Resurrection Morning

28 After the Sabbath, p as the first day of the week was dawning, * Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to view the tomb. 2 Suddenly there was a violent earthquake, because an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and approached the tomb. He rolled back the stone and was sitting on it. q 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his robe was as white as snow. r 4 The guards were so shaken from fear of him that they became like dead men.

5 But the angel told the women, “Don’t be afraid, because I know you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. s 6 He is not here! For He has been resurrected, just as He said. Come and see the place where He lay. t 7 Then go quickly and tell His disciples, u ‘He has been raised from the dead. In fact, He is going ahead of you to Galilee; you will see Him there.’ Listen, I have told you.” v

8 So, departing quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, they ran to tell His disciples the news. 9 Just then w Jesus met them and said, “Good morning!” They came up, took hold of His feet, and worshiped Him. x 10 Then Jesus told them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell My brothers to leave for Galilee, and they will see Me there.” y

The Soldiers Are Bribed to Lie

11 As they were on their way, some of the guards came into the city and reported to the * chief priests everything that had happened. 12 After the priests z had assembled with the elders and agreed on a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money 13 and told them, “Say this, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole Him while we were sleeping.’ 14 If this reaches the governor’s ears, a we will deal with b him and keep you out of trouble.” c 15 So they took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been spread among Jewish people to this day. d

The Great Commission

16 The 11 disciples traveled to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had directed them. e 17 When they saw Him, they worshiped, f but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came near and said to them, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. g 19 Go, therefore, and make disciples h of i all nations, j baptizing k them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, l I am with you always, m to the end of the age.” n

Who Is the Greatest?

18 At that time b c the disciples d came to Jesus and said, “Who is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” e

2 Then He called a child to Him and had him stand among them. 3 “* I assure you,” He said, “unless you are converted f and become like children, g you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. h 4 Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child—this one is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5 And whoever welcomes i one child like this in My name welcomes Me.

6 “But whoever * causes the downfall of one of these little ones who believe in Me—it would be better for him if a heavy millstone j were hung around his neck and he were drowned in the depths of the sea! k 7 Woe to the world because of * offenses. For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes. l 8 If your hand or your foot causes your downfall, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or lame, than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into the eternal fire. m 9 And if your eye causes your downfall, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye, rather than to have two eyes and be thrown into * hellfire! n o

The Parable of the Lost Sheep

10 “See that you don’t look down on one of these little ones, p because I tell you that in heaven their angels q continually view the face of My Father in heaven. r [11 For the * Son of Man s has come to save the lost.] t 12 What do you think? u If a man has 100 sheep, and one of them goes astray, won’t he leave the 99 on the hillside and go and search for the stray? v 13 And if he finds it, I assure you: He rejoices over that sheep w more than over the 99 that did not go astray. 14 In the same way, it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones perish.

Restoring a Brother

15 “If your brother sins against you, x go and rebuke him in private. y If he listens to you, you have won your brother. z 16 But if he won’t listen, take one or two more with you, so that by the testimony a of two or three witnesses every fact may be established. b c 17 If he pays no attention to them, tell the church. d e But if he doesn’t pay attention even to the church, let him be like an unbeliever f and a tax collector to you. g 18 I assure you: Whatever you bind on earth is already bound h in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth is already loosed i in heaven. j 19 Again, I assure you: If two of you on earth agree about any matter that you k pray for, it will be done for you l by My Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there among them.”

The Parable of the Unforgiving Slave

21 Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how many times could my brother sin against me and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” m

22 “I tell you, not as many as seven,” Jesus said to him, “but 70 times seven. n 23 For this reason, the kingdom of heaven can be compared to a king who wanted to settle accounts with his * slaves. 24 When he began to settle accounts, one who owed 10,000 talents o was brought before him. 25 Since he had no way to pay it back, his master commanded that he, his wife, his children, and everything he had be sold to pay the debt. p

26 “At this, the slave fell facedown before him and said, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you everything!’ 27 Then the master of that slave had compassion, released him, and forgave him the loan.

28 “But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him 100 * denarii. q r He grabbed him, started choking him, and said, ‘Pay what you owe!’

29 “At this, his fellow slave fell down s and began begging him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’ 30 But he wasn’t willing. On the contrary, he went and threw him into prison until he could pay what was owed. 31 When the other slaves saw what had taken place, they were deeply distressed and went and reported to their master everything that had happened.

32 “Then, after he had summoned him, his master said to him, ‘You wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. 33 Shouldn’t you also have had mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you?’ t 34 And his master got angry and handed him over to the jailers to be tortured until he could pay everything that was owed. 35 So My heavenly Father will also do to you if each of you does not forgive his brother u from his v heart.” w

The Question of Divorce

19 When Jesus had finished this instruction, x He departed from Galilee and went to the region of Judea across the Jordan. y 2 Large crowds followed Him, and He healed them there. z 3 Some * Pharisees approached Him to test Him. They asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife on any grounds?” a

4 “Haven’t you read,” He replied, “that He who created b them in the beginning made them male and female,” c d 5 and He also said:

“For this reason a man will leave

his father and mother

and be joined to his wife,

and the two will become one flesh? e f

6 So …