham, beginning with the family line:

Abraham fathered Isaac; and Isaac fathered Jacob; and Jacob fathered Judah and his brethren; and Judah fathered Peretz and Zerah (their mother was Tamar); and Peretz fathered Hezron; and Hezron fathered Ram; and Ram fathered Amminadab; and Amminadab fathered Nahshon; and Nahshon fathered Salmon; and Salmon fathered Boaz (his mother was Rahab); and Boaz fathered Obed (his mother was Ruth); and Obed fathered Jesse; and Jesse fathered King David. And David fathered Solomon (his mother had been Uriah’s wife); and Solomon fathered Rehoboam; and Rehoboam fathered Abijah; and Abijah fathered Asa; and Asa fathered Jehoshaphat; and Jehoshaphat fathered Jehoram; and Jehoram fathered Uzziah; and Uzziah fathered Jotham; and Jotham fathered Ahaz; and Ahaz fathered Hezekiah; and Hezekiah fathered Manasseh; and Manasseh fathered Amon; and Amon fathered Josiah; and Josiah fathered Jehoiachin and his brothers, at the time of the exile to Babylon. And after the exile to Babylon, Jehoiachin fathered Shealtiel; and Shealtiel fathered Zerubbabel; and Zerubbabel fathered Abiud; and Abiud fathered Eliakim; and Eliakim fathered Azor; and Azor fathered Zadok; and Zadok fathered Akim; and Akim fathered Eliud; and Eliud fathered Eleazar; and Eleazar fathered Matthan; and Matthan fathered Jacob;

and Jacob fathered Joseph, who was the husband (1:16 father) Some people believe the following:
 * 1) This text is translation of an Aramaic text. There is no evidence for this, but for religious reasons, some people believe that there was an actual person named "Matthew" who spoke Aramaic, and that this text is based on his eyewitness account. Textual analysis suggests that the text is natively written in Greek.
 * 2) Further, the word "husband" which appears here is a mistranslation of a Peshita Aramaic word loosely meaning possessor, which can be either a father or a husband, depending on circumstances.
 * 3) That this word was used instead of the word meaning "fathered" in previous clauses, because Mary is a woman, although again, there is no direct evidence for this being a translation, let alone a mistranslation.

The reason they believe all this is because Joseph is, in certain religious traditions, not the actual father of Jesus, rather the spirit of God is. Therefore the line from David through Joseph does not pass through Jesus, presenting a theological problem, since the Messiah is supposed to come from the house of David. A few of these people then sometimes give this word as "father", rather than "husband", postulating that Mary's father was also named Joseph. Quoting:


 * Matthew was originally Aramaic, and word used can be translated father or husband. Different word used because of it being in reference to a female, rather than a male. Matthew counted to 14 twice, but the third time results in 13 generations. Yet his statement says it was 14 three times. Therefore there is either a missing name or a very old mistranslation. The latter is more likely. Translator didn't realize that Mary's father's name was the same as her husband's name. It was a very common name. As the Aramaic word means both, the word husband was chosen incorrectly." of Mary, from whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.

So all the generations from Abraham up to David total fourteen; and from David up to the Babylonian exile total fourteen; and from the Babylonian up to Christ total fourteen.

The birth of Jesus Christ was like this: His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph, but before they had sexual intercourse she became pregnant by the Holy Spirit. Joseph, her husband-to-be, was a good man, and since he did not want to shame her publicly, he decided to quietly break the engagement.

As he was thinking about these things, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and told him, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary to be your wife, for she is pregnant by the Holy Spirit. She shall give birth to a son and you shall call him Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins. Now this is all going to happen to fulfill what the Lord said through the prophet, ‘Look, a virgin will become pregnant, and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel,’” which means God is with us. So Joseph woke up and did what the angel of the Lord told him to do. Joseph married Mary but did not have sexual relations with her until she gave birth to a son, whom he named Jesus.

Chapter 2
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea during the reign of King Herod, Magi came from the east to Jerusalem.

“Where is the King of the Jews who has been born?” they asked. “For we saw his star in the east and we came to worship him.”

When King Herod heard about it, he was very disturbed, as was the whole of Jerusalem. Herod summoned all the chief priests and religious teachers of the people, and asked them where the Messiah was supposed to be born.

“Bethlehem in Judea,” they told him, “because that’s what the prophet wrote, ‘You, Bethlehem in the land of Judea, you’re certainly not the least important of Judah’s leaders, for the leader will come from you who will care as a shepherd for my people Israel.’

Then Herod secretly called the Magi and established from them exactly when the star appeared. He sent them on to Bethlehem, telling them, “Once you get there, search for the child and once you find him let me know so that I can come and worship him too.”

After listening to the king they went on their way, and the star which they’d seen in the east led them onwards until it stopped right above the place where the child was. When they saw the star they were totally overwhelmed with joy. They went into the house and saw the child with Mary his mother. They bowed and worshipped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Warned by a dream not to go back to Herod, they left for their own country by a different road.

After they’d left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, and told him, “Get up, and take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, because Herod is about to start looking for the child to kill him.”

So Joseph got up and took the boy and his mother, and left during the night for Egypt, and stayed there until Herod’s death, fulfilling what the Lord said through the prophet, “I called my son out of Egypt.”

When Herod realized he’d been tricked by the Magi, he was extremely angry. He sent men to kill all the young boys two years old and under in Bethlehem and its surrounding areas, according to the time period he’d learned from the Magi. This then fulfilled the prophecy spoken through Jeremiah, which says, “In Rama a cry was heard, much weeping and mourning, Rachel crying for her children. And she refused to be comforted, because they are no more.”

When Herod died the angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, and said, “Get up and take the child and his mother, and go to the lane of Israel, because those who were trying to kill the child are dead.”

So Joseph got up and took the boy and his mother, and went back to the land of Israel. But having heard that Archelaus had followed his father Herod as king of Judea, Joseph was afraid to go there. Warned by a dream, he went to the region of Galilee, and settled down in Nazareth, to fulfill what was said by the prophets, “He will be called a Nazarene.”

Chapter 3
In those times John the Baptist came on the scene. He was in the Judean desert, telling everyone “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” He is the one Isaiah spoke about when he said, “A voice cries out in the desert, ‘Prepare the Lord’s way, straighten out the paths for him.’”

John had camel-hair clothes tied round with a leather belt. His food was locusts and wild honey. People came to him from Jerusalem, all over Judea, and all the region around the Jordan, and were baptized in the Jordan river, admitting their sins.

But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming to be baptized, he told them, “You vipers’ brood, who warned you to run from the coming wrath? Produce fruit that fits repentance, and don’t think to tell yourselves ‘Abraham is our father.’ I tell you that God could make children of Abraham out of these stones. Right now the ax is ready to chop down the trees. Every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

Yes, I baptize in water for repentance, but the one who comes after me is greater than I am, whose sandals I’m not worthy to remove. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing tool is in his hand and he will clean up the threshing floor. The wheat he will gather into the storehouse, but the chaff he will burn with fire that can’t be put out.

Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan, to be baptized by John But John tried to dissuade him. “I need to be baptized by you, and you’re coming to me?” he said.

“Let it be like this, for it’s appropriate for us to do what is right,” Jesus told him. So John agreed.

After he was baptized, Jesus immediately got out of the water, and heaven opened before him, and he saw God’s spirit as a dove descending, landing on him. A voice came from heaven, saying, “This is my son, the one I love, who pleases me.”

Chapter 4
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tested by the devil. After fasting forty days and nights, he was hungry. The tempted came and said to him, “If you really are the son of God, then tell these stones to become bread.”

“As scripture says, ‘People don’t live by just eating bread, but by every word that comes from God’s mouth,’” Jesus replied.

Then the devil took him to the holy city, and set him down on a high point of the Temple.

“If you really are the son of God, then throw yourself off,” he told Jesus, “because as scripture says, ‘He will command his angels to take care of you, and they will catch you in their hands so that you won’t fall down when you trip over a stone.’”

“Again, as scripture says, ‘You must not force the Lord your God by such testing.”

Then the devil took Jesus to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in all their majesty, and said to him, “I’ll give you all these if you bow down and worship me.”

“Go away Satan!” Jesus said to him, “As scripture says, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve him alone.” Then the devil left him, and angels came to care for him.

When Jesus learned that John had been arrested, he went back to Galilee. Leaving Nazareth, he came and lived in Capernaum, which is beside the sea in the regions of Zebulum and Naphthali. This fulfilled what Isaiah the prophet said, “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphthali, on the road to the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: The people sitting in the dark saw a great light, and to those sitting in the country of death and shadow—on them a light shined.” From then on Jesus started to preach, saying “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.”

As he walked by the sea of Galilee Jesus saw two brothers. Simon, (called Peter), and his brother Andrew were casting a net in the sea, for they were fishermen.

“Come and follow me, and I will make you fishermen of people,” he told them. Right away they left their nets and followed him. Going further on, he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets. He called them. And right away they left the boat and their father, and followed him.

Jesus travelled throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and telling the good news of the kingdom, and healing all the people from their diseases and illnesses. News about him went all over Syria, and they brought to him everyone who was sick, tormented by seizures, demon-possessed, mentally ill, paralyzed—and he healed them. Large crowds followed him from Galilee, Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and the region beyond Jordan.

Chapter 5
When Jesus saw the crowds he went up the mountain. He sat down and his disciples joined him. He started to teach them, saying:

Fortunate are the spiritually poor, for theirs is heaven's kingdom. Fortunate are the grieving, for they shall be consoled. Fortunate are the kindly, for they shall be given the world. Fortunate are those hungry and thirsty for righteousness, for they shall be filled. Fortunate are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Fortunate are the pure-hearted, for they will see God. Fortunate are those who make peace, because they'll be called children of God. Fortunate are those who've been persecuted for right, because the kingdom of heaven is theirs. Fortunate are you when people insult you and persecute you and tell all kinds of evil lies against you because of me. Celebrate, and be happy, for your compensation in heaven will be great. Because they persecuted the prophets who were before you in the same way.

You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt becomes tasteless, what can you salt with it? It’s useless. and it is tossed out where people tread. You’re the world’s light. A city built on a hill can’t be hidden. People don’t light a lamp and put it under a bucket. Instead they put it on a lamp-stand and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine in front of people, so they can see the good things you do, and praise your heavenly father.

Don’t think I came to abolish the law or the prophets’ writings. I didn’t come to abolish them, but to fulfill them. I promise you, until heaven and earth are gone, not one hyphen nor one dot will be gone from the law before everything is fulfilled. So whoever breaks the least important commandment, and teaches people to do so, will be called the least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever practices and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. I tell you, unless your righteousness is better than that of the religious teachers and the Pharisees, there’s no way you’ll enter the kingdom of heaven.

You’ve heard what was said to the people of long ago, ‘You shall not kill, and anyone who kills will be judged as guilty.’ But I tell you, anyone who’s furious with his brother is judged as guilty, and whoever calls his brother a fool is liable to the Sanhedrin council, and whoever curses people with insults is liable to hell's fire.

So if you’re at the altar making an offering, and remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering on the altar and go and make peace with him first, and afterward come back and make your offering. Agree with your opponent quickly while you’re with him on the way to court, so that he doesn’t hand you over to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer and you’re thrown into jail. I tell you the truth, you won’t get out of there until you’ve paid the last penny.

You’ve heard it said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that everyone who looks at a married woman covetously has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye leads you to sin, then tear it out and throw it away, because it’s better to lose one of part of your than to have the whole of your body thrown into hell. And if your right hand leads you to sin, then cut it off, and throw it away, because it’s better for you to lose one of your limbs than to for your whole body to go into hell.

It was also said, "Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce." But I tell you that everyone who divorces his wife except for sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery and whoever marries a divorcee commits adultery.

And again, you’ve heard what was said to the people of long ago, “You shall not perjure yourself, instead keep the oaths you make to the Lord.” But I tell you, don’t swear at all, not by heaven, because it’s the throne of God, not by the earth, because it’s God’s footstool, not by Jerusalem, because it’s the city of the great King. Don’t even swear by your head, because you’re not able to make one hair white or black. Simply say yes, or no — any more than this comes from the evil one.

You’ve heard that it was said, "An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth." But I tell you, don’t oppose an evil one. He who slaps you on the right cheek, turn the other cheek to him as well; And to whoever wants to get a judgement against you and takes your shirt, give him your coat too; and if someone forces you to go a mile, go with him two. Give to whoever asks you, and lend to whoever wants to borrow from you — don’t turn them away.

You’ve heard it was said, “Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.” But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so you may become children of your heavenly Father. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and the good; and rain fall on the righteous and the not. Because if you Love those who love you, what reward is that? Don’t the tax-collectors do that? And if you only speak kindly to your family, are you doing more than anyone else? Don’t even the Gentiles do that? Then you’ll be perfectly mature, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Chapter 6
Be careful not to do your good deeds in front of people, so they can be observed—otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven. When you give to the poor, don’t trumpet this before others like the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets so that they will be praised by people. I tell you the truth: they have already gotten their reward. When you give to the poor, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand’s doing, so that your charitable giving may be secret, and your Father who sees what happens in secret will reward you.

And when you pray, don’t be like the hypocrites because they love to stand up and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that people can see them. I promise you, they have already gotten their reward. But you, when you pray, go indoors and close the door, and pray to your Father in private, and your Father who sees what happens in private will reward you. When you pray, don’t babble on meaninglessly like the Gentiles do, who think they will be heard because of all the words they speak. Don’t be like them, because your Father knows what you need even before you ask him. So pray like this:

Our Father in heaven, may your name be revered. May your kingdom come. May your will be carried out on earth as in heaven. Please give to us today the bread we need to live each day. Forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sinned against us. Don’t bring us into temptation, and rescue us from the evil one.

For if you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you don’t forgive those who sin against you, then your heavenly Father won’t forgive your sins.

And when you fast, don’t be like the hypocrites who put on sad faces and make themselves look horrible so that they can make it obvious to people they’re fasting. But you, when you fast, wash your face and look smart, so that people won’t see you’re fasting, and your Father who sees what happens in private will reward you.

Don’t store up wealth for yourselves here on earth where moth and rust ruin it, and where thieves break in and steal. Instead store up wealth for yourselves in heaven, where moth and rust don’t ruin it, and where thieves don’t break in and steal. For whatever you value, that’s where your heart will be.

The eye is the body’s lamp. So if your eye is clear, then your whole body will be lit up. But if your eye is evil, then your whole body will be in the dark. Then if the light in you is darkness, how dark is that! No one can serve two masters. Either you’ll hate one and love the other, or you’ll be devoted to one and despise the other. You can’t serve God and Money.

That’s why I’m telling you not to worry about your life, about what to eat, or what to drink, or what clothes to put on. Isn’t life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the wild birds—they don’t sow or reap or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than them? And who of you by worrying can add a minute to your life? And why are you worried about clothes? Look at the beautiful flowers in the field, how they grow—they don’t work hard, they don’t spin thread. But I tell you, not even Solomon in all his majesty was dressed like one of these flowers. So if God decorates the grass in the field like this, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, won’t he do much more for you, you people of little faith? So don’t worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ All these things are what the pagans run after, but your heavenly Father knows everything you need. You should look for his kingdom first, and his way of doing right, and everything will be given to you. So don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow can worry about itself. Today's evil is enough for today.

Chapter 7
“Don’t judge others, and you won’t be judged. For whatever standard you use to judge others will be used to judge you, and whatever measurement you use to measure others will be used to measure you. Why do you look at the speck that’s in your brother’s eye, and don’t notice the plank that’s in your own eye? How are you going to say to your brother, ‘Let me take out the speck from your eye’ when you have a plank in you own eye? You hypocrite, first get rid of the plank in your own eye, and then you’ll see clearly to take out the speck from your brother’s eye.

“Don’t give what’s holy to dogs, and don’t throw your pearls to pigs, so that they don’t trample them underfoot and then turn and gore you.

“Ask, and it will be given to you, seek, and you will find, knock, and the door will be opened for you. Everyone who asks, receives; and whoever seeks, finds; and whoever knocks, the door is opened for them. Is there anyone of you who when your son asks for bread, you give him a stone? Or if he asks for fish, you give him a snake? If even you who’re evil know to give good things to your children, how much more will your father in heaven give good things to those who ask him.

“Whatever you want people to do to you, do to them too—this sums up the law and the prophets. Enter through the narrow entrance, for wide is the entrance, and broad the way that leads to destruction, and many go that way. But narrow is the entrance and tight the way that leads to life, and only a few find it.

Watch out for false prophets who will come in sheep’s clothing, but inside are vicious wolves. Recognize them by the fruits of their actions. Do people harvest grapes from thorn-bushes, or figs from thistles? In the same way every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire. So by their fruits you’ll know them.

Not everyone who calls me “Master, master,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, rather it’s those who do the will of my Father in heaven. There will be many who say to me in the day of judgement, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we preach for you and drive out demons in your name and performed many miracles with your authority?’ Then I’ll declare to them, ‘I never knew you—leave me you who practice wickedness.’ Everyone who hears what I say, and does what I tell them, they are like a wise man who built his house on solid rock. The rain poured down, and the floods rose, and the winds blew hard against the house, but it didn’t fall down, because its foundations were on solid rock. Everyone who hears what I say, and doesn’t do what I tell them, they are like a moron who built his house on the sand. The rain poured down, and the floods rose, and the winds blew hard against the house, and it fell down—it totally collapsed.

When Jesus finished speaking, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught like someone with authority, and not like their religious teachers.

Chapter 8
Large crowds followed Jesus after he came down from the mountain. A leper approached him and bowed down worshipping him, and said, “Lord, if you’re willing, please heal me.” Jesus reached out and touched him with his hand. “I am willing,” he said, “be healed!” Immediately his leprosy was healed.

“Make sure you don’t tell anyone,” Jesus told him. “Go and show yourself to the priest and make the offering which Moses required as public proof.”

When he entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, pleading with him, “Lord, my servant is at home, lying down, unable to walk, and in terrible agony.”

“I’ll come and heal him,” Jesus told him.

“Lord, I don’t deserve that you should come to my home. Just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I too am placed under authority, and I also have soldiers under my command. I tell one “go!” and he goes, and another “come!” and he comes, and to my servant I say “do this!” and he does.

When Jesus heard what he said, he was amazed, and told them who were following him, “I’m telling you the truth, I haven’t found such kind of trust in Israel. I assure you that many will come from the east and the west, and sit down with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, but the heirs of the kingdom will be thrown out into utter darkness where there’s weeping and grinding of teeth.”

And Jesus told the centurion, “Go home. Because you trusted what you asked for is done.” The servant was healed that very hour.

When Jesus arrived at Peter’s house, he saw that Peter’s mother-in-law had been laid low with a burning fever. He touched her hand and the fever left her. She got up and began making him a meal.

When evening came they brought to him many who were demon-possessed and he ordered the spirits to leave, and he healed all those who were sick. This fulfilled what was said through the prophet Isaiah, “He removed our diseases, and took away our illnesses.”

But when Jesus saw the crowds around him, he directed that they should go to the other side of the lake. One of the religious teachers came to him and said, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go!”

“Foxes have their dens, and wild birds their nests, but the Son of man has nowhere to lie down and rest,” Jesus told him.

Another disciple told Jesus, “Lord let me first go and bury my father.”

“Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead,” Jesus replied.

Jesus got into a boat and his disciples followed him. A great storm suddenly blew up, and waves crashed over the boat, but Jesus went on sleeping. The disciples went over to him and woke him up. “Save us Lord, we’re going to drown!” they said.

“Why are you so afraid, you who trust so little?” he asked them. Then he got up, and commanded the winds and the sea, and it became completely calm. The disciples were astonished, and said, “Who is this that even the winds and the sea obey him?”

When he got to the other side in the region of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men met him, coming out of the graveyard. They were so violent that nobody could pass by that way. They shouted out, “What business have you with us, you son of God? Have you come to torture us before our time?”

Some way off there was a large herd of pigs feeding. The demons pleaded with him, “If you’re going to drive us out, let us go into the herd of pigs.”

“Go on then,” said Jesus:

The demons left the men and went into the pigs, and the whole herd ran down the steep hillside into the sea, and drowned. The pig-herders ran away, and went to the town. There they explained everything that had taken place, and what had happened to the demon-possessed men. The whole town came out to meet Jesus and when they found him, they begged him to leave their region.

Chapter 9
Jesus got into a boat and went back across the lake to his home town. There they brought to him a paralyzed man lying on a mat. Jesus saw their trust in him and told the paralyzed man, “My friend, don’t be afraid, your sins are forgiven.”

Some of the religious teachers said to themselves, “He’s speaking blasphemy!”

But Jesus knew what they were thinking, and asked them, “Why are you thinking evil thoughts in your hearts? What’s easier to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or ‘Get up and walk’? But in order that you can be sure that the Son of man does have the authority to forgive sins,” he said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, pick up your mat, and go home.” The man got up and went home. But when the crowds saw what happened they became frightened and then they praised God that he had given such power to a human being.

As Jesus left from there he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth. Jesus said to him, “Follow me!” He got up, and followed Jesus. It so happened that as Matthew was eating at his home, many tax-collectors and sinners came and sat down at the table with Jesus and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this they asked Jesus’ disciples, “Why does your Teacher eat with tax-collectors and sinners?”

When Jesus heard the question, he replied, “People who are well don’t need a doctor, but those who are sick do. But go and find out what this means: ‘I want mercy, and not sacrifice, for I didn’t come to call those who are right, but sinners.’”

Then the disciples of John came and asked, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast frequently, but your disciples don’t fast?”

“Do the groomsmen mourn while the bridegroom is with them?” Jesus replied. “But the time is coming when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and then they will fast. And no one puts a new patch on old clothes, otherwise it will shrink and make a worse tear. People don’t put new wine in old wineskins either, otherwise the wineskins burst, and the wine spills and wineskins are ruined. No, people put new wine into new wineskins, and both are kept safe and sound.

While he was telling them these things, one of the leading officials came and bowed before him. “My daughter has just died, but if you come and place your hand on her, I know she will come back to life,” he said.

Jesus and his disciples got up and followed him. A woman who had been sick with bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his of his clothes, for she had said to herself, ‘If I can just touch his clothes, I’ll be healed.”

Jesus turned and looked at her. “Daughter, take heart, your trust in me has healed you,” he said. And the woman was cured from that moment on.

Jesus arrived at the official’s house and saw the flute-players and the crowd mourning loudly. “Please leave,” he told them, “because the girl isn’t dead, just sleeping.” But they laughed him down. Once the crowd was thrown out, he went in and took the girl by the hand, and she got up. News of what happened spread throughout the region.

As Jesus carried on from there, two blind men followed him, shouting, “Son of David, please have mercy on us!” When Jesus got to the house where he was staying, the blind men went in too.

“Are you convinced I can do this?” he asked them.

“Yes, Lord,” they replied.

Then Jesus touched their eyes, and said, “Because of your trust it will happen!” And they could see. Then Jesus gave them strict instructions, telling them “Make sure nobody knows about this.” But once they’d left they spread the word about Jesus everywhere.

As Jesus and his disciples went out, they brought to him a man who was dumb, possessed by a demon. After the demon was expelled, the dumb man spoke, and the crowds were amazed. “Nothing ever happened like this before in Israel,” they said. But the Pharisees commented, “He expels demons in the power of the leader of the demons.”

Jesus went around all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, telling them about the good news of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sicknesses and diseases. Seeing the crowds, Jesus was deeply moved with compassion for them, because they were troubled and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd. He told his disciples, “It’s a large harvest, but there are only a few workers. So pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers to his harvest.”

Chapter 10
And having called in his twelve disciples, he gave them authority over unclean spirits, so as to cast them out, and to heal every sickness and every disease. Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: First, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus who was called Thaddaeus; Simon the Kananite , and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.

These twelve Jesus sent out when he ordered them, saying, "Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter into a city of the Samaritans, But go instead to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

"And as you go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' Heal sick [people], cleanse lepers, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give. Get [yourselves] no gold, nor silver, nor copper in your belts, no wallet for the road, nor two tunics, nor shoes, nor staffs .  For the worker is worthy of his nourishment. And into whatever city or village you may go, inquire who in it is worthy, and stay there until you go out. And as you enter into a house, salute it. And if the house indeed is worthy, let your peace come upon it, but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you.

And whoever will not receive you, nor hear your words, while departing that house or that city, shake off the dust of your feet. Truly I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgement, than for that city.

"See, I am sending you out as sheep among wolves. Be therefore as wise as serpents, and as innocent as doves. But beware of men, for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues,  and you will be brought to governors and even kings because of me, for a witness to them and to the Gentiles. But when they deliver you up, do not be anxious how or what you should speak, for it will be given to you in that hour what you will speak. For it is not you that speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking in you.  And a brother will deliver up a brother to death, and a father a child.  And children will rise up against parents, and condemn them to death. And you will be hated by all men because of me, but he who endures to the end, he will be saved. But when they persecute you in this city, flee to the other, for truly I say to you, you will not have completed the cities of Israel till the Son of Man comes.

"A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for the pupil that he becomes like his teacher, and the servant like his master.  If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more those of his household? Do not, therefore, fear them, for there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and hid, that will not be known. What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, proclaim on the housetops. And do not be afraid of those who kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul.  But rather fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Aren't two sparrows sold for a penny?  And not one of them will fall on the ground without your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. So do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows. So everyone who will confess me before men, I also will confess him before my Father in the heavens. But whoever will deny me before men, I also will deny him before my Father in the heavens. Do not think that I came to spread peace on the earth. I came not to spread peace, but the sword. For I came to divide a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, a a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a man's enemies are those of his own household.

He who loves his father or mother above me is not worthy of me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after me, is not worthy of me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life because of me will find it. He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives him who sent me. He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet will receive a prophet's reward, and he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man, will receive a righteous man's reward. And whoever gives one of these little ones just a cup of cold [water] to drink, in the name of a disciple, truly I say to you, he will in no way lose his reward."

Chapter 11
And it happened, when Jesus finished directing his twelve disciples, that he left there to teach and preach in their cities. Now when John heard in prison the works of the Christ, having sent two of his disciples, he said to him, "Are you he who comes, or do we look for another?"

And Jesus answering said to them, "Go and report to John the things which you hear and see: blind people receive sight and lame people walk, lepers are cleansed and deaf people hear, dead people are raised and poor people have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who will not be offended by me."

And as they were going, Jesus began to say to the crowds about John, "What did you go out to the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? But what did you go out to see?  A man clothed in delicate clothing? But what did you go out to see?  A prophet.  Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet. For this is he about whom it is written, 'Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you.'"

"Truly I say to you, among those born of women there has not been raised up a greater one than John the Baptist. Yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven moves forcefully, and forceful ones seize it. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to receive [it], he is Elijah who is to come. He who has ears to hear, let him hear."

"And to what will I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in marketplaces, calling to their companions, and saying, 'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance.  We mourned for you, and you did not lament.' For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon!" The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say 'Look--a man [who is] a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!' And wisdom is justified by her children."

Then he began to reproach the cities in which most of his mighty works occurred, because they did not repent. "Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say to you that it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in [the] day of judgement than for you. And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades, for if the mighty works which have been done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say to you that it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in [the] day of judgement than for you.

At that time, Jesus answering said, "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from wise and prudent [people], and have revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, because so it was good in your sight. All things have been delivered to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son, except the Father, nor does any one know the Father, except the Son, and he to whom the Son wills to reveal [him]. Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take up my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am meek and lowly in heart; and you will find rest to your souls.

For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."

Chapter 12
At that time Jesus went through the grain fields on the Sabbath, and his disciples were hungry and began to pluck ears, and eat. And the Pharisees, when they saw it, said to him, "Look! Your disciples are doing what it is not permitted to do on the Sabbath."

But he said to them, "Haven't you read what David did when he was hungry, he and those with him, how he entered into the house of God, and he ate the loaves of the presentation, which it was not permitted for him to eat, nor for those with him, except only for the priests?  Or have you not read the law, that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath, and are guiltless?  But I say to you that one greater than the temple is here.  But if you had known what this is, 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the innocent.  For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath."

And having departed from there, he went into their synagogue. And see, there was a man who had a withered hand. And they questioned him, asking if it was lawful to heal on the Sabbath, to accuse him. And he said to them, "What man of you will there be, who has one sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the sabbath, will not grab it and lift it out? Then how much more is a man better than a sheep!  So then it is lawful to do good on the Sabbaths." Then he says to the man, "Stretch out your hand." And he stretched it out, and it was restored whole, as the other one.

But when they went out, the Pharisees held a counsel against him, how they might destroy him. And Jesus, knowing, withdrew from there, and great crowds followed him; and he healed them all. And he ordered them not to make him known, so that what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, saying,


 * Behold, my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased. I will put my Spirit upon him, and he will declare judgement to the Gentiles.  He will not struggle or cry out, nor will any one hear his voice in the streets.   A bruised reed he will not break, and smoking flax he will not quench, till he sends forth judgement to victory.  And in his name the Gentiles will hope.

Then there was brought to him a demonized man, blind and mute. And he healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw.

And all the crowds were amazed, and said, "Is this not the son of David?" But when the Pharisees heard, they said, This [man] does not cast out the demons except by Beelzebub the prince of demons."

And Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself is ruined, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand. And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself.  How then will his kingdom stand? And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast [them] out?  Therefore they will be your judges. But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come to you. Or how can anyone enter into the house of the strong man, and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house. He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters.

"Because of this I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven to men, but the blasphemy of the spirit will not be forgiven to men. And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him.  But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him in this present age, nor in the [age] to come.

"Either make the tree good, and its fruit good, or make the tree corrupt, and its fruit corrupt. For the tree is known by its fruit. Offspring of vipers!  How can you, being evil, speak good things?  For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man from [his] good treasure brings forth good things, and the evil man from [his] evil treasure brings forth evil things. But I say to you that every idle word, whatever men may say, they will give an account of it on a day of judgement.  For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from you."

But answering, he said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For just as Jonah was in the belly of the great fish three days and three nights, so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights.  Ninevite men will stand up in the judgement and will condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and look--one greater than Jonah is here.  A queen of the south will rise up in the judgement with this generation, and will condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and look--one greater than Solomon is here.

" And when the unclean spirit goes out from a man, it passes through waterless places, looking for rest, and does not find it. Then it says, 'I will go back into my house from which I came out.'  And when it comes, it finds the house empty, swept, and put in order.  Then it goes and takes with itself seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter in and dwell there, and the last state of that made is made worse than the first.  So it will be to this evil generation also."

And while he was still speaking to the crowds, behold, his mother and his brothers stood outside, wanting to talk with him. Then someone said to him, "Look, your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to talk with you."

But he, answering, said to the one who spoke to him, "Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?" And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, "Look--my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father who is in heaven, he is my brother, and sister, and mother.

Chapter 13
Later that day Jesus left the house, and sat down beside the lake. So many people came to him that he got into a boat and sat down, while all the crowds stood on the beach. He spoke to them about many things, using illustrations.

“The sower went out sowing, and as he was sowing, some of the seeds fell on the road, and the birds came and ate them up. Other seeds fell on stony ground where there wasn’t much earth. As soon as they sprouted, because there was no depth of soil, the sun came up and scorched them because they had no roots, and they withered. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Still other seeds fell on good soil, and produced a harvest—some one hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times what had been planted. Whoever has ears, let them hear!”

The disciples came to Jesus and asked him, “Why do you speak to them using illustrations?”

“You’re privileged to know the inner workings of the kingdom of heaven, but they’re not given such insights,” Jesus replied. “For whoever already has [understanding], to them more will be given, more than enough; but whoever doesn’t have [understanding], whatever they have will be taken away from them. That’s why I speak to them in illustrations, because seeing, they do not see; and hearing, they do not hear, nor do they understand.

“To them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled:
 * Even though you hear, you won’t comprehend, and even though you see, you won’t understand. They have a hard-hearted attitude, they don’t want to listen, and they’ve closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their ears, hear with their ears, and understand in their minds; and return to me and I would heal them.’

How good it is for your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. I’m telling you, many prophets and good people longed to see what you’re seeing, but didn’t see it, and longed to hear what you’re hearing, but didn’t hear it.

So listen to the illustration of the sower. When someone hears the message about the kingdom, and doesn’t understand it, then the evil one comes and tears away what was sown in their heart. This is what happens to the seed sown on the road. The seed sown on stony ground is someone who hears the message and immediately accepts it with joy. They last for a while, but because they don’t have roots, when problems and troubles come they immediately fall away. The seed sown among thorns is someone who hears the message and then life’s worries and the temptation of money choke the message so that they become fruitless. The seed sown on good soil is the one who hears the message, and understands it, and who produces a good harvest—some one hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times what was sown.”

He gave them another illustration. “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while his workmen slept, an enemy came and sowed darnel (false wheat) on top of the wheat, and left. So when the wheat grew and produced ears of grain, the darnel also appeared. The farmer’s workmen came to him and asked, ‘Sir, didn’t you use good seed to sow in your field? So where has the darnel come from?’ ‘This is the work of any enemy,” he replied. ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ they asked him. ‘No,” he answered, ‘in case while you’re pulling up the darnel, you uproot the wheat too. Let them grow together until harvest, and at harvest-time I’ll tell the reapers, “First gather the darnel, tie them up into bundles and burn them, then gather the wheat and put it in my barn.”’”

He used another illustration for them. “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man sowed in his field. Even though it’s the smallest of all seeds, when it’s grown it’s bigger than other plants. It grows into a tree such that wild birds haunt its branches.

He told them another parable. “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast, which a woman used to mix with three measures of flour, until all the dough was raised.” Jesus told the crowds all these things using illustrations, and didn’t speak to them without illustrations. This fulfilled the prophet’s words: “I will speak using illustrations, and I will tell things hidden from the beginning of the world.”

Then he left the crowds and went inside a house. His disciples came to him, and asked him, “Please explain to us the illustration about the darnel in the field.”

“The one sowing the good seed is the Son of man,” Jesus explained. “The field is the world. The good seed is the children of the kingdom. The darnel is the children of the evil one. The enemy that sowed the darnel is the devil, and the harvest is the end of the world. The reapers are angels. Just as the darnel is gathered up and burned so it will be at the end of the world. The Son of man will send out his angels, and they will gather up every sinful thing and everyone who does evil, and will throw them into the burning furnace, and there will be mourning and grinding of teeth. Then those who live rightly will shine like the sun the kingdom of their father. Whoever has ears, let them hear.

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. A man found it, reburied it, and happily went and sold everything he owned and bought that field. Then again the kingdom of heaven is like a trader looking for good pearls, and when he found the most expensive pearl he went and sold everything he owned and bought it. Then again the kingdom of heaven is like a fishing net thrown into the sea that caught all kinds of fish. When it was full it was dragged ashore, and the good fish were put into baskets while the bad were thrown away.

“That’s how it will be at the end of the world. The angels will go out and separate the evil from among the good, and throw them into the burning furnace where there will be mourning and grinding of teeth.

“Have you understood everything?”

“Yes,” they told him. “Every religious teacher who’s been trained in the kingdom of heaven is like a house-owner who brings out from his wealth both the new and the old,” Jesus replied.

After Jesus finished giving these illustrations, he left. He returned to his homeland and taught in the synagogue there. People were surprised, and asked, “Where does he get his wisdom and miracles from? Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother called Mary, and his brothers James, and Joseph, and Simon, and Judas? Aren’t his sisters living here among us? So where does he get all this from?” And they refused to believe in him.

“A prophet has respect, but not in his homeland nor in his family,” Jesus told them. And because they didn’t believe in him he didn’t do many miracles there.

Chapter 14
At that time Herod the tetrarch heard what Jesus was doing and he told his servants, “This is John the Baptist risen from the dead, and that’s why he has such powers!” (Herod had detained John, had him bound and imprisoned on account of Herodias, the wife of Philip, his brother. For John had told him, “It’s not lawful for you to marry her.”) Herod wanted to kill John but he was afraid of the people’s reaction because they considered John a prophet.

However, on Herod’s birthday the daughter of Herodias danced for the party and Herod was very pleased with her. As a result he promised with an oath to give her whatever she wanted. Prompted by her mother, she said, “Give me here and now the head of John the Baptist on a plate. The king was upset, but because of the oaths he’d made and the dinner guests, he ordered it to be done. He sent word and John was beheaded in the prison. John’s head was then brought on plate and it was given to the girl, who took it to her mother. John’s disciples came and took the body and buried him. Then they went and told Jesus.

When Jesus heard the news he went away by boat to a quiet place to be alone, but when the when the crowds learnt where he was, they followed him from the towns by land. When he came out, seeing the huge crowd he felt great sympathy for them and healed their sick. As evening was approaching the disciples came to him and said, “This place is a wilderness and it’s getting late—send the crowds away so they can go to the villages and buy themselves food.”

But Jesus told them, “They don’t need to leave—you give them something to eat!”

“All we have here are five loaves and a couple of fish,” they replied.

“Bring them to me,” said Jesus. He told the crowds to sit down on the grass. Then he took the five loaves and the two fish, looked up to heaven and blessed them. Then he broke the loaves into pieces and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. Everybody ate until they were full, and then they collected up the left-overs which filled twelve baskets. Those eating numbered about five thousand men, not counting women and children.

Immediately he told the disciples to go into the boat and to go back to the other side of the lake while he dismissed the crowds. Once he’d sent the crowds on their way, he went up into the mountains to pray. Evening had come and he was there all alone. By now the boat was a long way out from land, being buffeted by the waves because the wind was blowing against it. About three a.m. Jesus caught up with them, walking on the sea. When the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, screaming in fear, “It’s a ghost!”

Jesus spoke to them straight away, saying “Don’t worry, it’s me—don’t be afraid!”

“Lord, if it’s really you, tell me to walk to you in the water,” Peter replied.

“Come on then,” said Jesus. Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water towards Jesus. But when he looked around at the stormy wind, he was frightened, and started to sink. “Lord, save me,” he cried out. Straight away Jesus reached out and grabbed hold of him, and said, “You have such little trust in me—why did you doubt?” And when they got into the boat, the wind died down. All of them in the boat worshipped him, and said, “You really are the Son of God!”

Once they’d crossed the lake they arrived at Gennesaret. Once the people there realized it was him, they sent word around the whole countryside and brought everybody who was sick to him, and pleaded with him just to touch the edge of his clothes. Each one that touched him was healed.

Chapter 15
Then some Pharisees and religious teachers from Jerusalem came to Jesus and asked him, “Why do your disciples break the tradition of our forefathers and don’t wash their hands before they eat a meal?”

“So why do you also break God’s commandment because of your tradition?” he replied. “For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother, let them be put to death.’ But you say that if someone tells their father or mother, ‘Whatever your might have expected to get from me is now a gift to God,’ then they don’t have to honor their father. In this way you’ve annulled God’s word because of your tradition. You hypocrites, Isaiah prophesied about you well: ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are a long way from me. Their worship of me is pointless, for what they teach are just human ideas.’”

He called the crowd over to him and told them, “Listen, and understand: it’s not what goes in through the mouth that defiles you, but what comes out of the mouth—that’s what defiles you.”

Then Jesus’ disciples came to him and said, “You know that the Pharisees were offended by what you said.”

“Every plant that wasn’t planted by my heavenly Father will be uprooted,” Jesus replied. “Leave them alone—they are blind guides. If the blind lead the blind, then they’ll both fall into a ditch.”

Then Peter asked, “Please explain to us the illustration.”

“Don’t you understand yet?” replied Jesus. “Don’t you see that whatever goes in through the mouth passes through the stomach, and then leaves as waste? But whatever comes out through the mouth is coming from the heart, and that’s what defiles you. For evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, and blasphemy—they come from the heart, and that’s what defiles you. To eat with unwashed hands doesn’t defile you.”

Jesus left and went to the region of Tyre and Sidon. A Canaanite women from there came and cried out loud, “Lord, son of David, please have mercy on me, because my daughter is suffering badly from demon-possession.” But Jesus didn’t reply at all. His disciples came to him and begged him, “Send her away, she’s really bothering us with her shouting!”

“I was only sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel,” Jesus responded. But the woman came and knelt before him, and said, “Lord, please help me!”

“It’s not right to take the children’s food and throw it to the puppies,” Jesus told her.

“Yes, Lord, but even the puppies can eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table,” she replied.

“You have great trust in me,” Jesus answered. “May it be as you wish!” And her daughter was healed at that very moment.

Jesus left there and went towards the sea of Galilee. He went into the mountains and sat down there. Great crowds came to him, bringing people who were lame, blind, crippled, dumb, and many more. They lay them on the ground at his feet, and he healed them. The crowd was astounded at what happened, seeing the deaf speaking, the crippled healed, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. They praised the God of Israel.

Jesus called his disciples over and told them, “I feel so bad for all these people, because they’ve been with me now for three days, and haven’t had anything to eat. I don’t want to send them away hungry, in case they faint on their way home.”

“Where could we find enough bread in this empty place to feed such a huge crowd?” the disciples responded.

“How many loaves of bread have you got?” Jesus asked them.

“Seven, and a few small fish,” they told him.

Jesus told the crowd to sit down on the ground. He took the seven loaves and the fish, and after blessing the food he broke it into pieces and gave it to the disciples, and the disciples gave it to the crowd. Everybody ate until they were full, and then they collected the left-overs, filling seven baskets. Those eating numbered four thousand men, not counting women and children. Then he sent the crowds away, got into a boat, and went to the Magadan region.

Chapter 16
The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus, demanding that he show them a sign from heaven.

“When it’s evening, you say, ‘It’ll be a fine day tomorrow, because the sky is red,’ while in the morning, ‘It’ll be bad weather today, because the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to predict the weather, but you can’t recognize the signs of the times. An evil and unfaithful generations looks for a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” He left them and went away.

Going to the other side of the lake, the disciples forgot to bring bread. “Watch out and be careful of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees,” Jesus told them. “It’s because we didn’t bring any bread,” the disciples said to each other, arguing about it.

Knowing what they were saying, Jesus told them, “You who trust so little—why are you arguing among yourselves about not having any bread? Haven’t you worked it out yet? Don’t you remember the five loaves that fed five thousand, and how many baskets of left-overs you collected? Or the seven loaves that fed the four thousand, and how many baskets of left-overs you collected? How is it that you haven’t worked out that I wasn’t talking to you about bread? Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees!” Then they realized that he wasn’t warning them about yeast for bread, but about the teachings of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

When Jesus arrived in the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of man is?” “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or another one of the prophets,” they replied. “But what about you—who do you say I am?” he asked them. “You are the Christ, the son of the living God,” answered Simon Peter. “You are really blessed, Simon son of John,” Jesus told him, “For this wasn’t revealed to you by human flesh and blood, but by Father in heaven. I also tell you that you are Peter, yet on this rock I will build my church and the gates of Hades won’t overcome it. I’ll give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you ban on earthwill be banned in heaven, and whatever you allow on earth will be allowed in heaven.” Then he warned his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Christ. From then on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem, and to suffer greatly at the hands of the elders, chief priests, and religious teachers, and be killed; but that he would rise again on the third day. Peter took Jesus aside and started to reprimand him, saying “God forbid! Lord, may this absolutely never happen to you!” Jesus turned to Peter, and told him, “Get back from me, Satan! You are a temptation to me, because you’re thinking not like God, but just the way human beings think!” “If anyone wants to come with me, they must deny themselves, and pick up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, and whoever will lose their life for my sake will find it. What does it benefit anyone to gain the whole world, and lose their life? What would anyone give in exchange for their life? For the Son of man will come in his Father’s glory, with his angels. Then he will give to everyone what they deserve for what they’ve done. I assure you, there are some people standing here who won’t taste death until they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom.”

Chapter 17
Six days later Jesus took along with him Peter, James and his brother John, and went up a high mountain alone with them. Before their eyes his appearance changed. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as bright as light. Right then Moses and Elijah appeared before them, talking together with Jesus.

Peter spoke up, and said to Jesus, “Lord, it’s so good to be here. If you want I’ll make three shelters—one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”

While he was still speaking, a bright cloud came over them and a voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my son whom I love, who pleases me. Listen to him.” On hearing this, the disciples fell face down and were absolutely terrified. Jesus went over to them and touched them. “Get up, and don’t be afraid,” he told them. When they looked up they saw nobody there except Jesus by himself.

As they descended the mountain Jesus gave them strict instructions. “Don’t tell anybody what you saw until the Son of man is risen from the dead,” he told them.

“So why then do the religious teachers say that Elijah has to come first?” his disciples asked.

“It’s right to expect Elijah to come and prepare everything, but I tell you that Elijah already came and people didn’t recognize him. They mistreated him in whatever way they wanted. In the same way the Son of man will also suffer at their hands.” Then the disciples realized that Jesus was speaking to them about John the Baptist.

When they came towards the crowd a man approached Jesus, and knelt before him. “Lord, please have mercy on my son,” he said. “He’s a lunatic and suffers terribly because he often falls, into the fire or into water. I brought him to your disciples but they couldn’t heal him.”

“You people won’t trust and are so corrupt!” Jesus responded. “How long do I have to remain here with you? How long do I have to put up with you? Bring him here to me!” Jesus confronted the demon and it left the boy, and he was healed right away.

Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”

“Because you have such little trust,” he told them. “I tell you, if you have trust even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Go from here to over there,’ and it would do it, and nothing would be impossible for you.”

As they were walking together through Galilee, Jesus told them, “The Son of man will be betrayed into human hands. They will kill him, but on the third day he will rise again.” And they were terribly sad.

When they got to Capernaum, those who were in charge to collecting the half-shekel temple tax came to Peter and asked him, “Doesn’t your teacher pay the half-shekel tax?” “Oh, yes,” Peter replied.

When he returned to where they were staying, Jesus spoke first.

“What do you think, Simon? Jesus asked him. “The kings of this world, who do they collect their taxes or duties from? From their sons, or from others?”

When Peter said, “From others,” Jesus told him, “In that case the sons are exempt. But to avoid causing offence to anyone, go to the lake, and throw out a line with a hook. Pull in the first fish you catch, and when you open its mouth you’ll find a stater coin. Take it and give to them for both me and you.”

Chapter 18
Around that time the disciples came to Jesus, asking, “So who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

Jesus called over a small child and placed him before them. “I assure you, unless you change the way you think and become like little children, you won’t ever enter the kingdom of heaven. But whoever humbles themselves and is like this little child, is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever accepts a little child like this in my name accepts me. But anyone who causes one of these little ones who trust in me to sin, it would be better for them to have a huge millstone hung around their necks and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.

“Shame on the world because it baits people to sin! Temptations will surely come, but shame on the person through whom the temptation comes! If your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It’s better for you to live eternally crippled or lame rather than to have two hands or two feet and to be thrown into eternal fire. And if your eye cause you to sin, pluck it out and throw it away. It’s better for you to live eternally with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into the fire of Gehenna. Make sure you don’t look down on these little ones. I tell you that in heaven their angels are always looking at the face of my heavenly Father. What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them gets lost, won’t he leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go looking for the one that’s lost? And if he finds it, I tell you he really rejoices over that sheep more than the ninety-nine that didn’t get lost. In the same way it’s not my heavenly Father’s will that any of these little ones should be lost.

“If your brother sins against you, go to him and explain the problem, just the two of you. If he listens to you, you’ve won your brother over. But if he doesn’t listen, then take one or two more people with you, so that by two or three witnesses the truth can be established. And if he refuses to listen to them, then tell the church. If he refuses to listen to church as well, then consider him as a Gentile and a tax-collector. I tell you the truth, whatever you ban on earth will be banned in heaven, and whatever you allow on earth will be allowed in heaven.

“I also tell you that if two of you agree here on earth about something you’re asking for, then my heavenly Father will do it for you. For where two or three gather together in my name, I’m right there with them.”

Then Peter came to Jesus and asked him, “How many times should I forgive my brother for sinning against me? Seven times?”

“I’m not telling you seven times, but seventy times seven,” Jesus told him. “The kingdom of heaven is like this king who wanted to settle accounts with those servants who owed him money. When he began to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. But since he didn’t have the money to pay, his lord ordered him to be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions, so that he could be repaid. The servant fell down on his knees and said to him, “Please be patient with me and I’ll pay everything back.” The servant’s lord was sympathetic, released him, and canceled the debt. But that servant went out and found one of his fellow-servants who owed him just a hundred denaria. He grabbed hold of him around the neck and choked him, saying “Pay me back what you owe me!” Then his fellow-servant fell down and pleaded with him, “Be patient with me and I’ll pay you back.” But the man refused, and went and threw his fellow-servant into prison until he paid off what he owed.

When the other fellow-servants saw what he’d done they became very upset and went a told the lord what had happened. Then the lord recalled the man, said to him, “You evil servant! I forgave you al your debt because you asked me to. Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow-servant too, just as I had for you? His lord became angry and handed him over to the prison guards until he repaid all the debt. My heavenly Father will do the same to you unless you forgive your brothers from the heart.

Chapter 19
When Jesus finishing speaking he left Galilee and went to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan. Large crowds followed him, and he healed those who were sick there.

Some Pharisees came to put him to the test. “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?” they asked.

Jesus replied, “Haven’t you read that the one who created people in the beginning made them male and female? He said, ‘This is the reason why a man will leave his father and mother and unites with his wife, and the two become one. So they’re no longer two, but one. What God’s joined together nobody should separate.”

“Then why did Moses command a man to give his wife a written certificate of divorce and send her away?” they asked again.

“Because of your hard-hearted attitude Moses permitted you to divorce your wives, but it wasn’t like that in the beginning ,” Jesus responded. “I tell you, whoever divorces his wife except on grounds of sexual immorality and marries another commits adultery.”

“If that’s the case in marital matters, it’s better not to marry!” his disciples said to him.

“Not everyone can accept this word, only those it’s given to,” Jesus told them. “Some are born as eunuchs, some are made eunuchs by men, and some who choose to be eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Whoever can accept this, let them accept it.”

Then people brought little children to him so he could bless them and pray for them, but the disciples told the people off.

But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me—don’t stop them. The kingdom of heaven belongs to them!” He placed his hands on them to bless them, and then he left.

A man came to Jesus and asked him, “Teacher, what good do I need to do to get eternal life?”

“Why do you ask me about what’s good?” Jesus replied. “There’s only one who is good. But if you want to enter such life, then keep the commandments.”

“Which ones?” the man asked him.

“Don’t murder, don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t commit perjury, honor you father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself,” replied Jesus.

“I’ve kept all these commandments—what else do I need to do?” said the young man.

Jesus told him, “If you want to be complete, then go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you’ll have treasure in heaven. Then come and follow me.”

When the young man heard Jesus’ answer he went away very sad, because he had many possessions.

“What I’m telling you is true: rich people find it hard to enter the kingdom of heaven,” Jesus told his disciples. “I also tell you this: It’s easier for a camel [ALT: rope] to pass through the eye of a needle than for a wealthy person to enter the kingdom of God.

When the disciples heard this, they were really surprised, and said, “Then who can be saved?”

Jesus looked at them and said, “Humanly speaking it’s impossible, but all things are possible with God.”

Then Peter spoke up and said, “Look, we’ve left everything and followed you. What reward we will get?”

“I assure you that you who’ve followed me, when everything is remade and the Son of man will sit on his glorious throne, you too shall sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel,” Jesus replied.

“Everyone who has left their homes, brothers, sisters, father, mother, children, and fields, because of me—they will receive back a hundred times more, and will inherit eternal life. For many will be last who are now first, and first who are now last.

Chapter 20
The kingdom of heaven is like a man, a property-owner, who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. After agreeing with the workers to pay them one denarius for the day, he sent them to work in his vineyard. Around nine a.m. he went out and saw other people standing idle in the marketplace.

“You go and work in the vineyard too, and I’ll pay you what’s right,” he told them. So they went. Around noon and three p.m. he went out and did the same thing. At five p.m. he went out and found more people standing there.

“Why are you standing around all day doing nothing?” he asked them.

“Because nobody’s hired us,” they answered.

“You go and work in the vineyard too,” he told them.

When evening came, the vineyard owner told his manager, “Call the workers in, and pay them their wages, starting with the last workers up to the first.”

When those who were hired at five p.m. came in, they each received one denarius. So when those who were hired first came, they thought they would get more, but they also received one denarius. When they received their pay, they grumbled against the owner.

“These ones who were hired last only worked for an hour, and you’ve paid them the same as us who worked the whole day in the burning heat,” they complained.

“‘My friend, I haven’t treated you unfairly,’ the owner answered one of them. ‘Didn’t you agree with me to work for one denarius? Take what belongs to you and leave. Is it wrong for me to choose to give the same to the last workers as I gave to you? Why should you look at me badly because I want to do good?’ In this way the last shall be first and the first shall be last.”

As Jesus went to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside and on the way he told them, “Look, we’re going to Jerusalem, and the Son of man will be betrayed to the chief priests and religious teachers, and they will condemn him to death. Then he’ll be handed over to the Gentiles to mock him, whip him, and crucify him. But on the third day he will raised from the dead.”

Then the mother of sons of Zebedee came with her sons to Jesus and knelt down before him to make a request.

“What is it that you want?” Jesus said to her.

“Please designate my sons to sit beside you in your kingdom, one on the right and the other on the left,” she asked.

“You don’t know what you’re asking for,” Jesus answered. “Can you drink the cup I’m about to drink?”

“Yes we can,” they told him.

“You certainly will drink my cup,” he said to them, “but to sit on my right or on my left is not my prerogative to give. These places are prepared for those my Father wants.”

When the other ten disciples heard what they had asked, they were upset with the two brothers. Jesus called them over and told them, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles dominate their people and those in power tyrannize them. It won’t be like that for you. Whoever among you wants to be the greatest will be your servant, and whoever among you wants to be first will be like a slave—just as the Son of man didn’t come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many people.

When they left Jericho, a huge crowd followed Jesus. Two blind men were sitting at the side of the road. When they heard that Jesus was passing by, they shouted out, “Please have mercy on us, Lord, son of David!” The crowd told them off and said they should be quiet, but they shouted even more, “Please have mercy on us, Lord, son of David!”

Jesus stopped and called back to them. “What do you want me to do for you?” he asked.

“Lord, we want to be able to see,” they replied.

Jesus felt sympathy for them and touched their eyes. Immediately they could see, and they followed him.

Chapter 21
Jesus and his disciples came close to Jerusalem, entering Bethphage beside the Mount of Olives. Jesus sent two disciples, telling them, “Go into the village up ahead and right away you’ll find a donkey with a colt. Untie them and bring them to me. And if anyone says anything to you, just say ‘The Lord needs them,’ and they will be sent immediately.”

This happened to fulfill what was said by the prophet: “Tell the daughter of Zion, ‘Look, your king is coming to you, kind, and riding on a donkey—on a colt, the offspring of a donkey.”

The disciples went and did as Jesus told them. They brought back the donkey and the colt. They spread their coats on the colt, and he sat on it. Many people in the crowd laid their coats on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and laid them on the road. The crowds that went in front of him, and those following, all shouted, “Hosanna to the son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”

When Jesus arrived in Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil, with people asking “Who is this?”

“This is the prophet Jesus, the one who comes from Nazareth in Galilee,” the crowds replied.

Jesus went in to the temple of God, and threw out all the people trading there. He overturned the money-changers’ tables, and the seats of the dove-sellers, and told them, “Scripture says, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer, but you’ve turned it into a robbers’ den.’”

The blind and lame came to Jesus in the temple, and he healed them. But when the chief priests and religious teachers saw the miracles he did, and the children shouting in the temple, “Hosanna to the son of David,” they were angry.

“Don’t you hear what they’re saying?” they asked him.

“Yes,” Jesus replied. “Didn’t you ever read the scripture, ‘From the mouths of infants and babies you prepared praise’?” Jesus left them and went out of the city to Bethany, where he stayed.

The next morning as he walked back into the city, he was hungry. He saw a fig tree by the side of the road, so he went over to it, but didn’t find any fruit, just leaves.

He told the fig tree, “May you never produce fruit from now on!” Immediately the fig tree withered.

When the disciples saw what happened, they were astonished. “How did the fig tree wither right away?” they asked.

“I assure you,” Jesus replied, “If you really trust, and don’t doubt, you’ll do not just what was done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Lift yourself up and throw yourself into the sea,’ it’ll happen! You’ll receive everything you ask for in prayer, as long as you trust.”

When Jesus went into the temple, the chief priests and the ruling elders of the people came to him while he was teaching and asked, “By what authority do you do these things, and who gave you this authority?”

“I’ll ask you a question too,” Jesus replied. “If you answer me, I’ll also tell you by what authority I do these things. The baptism of John—where was that from? From heaven, or from people?

They discussed this among themselves: “If we say ‘from heaven,’ they he’ll ask us why we didn’t believe him. But if we say, ‘from people,’ we’re afraid of what the people will do, because they all consider John to be a prophet.” So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”

“So I’m not telling you by what authority I do these things,” Jesus also replied. “But what do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first son, and said, ‘Son, go to work today in the vineyard.’ The son answered, ‘I won’t,’ but afterwards he was sorry and he went. The man went to the second son, and said the same thing. He replied, ‘I’ll go,’ but he didn’t. So which of the two sons did what his father wanted?”

“The first,” they answered

“I’m telling you that tax-collectors and prostitutes are going ahead of you into the kingdom of God,” Jesus told them. “John came to you to show you the right way to live, and you didn’t trust him, but the tax-collectors and prostitutes did trust him. When you saw this, you didn’t even repent later and trust in him.

“Listen to another illustration. There was a man, a landowner, who planted a vineyard. He fenced it in and dug out a winepress, and built a watchtower. He rented it to some tenant farmers, and went away to a different country. When it was harvest-time, he sent his servants to the farmers to get his share of the crop. The farmers grabbed hold of his servants, beat one, killed another, and stoned another. So he sent more servants, and the farmers treated them the same way. So then he sent his son, saying to himself, ‘They will respect my son.’ But the farmers, when they saw the son, said to themselves, “Here’s the heir, come on, let’s kill him so we can take his inheritance!’ They took him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. So when the vineyard owner comes, what will he do to those farmers?”

They said to Jesus, “He’ll destroy those terrible men in a terrible way, and rent out the vineyard to other farmer who will give him his share of the crops at harvest-time.”

“Haven’t you read the scriptures?” Jesus asked them. “‘The stone which the builders rejected has become the main cornerstone. This was from the Lord, and it is wonderful in our eyes.’ That’s why I’m telling you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you, and will be given to a people who produces its kind of fruit. Whoever falls on this stone will be broken apart, but on whomever it falls will be smashed into dust.”

When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his illustrations, they realised he was speaking about them. 46They tried to arrest him, but they were afraid of the people, because the people believed him to be a prophet.

Chapter 22
Jesus spoke to them using illustrations again. “The kingdom of heaven is like this king who arranged a wedding celebration for his son,” Jesus explained. “He sent out his servants to call everyone who was invited to the wedding, but they refused to come. So he sent out other servants, with the instructions, “Tell those who are invited, ‘I’ve arranged everything for the wedding banquet. The bulls and fattened calves have been killed, everything’s ready—so come to the wedding!’”

But they paid no attention and went off to do whatever they wanted—one to his fields, another to his business. The rest grabbed hold of his servants and mistreated them, and killed them. The king got angry, and sent his soldiers to kill those murderers, and burnt down their town.

Then the king said to his servants, “The wedding is ready, but those who were invited weren’t worthy to come. So go out into the streets and invite everyone you find to come to wedding.” So the servants went out into the streets and brought back everyone they could find, both good and bad, and the wedding reception was full.

But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man who didn’t have a wedding robe on. He asked him, “My friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?” The man had nothing to say. Then the king told his servants, “Tie his hands and feet, and throw him outside into the darkest place, where there’ll be crying and grinding of teeth. For many are invited, but few choose to respond.”

Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they could trap him by what he said. They sent him their disciples together with representatives of Herod’s party.

“Teacher, we know that you are a truthful man, and you truly teach God’s way,” they began. “You don’t worry what people think of you and you don’t care about public recognition. So please tell us what you think. Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?”

Jesus knew their evil intentions, and asked them, “Why are you trying to test me, you hypocrites? Show me the money used to pay the tax.” They brought a denarius coin to him. “Whose image and whose name is this?” he asked them.

“Caesar’s,” they replied.

“Then give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and to God what belongs to God,” he told them. When they heard this they were astonished, and left Jesus.

The same day some Sadducees came to him. (They say there’s no resurrection). They asked him, “Teacher, Moses said that if a man dies childless, his brother should marry his widow and father children on behalf of his brother. Once there were seven brothers among us. The first married, and died, and being childless left his widow to his brother. The same thing happened to the second and third husband, right up to the seventh. Later the woman died too. So then, at the time of the resurrection, which of the seven brothers will she be married to?”

“You’re mistaken! You don’t know scriptures, or God’s power,” Jesus replied. “For in the resurrection people don’t marry, and they aren’t given in marriage. They’re like the angels in heaven. And about the resurrection of the dead: haven’t you read what God told you?-- ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ He’s not the God of the dead, but of the living.” When the crowds heard what he said, they were astounded at his teaching.

When they heard that he’d left the Sadducees speechless, the Pharisees got together to ask more questions. One of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to try to trap him: “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the law?”

Jesus told them, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with your whole heart, with your whole being, with your whole mind.’ This is the greatest commandment, the first commandment. And the second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’ The whole biblical law and the writings of the prophets hang on these two commandments.”

Since the Pharisees were gathered there, Jesus asked them a question. “What do you think about the Messiah (Christ)?” he asked. “Whose son is he?”

“The son of David,” they replied.

“So how is it that David under inspiration calls him Lord?” Jesus asked them. “He says, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, sit down at my right hand until I place all your enemies under your feet.’ If David called him Lord, how can he be his son?” Nobody could give him an answer, and nobody from that time on dared to ask any more questions.

Chapter 23
Then Jesus told the crowds and his disciples, “The religious teachers and the Pharisees have the responsibility of interpreting the law of Moses, so make sure you do and act as he tells you. But don’t do as they do—because they don’t practice what they preach. They tie up heavy burdens, and put these burdens on people’s shoulders, but they don’t lift a finger to help them. Everything they do is so people will notice them—they make themselves wide prayer boxes to wear and long tassels on their clothes. They love prominent places at banquets and the best seats in the synagogues. They love to be bowed to in the market places, and for people to call them ‘Teacher.’

“Don’t let people call you ‘Rabbi’—for only one is your teacher, and you are all brothers. Don’t call anyone ‘Father’ here on earth—for only one is your Father, who is in heaven. Don’t let people call you ‘Teacher’—for only one is your Teacher, the Messiah (Christ). Whoever is the greatest of you will be your servant. Anyone who exalts themselves will be humbled, and anyone who humbles themselves will be exalted.

But shame on you, religious teachers and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you slam the door of the kingdom of heaven shut in people’s faces. You don’t go in yourselves, yet you don’t let those who’re trying to enter to go in. Shame on you, religious teachers and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you travel over sea and land to make just one convert, and when you do, you make him twice a son of darkness [Gehenna] as yourselves. Shame on you blind guides who say, ‘If you swear by the temple, that’s nothing, but if you swear by the gold of the temple, then you’re bound to keep your oath. Blind idiots! What’s more important—the gold, or the temple that makes the gold holy? You say, ‘If you swear on the altar, that’s nothing, but if you swear on the sacrifice on the altar, then you’re bound to keep your oath. How blind you are! What’s more important—the sacrifice, or the altar that makes the sacrifice holy? Anyone who swears by the altar, swears by it and by everything on it. Anyone who swears by the temple swears by it and by the One who inhabits it. Anyone who swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and the One who sits on it.

“Shame on you, religious teachers and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You pay a tithe of mint, aniseed, and cumin, but you neglect the vital aspects of the law—doing right, giving mercy, and exercising trust. You should observe tithing, yes, but don’t forget these other things. You blind guides—-filtering out the gnat but swallowing the camel!

“Shame on you, religious teachers and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but inside you’re full of greed and self-indulgence. You blind Pharisee—first clean the inside of the cup and the plate, so that the outside will be clean too.

“Shame on you, religious teachers and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You’re like white-washed tombs that look good on the outside but inside are full of skeletons and all kinds of unclean things. You’re just the same. On the outside you appear law-abiding to people, but on the inside you’re full of hypocrisy and law-breaking.

“Shame on you, religious teachers and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build memorial tombs for the prophets, and decorate the tombs of the good, and you say, ‘If we’d lived in our forefathers’ times we wouldn’t have joined them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ By saying this you prove to yourselves that you belong to those who murdered the prophets. Go on—finish it all off using your forefathers’ methods! You snakes, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the judgement of condemnation [Gehenna]?

“Look, that’s why I’m sending you prophets, wise men, and teachers. Some of them you’ll kill, some of them you’ll crucify, and some of them you’ll flog in your synagogues and chase from town to town. Consequently you’ll be held accountable for all the blood of the good, poured out on the land—from the blood of Abel who did what was right to the blood of Zachariah son of Barachiah, who you killed between the temple and the altar.

“I assure you, all this will come down on this generation. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to you! So often I wanted to gather your children like a mother hen gathers her chicks under her wings—but you didn’t want to. Now look—your house is left abandoned, deserted. I tell you this—you won’t see me again until you say, “blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.”

Chapter 24
As Jesus was leaving the temple his disciples came to him, pointing proudly to the temple buildings. But Jesus responded, “You see all these buildings. I guarantee that there won’t be one stone left upon another—all will come crashing down!”

As Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him in private, and asked, “Please explain to us when this will happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and the end of the world?”

“Be careful no one misleads you,” Jesus replied. “Many will come claiming to be me, saying, ‘I’m the Messiah [Christ],’ and will deceive many people. You’ll be hearing about wars, and reports of wars, but don’t be anxious. These things have to happen, but that’s not the end of it all. Nations will rise up to fight against other nations, and kingdoms will fight against kingdoms; there’ll be famines and earthquakes from place to place, but all such things are just the first of the coming birth pains.

Then they’ll arrest you, persecute you, and kill you. All people will hate you because of me. At that time many believers will give up, betray one another, and hate one another. Many false prophets will come and deceive many people. The increasing evil will lead the love of many to grow cold, but whoever holds out to the end will be saved. This good news of the kingdom will be publicly announced around the whole world so everyone can hear it, and then the end will come. So when you see standing in the holy place the ‘evil that defiles’ which was communicated through the prophet Daniel (whoever reads this let them think about it carefully), then those living in Judea should run away to the mountains. Whoever is on the housetop—don’t go down and get what’s in the house. Whoever is out in the fields—don’t go back to get your coat. How sad for those who are pregnant, and those who are nursing babies at that time! Pray that you don’t have to run away in winter, or on the Sabbath day. For then there’ll be such great persecution as never before—not from the beginning of the world up till now, and won’t be ever again. Unless those days are cut short, nobody would be saved, but for the sake of the chosen the days will be cut short.

So then if anyone tells you, ‘Look, the Messiah’s here—or here,’ don’t believe it. For false messiahs will come along, and false prophets too, and they will perform incredible signs and miracles in order to deceive the chosen, if that were possible. See, I’ve told you this before it happens. So if they tell you, ‘Look, he’s in the desert,’ don’t go looking; or ‘Look, he’s here inside,’ don’t believe it. For the coming of the Son of man will be lightning flashing brightly from east to west. ‘Vultures gather where the carcass is.’

But right after the persecution of that time the sun will be darkened and the moon will not shine, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the heavenly powers will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of man will appear in heaven, and all the peoples of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and brilliant majesty. With a trumpet blast he will send out his angels, and they’ll bring together his chosen from every direction, from one end of heaven and earth to the other.

Learn an illustration from the fig tree. When its shoots become tender and leaves sprout, you know that summer is near. In the same way when you see all things happening, you know that his coming is near, right at the door! I assure you that this generation won’t pass away until all these things have happened. Heaven and earth may pass away, but my words won’t pass away.

Yet no one knows the day or hour when this will be, not the angels in heaven, nor the Son. Only the Father knows. Just as in the time of Noah, so the coming of the Son of man will be. For just as in the days before the flood when they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, right up until the day that Noah went into the Ark, and they didn’t realize what was happening until the flood came and swept them all away—so the coming of the Son of man will be.

Two men will be in the fields—one will be taken, the other left. Two women will be grinding at the mill—one will be taken, the other left. So stay awake, because you don’t know what day your Lord is coming. But think about this: if the house-owner knew what time a thief was coming, he would keep watch, and would not allow his house to be burgled. You too need to be ready, because the Son of man is coming when you don’t expect him.

For who is the trusted and thoughtful servant—the one his lord puts in charge of his household, to provide them with food at the right time? How good it will be for that servant to be found doing just that when his lord returns! I guarantee that he will put that servant in charge over everything he has. But if he was evil, the servant would say to himself, ‘My lord is taking a long time,’ and would start to beat the other servants, to feast and drink with the drunks. Then the lord of that servant would return when the man wasn’t expecting, and at a time he didn’t know. He would cut him to pieces, and place him with hypocrites where there’s weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Chapter 25
“The kingdom of heaven is like ten girls, who took their lamps to go and meet the bridegroom. Five were foolish and five were wise. For the foolish girls took their lamps but didn’t take any oil, while the wise took oil with them as well as their lamps. The bridegroom took a long time and all the girls became drowsy and fell asleep. At midnight came the shout, ‘Look, here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ All the girls got up and trimmed the wicks of their lamps. The foolish girls said to the wise ones, ‘Give us some of your oil, because our lamps are going out.’ But the wise girls replied, ‘No, because otherwise there won’t be enough for both you and us. Go to the vendors and buy some for yourselves.’ While they went to buy oil, the bridegroom arrived, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding, and the door was closed. The other girls came later. ‘Lord, lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us.’ But he answered, ‘In all honesty, I don’t know you.’ So stay awake, because you don’t know the day, or the hour.

“It’s like a man who’s leaving on a trip who called in his servants and entrusted them with what he owned. To one of them he gave five [silver] talents, to another he gave two, and to another one, according to their capabilities. Then he left. Immediately the one with five talents went and put them to work in business trading and made another five talents. In the same way the one with two talents made another two. But the man who’d received the one talent went and dug a hole and hid his master’s silver. A long time later the master of those servants returned, and settled accounts with them. The one with five talents came and presented the other five talents. “Master, you gave me five talents. Look, I’ve made a profit of five talents.’ His master said to him, ‘You’ve done well, good and faithful servant, you have proved trustworthy over small things, so now I’m placing you in charge over many things. Be happy because I’m really pleased with you! The one with two talents also came. “Master, you gave me two talents. Look, I’ve made a profit of two talents.’ His master said to him, ‘You’ve done well, good and faithful servant, you have proved trustworthy over small things, so now I’m placing you in charge over many things. Be happy because I’m really pleased with you!

“The man with one talent also came. “Master, I know that you’re a hard man. You reap where you didn’t sow, and you harvest crops you didn’t plant. So because I was afraid I went and buried your talent in the ground. Look, you can have back what belongs to you.” But his master answered him, “You wicked and lazy servant! You think I reap where I don’t sow, and harvest crops I didn’t plant. Then you should have deposited my silver in the bank so that when I returned I could have had my money with interest. So take the talent away from him, and give it to the one with ten talents. For everyone who has will be given more, lots more; and everyone who doesn’t have anything, even what they have will be taken away from them. And throw this useless servant out into the darkness where there’ll be crying and gnashing of teeth.

“But when the Son of man comes in his glorious majesty, and all the angels with him, then he’ll sit on his glorious throne. Everyone will be brought before him, and he’ll separate them from one another, just like a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He’ll put the sheep on his right hand, and the goats on his left. Then the king will tell the ones on his right, ‘You are the ones my Father speaks well of. Come and inherit the kingdom that’s been prepared for you from the beginning of the world. For I was hungry, and you gave me food to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink; I was a stranger and you invited me in; I was naked and you clothed me; I was sick and you looked after me; I was in prison and you visited me. Then those who lived for the right will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and fed you, or thirsty and gave you a drink? When did we see you as a stranger and invited you in, or naked and clothed you? When did we see you sick, or in prison, and visited you?’ The king will tell them, ‘I assure you that whatever you did to one of these least-important brothers of mine, you did to me.

“He’ll also tell those on his left, ‘Go away from me, you who are doomed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels! For I was hungry and you didn’t give me anything to eat; I was thirsty and you didn’t give me a drink. I was a stranger and you didn’t invite me in; I was naked and you didn’t clothe me; sick and in prison and you didn’t visit me.’ Then they too will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and didn’t look after you?’ Then he will tell them, ‘I assure you that whatever you didn’t do for these least-important brothers of mine, you didn’t do for me.’ And they will go away into eternal condemnation, but those who lived for the right will enter eternal life.

Chapter 26
After Jesus finished explaining all this, he told his disciples, “You know that the Passover will be here in two days time, and the Son of man will be betrayed to be crucified.”

The chief priests and the elders of the people assembled in the courtyard of Caiaphas, the high priest. There they plotted to detain Jesus on some pretext, and kill him. But they said, “Let’s not do this during the festival so that the people won’t riot.”

While Jesus was staying in Bethany, at Simon the leper’s house, a woman came over to him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume. She poured it on Jesus’ head while he was sitting eating. But when the disciples saw what she did, they were incensed.

“What’s all this waste for?” they questioned. “This perfume could’ve been sold at a high price, and the money given to the poor!”

Realizing what was going on, Jesus told them, “Why are you upset at this woman? She’s done something good for me! You’ll always have the poor around you, but you won’t always have me around. In pouring this perfume on my body she’s prepared me for burial. Believe me when I tell you that wherever in the world this good news is spread, what this woman has done will also be reported, in memory of her.”

Then Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve disciples, went to the chief priests and asked them, “What’ll you give me for handing Jesus over to you?” They paid him thirty silver coins. From then on he looked for the chance to betray Jesus.

On the first day of the festival of unleavened bread, the disciples came to Jesus and asked him, “Where do you want us to prepare Passover for you?”

Jesus told them, “Go into the city and find this particular man, and tell him, ‘The Teacher says, “My time is near. I’m coming to celebrate Passover at your house, together with my disciples.”’ The disciples did as Jesus told them, and prepared the Passover meal.

When evening came he sat down to eat with the twelve. While they were eating he told them, “I’m telling you the truth: one of you is going to betray me.”

Terribly upset, each one of them began asking him, “Lord, it’s not me, is it?”

“The one who’s dipping his hand into the dish with me is the same one who’ll betray me,” Jesus replied. “The Son of man will die just as was prophesied about him, but shame on the man through whom the Son of man is betrayed! It would be better for that man if he’d never been born!”

Judas, the one who did betray Jesus, asked “It’s not me, is it, Rabbi?”

“You said it,” Jesus replied.

While they were eating, Jesus took some bread and blessed it. Then he broke it and gave pieces to the disciples. “This is my body—take and eat it,” said Jesus. Then he picked up the cup, blessed it, and gave it to them. “All of you, drink from it,” he told them. “For this is my blood of the covenant, poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. However, I tell you, I won’t drink this fruit of the vine until the day I drink it new with you in the kingdom of my Father.” After they’d sung a song, they went to the Mount of Olives.

“All of you will give up on me tonight,” Jesus told them. “As scripture says, ‘I will hit the shepherd, and the flock of sheep will be completely scattered.’ But after I rise again, I’ll go ahead of you to Galilee.”

But Peter objected, “Even if everyone else gives up on you, I’ll never give up on you.”

“I’m telling you the truth,” Jesus told him, “This very night, before the cock crows, you’ll deny me three times.”

“Even if I have to die with you, I’ll never deny you!” Peter insisted. All the disciples said the same thing.

Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane and told them, “Sit down here while I go over there and pray.” He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee with him, and he began to suffer sorrow and distress. Then he said to them, “I am overwhelmed with such sadness that it’s killing me. Wait here and stay awake with me.” He went a little further forward, and fell face down, and prayed.

“My Father, please, if it’s possible, let this cup of suffering pass me,” Jesus asked. “Even so, not what I want but what you want.”

He returned to the disciples and found them asleep. He said to Peter, “What, you weren’t able to stay awake with me for one hour? Stay awake and pray, so that you don’t fall into temptation. Certainly the spirit is keen, but the body is feeble.” He went away a second time and prayed.

“My Father, if this can’t pass me by, and I have to drink it, then may it be as you wish,” he said. He went back and found them sleeping for their eyes were heavy with sleep. Then he left then once more, went off, and prayed a third time, saying the same things. Then he returned to the disciples, and told them, “Still sleeping and resting? Look, the time has come, and the Son of man is being betrayed to the hands of sinners! Get up, let’s go! Look, the one who’s betraying me is here.”

While he was still speaking, Judas, one of the twelve, arrived with a large mob armed with swords and clubs. They’d been sent by the chief priests and elders of the people. The betrayer had given them a signal: “The one that I kiss, that’s him—arrest him,” he’d told them.

Right away he came up to Jesus, and said, “Hello, Rabbi,” and kissed him.

“My friend, do what you came to do,” Jesus said to Judas. So they came and grabbed Jesus, and arrested him.

One of those with Jesus reached for his sword and pulled out it out, and struck the high priest’s servant, cutting off his ear. But Jesus said to him, “Put your sword away. Everyone who picks up a sword will die by the sword. Don’t you think I can’t ask my Father, and he’d send right now more than twelve legions of angels? And how could the scriptures be fulfilled that say it must be like this?”

Then Jesus told the crowds, “Have you come with swords and clubs to arrest me as if I was a robber? Every day I was sitting in the temple teaching and you didn’t arrest me. But all this has happened to fulfill what the prophets wrote.” Then all the disciples abandoned him and ran away.

Those who’d arrested Jesus took him to the home of Caiaphas, the high priest, where the religious teachers and elders were gathered. Peter followed him at a distance, and went into the courtyard of the high priests, and sat with the guards to see how it would end up.

The chief priests and the whole council were trying to find some false evidence against Jesus so they could have him killed. But they couldn’t find anything, even though many false witnesses came forward. Eventually two came along and reported, “This man said, “I can destroy God’s temple, and rebuild it in three days.’”

The high priest stood up and asked Jesus, “Aren’t you going to say anything in reply? What do you have to say in your defence?” But Jesus remained silent.

The high priest said to Jesus, “I place you under oath by the living God—tell us if you are the Christ, the son of God.”

“You said so,” Jesus replied. “And I also tell you that from now on you’ll see the Son of man sitting at the right hand of the One with power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

Then the high priest tore his clothes, and said, “He blasphemed! Why do we need any witness? Look, you heard blasphemy right now! What’s your decision?”

“He deserves to die!” they answered. Then they spat in his face and beat him up. Some of them slapped him with their hands, and said, “Prophesy to us, you ‘Christ’—who just hit you?”

Meanwhile Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard, and a servant girl came up to him, and said, “You were with Jesus the Galilean too!” But he denied it in front of everyone. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said. He went out into the entrance way where someone else saw him and said to the people there, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” Once again he denied it with an oath, “I don’t know this man.” A little while later the people standing there came up to Peter and said, “You really are one of them—your accent gives you away.” Then he started to curse and swear, “I don’t know the man!” And right away the cock crowed.

Then Peter remembered what Jesus had told him: “Before the cock crows three times you will totally deny knowing me.” He went outside and wept bitterly.

Chapter 27
When morning came all the chief priests and elders of the people consulted together and decided to have Jesus condemned to death. They tied him up, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate, the governor.

When Judas, the one who’d betrayed Jesus, saw that Jesus had been condemned to death, regretted what he’d done and returned the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders. “I’ve sinned—I’ve betrayed innocent blood!” he told them.

“What’s that got to do with us?” they replied. “That’s your problem!” Judas threw the silver coins into the sanctuary and left. He went off and hanged himself. The chief priests took the silver coins and said, “It wouldn’t be right to put this in the temple treasury, because it’s blood money.” So they met together and decided to buy the potter’s field as a place to bury foreigners. That’s why that field is still called today the “Field of Blood.” This fulfilled the prophecy spoken through the prophet Jeremiah: “They took thirty silver coins, the ‘value’ of the one who was bought, priced by some of the children of Israel, and used them to pay for the potter’s field, just as the Lord ordered me to do.”

Jesus was brought before the governor, and the governor asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?”

“You say so,” Jesus replied. The chief priests and elders brought charges against him, but Jesus did not answer them.

“Don’t you hear how many charges they’re bringing against you?” Pilate asked him. But Jesus didn’t say anything, not a single word—which greatly surprised the governor.

During the festival it was the custom of the governor to lease to the crowd whichever prisoner they wanted. At that time a notorious prisoner called Barabbas was being held. So when he went to see the crowds, Pilate asked them, “Who do you want me to release to you? Barabbas, or Jesus, called the Christ?” (He knew it was because of jealousy that they had handed Jesus over to him to be tried.). While he was sitting on the judge’s seat, his wife sent a message to him that said, “Don’t do anything to this good man, because today I’ve suffered terribly because of a dream about him.”

But the chief priests and the elders convinced the crowds to ask for Barabbas, and that Jesus should die. When the governor asked them, “So which of the two do you want me to release to you?” they said, “Barabbas.”

“Then what shall I do with Jesus, the Christ?” he asked them.

They all shouted out, “Let him be crucified!”

“Why—what crime has he committed?” Pilate asked. But they shouted out even louder, “Let him be crucified!”

When Pilate saw it was a lost cause, and that a riot was developing, he took some water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. “I’m innocent of this man’s blood. It’s down to you!” All the people answered, “May his blood be on us, and on our children!” Then he released Barabbas to them, but he had Jesus whipped and sent to be crucified.

The governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the Praetorium and the whole troop surrounded him. They stripped him and put a scarlet cloak on him. They made a crown of thorns and placed it on his head, and a stick inn his right hand, and they knelt down in front of him and mocked him, saying “We salute you, King of the Jews!” They spat on him, and took the stick and hit him over the head with it. When they’d finished mocking him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes back on him, and led him away to crucify him. On the way they found a man called Simon, from Cyrenia, and they made him carry Jesus’ cross.

They arrived at Golgotha, meaning “Place of the Skull,” and they gave him wine mixed with gall. But having tasted it, he refused to drink it. Once they had crucified him, they rolled dice to share out his clothes. They sat down and kept watch over him there. They placed a sign with the charge against him over his head that read, “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.” Then they crucified two criminals with him, one on the right, and one on the left. Those who passed by shouted insults at him, shaking their heads, and saying, “You who promised to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you really are the Son of God, then come down from the cross.” The chief priests mocked him in the same way, along with the religious teachers and elders. “He saved other people, but he can’t save himself!” they said. “If he’s the king of Israel, let him come down from the cross, and then we’ll believe in him! He so confidently trusts God—well let God rescue him now if he wants him, because he claimed ‘I am the Son of God.’” The criminals crucified with him also insulted him the same way.

From noon until 3 p.m. darkness covered the whole country. At about 3 p.m. Jesus shouted out loud, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? which means, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” When some those standing there heard this, they said, “He’s calling for Elijah!” Immediately one of them ran and grabbed a sponge, filled it with vinegar, put it on a stick, and gave it to Jesus to drink. But the others said, “Leave him alone—let’s see if Elijah will come to save him.”

Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and breathed his last. Right then the veil of the temple was torn apart from top to bottom. The ground shook, the rocks split apart, and the graves opened—and many bodies of the good were raised. After the resurrection of Jesus they went out from the graveyard and into the holy city [Jerusalem], where many people saw them.

The centurion and those with him guarding Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and what happened, were terribly afraid, and said, “This surely was the Son of God!” There were also many women watching from a distance, the one who had followed Jesus from Galilee, supporting him. These included Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.

When evening came, a rich man named Joseph, from Arimathea, (who was also a disciple of Jesus), went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Pilate ordered it to be handed over. Joseph took the body and wrapped it up in a clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb, cut out of the rock. He rolled a large rock across the entrance to the tomb, and left. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb.

The next day, [the Sabbath] after the Preparation day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went together to see Pilate, and said:

“Sir, we recall that the imposter said while he was still alive, ‘After three days, I’ll rise again.’ Give the order to secure the tomb until the third day, so that his disciples don’t come and steal his body and tell people that he was raised from the dead, and the deception in the end will be worse than at the beginning.”

“I’ll give you a guard of soldiers,” Pilate told them. “Now go, and make it as secure as you know how.”

So they went and secured the tomb, sealing the entrance stone, with the soldiers posted as guards.

Chapter 28
Early Sunday morning, as dawn broke, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the tomb. All of a sudden there was a tremendous earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and rolled away the stone, and sat on it. His face blazed like lightning, and his clothes were as a white as snow. The guards shook with fear, stunned as if they were dead.

The angel told the women, “Don’t be afraid! I know you’re looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He’s not here, because he’s risen, just as he said he would. Come and see where the Lord was lying. Now go quickly and tell his disciples that he’s risen from the dead and he’s going on ahead of you to Galilee. You’ll see him there—I promise you!”

They left the tomb quickly, both afraid and very happy, running to tell his disciples. There Jesus met them, saying “Welcome!” They went over to him and grabbed hold of his feet, and worshipped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t be afraid! Go and tell my brothers to leave for Galilee, and I’ll see them there.”

As they left, some of the guards came into the city and explained to the chief priests everything that had happened. After the chief priests had met with the elders, and worked out a plan, they gave a lot of money to the soldiers.

“Tell people that his disciples came during the night and stole him while we were sleeping,” they told them. “And if the governor hears this, we’ll talk to him and you won’t have to worry.”

So they took the money, and did what they were told, and this story was spread among the Jewish people, right up to today.

But the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain Jesus had decided on. When they saw him they worshipped him, though some doubted. Jesus came to them and told them, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. So go and make disciples of all people in the world, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Teach them to follow everything I have told you. Remember, I am always with you, right up to the end of the world.”

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