Matthew 21:12–27

Cleansing the Temple Complex

¹²Jesus went into the temple complex ^zaand drove out all those buying and selling in the temple. He overturned the money changers’ tables and the chairs of those selling doves. ^b13And He said to them, “It is written, My house will be called a house of prayer. ^cBut you are making it a den of thieves!” ^de

Children Praise Jesus

¹⁴The blind and the lame came to Him in the temple complex, and He healed them. ¹⁵When the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonders that He did and the children shouting in the temple complex, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” they were indignant ¹⁶and said to Him, “Do You hear what these children are saying?”

“Yes,” Jesus told them. “Have you never read:

You have prepared ^fpraise ^g

from the mouths of children and nursing infants?” ^h

¹⁷Then He left them, went out of the city to Bethany, ⁱand spent the night there.

The Barren Fig Tree

¹⁸Early in the morning, ^jas He was returning to the city, He was hungry. ¹⁹Seeing a lone fig tree by the road, He went up to it and found nothing on it except leaves. And He said to it, “May no fruit ever come from you again!” At once the fig tree withered.

²⁰When the disciples saw it, they were amazed and said, “How did the fig tree wither so quickly?”

²¹Jesus answered them, “^•I assure you: If you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you tell this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ it will be done. ^k22And if you believe, you will receive ^lwhatever you ask for in prayer.”

Messiah’s Authority Challenged

²³When He entered the temple complex, ^mthe chief priests and the elders of the people came up to Him as He was teaching and said, “By what authority are You doing these things? Who gave You this authority?” ⁿ

²⁴Jesus answered them, “I will also ask you one question, and if you answer it for Me, then I will tell you by what authority I do these things. ²⁵Where did John’s baptism come from? From heaven or from men?”

They began to argue among themselves, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ ^o26But if we say, ‘From men,’ we’re afraid of the crowd, ^pbecause everyone thought John was a prophet.” ^q27So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”

And He said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.