Matthew 21
21
Jesus' Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem
1When they had come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, 2saying to them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. 3If anyone says anything to you, just say this, ‘The Lord needs them.’ And he will send them immediately.#21.3 Or ‘The Lord needs them and will send them back immediately.’ ” 4This took place to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet, saying,
5“Tell the daughter of Zion,
Look, your king is coming to you,
humble, and mounted on a donkey,
and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”
6The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them; 7they brought the donkey and the colt, and put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. 8A very large crowd#21.8 Or Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were shouting,
“Hosanna to the Son of David!
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
10When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil, asking, “Who is this?” 11The crowds were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee.”
Jesus Cleanses the Temple
12Then Jesus entered the temple#21.12 Other ancient authorities add of God and drove out all who were selling and buying in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves. 13He said to them, “It is written,
‘My house shall be called a house of prayer’;
but you are making it a den of robbers.”
14The blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he cured them. 15But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the amazing things that he did, and heard#21.15 Gk lacks heard the children crying out in the temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they became angry 16and said to him, “Do you hear what these are saying?” Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read,
‘Out of the mouths of infants and nursing babies
you have prepared praise for yourself’?”
17He left them, went out of the city to Bethany, and spent the night there.
Jesus Curses the Fig Tree
18In the morning, when he returned to the city, he was hungry. 19And seeing a fig tree by the side of the road, he went to it and found nothing at all on it but leaves. Then he said to it, “May no fruit ever come from you again!” And the fig tree withered at once. 20When the disciples saw it, they were amazed, saying, “How did the fig tree wither at once?” 21Jesus answered them, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only will you do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ it will be done. 22Whatever you ask for in prayer with faith, you will receive.”
The Authority of Jesus Questioned
23When he entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching, and said, “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” 24Jesus said to them, “I will also ask you one question; if you tell me the answer, then I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. 25Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin?” And they argued with one another, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ 26But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ we are afraid of the crowd; for all regard John as a prophet.” 27So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And he said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.
The Parable of the Two Sons
28“What do you think? A man had two sons; he went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ 29He answered, ‘I will not’; but later he changed his mind and went. 30The father#21.30 Gk He went to the second and said the same; and he answered, ‘I go, sir’; but he did not go. 31Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you. 32For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him; and even after you saw it, you did not change your minds and believe him.
The Parable of the Wicked Tenants
33“Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenants and went to another country. 34When the harvest time had come, he sent his slaves to the tenants to collect his produce. 35But the tenants seized his slaves and beat one, killed another, and stoned another. 36Again he sent other slaves, more than the first; and they treated them in the same way. 37Finally he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 38But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him and get his inheritance.’ 39So they seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. 40Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?” 41They said to him, “He will put those wretches to a miserable death, and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the harvest time.”
42Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the scriptures:
‘The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone;#21.42 Or keystone
this was the Lord's doing,
and it is amazing in our eyes’?
43Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces the fruits of the kingdom.#21.43 Gk the fruits of it 44The one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and it will crush anyone on whom it falls.”#21.44 Other ancient authorities lack verse 44
45When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they realized that he was speaking about them. 46They wanted to arrest him, but they feared the crowds, because they regarded him as a prophet.
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Matthew 21: 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 21
21
The Triumphant Entry Into Jerusalem
Mk 11:1–11; Lk 19:28–38; Jn 12:12–19
1#Mt 24:3; 26:30When they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, on the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, 2saying to them, “Go over into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to Me. 3If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them.’ And he will send them immediately.”
4#Mt 1:22; Jn 12:15All this was done to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying:
5#Isa 62:11; Ge 49:10 “Tell the daughter of Zion,
‘Look, your King is coming to you,
humble, and sitting on a donkey,
and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’#Zec 9:9.”
6The disciples went and did as Jesus commanded them. 7They brought the donkey and the colt, laid their garments on them, and He sat on them. 8#2Ki 9:13A very large crowd spread their garments on the road. Others cut down branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9#Lk 2:14; Mt 23:39The crowds that went before Him and that followed Him cried out:
“Hosanna to the Son of David!
‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’#Ps 118:26.
Hosanna in the highest!”
10When He entered Jerusalem, the entire city was moved, saying, “Who is He?”
11#Lk 7:16; Jn 6:14The crowds said, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee.”
The Cleansing of the Temple
Mk 11:15–19; Lk 19:45–48; Jn 2:13–22
12#Lev 1:14; 5:7Jesus went into the temple of God and drove out all those who sold and bought in the temple and overturned the tables of the moneychangers and the seats of those who sold doves. 13#Isa 56:7; Jer 7:11He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’#Isa 56:7. but you have made it ‘a den of thieves.’#Jer 7:11. ”
14The blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them. 15#Mt 21:9; Lk 19:39–40But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were extremely displeased 16#Ps 8:2; Mt 11:25and said to Him, “Do You hear what these are saying?”
Jesus said to them, “Yes. Have you never read,
‘Out of the mouth of children and infants
You have perfected praise’#Ps 8:2.?”
17#Jn 11:18; 11:1And He left them and went out of the city into Bethany, and He lodged there.
The Cursing of the Fig Tree
Mk 11:12–14, 20–24
18#Mt 4:2Now in the morning as He returned to the city, He became hungry. 19#Lk 13:6–9; Mk 11:14When He saw a fig tree by the road, He went to it but found nothing on it except leaves. He said to it, “Let no fruit ever grow on you again.” Immediately the fig tree withered away.
20When the disciples saw it, they were amazed, saying, “How did the fig tree wither away instantly?”
21#Mt 17:20; Jas 1:6Jesus answered them, “Truly I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also, if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed, and be thrown into the sea,’ it will be done. 22#Mt 7:7; Jn 15:7And whatever you ask in prayer, if you believe, you will receive.”
The Question of Jesus’ Authority
Mk 11:27–33; Lk 20:1–8
23#Ac 4:7; Ex 2:14When He entered the temple, the 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? And who gave You this authority?”
24Jesus answered them, “I also will ask you one question. If you tell Me, I likewise will tell you by what authority I do these things. 25Where did the baptism of John come from? From heaven or from men?”
They reasoned among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ 26#Mk 6:20; Mt 11:9But if we say, ‘From men,’ we are afraid of the people, for all hold John as a prophet.”
27So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.”
Then He said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.
The Parable of the Two Sons
28#Mt 17:25; 20:1“What do you think? A man had two sons. He came to the first and said, ‘Son, go work today in my vineyard.’
29“He answered, ‘I will not,’ but afterward he repented and went.
30“Then he came to the second, and said likewise. He answered, ‘I will go, sir,’ but did not go.
31#Lk 7:29; 7:37–50“Which of the two did the will of his father?”
They said, “The first.”
Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you, the tax collectors and prostitutes enter the kingdom of God before you. 32#Mt 11:18; 21:25For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him. But the tax collectors and prostitutes believed him. And even when you saw it, you did not afterward repent and believe him.
The Parable of the Vineyard and the Vinedressers
Mk 12:1–12; Lk 20:9–19
33#Mt 25:14–15; SS 8:11–12“Listen to another parable: There was a certain landowner who planted a vineyard and built a wall around it. He dug a winepress in it and built a tower. Then he rented it to vinedressers and went into a distant country. 34When the season of the fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the vinedressers to receive his fruit.
35#Heb 11:36–37; 2Ch 36:15–16“The vinedressers took his servants and beat one, killed another, and stoned another. 36#Mt 22:4Again, he sent other servants, more than the first. And they did likewise to them. 37Last of all, he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’
38“But when the vinedressers saw the son, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.’ 39#Ac 2:23So they caught him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him.
40“Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vinedressers?”
41#Ac 18:6; Mt 21:43They said, “He will severely destroy those wicked men and rent his vineyard to other vinedressers who will give him the fruits in their seasons.”
42#Ac 4:11; Ps 118:22–23; Isa 28:16Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures:
‘The stone which the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.
This is the Lord’s doing,
and it is marvelous in our eyes’#Ps 118:22–23.?
43“Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing its fruits. 44#Isa 8:14–15; Da 2:34–35Whoever falls on this stone will be broken to pieces. But on whomever it falls, it will crush him.”
45When the chief priests and Pharisees heard His parables, they perceived that He was speaking of them. 46#Mt 21:11; 21:26But as they tried to arrest Him, they feared the crowds, because they held Him as a prophet.
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