Teaching About Divorce

19 Now when Jesus had finished these sayings, he went away from nGalilee and oentered pthe region of Judea beyond the Jordan. 2 And qlarge crowds followed him, and he healed them there.

3 And Pharisees came up to him and rtested him by asking, s“Is it lawful to divorce one’s wife for any cause?” 4 He answered, t“Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, 5 and said, u‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and vthe two shall become one flesh’? 6 So they are no longer two but one flesh. wWhat therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.” 7 They said to him, x“Why then did Moses command one to give a certificate of divorce and to send her away?” 8 He said to them, “Because of your yhardness of heart Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. 9 zAnd I say to you: whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery.”1

10 The disciples said to him, “If such is the case of a man with his wife, it is better not to marry.” 11 But he said to them, a“Not everyone can receive this saying, but only bthose to cwhom it is given. 12 For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs dfor the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let the one who is able to receive this receive it.”

Let the Children Come to Me

13 eThen children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples frebuked the people, 14 but Jesus said, g“Let the little children hcome to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.” 15 And he laid his hands on them and went away.

The Rich Young Man

16 iAnd behold, a man came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to jhave keternal life?” 17 And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. lIf you would enter life, keep the commandments.” 18 He said to him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, m“You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness, 19 Honor your father and mother, and, nYou shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 20 The young man said to him, o“All these I have kept. What do I still lack?” 21 Jesus said to him, “If you would be pperfect, go, qsell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have rtreasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 22 sWhen the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

23 And Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, tonly with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 uAgain I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter vthe kingdom of God.” 25 When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished, saying, “Who then can be saved?” 26 But Jesus wlooked at them and said, x“With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” 27 Then Peter said in reply, “See, ywe have left everything and followed you. What then will we have?” 28 Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, in the new world,2 zwhen the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me awill also sit on twelve thrones, bjudging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 cAnd everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold3 and will dinherit eternal life. 30 But emany who are ffirst will be last, and the last first.

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. 2 He answered them,1 j“When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ 3 And 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. 4 mAn 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

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

13 xNow when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say yJohn the Baptist, others say zElijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, a“You are bthe Christ, cthe Son of dthe living God.” 17 And 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. 18 And 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. 19 I 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.” 20 oThen he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ.

Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection

21 pFrom 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. 22 And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord!5 This shall never happen to you.” 23 But 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

24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him wdeny himself and xtake up his cross and follow me. 25 For xwhoever would save his life7 will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 26 For 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? 27 aFor 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. 28 Truly, 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. 2 And he was itransfigured before them, and jhis face shone like the sun, and khis clothes became white as light. 3 And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. 4 And 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.” 5 He 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.” 6 When pthe disciples heard this, qthey fell on their faces and were terrified. 7 But Jesus came and rtouched them, saying, “Rise, and shave no fear.” 8 And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.

9 tAnd 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.” 10 And the disciples asked him, “Then why do the scribes say vthat first Elijah must come?” 11 He answered, “Elijah does come, and whe will restore all things. 12 But 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 …