Matthew 19

CHAPTER 19

Teaching About Divorce

^11aNow it happened that when Jesus had finished these words, He departed from Galilee and ^bcame into the region of Judea beyond the Jordan;

²and ¹large crowds followed Him, and ^aHe healed them there.

³And some Pharisees came to ¹Jesus, testing Him and saying, “^aIs it lawful for a man to ²divorce his wife for any reason at all?”

⁴And He answered and said, “Have you not read ^athat He who created them from the beginning made them male and female,

⁵and said, ‘^aFor this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and ^bthe two shall become one flesh’?

⁶“So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.”

⁷They ^*said to Him, “^aWhy then did Moses command to give her a certificate of divorce and send her away?”

⁸He ^*said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart Moses permitted you to ¹divorce your wives; but from the beginning it has not been this way.

⁹“And I say to you, ^awhoever ¹divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman ²commits adultery³.”

¹⁰The disciples ^*said to Him, “If the relationship of the man with his wife is like this, it is better not to marry.”

¹¹But He said to them, “^aNot all men can accept this statement, but ^bonly those to whom it has been given.

¹²“For there are eunuchs who were born that way from their mother’s womb; and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men; and there are also eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who is able to accept this, let him accept it.”

Jesus Blesses Children

^13aThen some children were brought to Him so that He might lay His hands on them and pray; and the disciples rebuked them.

¹⁴But Jesus said, “^1aLet the children alone, and do not hinder them from coming to Me; for ^bthe kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”

¹⁵And after laying His hands on them, He departed from there.

The Rich Young Ruler

^16aAnd behold, someone came to Him and said, “Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have ^beternal life?”

¹⁷And He said to him, “Why are you asking Me about what is good? There is only One who is good; but ^aif you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.”

¹⁸Then he ^*said to Him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “^aYou shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness;

^19aHonor your father and mother; and ^bYou shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

²⁰The young man ^*said to Him, “All these things I have kept; what am I still lacking?”

²¹Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be ¹complete, go and ^asell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have ^btreasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

²²But when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieving; for he was one who owned much property.

²³And Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I say to you, ^ait is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.

²⁴“And again I say to you, ^ait is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

²⁵And when the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, “Then who can be saved?”

²⁶And looking at them Jesus said to them, “^aWith people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Many Who Are First Will Be Last

²⁷Then Peter answered and said to Him, “Behold, we have left everything and followed You; what then will there be for us?”

²⁸And Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when ^athe Son of Man will sit on ¹His glorious throne, ^byou also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

²⁹“And ^aeveryone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother ¹or children or farms for My name’s sake, will receive ²one hundred times as much, and will inherit eternal life.

³⁰“^aBut many who are first will be last; and the last, first.