Matthew 16:1-21:46 And the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and trying him asked him to show them a sign from heaven.

JPS_ASV_Byz⁽ⁱ⁾ ¹ And the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and trying him asked him to show them a sign from heaven. ² But he answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather; for the heaven is red. ³ And in the morning, It will be foul weather to-day; for the heaven is red and lowering. Ye know how to discern the face of the heaven, but ye cannot discern the signs of the times. ⁴ An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign, and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of Jonah the prophet. And he left them, and departed. ⁵ And his disciples came to the other side and forgot to take bread. ⁶ And Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. ⁷ And they reasoned among themselves, saying, We took no bread. ⁸ And Jesus perceiving it, said unto them, O ye of little faith, why reason ye among yourselves, because ye took no bread? ⁹ Do ye not yet perceive, neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets ye took up? ¹⁰ Neither the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many baskets ye took up? ¹¹ How is it that ye do not perceive that not concerning bread spake I to you, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees? ¹² Then understood they that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees. ¹³ Now when Jesus came into the parts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Who do men say that I, the Son of man, am? ¹⁴ And they said, Some say John the Baptist, some, Elijah, and others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets. ¹⁵ He saith unto them, But who say ye that I am? ¹⁶ And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. ¹⁷ And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jonah; for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father who is in heaven. ¹⁸ And I also say unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. ¹⁹ And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. ²⁰ Then charged he his disciples that they should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ. ²¹ From that time began Jesus to show unto his disciples, that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and the third day be raised up. ²² And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord; this shall never be unto thee. ²³ But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan; thou art a stumbling-block unto me; for thou mindest not the things of God, but the things of men. ²⁴ Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. ²⁵ For whosoever would save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life for my sake shall find it. ²⁶ For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and forfeit his life? or what shall a man give in exchange for his life? ²⁷ For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and then shall he render unto every man according to his deeds. ²⁸ Verily I say unto you, there are some that stand here, who shall in no wise taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom. ¹⁷ ¹ And after six days Jesus taketh with him Peter, and James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into a high mountain apart: ² and he was transfigured before them, and his face did shine as the sun, and his garments became white as the light. ³ And behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elijah talking with him. ⁴ And Peter answered, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here; if thou wilt, I will make here three tabernacles, one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah. ⁵ While he was yet speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and behold, a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, hear ye him. ⁶ And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid. ⁷ And Jesus came and he touched them and said, Arise, and be not afraid. ⁸ And lifting up their eyes, they saw no one, save Jesus only. ⁹ And as they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man riseth from the dead. ¹⁰ And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elijah must first come? ¹¹ And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elijah indeed cometh, and shall restore all things; ¹² but I say unto you, that Elijah is come already, and they knew him not, but did unto him whatsoever they would. Even so shall the Son of man also suffer of them. ¹³ Then understood the disciples that he spake unto them of John the Baptist. ¹⁴ And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a man, kneeling to him, ¹⁵ and saying, Lord, have mercy on my son; for he is epileptic, and suffereth grievously, for oft-times he falleth into the fire, and oft-times into the water. ¹⁶ And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him. ¹⁷ And Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I bear with you? bring him hither to me. ¹⁸ And Jesus rebuked him, and the demon went out of him; and the boy was cured from that hour. ¹⁹ Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast it out? ²⁰ And Jesus said unto them, Because of your little faith; for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place, and it shall remove, and nothing shall be impossible unto you. ²¹ But this kind goeth not out save by prayer and fasting. ²² And while they abode in Galilee, Jesus said unto them, The Son of man shall be delivered up into the hands of men, ²³ and they shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised up. And they were exceeding sorry. ²⁴ And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received the half-shekel came to Peter, and said, Doth not your teacher pay the half-shekel? ²⁵ He saith, Yea. And when he was come into the house, Jesus spake first to him, saying, What thinkest thou, Simon? the kings of the earth, from whom do they receive toll or tribute? from their sons, or from strangers? ²⁶ Peter saith unto him, From strangers, Jesus said unto him, Therefore the sons are free. ²⁷ But, lest we cause them to stumble, go thou to the sea, and cast a hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up, and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a shekel; that take, and give unto them for me and thee. ¹⁸ ¹ In that hour came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven? ² And Jesus called to him a little child, and set him in the midst of them, ³ and said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye turn, and become as little children, ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven. ⁴ Whosoever therefore will humble himself as this little child, the same is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. ⁵ And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me; ⁶ But whoso shall cause one of these little ones that believe on me to stumble, it is profitable for him that a great millstone should be hanged on his neck, and that he should be sunk in the depth of the sea. ⁷ Woe unto the world because of occasions of stumbling! for it must needs be that the occasions come, but woe to that man through whom the occasion cometh! ⁸ And if thy hand or thy foot causeth thee to stumble, cut it off, and cast it from thee; it is good for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into the eternal fire. ⁹ And if thine eye causeth thee to stumble, pluck it out, and cast it from thee; it is good for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into the hell of fire. ¹⁰ See that ye despise not one of these little ones, for I say unto you, that in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father who is in heaven. ¹¹ For the Son of man came to save that which was lost. ¹² How think ye? if any man have a hundred sheep, and one of them be gone astray, doth he not leave the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh that which is gone astray? ¹³ And if so be that he find it, verily I say unto you, he rejoiceth over it more than over the ninety and nine which have not gone astray. ¹⁴ Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish. ¹⁵ And if thy brother sin against thee, go and show him his fault between thee and him alone; if he hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. ¹⁶ But if he hear thee not, take with thee one or two more, that at the mouth of two witnesses or three every word may be established. ¹⁷ And if he refuse to hear them, tell it unto the church; and if he refuse to hear the church also, let him be unto thee as the Gentile and the publican. ¹⁸ Verily I say unto you, what things soever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and what things soever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. ¹⁹ Again, verily I say unto you, that if two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father who is in heaven. ²⁰ For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. ²¹ Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? until seven times? ²² Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times, but, Until seventy times seven. ²³ Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, who would make a reckoning with his servants. ²⁴ And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, that owed him ten thousand talents. ²⁵ But forasmuch as he had not wherewith to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made. ²⁶ The servant therefore fell down and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. ²⁷ And the lord of that servant, being moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt. ²⁸ But that servant went out, and found one of his fellow-servants, who owed him a hundred shillings; and he laid hold on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me if thou owest anything. ²⁹ So his fellow-servant fell down at his feet and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee. ³⁰ And he would not; but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay that which was due. ³¹ And when his fellow-servants saw what was done, they were exceeding sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done. ³² Then his lord called him unto him, and saith to him, Thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou besoughtest me; ³³ shouldest not thou also have had mercy on thy fellow-servant, even as I had mercy on thee? ³⁴ { And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him. ³⁵ So shall also my heavenly Father do unto you, if ye forgive not every one his brother their trespasses from your hearts. ¹⁹ ¹ And it came to pass when Jesus had finished these words, he departed from Galilee, and came into the borders of Judea beyond the Jordan, ² and great multitudes followed him, and he healed them there. ³ And there came unto him Pharisees, trying him, and saying, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause? ⁴ And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he who made them from the beginning made them male and female, ⁵ and said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh? ⁶ So that they are no more two, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. ⁷ They say unto him, Why then did Moses command to give a bill of divorcement, and to put her away? ⁸ He saith unto them, Moses for your hardness of heart suffered you to put away your wives; but from the beginning it hath not been so. ⁹ And I say unto you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, except for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery; and he that marrieth her when she is put away committeth adultery. ¹⁰ His disciples say unto him, If the case of the man is so with his wife, it is not expedient to marry. ¹¹ But he said unto them, Not all men can receive this saying, but they to whom it is given. ¹² For there are eunuchs, that were so born from their mother's womb; and there are eunuchs, that were made eunuchs by men; and there are eunuchs, that made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it. ¹³ Then were there brought unto him little children, that he should lay his hands on them, and pray; and the disciples rebuked them. ¹⁴ But Jesus said, Suffer the little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me; for to such belongeth the kingdom of heaven. ¹⁵ And he laid his hands on them, and departed thence. ¹⁶ And behold, one came to him and said, Good teacher, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? ¹⁷ And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? No one is good but one, God; but if thou wouldest enter into life, keep the commandments. ¹⁸ He saith unto him, Which? And Jesus said, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, ¹⁹ Honor thy father and mother, and, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. ²⁰ The young man saith unto him, All these things have I observed from my youth; what lack I yet? ²¹ Jesus said unto him, If thou wouldest be perfect, go, sell that which thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me. ²² But when the young man heard the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he was one that had great possessions. ²³ And Jesus said unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, It is hard for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven. ²⁴ And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. ²⁵ And when his disciples heard it, they were astonished exceedingly, saying, Who then can be saved? ²⁶ And Jesus looking upon them said to them, With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible. ²⁷ Then answered Peter and said unto him, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee, what then shall we have? ²⁸ And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, that ye who have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit on the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. ²⁹ And every one that hath left houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and shall inherit eternal life. ³⁰ But many shall be last that are first, and first that are last. ²⁰ ¹ For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that was a householder, who went out early in the morning to hire laborers into his vineyard. ² And when he had agreed with the laborers for a shilling a day, he sent them into his vineyard. ³ And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing in the marketplace idle, ⁴ and to them he said, Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. ⁵ And they went their way. Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did likewise. ⁶ And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and he saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle? ⁷ They say unto him, Because no man hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right shall ye receive. ⁸ And when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the laborers, and pay them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first. ⁹ And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a shilling. ¹⁰ And when the first came, they supposed that they would receive more, and they likewise received every man a shilling. ¹¹ And when they received it, they murmured against the householder, ¹² saying, These last have spent but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat. ¹³ But he answered and said to one of them, Friend, I do thee no wrong; didst not thou agree with me for a shilling? ¹⁴ Take up that which is thine, and go thy way, it is my will to give unto this last, even as unto thee. ¹⁵ Or is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good? ¹⁶ So the last shall be first, and the first last; for many are called, but few chosen. ¹⁷ And as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples apart, and on the way he said unto them, ¹⁸ Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and the Son of man shall be delivered unto the chief priests and scribes, and they shall condemn him to death, ¹⁹ and shall deliver him unto the Gentiles to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify; and the third day he shall rise again. ²⁰ Then came to him the mother of the sons of Zebedee with her sons, worshipping him, and asking a certain thing of him. ²¹ And he said unto her, What wouldest thou? She saith unto him, Command that these my two sons may sit, one on thy right hand, and one on thy left hand, in thy kingdom. ²² But Jesus answered and said, Ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink the cup that I am about to drink, or to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? They say unto him, We are able. ²³ He saith unto them, My cup indeed ye shall drink, and with the baptism that I am baptized, shall ye be baptized; but to sit on my right hand, and on my left hand, is not mine to give, but it is for them for whom it hath been prepared of my Father. ²⁴ And when the ten heard it, they were moved with indignation concerning the two brethren. ²⁵ But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. ²⁶ But it shall not be so among you; but whosoever would become great among you shall be your minister, ²⁷ and whosoever would be first among you, let him be your servant; ²⁸ even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. ²⁹ And as they went out from Jericho, a great multitude followed him. ³⁰ And behold, two blind men sitting by the way side, when they heard that Jesus was passing by, cried out, saying, Lord, have mercy on us, thou son of David. ³¹ And the multitude rebuked them, that they should hold their peace; but they cried out the more, saying, Lord, have mercy on us, thou son of David. ³² And Jesus stood still, and called them, and said, What will ye that I should do unto you? ³³ They say unto him, Lord, that our eyes may be opened. ³⁴ And Jesus, being moved with compassion, touched their eyes, and straightway they received their sight, and followed him. ²¹ ¹ And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and came unto Bethsphage, unto the mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, ² saying unto them, Go into the village that is over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her; loose them, and bring them unto me. ³ And if any one say aught unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them, and straightway he will send them. ⁴ Now all this is come to pass, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through the prophet, saying, ⁵ Tell ye the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, Meek, and riding upon an ass, And a colt the foal of an ass. ⁶ And the disciples went, and did even as Jesus commanded them, ⁷ and brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their garments, and he sat thereon. ⁸ And the most part of the multitude spread their garments in the way, and others cut branches from the trees, and spread them in the way. ⁹ And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the son of David; Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord, Hosanna in the highest. ¹⁰ And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was stirred, saying, Who is this? ¹¹ And the multitudes said, This is Jesus the prophet, from Nazareth of Galilee. ¹² And Jesus entered into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of he money-changers, and the seats of them that sold the doves, ¹³ and he saith unto them, It is written, My house shall be called a house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of robbers. ¹⁴ And the lame and the blind came to him in the temple, and he healed them. ¹⁵ But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple and saying, Hosanna to the son of David, they were moved with indignation, ¹⁶ and said unto him, Hearest thou what these are saying? And Jesus saith unto them, Yea; did ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise? ¹⁷ And he left them, and went forth out of the city to Bethany, and lodged there. ¹⁸ Now in the morning as he returned to the city, he hungered. ¹⁹ And seeing a fig tree by the way side, he came to it, and found nothing thereon, but leaves only, and he saith unto it, Let there be no fruit from thee henceforward for ever. And immediately the fig tree withered away. ²⁰ And when the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, How did the fig tree immediately wither away? ²¹ And Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do what is done to the fig tree, but even if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou taken up and cast into the sea, it shall be done. ²² And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive. ²³ And when he was come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came unto him as he was teaching, and said, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority? ²⁴ And Jesus answered and said unto them, I also will ask you one question, which if ye tell me, I likewise will tell you by what authority I do these things. ²⁵ The baptism of John, whence was it? from heaven or from men? And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven, he will say unto us, Why then did ye not believe him? ²⁶ But if we shall say, From men, we fear the multitude, for all hold John as a prophet. ²⁷ And they answered Jesus, and said, We know not. He also said unto them, Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things. ²⁸ But what think ye? A man had two sons, and he came to the first, and said, Son, go work to-day in my vineyard. ²⁹ And he answered and said, I will not; but afterward he repented himself, and went. ³⁰ And he came to the second, and said likewise. And he answered and said, I go, sir; and went not. ³¹ Which of the two did the will of his father? They say unto him, The first. Jesus saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, that the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you. ³² For John came unto you in the way of righteousness, and ye believed him not, but the publicans and the harlots believed him; and ye, when ye saw it, did not even repent yourselves afterward, that ye might believe him. ³³ Hear another parable; There was a certain man that was a householder, who planted a vineyard, and set a hedge about it, and digged a winepress in it, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into another country. ³⁴ And when the season of the fruits drew near, he sent his servants to the husbandmen, to receive his fruits. ³⁵ And the husbandmen took his servants, and beat one, and killed another, and stoned another. ³⁶ Again, he sent other servants more than the first; and they did unto them in like manner. ³⁷ But afterward he sent unto them his son, saying, They will reverence my son. ³⁸ But the husbandmen, when they saw the son, said among themselves, This is the heir, come, let us kill him, and take his inheritance. ³⁹ And they took him, and cast him forth out of the vineyard, and killed him. ⁴⁰ When therefore the lord of the vineyard shall come, what will he do unto those husbandmen? ⁴¹ They say unto him, He will miserably destroy those miserable men, and will let out the vineyard unto other husbandmen, who shall render him the fruits in their seasons. ⁴² Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, The same was made the head of the corner, This was from the Lord, And it is marvelous in our eyes? ⁴³ Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken away from you, and shall be given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. ⁴⁴ And he that falleth on this stone shall be broken to pieces; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will scatter him as dust. ⁴⁵ And when the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they perceived that he spake of them. ⁴⁶ And when they sought to lay hold on him, they feared the multitudes, because they took him for a prophet.