Chapter 15

The Lost Sheep

1 Now all the atax collectors and the 1sinners were coming near Him to listen to Him.

2 Both the Pharisees and the scribes began to grumble, saying, “This man receives sinners and aeats with them.”

3 So He told them this parable, saying,

4 “aWhat man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the 1open pasture and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?

5 “When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.

6 “And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’

7 “I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.

The Lost Coin

8 “Or what woman, if she has ten 1silver coins and loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it?

9 “When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin which I had lost!’

10 “In the same way, I tell you, there is joy ain the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

The Prodigal Son

11 And He said, “A man had two sons.

12 “The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me athe share of the estate that falls to me.’ So he divided his 1bwealth between them.

13 “And not many days later, the younger son gathered everything together and went on a journey into a distant country, and there he squandered his estate with loose living.

14 “Now when he had spent everything, a severe famine occurred in that country, and he began to be impoverished.

15 “So he went and 1hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.

16 “And he would have gladly filled his stomach with the 1pods that the swine were eating, and no one was giving anything to him.

17 “But when he came to 1his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger!

18 ‘I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven, and 1in your sight;

19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men.” ’

20 “So he got up and came to 1his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and 2aembraced him and kissed him.

21 “And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’

22 “But the father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly bring out athe best robe and put it on him, and bput a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet;

23 and bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat and celebrate;

24 for this son of mine was adead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.’ And they began to celebrate.

25 “Now his older son was in the field, and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing.

26 “And he summoned one of the servants and began inquiring what these things could be.

27 “And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has received him back safe and sound.’

28 “But he became angry and was not willing to go in; and his father came out and began pleading with him.

29 “But he answered and said to his father, ‘Look! For so many years I have been serving you and I have never 1neglected a command of yours; and yet you have never given me a young goat, so that I might celebrate with my friends;

30 but when this son of yours came, who has devoured your 1awealth with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him.’

31 “And he said to him, ‘Son, you 1have always been with me, and all that is mine is yours.

32 ‘But we had to celebrate and rejoice, for this brother of yours was adead and has begun to live, and was lost and has been found.’ ”

Chapter 16

The Unrighteous Steward

1 Now He was also saying to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a manager, and this manager was 1reported to him as asquandering his possessions.

2 “And he called him and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an accounting of your management, for you can no longer be manager.’

3 “The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do, since my 1master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig; I am ashamed to beg.

4 ‘I know what I shall do, so that when I am removed from the management people will welcome me into their homes.’

5 “And he summoned each one of his 1master’s debtors, and he began saying to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’

6 “And he said, ‘A hundred 1measures of oil.’ And he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’

7 “Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ And he said, ‘A hundred 1measures of wheat.’ He * said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’

8 “And his 1master praised the unrighteous manager because he had acted shrewdly; for the sons of athis age are more shrewd in relation to their own 2kind than the bsons of light.

9 “And I say to you, amake friends for yourselves by means of the 1bwealth of unrighteousness, so that when it fails, cthey will receive you into the eternal dwellings.

10 “aHe who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much.

11 “Therefore if you have not been faithful in the use of unrighteous 1awealth, who will entrust the true riches to you?

12 “And if you have not been faithful in the use of that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own?

13 “aNo 1servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and 2bwealth.”

14 Now the Pharisees, who were alovers of money, were listening to all these things and bwere scoffing at Him.

15 And He said to them, “You are those who ajustify yourselves 1in the sight of men, but bGod knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable 1in the sight of God.

16 “aThe Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John; since that time bthe gospel of the kingdom of God 1has been preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it.

17 “aBut it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one 1stroke of a letter of the Law to fail.

18 “aEveryone who 1divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries one who is 2divorced from a husband commits adultery.

The Rich Man and Lazarus

19 “Now there was a rich man, and he habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, joyously living in splendor every day.

20 “And a poor man named Lazarus awas laid at his gate, covered with sores,

21 and longing to be fed with the crumbs which were falling from the rich man’s table; besides, even the dogs were coming and licking his sores.

22 “Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to aAbraham’s bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried.

23 “In aHades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and * saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom.

24 “And he cried out and said, ‘aFather Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in bthis flame.’

25 “But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that aduring your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony.

26 ‘And 1besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not be able, and that none may cross over from there to us.’

27 “And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, that you send him to my father’s house—

28 for I have five brothers—in order that he may awarn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’

29 “But Abraham * said, ‘They have aMoses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’

30 “But he said, ‘No, afather Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!’

31 “But he said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’ ”

Chapter 17

Instructions

1 He said to His disciples, “aIt is inevitable that 1stumbling blocks come, but woe to him through whom they come!

2 “aIt 1would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than that he would cause one of these little ones to stumble.

3 “1Be on your guard! aIf your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him.

4 “And if he sins against you aseven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ 1forgive him.”

5 aThe apostles said to bthe Lord, “Increase our faith!”

6 And athe Lord said, “If you 1had faith like ba mustard seed, you would say to this cmulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and be planted in the sea’; and it would 2obey you.

7 “Which of you, having a slave plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come immediately and 1sit down to eat’?

8 “But will he not say to him, ‘aPrepare something for me to eat, and properly 1clothe yourself and serve me while I eat and drink; and 2afterward you 3may eat and drink’?

9 “He does not thank the slave because he did the things which were commanded, does he?

10 “So you too, when you do all the things which are commanded you, say, ‘We are unworthy slaves; we have done only that which we ought to have done.’ ”

Ten Lepers Cleansed

11 While He was aon the way to Jerusalem, bHe was passing 1between Samaria and Galilee.

12 As He entered a village, ten leprous men who astood at a distance met Him;

13 and they raised their voices, saying, “Jesus, aMaster, have mercy on us!”

14 When He saw them, He said to them, “aGo and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they were going, they were cleansed.

15 Now one of them, when he saw that he had been healed, turned back, aglorifying God with a loud voice,

16 and he fell on his face at His feet, giving thanks to Him. And he was a aSamaritan.

17 Then Jesus answered and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But the nine—where are they?

18 “1Was no one found who returned to agive glory to God, except this foreigner?”

19 And He said to him, “Stand up and go; ayour faith 1has made you well.”

20 Now having been questioned by the Pharisees aas to when the kingdom of God was coming, He answered them and said, “The kingdom of God is not coming with 1bsigns to be observed;

21 nor will athey say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or, ‘There it is!’ For behold, the kingdom of God is 1in your midst.”

Second Coming Foretold

22 And He said to the disciples, “aThe days will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it.

23 “aThey will say to you, ‘Look there! Look here!’ Do not go away, and do not run after them.

24 “aFor just like the lightning, when it flashes out of one part 1of the sky, shines to the other part 1of the sky, so will the Son of Man be in His day.

25 “aBut first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.

26 “aAnd just as it happened bin the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man:

27 they were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying, they were being given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.

28 “1It was the same as happened in athe days of Lot: they were eating, they were drinking, they were buying, they were selling, they were planting, they were building;

29 but on the day that Lot went out from Sodom it rained fire and 1brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all.

30 “It will be 1just the same on the day that the Son of Man ais revealed.

31 “On that day, the one who is aon the housetop and whose goods are in the house must not go down to take them out; and likewise the one who is in the field must not turn back.

32 “aRemember Lot’s wife.

33 “aWhoever seeks to keep his 1life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.

34 “I tell you, on that night there will be two in one bed; one will be taken and the other will be left.

35 “aThere will be two women grinding at the same place; one will be taken and the other will be left.

36 [“1aTwo men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other will be left.”]

37 And answering they * said to Him, “Where, Lord?” And He said to them, “aWhere the body is, there also the 1vultures will be gathered.”

Chapter 18

Parables on Prayer

1 Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they aought to pray and not to blose heart,

2 saying, “In a certain city there was a judge who did not fear God and did not arespect man.

3 “There was a widow in that city, and she kept coming to him, saying, ‘1Give me legal protection from my opponent.’

4 “For a while he was unwilling; but afterward he said to himself, ‘Even though I do not fear God nor arespect man,

5 yet abecause this widow bothers me, I will 1give her legal protection, otherwise by continually coming she will 2bwear me out.’ ”

6 And athe Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge * said;

7 now, will not God abring about justice for His belect who cry to Him day and night, 1and will He cdelay long over them?

8 “I tell you that He will bring about justice for them quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, awill He find 1faith on the earth?”

The Pharisee and the Publican

9 And He also told this parable to some people who atrusted in themselves that they were righteous, and bviewed others with contempt:

10 “Two men awent up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.

11 “The Pharisee astood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.

12 ‘I afast twice a week; I bpay tithes of all that I get.’

13 “But the tax collector, astanding some distance away, bwas even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but cwas beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be 1merciful to me, the sinner!’

14 “I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; afor everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

15 aAnd they were bringing even their babies to Him so that He would touch them, but when the disciples saw it, they began rebuking them.

16 But Jesus called for them, saying, “Permit the children to come to Me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.

17 “Truly I say to you, awhoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.”

The Rich Young Ruler

18 aA ruler questioned Him, saying, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”

19 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone.

20 “You know the commandments, ‘aDo not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother.’ ”

21 And he said, “All these things I have kept from my youth.”

22 When Jesus heard this, He said to him, “One thing you still lack; asell all that you possess and distribute it to the poor, and you shall have btreasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

23 But when he had heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich.

24 And Jesus looked at him and said, “aHow hard it is for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God!

25 “For ait is easier for a camel to 1go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

26 They who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?”

27 But He said, “aThe things that are impossible with people are possible with God.”

28 Peter said, “Behold, awe have left 1our own homes and followed You.”

29 And He said to them, “Truly I say to you, athere is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God,

30 who will not receive many times as much at this time and in athe age to come, eternal life.”

31 aThen He took the twelve aside and said to them, “Behold, bwe are going up to Jerusalem, and call things which are written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished.

32 “aFor He will be 1handed over to the Gentiles, and will be mocked and mistreated and spit upon,

33 and after they have scourged Him, they will kill Him; and the third day He will rise again.”

34 But athe disciples understood none of these things, and the meaning of this statement was hidden from them, and they did not comprehend the things that were said.

Bartimaeus Receives Sight

35 aAs 1bJesus was approaching Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the road begging.

36 Now hearing a crowd going by, he began to inquire what this was.

37 They told him that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by.

38 And he called out, saying, “Jesus, aSon of David, have mercy on me!”

39 Those who led the way were sternly telling him to be quiet; but he kept crying out all the more, “aSon of David, have mercy on me!”

40 And Jesus stopped and commanded that he be brought to Him; and when he came near, He questioned him,

41 “What do you want Me to do for you?” And he said, “Lord, I want to regain my sight!”

42 And Jesus said to him, “1Receive your sight; ayour faith has 2made you well.”

43 Immediately he regained his sight and began following Him, aglorifying God; and when ball the people saw it, they gave praise to God.

Chapter 19

Zaccheus Converted

1 He aentered Jericho and was passing through.

2 And there was a man called by the name of Zaccheus; he was a chief tax collector and he was rich.

3 Zaccheus was trying to see who Jesus was, and was unable because of the crowd, for he was small in stature.

4 So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a 1asycamore tree in order to see Him, for He was about to pass through that way.

5 When Jesus came to the place, He looked up and said to him, “Zaccheus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house.”

6 And he hurried and came down and received Him 1gladly.

7 When they saw it, they all began to grumble, saying, “He has gone 1to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.”

8 Zaccheus stopped and said to athe Lord, “Behold, Lord, half of my possessions I 1will give to the poor, and if I have bdefrauded anyone of anything, I 1will give back cfour times as much.”

9 And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he, too, is aa son of Abraham.

10 “For athe Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

Parable of Money Usage

11 While they were listening to these things, Jesus went on to tell a parable, because aHe was near Jerusalem, and they supposed that bthe kingdom of God was going to appear immediately.

12 So He said, “aA nobleman went to a distant country to receive a kingdom for himself, and then return.

13 “And he called ten of his slaves, and gave them ten 1minas and said to them, ‘Do business with this 2until I come back.’

14 “But his citizens hated him and sent 1a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to reign over us.’

15 “When he returned, after receiving the kingdom, he ordered that these slaves, to whom he had given the money, be called to him so that he might know what business they had done.

16 “The first appeared, saying, ‘1Master, your 2mina has made ten minas more.’

17 “And he said to him, ‘Well done, good slave, because you have been afaithful in a very little thing, you are to be in authority over ten cities.’

18 “The second came, saying, ‘Your 1mina, 2master, has made five minas.’

19 “And he said to him also, ‘And you are to be over five cities.’

20 “Another came, saying, ‘Master, here is your mina, which I kept put away in a handkerchief;

21 for I was afraid of you, because you are an exacting man; you take up what you did not lay down and reap what you did not sow.’

22 “He * said to him, ‘1By your own words I will judge you, you worthless slave. Did you know that I am an exacting man, taking up what I did not lay down and reaping what I did not sow?

23 ‘Then why did you not put my money in the bank, and having come, I would have collected it with interest?’

24 “Then he said to the bystanders, ‘Take the mina away from him and give it to the one who has the ten minas.’

25 “And they said to him, ‘Master, he has ten minas already.’

26 “aI tell you that to everyone who has, more shall be given, but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away.

27 “But athese enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and bslay them in my presence.”

Triumphal Entry

28 After He had said these things, He awas going on ahead, bgoing up to Jerusalem.

29 aWhen He approached Bethphage and bBethany, near the 1mount that is called cOlivet, He sent two of the disciples,

30 saying, “Go into the village ahead of you; there, as you enter, you will find a colt tied on which no one yet has ever sat; untie it and bring it here.

31 “If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of it.’ ”

32 So those who were sent went away and found it just as He had told them.

33 As they were untying the colt, its 1owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?”

34 They said, “The Lord has need of it.”

35 They brought it to Jesus, aand they threw their coats on the colt and put Jesus on it.

36 As He was going, they were spreading their coats on the road.

37 As soon as He was approaching, near the descent of athe Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of the disciples began to bpraise God 1joyfully with a loud voice for all the 2miracles which they had seen,

38 shouting:

“aBlessed is the bKing who comes in the name of the Lord;

Peace in heaven and cglory in the highest!”

39 aSome of the Pharisees 1in the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, rebuke Your disciples.”

40 But Jesus answered, “I tell you, if these become silent, athe stones will cry out!”

41 When He approached Jerusalem, He saw the city and awept over it,

42 saying, “If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes.

43 “For the days will come upon you 1when your enemies will athrow up a 2barricade against you, and bsurround you and hem you in on every side,

44 and they will level you to the ground and your children within you, and athey will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not recognize bthe time of your visitation.”

Traders Driven from the Temple

45 aJesus entered the temple and began to drive out those who were selling,

46 saying to them, “It is written, ‘aAnd My house shall be a house of prayer,’ bbut you have made it a robbers’ 1den.”

47 And aHe was teaching daily in the temple; but the chief priests and the scribes and the leading men among the people bwere trying to destroy Him,

48 and they could not find 1anything that they might do, for all the people were hanging on to 2every word He said.