Matthew 14:1-19:2 At that time, Herod the tetrarch heard the report concerning Jesus,

NHEB⁽ⁱ⁾ ¹ At that time, Herod the tetrarch heard the report concerning Jesus, ² and said to his servants, "This is John the Baptist. He is risen from the dead. That is why these powers work in him." ³ For Herod had arrested John, and bound him, and put him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife. ⁴ For John said to him, "It is not lawful for you to have her." ⁵ And though he wanted to kill him, he feared the crowd because they regarded him as a prophet. ⁶ But when Herod's birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced among them and pleased Herod. ⁷ Whereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatever she should ask. ⁸ And she, being prompted by her mother, said, "Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist." ⁹ And the king was grieved, but for the sake of his oaths, and of those who sat at the table with him, he commanded it to be given, ¹⁰ and he sent and beheaded John in the prison. ¹¹ And his head was brought on a platter, and given to the young woman: and she brought it to her mother. ¹² Then his disciples came, and took the dead body, and buried him; and they went and told Jesus. ¹³ Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat, to a secluded place to be alone. When the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the cities. ¹⁴ And he went out, and he saw a large crowd, and he had compassion on them, and healed their sick. ¹⁵ Now when evening had come, the disciples came to him, saying, "This place is desolate, and the hour is already late. Send the crowds away, that they may go into the villages, and buy themselves food." ¹⁶ But Jesus said to them, "They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat." ¹⁷ And they told him, "We only have here five loaves and two fish." ¹⁸ So he said, "Bring them here to me." ¹⁹ Then he commanded the crowds to sit down on the grass; and he took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he blessed, broke and gave the loaves to the disciples, and the disciples gave to the crowds. ²⁰ And they all ate and were filled, and they took up twelve baskets full of that which remained left over from the broken pieces. ²¹ Now those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children. ²² And immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and to go ahead of him to the other side, while he sent the crowds away. ²³ And after he had sent the crowds away, he went up into the mountain by himself to pray. When evening had come, he was there alone. ²⁴ But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, battered by the waves, for the wind was against it. ²⁵ And in the watch between three and six in the morning, he came to them, walking on the sea. ²⁶ And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, "It's a ghost." and they screamed with fear. ²⁷ But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying "Cheer up. It is I. Do not be afraid." ²⁸ Peter answered him and said, "Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the waters." ²⁹ He said, "Come." Peter stepped down from the boat, and walked on the water and went toward Jesus. ³⁰ But when he saw the strong wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink, he yelled, saying, "Lord, save me." ³¹ Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand, took hold of him, and said to him, "You of little faith, why did you doubt?" ³² When they got up into the boat, the wind ceased. ³³ Those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, "You are truly the Son of God." ³⁴ When they had crossed over, they came to the land of Gennesaret. ³⁵ When the people of that place recognized him, they sent into all that surrounding region, and brought to him all who were sick, ³⁶ and they begged him that they might just touch the fringe of his garment. And all who touched it were healed. ¹⁵ ¹ Then the Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem, saying, ² "Why do your disciples disobey the Tradition of the Elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread." ³ And he answered them, "Why do you also disobey the commandment of God because of your tradition? ⁴ For God said, 'Honor your father and your mother,' and, 'He who speaks evil of father or mother, let him be put to death.' ⁵ But you say, 'Whoever may tell his father or his mother, "Whatever help you might otherwise have gotten from me is a gift devoted to God," ⁶ he is not to honor his father or his mother.' You have made the word of God void because of your tradition. ⁷ You hypocrites. Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, saying, ⁸ 'These people honor me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. ⁹ And in vain do they worship me, teaching instructions that are the commandments of humans.'" ¹⁰ He summoned the crowd, and said to them, "Hear, and understand. ¹¹ That which enters into the mouth does not defile the person; but that which proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the person." ¹² Then the disciples came, and said to him, "Do you know that the Pharisees were offended, when they heard this saying?" ¹³ But he answered, "Every plant which my heavenly Father did not plant will be uprooted. ¹⁴ Leave them alone. They are blind guides of the blind. If the blind guide the blind, both will fall into a pit." ¹⁵ And answering, Peter said to him, "Explain this parable to us." ¹⁶ So he said, "Do you also still not understand? ¹⁷ Do you not understand that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the belly, and then out of the body? ¹⁸ But the things which proceed out of the mouth come out of the heart, and they defile the person. ¹⁹ For out of the heart come forth evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, sexual sins, thefts, false testimony, and blasphemies. ²⁰ These are the things which defile the person; but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile the person." ²¹ Jesus went out from there, and withdrew into the region of Tyre and Sidon. ²² And look, a Canaanite woman came out from those borders, and started shouting, saying, "Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David. My daughter is severely demonized." ²³ But he did not answer her a word. His disciples came and pleaded with him, saying, "Send her away, for she keeps shouting at us." ²⁴ But he answered, "I was not sent to anyone but the lost sheep of the house of Israel." ²⁵ But she came and worshiped him, saying, "Lord, help me." ²⁶ But he answered, "It is not appropriate to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." ²⁷ But she said, "Yes, Lord, but even the dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters' table." ²⁸ Then Jesus answered her, "Woman, great is your faith. Be it done to you even as you desire." And her daughter was healed from that hour. ²⁹ Jesus departed there, and came near to the sea of Galilee; and he went up into the mountain, and sat there. ³⁰ Large crowds came to him, having with them the lame, blind, mute, crippled, and many others, and they put them down at his feet; and he healed them. ³¹ So the crowd was amazed when they saw the mute speaking, crippled healthy, lame walking, and blind seeing—and they glorified the God of Israel. ³² Jesus summoned the disciples and said, "I have compassion on the crowd, because they continue with me now three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away fasting, or they might faint on the way." ³³ Then the disciples said to him, "Where should we get so many loaves in a deserted place as to satisfy so great a crowd?" ³⁴ Jesus said to them, "How many loaves do you have?" They said, "Seven, and a few small fish." ³⁵ He commanded the crowd to sit down on the ground; ³⁶ and he took the seven loaves and the fish. He gave thanks and broke them, and gave to the disciples, and the disciples to the crowds. ³⁷ They all ate, and were filled. They took up seven baskets full of the broken pieces that were left over. ³⁸ Those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children. ³⁹ Then he sent away the crowds, got into the boat, and came into the borders of Magadan. ¹⁶ ¹ The Pharisees and Sadducees came, and testing him, asked him to show them a sign from heaven. ² But he answered and said to them, "When it is evening, you say, 'It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.' ³ In the morning, 'It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.' You know how to discern the appearance of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times. ⁴ An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and there will be no sign given to it, except the sign of Jonah." He left them, and departed. ⁵ The disciples came to the other side and had forgotten to take bread. ⁶ Jesus said to them, "Watch out and guard yourselves against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees." ⁷ They reasoned among themselves, saying, "We brought no bread." ⁸ But Jesus, becoming aware of this, said, "You of little faith, why are you discussing among yourselves about having no bread? ⁹ Do you still not understand? Do you not remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many baskets you took up? ¹⁰ Nor the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many baskets you took up? ¹¹ Why is it that you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread? But beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees." ¹² Then they understood that he did not tell them to beware of the yeast 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 people say that the Son of Man is?" ¹⁴ They said, "Some say John the Baptist, some, Elijah, and others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets." ¹⁵ He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" ¹⁶ Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." ¹⁷ And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. ¹⁸ I also tell you that you are Peter, and on this Rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. ¹⁹ I will give to you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." ²⁰ Then he commanded the disciples that they should tell no one that he is the Christ. ²¹ From that time, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and the third day be raised up. ²² Peter took him aside, and began to rebuke him, saying, "Far be it from you, Lord. This will never be done to you." ²³ But he turned, and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan. You are a stumbling block to me, for you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of humans." ²⁴ Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. ²⁵ For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, and whoever will lose his life for my sake will find it. ²⁶ For what will it profit a person, if he gains the whole world, and forfeits his life? Or what will a person give in exchange for his life? ²⁷ For the Son of Man will come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and then he will render to everyone according to his deeds. ²⁸ Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will in no way taste of death, until they see the Son of Man coming in his Kingdom." ¹⁷ ¹ After six days, Jesus took with him Peter, James, and John his brother, and brought them up into a high mountain by themselves. ² He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his garments became as white as the light. ³ And look, Moses and Elijah appeared to them talking with him. ⁴ Peter answered, and said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you want, let us make three tents here: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." ⁵ While he was still speaking, look, a bright cloud overshadowed them. And look, a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Listen to him." ⁶ When the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces, and were very afraid. ⁷ Jesus came and touched them and said, "Get up, and do not be afraid." ⁸ And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one except Jesus alone. ⁹ As they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, "Do not tell anyone what you saw, until the Son of Man has risen from the dead." ¹⁰ The disciples asked him, saying, "Then why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?" ¹¹ And he answered and said, "Elijah indeed comes, and will restore all things, ¹² but I tell you that Elijah has come already, and they did not recognize him, but did to him whatever they wanted to. Even so the Son of Man will also suffer by them." ¹³ Then the disciples understood that he spoke to them of John the Baptist. ¹⁴ And when they came to the crowd, a man came to him, knelt before him, ¹⁵ and said, "Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is epileptic, and suffers severely; for he often falls into the fire, and often into the water. ¹⁶ So I brought him to your disciples, and they could not cure him." ¹⁷ Jesus answered, "Faithless and perverse generation. How long will I be with you? How long will I bear with you? Bring him here to me." ¹⁸ Jesus rebuked him, the demon went out of him, and the boy was cured from that hour. ¹⁹ Then the disciples came to Jesus privately, and said, "Why weren't we able to cast it out?" ²⁰ So he said to them, "Because of your little faith. For truly I tell you, if you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you will tell this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you." ²¹ ²² While they were gathering together in Galilee, Jesus said to them, "The Son of Man is about to be delivered up into the hands of men, ²³ and they will kill him, and the third day he will be raised up." They were exceedingly sorry. ²⁴ When they had come to Capernaum, those who collected the didrachma coins came to Peter, and said, "Does not your teacher pay the didrachma?" ²⁵ He said, "Yes." When he came into the house, Jesus anticipated him, saying, "What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth receive toll or tribute? From their children, or from strangers?" ²⁶ And when he said, "From strangers." Jesus said to him, "Therefore the children are exempt. ²⁷ But, lest we cause them to stumble, go to the sea, cast a hook, and take up the first fish that comes up. When you have opened its mouth, you will find a stater coin. Take that, and give it to them for me and you." ¹⁸ ¹ In that hour the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" ² He called a little child to himself, and set him in the midst of them, ³ and said, "Truly I tell you, unless you turn, and become as little children, you will in no way enter into the kingdom of heaven. ⁴ Whoever therefore humbles himself as this little child, the same is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. ⁵ Whoever receives one such little child in my name receives me, ⁶ but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to stumble, it would be better for him that a huge millstone should be hung around his neck, and that he should be sunk in the depths of the sea. ⁷ "Woe to the world because of stumbling blocks. For there will always be something to cause people to stumble, but woe to the person through whom the stumbling block comes. ⁸ If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off, and cast it from you.[note: Hyperbole, or Semitic idiom, meaning to stop doing a sin] It is better for you to enter into life maimed or crippled, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into the everlasting fire. ⁹ If your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out, and cast it from you.[note: Hyperbole, or Semitic idiom, meaning to stop doing a sin] It is better for you to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into the fire of hell. ¹⁰ See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven. ¹¹ ¹² "What do you think? If someone has one hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine, go to the mountains, and seek that which has gone astray? ¹³ If he finds it, truly I tell you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine which have not gone astray. ¹⁴ Even so it is not the will of my Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish. ¹⁵ "If your brother sins against you, go, show him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained back your brother. ¹⁶ But if he does not listen, take one or two more with you, that at the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. ¹⁷ If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. If he refuses to hear the church also, let him be to you as an unbeliever or a tax collector. ¹⁸ Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. ¹⁹ Again, truly I tell you, that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they will ask, it will be done for them by my Father who is in heaven. ²⁰ For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there I am in the midst of them." ²¹ Then Peter came to him and said, "Lord, how often can my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?" ²² Jesus said to him, "I do not tell you up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. ²³ Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king, who wanted to reconcile accounts with his servants. ²⁴ When he had begun to reconcile, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. ²⁵ But because he could not pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, with his wife and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made. ²⁶ The servant therefore fell down and kneeled before him, saying, 'Lord, have patience with me, and I will repay you all.' ²⁷ 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 one hundred denarii, and he grabbed him, and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay what you owe.' ²⁹ "So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will repay you all.' ³⁰ He would not, but went and cast him into prison, until he should pay back that which was due. ³¹ So when his fellow servants saw what was done, they were exceedingly sorry, and came and told to their lord all that was done. ³² Then his lord called him in, and said to him, 'You wicked servant. I forgave you all that debt, because you begged me. ³³ Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow servant, even as I had mercy on you?' ³⁴ His lord was angry, and delivered him to the tormentors, until he should pay all that was due. ³⁵ So my heavenly Father will also do to you, if you do not each forgive your brother his trespasses from your heart." ¹⁹ ¹ It happened when Jesus had finished these words, he departed from Galilee, and came into the borders of Judea beyond the Jordan. ² Large crowds followed him, and he healed them there.