Matthew 19–20

The Question of Divorce

19When Jesus had finished this instruction, ^xHe departed from Galilee and went to the region of Judea across the Jordan. ^y2Large crowds followed Him, and He healed them there. ^z3Some 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 ^bthem in the beginning made them male and female,” ^cd5and 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? ^ef

⁶So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, man must not separate.”

⁷“Why then,” they asked Him, “did Moses command us to give divorce papers ^gand to send her away?”

⁸He told them, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because of the hardness of your hearts. But it was not like that from the beginning. ⁹And I tell you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery.” ^hi

¹⁰His disciples ^jsaid to Him, “If the relationship of a man with his wife is like this, it’s better not to marry!”

¹¹But He told them, “Not everyone can accept this saying, but only those it has been given ^kto. ¹²For there are eunuchs who were born that way from their mother’s womb, there are eunuchs who were made by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves that way because of the kingdom of heaven. Let anyone accept this who can.”

Blessing the Children

¹³Then children were brought to Him so He might put His hands on them and pray. But the disciples rebuked them. ^l14Then Jesus said, “Leave the children alone, and don’t try to keep them from coming to Me, because the kingdom of heaven is made up of people like this.” ^mn15After putting His hands on them, He went on from there.

The Rich Young Ruler

¹⁶Just then someone came up and asked Him, ^o“Teacher, what good must I do to have eternal life?” ^p

¹⁷“Why do you ask Me about what is good?” ^qHe said to him. “There is only One who is good. ^rIf you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.” ^s

¹⁸“Which ones?” he asked Him. Jesus answered:

Do not murder;

do not commit adultery;

do not steal;

do not bear false witness; ^t

¹⁹honor your father and your mother;

and love your neighbor as yourself. ^uv

²⁰“I have kept all these,” ^wthe young man told Him. “What do I still lack?”

²¹“If you want to be perfect,” ^xJesus said to him, “go, sell your belongings and give to the poor, ^yand you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me.”

²²When the young man heard that command, he went away grieving, because he had many possessions.

Possessions and the Kingdom

²³Then Jesus said to His disciples, “^•I assure you: It will be hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven! ^z24Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” ^a

²⁵When the disciples heard this, they were utterly astonished and asked, “Then who can be saved?”

²⁶But Jesus looked at them and said, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” ^b

²⁷Then Peter responded to Him, “Look, we have left everything and followed You. So what will there be for us?”

²⁸Jesus said to them, “I assure you: In the Messianic Age, ^cdwhen the ^•Son of Man sits on His glorious throne, ^eyou who have followed Me will also sit on 12 thrones, judging the 12 tribes of Israel. ²⁹And everyone who has left houses, brothers or sisters, father or mother, ^fchildren, or fields because of My name will receive 100 times more and will inherit eternal life. ^g30But many who are first will be last, and the last first. ^h

The Parable of the Vineyard Workers

20“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. ⁱ²After agreeing with the workers on one ^•denarius for the day, he sent them into his vineyard. ³When he went out about nine in the morning, ^jhe saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. ⁴To those men he said, ‘You also go to my vineyard, and I’ll give you whatever is right.’ So off they went. ⁵About noon and at three, ^khe went out again and did the same thing. ⁶Then about five ^lhe went and found others standing around, ^mand said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day doing nothing?’

⁷“ ‘Because no one hired us,’ they said to him.

“ ‘You also go to my vineyard,’ he told them. ⁿ⁸When evening came, the owner of the vineyard told his foreman, ‘Call the workers and give them their pay, ^ostarting with the last and ending with the first.’ ^p

⁹“When those who were hired about five ^qcame, they each received one denarius. ¹⁰So when the first ones came, they assumed they would get more, but they also received a denarius each. ¹¹When they received it, they began to complain to the landowner: ¹²‘These last men put in one hour, and you made them equal to us who bore the burden of the day and the burning heat!’ ^r

¹³“He replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I’m doing you no wrong. Didn’t you agree with me on a denarius? ^s14Take what’s yours and go. I want to give this last man the same as I gave you. ¹⁵Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my business? ^tAre you jealous ^ubecause I’m generous?’ ^vw

¹⁶“So the last will be first, and the first last.” ^xy

The Third Prediction of His Death

¹⁷While going up to Jerusalem, ^zJesus took the 12 disciples aside privately and said to them on the way: ¹⁸“Listen! We are going up to Jerusalem. The ^•Son of Man will be handed over to the ^•chief priests and ^•scribes, and they will condemn Him to death. ^a19Then they will hand Him over to the Gentiles ^bto be mocked, flogged, ^cand crucified, and He will be resurrected ^don the third day.”

Suffering and Service

²⁰Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons approached Him with her sons. ^eShe knelt down to ask Him for something. ^f21“What do you want?” He asked her.

“Promise,” ^gshe said to Him, “that these two sons of mine may sit, one on Your right and the other on Your left, in Your kingdom.” ^h

²²But Jesus answered, “You don’t know what you’re asking. Are you able to drink the cup ⁱthat I am about to drink?” ^jk

“We are able,” they said to Him.

²³He told them, “You will indeed drink My cup. ^lBut to sit at My right and left is not Mine to give; instead, it belongs to those for whom it has been prepared by My Father.” ^{m 24}When the 10 disciples heard this, they became indignant with the two brothers. ²⁵But Jesus called them over and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles dominate them, and the men of high position exercise power over them. ²⁶It must not be like that among you. On the contrary, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, ⁿ²⁷and whoever wants to be first among you must be your ^•slave; ²⁸just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, ^oand to give His life—a ransom for many.” ^p

Two Blind Men Healed

²⁹As they were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed Him. ^q30There were two blind men sitting by the road. When they heard that Jesus was passing by, they cried out, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” ³¹The crowd told them to keep quiet, but they cried out all the more, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” ^r

³²Jesus stopped, called them, and said, “What do you want Me to do for you?”

³³“Lord,” they said to Him, “open our eyes!” ³⁴Moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes. Immediately they could see, and they followed Him.