Matthew 18:5–14

⁵And whoever welcomes ⁱone 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 ^jwere hung around his neck and he were drowned in the depths of the sea! ^k7Woe to the world because of ^•offenses. For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes. ^l8If 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. ^m9And 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! ^no

The Parable of the Lost Sheep

¹⁰“See that you don’t look down on one of these little ones, ^pbecause I tell you that in heaven their angels ^qcontinually view the face of My Father in heaven. ^r [¹¹For the ^•Son of Man ^shas come to save the lost.] ^t12What do you think? ^uIf 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? ^v13And if he finds it, I assure you: He rejoices over that sheep ^wmore than over the 99 that did not go astray. ¹⁴In the same way, it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones perish.