Matthew 17-19

1After six days Jesus took with Him Peter, James, and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves.

2There He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light.

3Suddenly Moses and Elijah appeared before them, talking with Jesus.

4Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If You wish, I will put up three shelters —one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”

5While Peter was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Listen to Him!”

6When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown in terror.

7Then Jesus came over and touched them. “Get up,” He said. “Do not be afraid.”

8And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus.

9As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus commanded them, “Do not tell anyone about this vision until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”

10The disciples asked Him, “Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?”

11Jesus replied, “Elijah does indeed come, and he will restore all things.

12But I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but have done to him whatever they wished. In the same way, the Son of Man will suffer at their hands.”

13Then the disciples understood that He was speaking to them about John the Baptist.

14When they came to the crowd, a man came up to Jesus and knelt before Him.

15“Lord, have mercy on my son,” he said. “He has seizures and is suffering terribly. He often falls into the fire or into the water.

16I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not heal him.”

17“O unbelieving and perverse generation!” Jesus replied. “How long must I remain with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy here to Me.”

18Then Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed from that moment.

19Afterward the disciples came to Jesus privately and asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”

20“Because you have so little faith,” He answered. “For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

22When they gathered together in Galilee, Jesus told them, “The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men.

23They will kill Him, and on the third day He will be raised to life.” And the disciples were deeply grieved.

24After they had arrived in Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma tax came to Peter and asked, “Does your Teacher pay the two drachmas?”

25“Yes,” he answered. When Peter entered the house, Jesus preempted him. “What do you think, Simon?” He asked. “From whom do the kings of the earth collect customs and taxes: from their own sons, or from others?”

26“From others,” Peter answered. “Then the sons are exempt,” Jesus said to him.

27“But so that we may not offend them, go to the sea, cast a hook, and take the first fish you catch. When you open its mouth, you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for My tax and yours.”

1At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who then is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

2Jesus invited a little child to stand among them.

3“Truly I tell you,” He said, “unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

4Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

5And whoever welcomes a little child like this in My name welcomes Me.

6But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.

7Woe to the world for the causes of sin. These stumbling blocks must come, but woe to the man through whom they come!

8If your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than to have two hands and two feet and be thrown into the eternal fire.

9And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.

10See that you do not look down on any of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of My Father in heaven.

12What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost?

13And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he rejoices more over that one sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray.

14In the same way, your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.

15If your brother sins against you, go and confront him privately. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over.

16But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’

17If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, regard him as you would a pagan or a tax collector.

18Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

19Again, I tell you truly that if two of you on the earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by My Father in heaven.

20For where two or three gather together in My name, there am I with them.”

21Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother who sins against me? Up to seven times?”

22Jesus answered, “I tell you, not just seven times, but seventy-seven times!

23Because of this, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.

24As he began the settlements, a debtor owing ten thousand talents was brought to him.

25Since the man was unable to pay, the master ordered that he be sold to pay his debt, along with his wife and children and everything he owned.

26Then the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Have patience with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’

27His master had compassion on him, forgave his debt, and released him.

28But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay back what you owe me!’

29So his fellow servant fell down and begged him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you back.’

30But he refused. Instead, he went and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay his debt.

31When his fellow servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed, and they went and recounted all of this to their master.

32Then the master summoned him and said, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave all your debt because you begged me.

33Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had on you?’

34In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should repay all that he owed.

35That is how My heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.”

1When Jesus had finished saying these things, He left Galilee and went into the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.

2Large crowds followed Him, and He healed them there.

3Then some Pharisees came and tested Him by asking, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?”

4Jesus answered, “Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’

5and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’?

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

7“Why then,” they asked, “did Moses order a man to give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?”

8Jesus replied, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because of your hardness of heart. But it was not this way from the beginning.

9Now I tell you that whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.”

10His disciples said to Him, “If this is the case between a man and his wife, it is better not to marry.”

11“Not everyone can accept this word,” He replied, “but only those to whom it has been given.

12For there are eunuchs who were born that way; others were made that way by men; and still others live like eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. The one who can accept this should accept it.”

13Then little children were brought to Jesus for Him to place His hands on them and pray for them. And the disciples rebuked those who brought them.

14But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not hinder them! For the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”

15And after He had placed His hands on them, He went on from there.

16Just then a man came up to Jesus and inquired, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to obtain eternal life?”

17“Why do you ask Me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.”

18“Which ones?” the man asked. Jesus answered, “‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness,

19honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself.’”

20“All these I have kept,” said the young man. “What do I still lack?”

21Jesus told him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me.”

22When the young man heard this, he went away in sorrow, because he had great wealth.

23Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.

24Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

25When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, “Who then can be saved?”

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

27“Look,” Peter replied, “we have left everything to follow You. What then will there be for us?”

28Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, in the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on His glorious throne, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

29And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for the sake of My name will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life.

30But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.