Matthew 22

Parable of the Marriage Feast

22And Jesus answered ^aand spoke to them again by parables and said: ²“The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, ³and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. ⁴Again, he sent out other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, “See, I have prepared my dinner; ^bmy oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding.” ’ ⁵But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. ⁶And the rest seized his servants, treated them ¹spitefully, and killed them. ⁷But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out ^chis armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. ⁸Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not ^dworthy. ⁹Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.’ ¹⁰So those servants went out into the highways and ^egathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests.

¹¹“But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there ^fwho did not have on a wedding garment. ¹²So he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was ^gspeechless. ¹³Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, ²take him away, and cast him ^hinto outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

¹⁴ⁱ“For many are called, but few are chosen.”

Conflict with Pharisees and Herodians

Mark 12:13–17; Luke 20:20–26

^15jThen the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk. ¹⁶And they sent to Him their disciples with the ^kHerodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not ³regard the person of men. ¹⁷Tell us, therefore, what do You think? Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?”

¹⁸But Jesus ⁴perceived their wickedness, and said, “Why do you test Me, you hypocrites? ¹⁹Show Me the tax money.”

So they brought Him a denarius.

²⁰And He said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?”

²¹They said to Him, “Caesar’s.”

And He said to them, ^l“Render ⁵therefore to Caesar the things that are ^mCaesar’s, and to God the things that are ⁿGod’s.” ²²When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way.

Conflict with Sadducees

Mark 12:18–27; Luke 20:27–40

^23oThe same day the Sadducees, ^pwho say there is no resurrection, came to Him and asked Him, ²⁴saying: “Teacher, ^qMoses said that if a man dies, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife and raise up offspring for his brother. ²⁵Now there were with us seven brothers. The first died after he had married, and having no offspring, left his wife to his brother. ²⁶Likewise the second also, and the third, even to the seventh. ²⁷Last of all the woman died also. ²⁸Therefore, in the resurrection, whose wife of the seven will she be? For they all had her.”

²⁹Jesus answered and said to them, “You are ⁶mistaken, ^rnot knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God. ³⁰For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but ^sare like angels ⁷of God in heaven. ³¹But concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God, saying, ^32t‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.” ³³And when the multitudes heard this, ^uthey were astonished at His teaching.

The Greatest Commandment

Mark 12:28–34

^34vBut when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. ³⁵Then one of them, ^wa lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, ³⁶“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?”

³⁷Jesus said to him, ^x“ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ ³⁸This is the first and great commandment. ³⁹And the second is like it: ^y‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ ^40zOn these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”

The Son of David

Mark 12:35–37; Luke 20:41–44

^41aWhile the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, ⁴²saying, “What do you think about the Christ? Whose Son is He?”

They said to Him, “The ^bSon of David.”

⁴³He said to them, “How then does David in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord,’ saying:

⁴⁴‘The ^cLord said to my Lord,

“Sit at My right hand,

Till I make Your enemies Your footstool” ’?

⁴⁵If David then calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his Son?” ^46dAnd no one was able to answer Him a word, ^enor from that day on did anyone dare question Him anymore.