Matthew 19
19
Teaching about Divorce
1When Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan. 2Large crowds followed him, and he cured them there.
3Some Pharisees came to him, and to test him they asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any cause?” 4He answered, “Have you not read that the one who made them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’ 5and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? 6So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.” 7They said to him, “Why then did Moses command us to give a certificate of dismissal and to divorce her?” 8He said to them, “It was because you were so hard-hearted that Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. 9And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for unchastity, and marries another commits adultery.”#19.9 Other ancient authorities read except on the ground of unchastity, causes her to commit adultery; others add at the end of the verse and he who marries a divorced woman commits adultery
10His disciples said to him, “If such is the case of a man with his wife, it is better not to marry.” 11But he said to them, “Not everyone can accept this teaching, but only those to whom it is given. 12For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by others, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let anyone accept this who can.”
Jesus Blesses Little Children
13Then little children were being brought to him in order that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples spoke sternly to those who brought them; 14but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.” 15And he laid his hands on them and went on his way.
The Rich Young Man
16Then someone came to him and said, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” 17And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.” 18He said to him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; 19Honor your father and mother; also, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 20The young man said to him, “I have kept all these;#19.20 Other ancient authorities add from my youth what do I still lack?” 21Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be perfect, go, sell your possessions, and give the money#19.21 Gk lacks the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” 22When the young man heard this word, he went away grieving, for he had many possessions.
23Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it will be hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” 25When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astounded and said, “Then who can be saved?” 26But Jesus looked at them and said, “For mortals it is impossible, but for God all things are possible.”
27Then Peter said in reply, “Look, we have left everything and followed you. What then will we have?” 28Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man is seated on the throne of his glory, 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 children or fields, for my name's sake, will receive a hundredfold,#19.29 Other ancient authorities read manifold and will inherit eternal life. 30But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.
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Matthew 19: NRSV
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New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1989 Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Matthew 19
19
Jesus Teaches About Divorce
1When Jesus finished saying these things, he left Galilee. He went into the area of Judea on the other side of the Jordan River. 2Large crowds followed him. He healed them there.
3Some Pharisees came to test Jesus. They asked, “Does the Law allow a man to divorce his wife for any reason at all?”
4Jesus replied, “Haven’t you read that in the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female’? (Genesis 1:27) 5He said, ‘That’s why a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife. The two will become one.’ (Genesis 2:24) 6They are no longer two, but one. So no one should separate what God has joined together.”
7They asked, “Then why did Moses command that a man can give his wife a letter of divorce and send her away?”
8Jesus replied, “Moses let you divorce your wives because you were stubborn. But it was not this way from the beginning. 9Here is what I tell you. Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery. A man may divorce his wife only if she has not been faithful to him.”
10Here is what the disciples said to him. “If that’s the way it is between a husband and wife, it is better not to get married.”
11Jesus replied, “Not everyone can accept the idea of staying single. Only those who have been helped to live without getting married can accept it. 12Some men are not able to have children because they were born that way. Some have been made that way by other people. Others have chosen to live that way in order to serve the kingdom of heaven. The one who can accept this should accept it.”
Little Children Are Brought to Jesus
13Some people brought little children to Jesus. They wanted him to place his hands on the children and pray for them. But the disciples told them not to do it.
14Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me. Don’t keep them away. The kingdom of heaven belongs to people like them.” 15Jesus placed his hands on them to bless them. Then he went on from there.
Rich People and the Kingdom of God
16Just then, a man came up to Jesus. He asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to receive 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 the kingdom, obey the commandments.”
18“Which ones?” the man asked.
Jesus said, “ ‘Do not murder. Do not commit adultery. Do not steal. Do not be a false witness. 19Honor your father and mother.’ (Exodus 20:12–16; Deuteronomy 5:16–20) And ‘love your neighbor as you love yourself.’ ” (Leviticus 19:18)
20“I have obeyed all those commandments,” the young man said. “What else do I need to do?”
21Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go and sell everything you have. Give the money to those who are poor. You will have treasure in heaven. Then come and follow me.”
22When the young man heard this, he went away sad. He was very rich.
23Then Jesus said to his disciples, “What I’m about to tell you is true. It is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24Again I tell you, it is hard for a camel to go through the eye of a needle. But it is even harder for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”
25When the disciples heard this, they were really amazed. They asked, “Then who can be saved?”
26Jesus looked at them and said, “With people, this is impossible. But with God, all things are possible.”
27Peter answered him, “We have left everything to follow you! What reward will be given to us?”
28“What I’m about to tell you is true,” Jesus said to them. “When all things are made new, the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne. Then you who have followed me will also sit on 12 thrones. You will judge the 12 tribes of Israel. 29Suppose anyone has left houses, brothers or sisters, father or mother, husband or wife, children or fields because of me. Anyone who has done that will receive 100 times as much. They will also receive eternal life. 30But many who are first will be last. And many who are last will be first.
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