Matthew 22
22
Chapter 22
Jesus tells a story about a meal at a marriage
1Jesus continued to teach the people with stories. 2He said, ‘This is what the kingdom of heaven is like. A king prepared a special meal for his son's marriage. 3He asked many people to come. When the meal was ready, he sent his servants out to tell those people to come. But they refused to come.
4So the king then sent out other servants. He said to them, “Tell this message to all those people that I have asked to come. Tell them that the master says, ‘My servants have prepared the meal. They have killed my large oxen and some fat young cows to eat. Everything is ready. Now come to the marriage party!’ ”
5But the people did not think that the king's message was important. They went away to do their own work. One man went to his farm and another man went to his business. 6Other people took hold of the king's servants. They hurt them and then they killed them. 7The king was very angry. He sent his soldiers to the city where those people lived. They killed the people who killed the king's servants. They destroyed their city with fire.
8Then the king said to his other servants, “The meal for my son's marriage is ready. But the people that I had asked to come did not deserve to come. 9So go out now to the town's streets where people meet together. Ask all the people that you find there to come to the marriage party.” 10Then those servants went out into the streets. They brought to the king's house all the people that they met. Some were good people and some were bad people. Very many people came. The room for the marriage was full!
11Then the king came into the room to see all the people. He saw one man who was not wearing the right clothes for a marriage. #22:11 At that time, a man asked his friends to a special meal when he got married. He also gave them special clothes to wear. They wore these clothes when they came in to the meal. In the story, people came in from the streets, so they were not wearing special clothes. One person had not accepted the special clothes that the king gave to him. The special clothes are like what God gives us because of Jesus. Each person must accept what God gives. A person cannot save himself. That is what Jesus is teaching in this story. 12The king said to the man, “How did you come in here, my friend? You are not wearing the right clothes for a marriage.” The man could not answer the king.
13The king said to his servants, “Tie his hands and his feet. Take him and throw him into the dark place outside. There, people will cry and they will bite their teeth together.”
14God asks many people to come to him. But he only chooses a few people to be there with him.’
The Pharisees ask Jesus about taxes
15After the Pharisees heard this, they thought about what they could do. They wanted to ask Jesus difficult questions. They wanted to make him say something wrong about the Roman ruler. 16So the Pharisees sent their own disciples to Jesus. They also sent people who were friends of King Herod. They said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, we know that you only say true things. You teach us what God wants us to do. It does not matter to you what other people think. If someone is important, you do not change your answers to make them happy. 17So tell us your answer to this question: Should we pay our taxes to the Roman ruler, Caesar? Is it right to give that money to him, or not?’
18Jesus knew that these men wanted to do bad things to him. So he said to them, ‘You are asking that question to cause trouble for me. You are not being honest! 19Now, show me the coin that you use for the tax.’ So they brought a coin to him. 20Then Jesus asked them, ‘Whose picture is on this coin? Whose name is on it?’
21They replied, ‘It is Caesar's picture and Caesar's name.’
Jesus said to them, ‘So you should give to Caesar the things that belong to Caesar. And give to God the things that belong to God.’
22When they heard Jesus' answer, they were very surprised. So they left him and they went away.
The Sadducees ask Jesus a question
23On that day, some Sadducees also came to Jesus. Sadducees do not believe that anyone becomes alive again after they die. They wanted to ask Jesus a question. #22:23 The Sadducees were a group of Jewish leaders.
24‘Teacher,’ they said to him, ‘Moses said in the Bible: A man may die and leave behind a wife but no children. Then that man's brother must marry the woman. Then their children will be called the children of the brother who died. 25Once, there were seven brothers who lived here. The oldest brother married a woman. Then he died before they had any children. So the second brother married the woman. 26But then he also died with no children. So a third brother married this woman. And the same thing happened to all the brothers down to the seventh brother. They all died before the woman had any children. 27After all this, the woman also died. 28You teach that one day dead people will become alive again. On that day, whose wife will that woman be? She had married all seven of those brothers.’
29Jesus said to the Sadducees, ‘You are wrong. This is because you do not know the Bible. And you do not know how powerful God is. 30One day, God will raise people up after they have died. They will become alive again. But then men and women will not marry. They will not have husbands or wives. Instead, they will be like the angels in heaven. 31It is true that one day dead people will become alive again. You have read in the Bible about what God said to you: 32“I am the God of Abraham. I am the God of Isaac. And I am the God of Jacob.” God is not the God of people who are dead. He is the God of people who are alive.’ #22:32 See Exodus 3:6.
33The crowd heard this. They were very surprised about what Jesus was teaching.
Jesus teaches the Pharisees about the most important Law
34The Pharisees heard that Jesus had said these things to the Sadducees. Now the Sadducees could not say anything more to him. So the Pharisees met together. They decided what they would say to Jesus.
35One of the Pharisees had studied God's Law very well. He asked Jesus a question to see how he would answer. 36He said, ‘Teacher, which of God's Laws is the most important rule for us to obey?’
37Jesus replied to him, ‘You should love the Lord your God completely: Love him with all your mind. Love him with all that you are. Love him in all that you think. 38This is the greatest rule and the most important of all God's Laws. 39The second rule is also important, like the first one. You should love other people as much as you love yourself. 40All God's Laws that Moses gave us come from these two rules. All the things that the prophets wrote also come from them.’
Jesus teaches people about the Messiah
41While the Pharisees met together with Jesus, he asked them, 42‘What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?’
The Pharisees replied, ‘He will be King David's son.’
43Jesus said to them, ‘So think about this: God's Holy Spirit helped King David to call the Messiah his Lord. David said, 44“The Lord said to my Lord:
Sit at my right side until I win against your enemies.
Then you will be able to put your feet on them.”
45We know that King David calls the Messiah his Lord. So can you really say that the Messiah is David's son?’ 46Nobody could answer the question that Jesus asked. After this, everyone was afraid to ask Jesus any more questions.
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Matthew 22: EASY
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Matthew 22
22
Parable of the Marriage Feast
1Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying, 2“The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. 3And he sent his servants to call those who had [previously] been invited to the wedding feast, but they refused to come. 4Then he sent out some other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited, “Look, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fattened calves are butchered and everything is ready; come to the wedding feast.” ’ 5But they paid no attention [they disregarded the invitation, treating it with contempt] and went away, one to his farm, another to his business. 6The rest [of the invited guests] seized his servants and mistreated them [insulting and humiliating them] and killed them. 7The king was enraged [when he heard this], and sent his soldiers and destroyed those murderers and burned their city. 8Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding [feast] is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. 9So go to the main highways that lead out of the city, and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.’ 10Those servants went out into the streets and gathered together all the people they could find, both bad and good; so the wedding hall was filled with dinner guests [sitting at the banquet table].
11 “But when the king came in to see the dinner guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed [appropriately] in wedding clothes, 12and he said, ‘Friend, how did you come in here without wearing the wedding clothes [that were provided for you]?’ And the man was speechless and without excuse. 13Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him into the darkness outside; in that place there will be weeping [over sorrow and pain] and grinding of teeth [over distress and anger].’ 14For many are called (invited, summoned), but few are chosen.”
Tribute to Caesar
15Then the Pharisees went and conspired together plotting how to trap Him by [distorting] what He said. 16They sent their disciples to Him, along with the #A Jewish political party loyal to Herod. The Pharisees, who strongly opposed Herod and Roman rule, and the Herodians, who were strong allies of Herod and Rome, set aside their political differences in order to conspire together against Jesus.Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that You are sincere and that You teach the way of God truthfully, without concerning Yourself about [what] anyone [thinks or says of Your teachings]; for You are impartial and do not seek anyone’s favor [and You treat all people alike, regardless of status]. 17Tell us then, what do You think? Is it permissible [according to Jewish law and tradition] to pay a #Every Jew was required to pay the poll-tax. It was considered a sign of subservience to Rome.poll-tax to Caesar, or not?” 18But Jesus, aware of their malice, asked, “Why are you testing Me, you hypocrites? 19Show me the coin used for the poll-tax.” And they brought Him a denarius [a day’s wage]. 20And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” 21They said, “[#Tiberius Caesar came to the throne after the death of his stepfather, Augustus, in a.d. 14 and ruled the Roman Empire until his death in a.d. 37. He was a brilliant military general, but an incompetent, irresponsible ruler. Most biblical references to “Caesar” refer to Tiberius.The Emperor Tiberius] Caesar’s.” Then He said to them, “Then pay to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s; and to God the things that are God’s.” 22When they heard this, they were caught off guard, and they left Him and went away.
Jesus Answers the Sadducees
23On that day some Sadducees, who say that there is no resurrection [of the dead], came to Him and asked Him a question, 24saying, “Teacher, Moses said, ‘If a man dies, leaving no children, his brother as next of kin shall #The purpose of this was to carry on the family line and keep property within the family.marry his widow, and raise children for his brother.’ 25Now there were seven brothers among us; the first married and died, and having no children left his wife to his brother. 26The second also [died childless], and the third, down to the seventh. 27Last of all, the woman died. 28So in the resurrection, whose wife of the seven will she be? For they all had married her.”
29But Jesus replied to them, “You are all wrong because you know neither the Scriptures [which teach the resurrection] nor the power of God [for He is able to raise the dead]. 30For in the resurrection neither do men marry nor are women given in marriage, but they are like angels in heaven [who do not marry nor produce children]. 31But as to the resurrection of the dead—have you not read [in the Scripture] what God said to you: 32‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead, but of the living.” 33When the crowds heard this, they were astonished at His teaching.
34Now when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced (muzzled) the Sadducees, they gathered together. 35One of them, a lawyer [an expert in Mosaic Law], asked Jesus a question, to test Him: 36“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 37And Jesus replied to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself [that is, unselfishly seek the best or higher good for others].’ 40The whole Law and the [writings of the] Prophets depend on these two commandments.”
41Now while the Pharisees were [still] gathered together, Jesus asked them a question: 42“What do you [Pharisees] think of the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed)? Whose Son is He?” They said to Him, “#The Pharisees may have thought of the Messiah merely as a human descendant of David.The son of David.” 43Jesus asked them, “How is it then that David by the inspiration of the Spirit, calls Him ‘Lord,’ saying,
44 ‘The Lord (the Father) said to my Lord (the Son, the Messiah),
“Sit at My right hand,
Until I put Your enemies under Your feet” ’?
45 So then, if David calls Him (the Son, the Messiah) ‘Lord,’ # See note Mark 12:35. how is He David’s son?” 46No one was able to say a word to Him in answer, nor from that day on did anyone dare to question Him again.
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