22 Jesus continued to teach the people with stories. 2 He said, ‘This is what the kingdom of heaven is like. A king prepared a special meal for his son's marriage. 3 He 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.
4 So 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!’ ”
5 But 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. 6 Other people took hold of the king's servants. They hurt them and then they killed them. 7 The 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.
8 Then 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. 9 So 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.” 10 Then 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!
11 Then 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. [ a ] 12 The 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.
13 The 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.”
14 God asks many people to come to him. But he only chooses a few people to be there with him.’
15 After 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. 16 So 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. 17 So 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?’
18 Jesus 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! 19 Now, show me the coin that you use for the tax.’ So they brought a coin to him. 20 Then Jesus asked them, ‘Whose picture is on this coin? Whose name is on it?’
21 They 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.’
22 When they heard Jesus' answer, they were very surprised. So they left him and they went away.
23 On 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. [ b ]
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. 25 Once, 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. 26 But 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. 27 After all this, the woman also died. 28 You 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.’
29 Jesus 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. 30 One 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. 31 It 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.’ [ c ]
33 The crowd heard this. They were very surprised about what Jesus was teaching.
34 The 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.
35 One of the Pharisees had studied God's Law very well. He asked Jesus a question to see how he would answer. 36 He said, ‘Teacher, which of God's Laws is the most important rule for us to obey?’
37 Jesus 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. 38 This is the greatest rule and the most important of all God's Laws. 39 The second rule is also important, like the first one. You should love other people as much as you love yourself. 40 All God's Laws that Moses gave us come from these two rules. All the things that the prophets wrote also come from them.’
41 While 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.’
43 Jesus 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.”
45 We know that King David calls the Messiah his Lord. So can you really say that the Messiah is David's son?’ 46 Nobody could answer the question that Jesus asked. After this, everyone was afraid to ask Jesus any more questions.
22 Jesus used some more stories to teach the people. He said, 2 “God’s kingdom is like a king who prepared a wedding feast for his son. 3 He invited some people to the feast. When it was ready, the king sent his servants to tell the people to come. But they refused to come to the king’s feast.
4 “Then the king sent some more servants. He said to them, ‘I have already invited the people. So tell them that my feast is ready. I have killed my best bulls and calves to be eaten. Everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.’
5 “But when the servants told the people to come, they refused to listen. They all went to do other things. One went to work in his field, and another went to his business. 6 Some of the other people grabbed the servants, beat them, and killed them. 7 The king was very angry. He sent his army to kill those who murdered his servants. And the army burned their city.
8 “After that the king said to his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready. I invited those people, but they were not good enough to come to my feast. 9 So go to the street corners and invite everyone you see. Tell them to come to my feast.’ 10 So the servants went into the streets. They gathered all the people they could find, good and bad alike, and brought them to where the wedding feast was ready. And the place was filled with guests.
11 “When the king came in to meet the guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed in the right clothes for a wedding. 12 The king said, ‘Friend, how were you allowed to come in here? You are not wearing the right clothes.’ But the man said nothing. 13 So the king told some servants, ‘Tie this man’s hands and feet. Throw him out into the darkness, where people are crying and grinding their teeth with pain.’
14 “Yes, many people are invited. But only a few are chosen.”
15 Then the Pharisees left the place where Jesus was teaching. They made plans to catch him saying something wrong. 16 They sent some men to Jesus. They were some of their own followers and some from the group called Herodians. They said, “Teacher, we know you are an honest man. We know you teach the truth about God’s way. You are not afraid of what others think about you. All people are the same to you. 17 So tell us what you think. Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”
18 But Jesus knew that these men were trying to trick him. So he said, “You hypocrites! Why are you trying to catch me saying something wrong? 19 Show me a coin used for paying the tax.” They showed Jesus a silver coin. 20 Then he asked, “Whose picture is on the coin? And whose name is written on the coin?”
21 They answered, “It is Caesar’s picture and Caesar’s name.”
Then Jesus said to them, “Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.”
22 When they heard what Jesus said, they were amazed. They left him and went away.
23 That same day some Sadducees came to Jesus. (Sadducees believe that no one will rise from death.) The Sadducees asked Jesus a question. 24 They said, “Teacher, Moses told us that if a married man dies and had no children, his brother must marry the woman. Then they will have children for the dead brother. [ a ] 25 There were seven brothers among us. The first brother married but died. He had no children. So his brother married the woman. 26 Then the second brother also died. The same thing happened to the third brother and all the other brothers. 27 The woman was the last to die. 28 But all seven men had married her. So when people rise from death, whose wife will she be?”
29 Jesus answered, “You are so wrong! You don’t know what the Scriptures say. And you don’t know anything about God’s power. 30 At the time when people rise from death, there will be no marriage. People will not be married to each other. Everyone will be like the angels in heaven. 31 Surely you have read what God said to you about people rising from death. 32 God said, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ [ b ] So they were not still dead, because he is the God only of living people.”
33 When the people heard this, they were amazed at Jesus’ teaching.
34 The Pharisees learned that Jesus had made the Sadducees look so foolish that they stopped trying to argue with him. So the Pharisees had a meeting. 35 Then one of them, an expert in the Law of Moses, asked Jesus a question to test him. 36 He said, “Teacher, which command in the law is the most important?”
37 Jesus answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ [ c ] 38 This is the first and most important command. 39 And the second command is like the first: ‘Love your neighbor [ d ] the same as you love yourself.’ [ e ] 40 All of the law and the writings of the prophets take their meaning from these two commands.”
41 So while the Pharisees were together, Jesus asked them a question. 42 He said, “What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?”
The Pharisees answered, “The Messiah is the Son of David.”
43 Jesus said to them, “Then why did David call him ‘Lord’? David was speaking by the power of the Spirit. He said,
44 ‘The Lord God said to my Lord:
Sit by me at my right side,
and I will put your enemies under your control. [ f ] ’ ( F )
45 David calls the Messiah ‘Lord.’ So how can he be David’s son?”
46 None of the Pharisees could answer Jesus’ question. And after that day, no one was brave enough to ask him any more questions.
22 And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said,
2 The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son,
3 And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come.
4 Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage.
5 But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise:
6 And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them.
7 But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.
8 Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy.
9 Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.
10 So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests.
11 And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:
12 And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.
13 Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness, there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
14 For many are called, but few are chosen.
15 Then went the Pharisees, and took counsel how they might entangle him in his talk.
16 And they sent out unto him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, neither carest thou for any man: for thou regardest not the person of men.
17 Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not?
18 But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites?
19 Shew me the tribute money. And they brought unto him a penny.
20 And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription?
21 They say unto him, Caesar's. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's.
22 When they had heard these words, they marvelled, and left him, and went their way.
23 The same day came to him the Sadducees, which say that there is no resurrection, and asked him,
24 Saying, Master, Moses said, If a man die, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother.
25 Now there were with us seven brethren: and the first, when he had married a wife, deceased, and, having no issue, left his wife unto his brother:
26 Likewise the second also, and the third, unto the seventh.
27 And last of all the woman died also.
28 Therefore in the resurrection whose wife shall she be of the seven? for they all had her.
29 Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God.
30 For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven.
31 But as touching the resurrection of the dead, have ye not read that which was spoken unto you by God, saying,
32 I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.
33 And when the multitude heard this, they were astonished at his doctrine.
34 But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together.
35 Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying,
36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
38 This is the first and great commandment.
39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
41 While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them,
42 Saying, What think ye of Christ? whose son is he? They say unto him, The son of David.
43 He saith unto them, How then doth David in spirit call him Lord, saying,
44 The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool?
45 If David then call him Lord, how is he his son?
46 And no man was able to answer him a word, neither durst any man from that day forth ask him any more questions.
22 Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying, 2 “ ( A ) The kingdom of heaven [ a ] is like [ b ] a king who [ c ] held a ( B ) wedding feast for his son. 3 And he ( C ) sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding feast, and they were unwilling to come. 4 Again he ( D ) sent other slaves, saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited, “Behold, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and my fattened cattle are all butchered and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast!”’ 5 But they paid no attention and went their separate ways, one to his own [ d ] farm, another to his business, 6 and the rest seized his slaves and treated them abusively, and then killed them. 7 Now the king was angry, and he sent his armies and destroyed those murderers and set their city on fire. 8 Then he *said to his slaves, ‘The wedding feast is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. 9 So go to ( E ) the main roads, and invite whomever you find there to the wedding feast.’ 10 Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good; and the wedding hall was filled with [ e ] dinner guests.
11 “But when the king came in to look over the [ f ] dinner guests, he saw ( F ) a man there who was not dressed in wedding clothes, 12 and he *said to him, ‘ ( G ) Friend, how did you get in here without wedding clothes?’ And the man was speechless. 13 Then the king said to the servants, ‘Tie his hands and feet, and throw him into ( H ) the outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth in that place.’ 14 For many are [ g ] ( I ) called, but few are ( J ) chosen.”
15 ( K ) Then the Pharisees went and [ h ] plotted together how they might trap Him [ i ] in what He said. 16 And they *sent their disciples to Him, along with the ( L ) Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that You are truthful and teach the way of God in truth, and [ j ] do not care what anyone thinks; for You [ k ] are not partial to anyone. 17 Tell us then, what do You think? Is it [ l ] permissible to pay a [ m ] ( M ) poll-tax to ( N ) Caesar, or not?” 18 But Jesus perceived their [ n ] malice, and said, “Why are you testing Me, you hypocrites? 19 Show Me the ( O ) coin used for the poll-tax.” And they brought Him a [ o ] denarius. 20 And He *said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?” 21 They *said to Him, “Caesar’s.” Then He *said to them, “ ( P ) Then pay to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s; and to God the things that are God’s.” 22 And hearing this , they were amazed; and ( Q ) they left Him and went away.
23 ( R ) On that day some ( S ) Sadducees (who say ( T ) there is no resurrection) came to [ p ] Jesus and questioned Him, 24 saying, “Teacher, Moses said, ‘ ( U ) If a man dies having no children, his brother as next of kin shall marry his wife, and raise up [ q ] children for his brother.’ 25 Now there were seven brothers among us; and the first married and died, and having no [ r ] children, he left his wife to his brother. 26 It was the same also with the second brother , and the third, down to the seventh. 27 Last of all, the woman died. 28 In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife of the seven will she be? For they all had her in marriage .”
29 But Jesus answered and said to them, “You are mistaken, ( V ) since you do not [ s ] understand the Scriptures nor the power of God. 30 For in the resurrection they neither ( W ) marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 31 But regarding the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God: 32 ‘ ( X ) I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob ’? He is not the God of the dead, but of the living.” 33 When the crowds heard this , ( Y ) they were astonished at His teaching.
34 ( Z ) But when the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced ( AA ) the Sadducees, they gathered together. 35 And one of them, [ t ] ( AB ) a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him: 36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” 37 And He said to him, “‘ ( AC ) You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind .’ 38 This is the great and [ u ] foremost commandment. 39 The second is like it, ‘ ( AD ) You shall love your neighbor as yourself .’ 40 ( AE ) Upon these two commandments [ v ] hang the whole Law and the Prophets.”
41 ( AF ) Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question: 42 “What do you think about the [ w ] Christ? Whose son is He?” They *said to Him, “ ( AG ) The son of David.” 43 He *said to them, “Then [ x ] how does David [ y ] ( AH ) in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord,’ saying,
44 ‘ ( AI ) The Lord said to my Lord ,
“ Sit at My right hand ,
Until I put Your enemies under Your feet ”’?
45 Therefore, if David calls Him ‘Lord,’ [ z ] how is He his son?” 46 ( AJ ) No one was able to offer Him a word in answer, nor did anyone dare from that day on to ask Him any more questions.
22 Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: 2 “The kingdom of heaven is like ( B ) a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. 3 He sent his servants ( C ) to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.
4 “Then he sent some more servants ( D ) and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’
5 “But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. 6 The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. 7 The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers ( E ) and burned their city.
8 “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. 9 So go to the street corners ( F ) and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ 10 So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good, ( G ) and the wedding hall was filled with guests.
11 “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. 12 He asked, ‘How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend ( H ) ?’ The man was speechless.
13 “Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ ( I )
14 “For many are invited, but few are chosen.” ( J )
15 Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words. 16 They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians. ( L ) “Teacher,” they said, “we know that you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren’t swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are. 17 Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay the imperial tax [ a ] ( M ) to Caesar or not?”
18 But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, “You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? 19 Show me the coin used for paying the tax.” They brought him a denarius, 20 and he asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?”
21 “Caesar’s,” they replied.
Then he said to them, “So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, ( N ) and to God what is God’s.”
22 When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away. ( O )
23 That same day the Sadducees, ( Q ) who say there is no resurrection, ( R ) came to him with a question. 24 “Teacher,” they said, “Moses told us that if a man dies without having children, his brother must marry the widow and raise up offspring for him. ( S ) 25 Now there were seven brothers among us. The first one married and died, and since he had no children, he left his wife to his brother. 26 The same thing happened to the second and third brother, right on down to the seventh. 27 Finally, the woman died. 28 Now then, at the resurrection, whose wife will she be of the seven, since all of them were married to her?”
29 Jesus replied, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures ( T ) or the power of God. 30 At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; ( U ) they will be like the angels in heaven. 31 But about the resurrection of the dead—have you not read what God said to you, 32 ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’ [ b ] ? ( V ) He is not the God of the dead but of the living.”
33 When the crowds heard this, they were astonished at his teaching. ( W )
34 Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, ( Y ) the Pharisees got together. 35 One of them, an expert in the law, ( Z ) tested him with this question: 36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”
37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ [ c ] ( AA ) 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ [ d ] ( AB ) 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” ( AC )
41 While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, 42 “What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?”
“The son of David,” ( AE ) they replied.
43 He said to them, “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’? For he says,
44 “‘The Lord said to my Lord:
“Sit at my right hand
until I put your enemies
under your feet.”’ [ e ] ( AF )
45 If then David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?” 46 No one could say a word in reply, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions. ( AG )
