Matthew 16–17

The Pharisees and Sadducees Demand Signs

16^fAnd the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and ^gto test him ^hthey asked him to show them ⁱa sign from heaven. ²He answered them,^{1 j}“When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ ³And in the morning, ‘It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ ^kYou know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret ^lthe signs of the times. ^4mAn evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” So ⁿhe left them and departed.

The Leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees

⁵When the disciples reached the other side, they had forgotten to bring any bread. ⁶Jesus said to them, “Watch and ^obeware of ^pthe leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” ⁷And they began discussing it among themselves, saying, “We brought no bread.” ⁸But ^qJesus, aware of this, said, ^r“O you of little faith, why are you discussing among yourselves the fact that you have no bread? ^9sDo you not yet perceive? Do you not remember ^tthe five loaves for the five thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? ¹⁰Or ^uthe seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? ¹¹How is it that you fail to understand that I did not speak about bread? ^oBeware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” ^12vThen they understood that he did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of ^wthe teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

Peter Confesses Jesus as the Christ

^13xNow when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” ¹⁴And they said, “Some say ^yJohn the Baptist, others say ^zElijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” ¹⁵He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” ¹⁶Simon Peter replied, ^a“You are ^bthe Christ, ^cthe Son of ^dthe living God.” ¹⁷And Jesus answered him, ^e“Blessed are you, ^fSimon Bar-Jonah! For ^gflesh and blood has not revealed this to you, ^hbut my Father who is in heaven. ¹⁸And I tell you, ⁱyou are Peter, and ^jon this rock² I will build my church, and ^kthe gates of ^lhell³ shall not prevail against it. ¹⁹I will give you ^mthe keys of the kingdom of heaven, and ⁿwhatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed⁴ in heaven.” ^20oThen he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ.

Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection

^21pFrom that time Jesus began to show his disciples that ^qhe must go to Jerusalem and ^rsuffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on ^sthe third day be raised. ²²And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord!⁵ This shall never happen to you.” ²³But he turned and said to Peter, ^t“Get behind me, Satan! You are ^ua hindrance⁶ to me. For you ^vare not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

Take Up Your Cross and Follow Jesus

²⁴Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him ^wdeny himself and ^xtake up his cross and follow me. ²⁵For ^xwhoever would save his life⁷ will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. ²⁶For ^ywhat will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or ^zwhat shall a man give in return for his soul? ^27aFor the Son of Man is going to come with ^bhis angels in the glory of his Father, and ^cthen he will repay each person according to what he has done. ²⁸Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not ^dtaste death ^euntil they see the Son of Man ^fcoming in his kingdom.”

The Transfiguration

17^gAnd after six days Jesus took with him ^hPeter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. ²And he was ⁱtransfigured before them, and ^jhis face shone like the sun, and ^khis clothes became white as light. ³And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. ⁴And Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for ^lElijah.” ⁵He was still speaking when, behold, ^ma bright cloud overshadowed them, and ^ma voice from the cloud said, ⁿ“This is my beloved Son,¹ with whom I am well pleased; ^olisten to him.” ⁶When ^pthe disciples heard this, ^qthey fell on their faces and were terrified. ⁷But Jesus came and ^rtouched them, saying, “Rise, and ^shave no fear.” ⁸And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.

^9tAnd as they were coming down the mountain, Jesus commanded them, ^u“Tell no one the vision, until the Son of Man is raised from the dead.” ¹⁰And the disciples asked him, “Then why do the scribes say ^vthat first Elijah must come?” ¹¹He answered, “Elijah does come, and ^whe will restore all things. ¹²But I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but ^xdid to him whatever they pleased. ^ySo also the Son of Man will certainly suffer at their hands.” ^13zThen the disciples understood that he was speaking to them of John the Baptist.

Jesus Heals a Boy with a Demon

^14aAnd when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and, kneeling before him, ¹⁵said, “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he ^bhas seizures and he suffers terribly. For often he falls into the fire, and often into the water. ¹⁶And I brought him to your disciples, and ^cthey could not heal him.” ¹⁷And Jesus answered, “O faithless and ^dtwisted generation, how long am I to be with you? ^eHow long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me.” ¹⁸And Jesus ^frebuked the demon,² and it³ came out of him, and ^gthe boy was healed instantly.^{4 19}Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” ²⁰He said to them, ^h“Because of your little faith. For ⁱtruly, I say to you, ^jif you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, ^kyou will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and ^lnothing will be impossible for you.”⁵

Jesus Again Foretells Death, Resurrection

^22mAs they were gathering⁶ in Galilee, Jesus said to them, “The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men, ²³and they will kill him, and he will be raised on ⁿthe third day.” And they were greatly distressed.

The Temple Tax

^24oWhen they came to Capernaum, the collectors of ^pthe two-drachma tax went up to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay the tax?” ²⁵He said, “Yes.” And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, ^q“What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or ^rtax? From their sons or from others?” ²⁶And when he said, “From others,” Jesus said to him, “Then the sons are free. ²⁷However, not to give offense to them, go to the sea and cast a hook and take the first fish that comes up, and when you open its mouth you will find a shekel.⁷ Take that and give it to them for me and for yourself.”