Turn from Your Sins or Die

13 At that time some people were there who told Jesus about the Galileans whom Pilate had killed while they were offering sacrifices to God. 2Jesus answered them, “Because those Galileans were killed in that way, do you think it proves that they were worse sinners than all the other Galileans? 3No indeed! And I tell you that if you do not turn from your sins, you will all die as they did. 4What about those eighteen people in Siloam who were killed when the tower fell on them? Do you suppose this proves that they were worse than all the other people living in Jerusalem? 5No indeed! And I tell you that if you do not turn from your sins, you will all die as they did.”

The Parable of the Unfruitful Fig-Tree

6 Then Jesus told them this parable: “There was once a man who had a fig tree growing in his vineyard. He went looking for figs on it but found none. 7So he said to his gardener, ‘Look, for three years I have been coming here looking for figs on this fig tree, and I haven’t found any. Cut it down! Why should it go on using up the soil?’ 8But the gardener answered, ‘Leave it alone, sir, just one more year; I will dig round it and put in some manure. 9Then if the tree bears figs next year, so much the better; if not, then you can have it cut down.’ ”

Jesus Heals a Crippled Woman on the Sabbath

10 One Sabbath Jesus was teaching in a synagogue. 11A woman there had an evil spirit that had made her ill for eighteen years; she was bent over and could not straighten up at all. 12When Jesus saw her, he called out to her, “Woman, you are free from your illness!” 13He placed his hands on her, and at once she straightened herself up and praised God.

14 *The official of the synagogue was angry that Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, so he spoke up and said to the people, “There are six days in which we should work; so come during those days and be healed, but not on the Sabbath!”

15 The Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Any one of you would untie your ox or your donkey from the stall and take it out to give it water on the Sabbath. 16Now here is this descendant of Abraham whom Satan has kept bound up for eighteen years; should she not be released on the Sabbath?” 17His answer made his enemies ashamed of themselves, while the people rejoiced over all the wonderful things that he did.

The Parable of the Mustard Seed

(Matt 13:31, 32; Mark 4:30–32)

18 Jesus asked, “What is the Kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it with? 19It is like this. A man takes a mustard seed and sows it in his field. The plant grows and becomes a tree, and the birds make their nests in its branches.”

The Parable of the Yeast

(Matt 13:33)

20 Again Jesus asked, “What shall I compare the Kingdom of God with? 21It is like this. A woman takes some yeast and mixes it with forty litres of flour until the whole batch of dough rises.”

The Narrow Door

(Matt 7:13, 14, 21–23)

22 Jesus went through towns and villages, teaching the people and making his way towards Jerusalem. 23Someone asked him, “Sir, will just a few people be saved?”

Jesus answered them, 24“Do your best to go in through the narrow door; because many people will surely try to go in but will not be able. 25The master of the house will get up and close the door; then when you stand outside and begin to knock on the door and say, ‘Open the door for us, sir!’ he will answer you, ‘I don’t know where you come from!’ 26Then you will answer, ‘We ate and drank with you; you taught in our town!’ 27*But he will say again, ‘I don’t know where you come from. Get away from me, all you wicked people!’ 28*How you will cry and grind your teeth when you see Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets in the Kingdom of God, while you are thrown out! 29*People will come from the east and the west, from the north and the south, and sit down at the feast in the Kingdom of God. 30*Then those who are now last will be first, and those who are now first will be last.”

Jesus’s Love for Jerusalem

(Matt 23:37–39)

31 At that same time some Pharisees came to Jesus and said to him, “You must get out of here and go somewhere else, because Herod wants to kill you.”

32 Jesus answered them, “Go and tell that fox: ‘I am driving out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I shall finish my work.’ 33Yet I must be on my way today, tomorrow, and the next day; it is not right for a prophet to be killed anywhere except in Jerusalem.

34 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets, you stone the messengers God has sent you! How many times have I wanted to put my arms round all your people, just as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you would not let me! 35*And so your Temple will be abandoned. I assure you that you will not see me until the time comes when you say, ‘God bless him who comes in the name of the Lord.’ ”

Jesus Heals a Sick Man

14 One Sabbath Jesus went to eat a meal at the home of one of the leading Pharisees; and people were watching Jesus closely. 2A man whose legs and arms were swollen came to Jesus, 3and Jesus asked the teachers of the Law and the Pharisees, “Does our Law allow healing on the Sabbath or not?”

4 But they would not say anything. Jesus took the man, healed him, and sent him away. 5*Then he said to them, “If any one of you had a son or an ox that happened to fall in a well on a Sabbath, would you not pull them out at once on the Sabbath itself?”

6 But they were not able to answer him about this.

Humility and Hospitality

7 Jesus noticed how some of the guests were choosing the best places, so he told this parable to all of them: 8*“When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place. It could happen that someone more important than you has been invited, 9*and your host, who invited both of you, would have to come and say to you, ‘Let him have this place.’ Then you would be embarrassed and have to sit in the lowest place. 10*Instead, when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that your host will come to you and say, ‘Come on up, my friend, to a better place.’ This will bring you honour in the presence of all the other guests. 11*For all those who make themselves great will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be made great.”

12 Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a lunch or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or your rich neighbours—for they will invite you back, and in this way you will be paid for what you did. 13When you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind; 14and you will be blessed, because they are not able to pay you back. God will repay you on the day the good people rise from death.”

The Parable of the Great Feast

(Matt 22:1–10)

15 When one of the men sitting at table heard this, he said to Jesus, “How happy are those who will sit down at the feast in the Kingdom of God!”

16 Jesus said to him, “There was once a man who was giving a great feast to which he invited many people. 17When it was time for the feast, he sent his servant to tell his guests, ‘Come, everything is ready!’ 18But they all began, one after another, to make excuses. The first one told the servant, ‘I have bought a field and must go and look at it; please accept my apologies.’ 19Another one said, ‘I have bought five pairs of oxen and am on my way to try them out; please accept my apologies.’ 20Another one said, ‘I have just got married, and for that reason I cannot come.’

21 “The servant went back and told all this to his master. The master was furious and said to his servant, ‘Hurry out to the streets and alleys of the town, and bring back the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’ 22Soon the servant said, ‘Your order has been carried out, sir, but there is room for more.’ 23So the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the country roads and lanes and make people come in, so that my house will be full. 24I tell you all that none of those who were invited will taste my dinner!’ ”

The Cost of Being a Disciple

(Matt 10:37, 38)

25 Once when large crowds of people were going along with Jesus, he turned and said to them, 26*“Those who come to me cannot be my disciples unless they love me more than they love father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and themselves as well. 27*Those who do not carry their own cross and come after me cannot be my disciples.

28 “If one of you is planning to build a tower, you sit down first and work out what it will cost, to see if you have enough money to finish the job. 29If you don’t, you will not be able to finish the tower after laying the foundation; and all who see what happened will laugh at you. 30‘This man began to build but can’t finish the job!’ they will say.

31 “If a king goes out with ten thousand men to fight another king who comes against him with twenty thousand men, he will sit down first and decide if he is strong enough to face that other king. 32If he isn’t, he will send messengers to meet the other king, to ask for terms of peace while he is still a long way off. 33In the same way,” concluded Jesus, “none of you can be my disciple unless you give up everything you have.

Worthless Salt

(Matt 5:13; Mark 9:50)

34 “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, there is no way to make it salty again. 35It is no good for the soil or for the manure heap; it is thrown away. Listen, then, if you have ears!”

(Matt 18:12–14)

The Lost Sheep Matt 18:12–14

15 * One day when many tax collectors and other outcasts came to listen to Jesus, 2*the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law started grumbling, “This man welcomes outcasts and even eats with them!” 3So Jesus told them this parable:

4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them—what do you do? You leave the other ninety-nine sheep in the pasture and go looking for the one that got lost until you find it. 5When you find it, you are so happy that you put it on your shoulders 6and carry it back home. Then you call your friends and neighbours together and say to them, ‘I am so happy I found my lost sheep. Let us celebrate!’ 7In the same way, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine respectable people who do not need to repent.

The Lost Coin

8 “Or suppose a woman who has ten silver coins loses one of them—what does she do? She lights a lamp, sweeps her house, and looks carefully everywhere until she finds it. 9When she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbours together, and says to them, ‘I am so happy I found the coin I lost. Let us celebrate!’ 10In the same way, I tell you, the angels of God rejoice over one sinner who repents.”

The Lost Son

11 Jesus went on to say, “There was once a man who had two sons. 12The younger one said to him, ‘Father, give me my share of the property now.’ So the man divided his property between his two sons. 13After a few days the younger son sold his part of the property and left home with the money. He went to a country far away, where he wasted his money in reckless living. 14He spent everything he had. Then a severe famine spread over that country, and he was left without a thing. 15So he went to work for one of the citizens of that country, who sent him out to his farm to take care of the pigs. 16He wished he could fill himself with the bean pods the pigs ate, but no one gave him anything to eat. 17At last he came to his senses and said, ‘All my father’s hired workers have more than they can eat, and here I am about to starve! 18I will get up and go to my father and say, Father, I have sinned against God and against you. 19I am no longer fit to be called your son; treat me as one of your hired workers.’ 20So he got up and started back to his father.

“He was still a long way from home when his father saw him; his heart was filled with pity, and he ran, threw his arms round his son, and kissed him. 21‘Father,’ the son said, ‘I have sinned against God and against you. I am no longer fit to be called your son.’ 22But the father called his servants. ‘Hurry!’ he said. ‘Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and shoes on his feet. 23Then go and get the prize calf and kill it, and let us celebrate with a feast! 24For this son of mine was dead, but now he is alive; he was lost, but now he has been found.’ And so the feasting began.

25 “In the meantime the elder son was out in the field. On his way back, when he came close to the house, he heard the music and dancing. 26So he called one of the servants and asked him, ‘What’s going on?’ 27‘Your brother has come back home,’ the servant answered, ‘and your father has killed the prize calf, because he got him back safe and sound.’

28 “The elder brother was so angry that he would not go into the house; so his father came out and begged him to come in. 29But he answered his father, ‘Look, all these years I have worked for you like a slave, and I have never disobeyed your orders. What have you given me? Not even a goat for me to have a feast with my friends! 30But this son of yours wasted all your property on prostitutes, and when he comes back home, you kill the prize calf for him!’ 31‘My son,’ the father answered, ‘you are always here with me, and everything I have is yours. 32But we had to celebrate and be happy, because your brother was dead, but now he is alive; he was lost, but now he has been found.’ ”