Wednesday, February 3, 2016
Jesus' Ministry in Judea and Perea Matthew chs. 19-20)
Matthew 19
1 When Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and
went down to the region of Judea east of the Jordan River.
2 Large crowds followed him there, and he
healed their sick.
3 Some Pharisees came and tried to trap
him with this question: “Should a man be allowed to divorce his wife for just
any reason?”
4 “Haven’t you read the Scriptures?” Jesus
replied. “They record that from the beginning ‘God made them male and female.’
”
5 And he said, “‘This explains why a man
leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united
into one.’
6 Since they are no longer two but one,
let no one split apart what God has joined together.”
7 “Then why did Moses say in the law that
a man could give his wife a written notice of divorce and send her away?” they
asked.
8 Jesus replied, “Moses permitted divorce
only as a concession to your hard hearts, but it was not what God had
originally intended.
9 And I tell you this, whoever divorces
his wife and marries someone else commits adultery—unless his wife has been
unfaithful. ”
10 Jesus’ disciples then said to him, “If
this is the case, it is better not to marry!”
11 “Not everyone can accept this
statement,” Jesus said. “Only those whom God helps.
12 Some are born as eunuchs, some have been
made eunuchs by others, and some choose not to marry for the sake of the
Kingdom of Heaven. Let anyone accept this who can.”
13 One day some parents brought their
children to Jesus so he could lay his hands on them and pray for them. But the
disciples scolded the parents for bothering him.
14 But Jesus said, “Let the children come
to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to those who are like
these children.”
15 And he placed his hands on their heads
and blessed them before he left.
16 Someone came to Jesus with this
question: “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?”
17 “Why ask me about what is good?” Jesus
replied. “There is only One who is good. But to answer your question—if you
want to receive eternal life, keep the commandments.”
18 “Which ones?” the man asked. And Jesus
replied: “‘You must not murder. You must not commit adultery. You must not
steal. You must not testify falsely.
19 Honor your father and mother. Love your
neighbor as yourself.’ ”
20 “I’ve obeyed all these commandments,”
the young man replied. “What else must I do?”
21 Jesus told him, “If you want to be
perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and
you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
22 But when the young man heard this, he
went away sad, for he had many possessions.
23 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “I
tell you the truth, it is very hard for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of
Heaven.
24 I’ll say it again—it is easier for a
camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the
Kingdom of God!”
25 The disciples were astounded. “Then who
in the world can be saved?” they asked.
26 Jesus looked at them intently and said,
“Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.”
27 Then Peter said to him, “We’ve given up
everything to follow you. What will we get?”
28 Jesus replied, “I assure you that when
the world is made new and the Son of Man sits upon his glorious throne, you who
have been my followers will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve
tribes of Israel.
29 And everyone who has given up houses or
brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or property, for my sake,
will receive a hundred times as much in return and will inherit eternal life.
30 But many who are the greatest now will
be least important then, and those who seem least important now will be the
greatest then.
Matthew 20
1 “For the Kingdom of Heaven is like the
landowner who went out early one morning to hire workers for his vineyard.
2 He agreed to pay the normal daily wage
and sent them out to work.
3 “At nine o’clock in the morning he was
passing through the marketplace and saw some people standing around doing
nothing.
4 So he hired them, telling them he would
pay them whatever was right at the end of the day.
5 So they went to work in the vineyard. At
noon and again at three o’clock he did the same thing.
6 “At five o’clock that afternoon he was
in town again and saw some more people standing around. He asked them, ‘Why
haven’t you been working today?’
7 “They replied, ‘Because no one hired
us.’ “The landowner told them, ‘Then go out and join the others in my
vineyard.’
8 “That evening he told the foreman to
call the workers in and pay them, beginning with the last workers first.
9 When those hired at five o’clock were
paid, each received a full day’s wage.
10 When those hired first came to get their
pay, they assumed they would receive more. But they, too, were paid a day’s
wage.
11 When they received their pay, they
protested to the owner,
12 ‘Those people worked only one hour, and
yet you’ve paid them just as much as you paid us who worked all day in the
scorching heat.’
13 “He answered one of them, ‘Friend, I
haven’t been unfair! Didn’t you agree to work all day for the usual wage?
14 Take your money and go. I wanted to pay
this last worker the same as you.
15 Is it against the law for me to do what
I want with my money? Should you be jealous because I am kind to others?’
16 “So those who are last now will be first
then, and those who are first will be last.”
17 As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he
took the twelve disciples aside privately and told them what was going to
happen to him.
18 “Listen,” he said, “we’re going up to
Jerusalem, where the Son of Man will be betrayed to the leading priests and the
teachers of religious law. They will sentence him to die.
19 Then they will hand him over to the
Romans to be mocked, flogged with a whip, and crucified. But on the third day
he will be raised from the dead.”
20 Then the mother of James and John, the
sons of Zebedee, came to Jesus with her sons. She knelt respectfully to ask a
favor.
21 “What is your request?” he asked. She
replied, “In your Kingdom, please let my two sons sit in places of honor next
to you, one on your right and the other on your left.”
22 But Jesus answered by saying to them,
“You don’t know what you are asking! Are you able to drink from the bitter cup
of suffering I am about to drink?” “Oh yes,” they replied, “we are able!”
23 Jesus told them, “You will indeed drink
from my bitter cup. But I have no right to say who will sit on my right or my
left. My Father has prepared those places for the ones he has chosen.”
24 When the ten other disciples heard what
James and John had asked, they were indignant.
25 But Jesus called them together and said,
“You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and
officials flaunt their authority over those under them.
26 But among you it will be different.
Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant,
27 and whoever wants to be first among you
must become your slave.
28 For even the Son of Man came not to be
served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
29 As Jesus and the disciples left the town
of Jericho, a large crowd followed behind.
30 Two blind men were sitting beside the
road. When they heard that Jesus was coming that way, they began shouting,
“Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!”
31 “Be quiet!” the crowd yelled at them.
But they only shouted louder, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!”
32 When Jesus heard them, he stopped and
called, “What do you want me to do for you?”
33 “Lord,” they said, “we want to see!”
34 Jesus felt sorry for them and touched
their eyes. Instantly they could see! Then they followed him.
Psalm 58
Psalm 58 (New International Version)
Psalm 58
For the director of music. To the tune of "Do Not Destroy." Of David. A miktam . [a]
1 Do you rulers indeed speak justly? Do you judge uprightly among men?
2 No, in your heart you devise injustice, and your hands mete out violence on the earth.
3 Even from birth the wicked go astray; from the womb they are wayward and speak lies.
4 Their venom is like the venom of a snake, like that of a cobra that has stopped its ears,
5 that will not heed the tune of the charmer, however skillful the enchanter may be.
6 Break the teeth in their mouths, O God; tear out, O LORD, the fangs of the lions!
7 Let them vanish like water that flows away; when they draw the bow, let their arrows be blunted.
8 Like a slug melting away as it moves along, like a stillborn child, may they not see the sun.
9 Before your pots can feel the heat of the thorns— whether they be green or dry—the wicked will be swept away. [b]
10 The righteous will be glad when they are avenged, when they bathe their feet in the blood of the wicked.
11 Then men will say, "Surely the righteous still are rewarded; surely there is a God who judges the earth."
Psalm 58
For the director of music. To the tune of "Do Not Destroy." Of David. A miktam . [a]
1 Do you rulers indeed speak justly? Do you judge uprightly among men?
2 No, in your heart you devise injustice, and your hands mete out violence on the earth.
3 Even from birth the wicked go astray; from the womb they are wayward and speak lies.
4 Their venom is like the venom of a snake, like that of a cobra that has stopped its ears,
5 that will not heed the tune of the charmer, however skillful the enchanter may be.
6 Break the teeth in their mouths, O God; tear out, O LORD, the fangs of the lions!
7 Let them vanish like water that flows away; when they draw the bow, let their arrows be blunted.
8 Like a slug melting away as it moves along, like a stillborn child, may they not see the sun.
9 Before your pots can feel the heat of the thorns— whether they be green or dry—the wicked will be swept away. [b]
10 The righteous will be glad when they are avenged, when they bathe their feet in the blood of the wicked.
11 Then men will say, "Surely the righteous still are rewarded; surely there is a God who judges the earth."
Revelation 12
Revelation 12 (New International Version, ©2010)
Revelation 12
The Woman and the Dragon
1 A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. 2 She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. 3 Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads. 4 Its tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that it might devour her child the moment he was born. 5 She gave birth to a son, a male child, who "will rule all the nations with an iron scepter."[a] And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne. 6 The woman fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days.
7 Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9 The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: "Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Messiah.
For the accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.
11 They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony;
they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.
12 Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them!
But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you!
He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short."
13 When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent's reach. 15 Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent. 16 But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. 17 Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring—those who keep God's commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus.
Revelation 12
The Woman and the Dragon
1 A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. 2 She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. 3 Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads. 4 Its tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that it might devour her child the moment he was born. 5 She gave birth to a son, a male child, who "will rule all the nations with an iron scepter."[a] And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne. 6 The woman fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days.
7 Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9 The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: "Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Messiah.
For the accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.
11 They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony;
they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.
12 Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them!
But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you!
He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short."
13 When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent's reach. 15 Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent. 16 But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. 17 Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring—those who keep God's commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)