Matthew 21
New American Standard Bible
The Triumphal Entry
21 (A)When they had approached Jerusalem and had come to Bethphage, at (B)the Mount of Olives, Jesus then sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied there and a colt with it. Untie them and bring them to Me. 3 And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them on immediately.” 4 Now (C)this [a]took place so that what was spoken through [b]the prophet would be fulfilled:
5 “(D)Say to the daughter of Zion,
‘Behold your King is coming to you,
Humble, and mounted on a donkey,
Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”
6 The disciples went and did just as Jesus had instructed them, 7 and brought the donkey and the colt, and laid their cloaks on them; and He sat on [c]the cloaks. 8 Most of the crowd (E)spread their cloaks on the road, and others were cutting branches from the trees and spreading them on the road. 9 Now the crowds going ahead of Him, and those who followed, were shouting,
“[d]Hosanna to the (F)Son of David;
(G)Blessed is the One who comes in the name of the Lord;
[e]Hosanna (H)in the highest!”
10 When He had entered Jerusalem, all the city was stirred, saying, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds were saying, “This is (I)Jesus the prophet, from (J)Nazareth in Galilee.”
Cleansing the Temple
12 (K)And Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all those who were selling and buying on the temple grounds, and He overturned the tables of the (L)money changers and the seats of those who were selling (M)doves. 13 And He *said to them, “It is written: ‘(N)My house will be called a house of prayer’; but you are making it a (O)den of robbers.”
14 And those who were blind and those who limped came to Him in the temple area, and (P)He healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that He had done, and the children who were shouting in the temple area, “[f]Hosanna to the (Q)Son of David,” they became indignant, 16 and they said to Him, “Do You hear what these children are saying?” And Jesus *said to them, “Yes. Have you never read, ‘(R)From the mouths of infants and nursing babies You have prepared praise for Yourself’?” 17 And He left them and went out of the city to (S)Bethany, and spent the night there.
The Barren Fig Tree
18 (T)Now in the early morning, when He was returning to the city, He became hungry. 19 And seeing a lone (U)fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it except leaves alone; and He *said to it, “No longer shall there ever be any fruit from you.” And at once the fig tree withered.
20 Seeing this, the disciples were amazed and [g]asked, “How did the fig tree wither all at once?” 21 And Jesus answered and said to them, “Truly I say to you, (V)if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ it will happen. 22 And (W)whatever you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive it all.”
Authority Challenged
23 (X)When He entered the temple area, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to Him (Y)while He was teaching, and said, “By what authority are You doing these things, and who gave You this authority?” 24 But Jesus responded and said to them, “I will also ask you one [h]question, which, if you tell Me, I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. 25 The baptism of John was from what source: from heaven or from men?” And they began considering the implications among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ 26 But if we say, ‘From men,’ we fear the [i]people; for they all regard John as (Z)a prophet.” 27 And answering Jesus, they said, “We do not know.” He also said to them, “Neither am I telling you by what authority I do these things.
Parable of Two Sons
28 “But what do you think? A man had two [j]sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘[k]Son, go work today in the (AA)vineyard.’ 29 But he replied, ‘I do not want to.’ Yet afterward he regretted it and went. 30 And the man came to his second son and said the same thing; and he replied, ‘I will, sir’; and yet he did not go. 31 Which of the two did the will of his father?” They *said, “The first.” Jesus *said to them, “Truly I say to you that (AB)the tax collectors and prostitutes [l]will get into the kingdom of God before you. 32 For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but (AC)the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not even [m]have second thoughts afterward so as to believe him.
Parable of the Landowner
33 “Listen to another parable. (AD)There was a [n]landowner who (AE)planted a (AF)vineyard and put a [o]fence around it, and dug a wine press in it, and built a tower, and he leased it to [p]vine-growers and (AG)went on a journey. 34 And when the [q]harvest time approached, he (AH)sent his slaves to the vine-growers to receive his fruit. 35 And the vine-growers took his slaves and beat one, killed another, and stoned another. 36 Again, he (AI)sent other slaves, more than the first; and they did the same things to them. 37 But afterward he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 38 But when the vine-growers saw the son, they said among themselves, ‘This is the heir; come, let’s kill him and take possession of his inheritance!’ 39 And they took him and threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. 40 Therefore, when the [r]owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vine-growers?” 41 They *said to Him, “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end and (AJ)lease the vineyard to other vine-growers, who will pay him the fruit in the proper seasons.”
42 Jesus *said to them, “Did you never read in the Scriptures,
‘(AK)A stone which the builders rejected,
This has become the [s]chief cornerstone;
This came about from the Lord,
And it is marvelous in our eyes’?
43 Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a [t]people producing its fruit. 44 And (AL)the one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and on whomever it falls, it will crush him.”
45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard His parables, they understood that He was speaking about them. 46 And although they sought to arrest Him, they (AM)feared the crowds, since they considered Him to be a (AN)prophet.
Footnotes
- Matthew 21:4 Lit has happened
- Matthew 21:4 I.e., Zechariah
- Matthew 21:7 Lit them
- Matthew 21:9 Aramaic for Save, we pray
- Matthew 21:9 Aramaic for Save, we pray
- Matthew 21:15 Aramaic for Save, we pray
- Matthew 21:20 Lit said
- Matthew 21:24 Lit word
- Matthew 21:26 Lit crowd
- Matthew 21:28 Lit children
- Matthew 21:28 Lit Child
- Matthew 21:31 Lit are getting into
- Matthew 21:32 Or change your minds
- Matthew 21:33 Lit a man, head of a household
- Matthew 21:33 Or hedge
- Matthew 21:33 Or tenant farmers, also vv 34, 35, 38, 40
- Matthew 21:34 Lit the fruit season
- Matthew 21:40 Lit lord
- Matthew 21:42 Lit head of the corner
- Matthew 21:43 Lit nation
Matthew 21
Young's Literal Translation
21 And when they came nigh to Jerusalem, and came to Bethphage, unto the mount of the Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples,
2 saying to them, `Go on to the village over-against you, and immediately ye shall find an ass bound, and a colt with her -- having loosed, bring ye to me;
3 and if any one may say anything to you, ye shall say, that the lord hath need of them, and immediately he will send them.'
4 And all this came to pass, that it might be fulfilled that was spoken through the prophet, saying,
5 `Tell ye the daughter of Zion, Lo, thy king doth come to thee, meek, and mounted on an ass, and a colt, a foal of a beast of burden.'
6 And the disciples having gone and having done as Jesus commanded them,
7 brought the ass and the colt, and did put on them their garments, and set [him] upon them;
8 and the very great multitude spread their own garments in the way, and others were cutting branches from the trees, and were strewing in the way,
9 and the multitudes who were going before, and who were following, were crying, saying, `Hosanna to the Son of David, blessed is he who is coming in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest.'
10 And he having entered into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, `Who is this?'
11 And the multitudes said, `This is Jesus the prophet, who [is] from Nazareth of Galilee.'
12 And Jesus entered into the temple of God, and did cast forth all those selling and buying in the temple, and the tables of the money-changers he overturned, and the seats of those selling the doves,
13 and he saith to them, `It hath been written, My house a house of prayer shall be called, but ye did make it a den of robbers.'
14 And there came to him blind and lame men in the temple, and he healed them,
15 and the chief priests and the scribes having seen the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, `Hosanna to the Son of David,' were much displeased;
16 and they said to him, `Hearest thou what these say?' And Jesus saith to them, `Yes, did ye never read, that, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings Thou didst prepare praise?'
17 And having left them, he went forth out of the city to Bethany, and did lodge there,
18 and in the morning turning back to the city, he hungered,
19 and having seen a certain fig-tree on the way, he came to it, and found nothing in it except leaves only, and he saith to it, `No more from thee may fruit be -- to the age;' and forthwith the fig-tree withered.
20 And the disciples having seen, did wonder, saying, `How did the fig-tree forthwith wither?'
21 And Jesus answering said to them, `Verily I say to you, If ye may have faith, and may not doubt, not only this of the fig-tree shall ye do, but even if to this mount ye may say, Be lifted up and be cast into the sea, it shall come to pass;
22 and all -- as much as ye may ask in the prayer, believing, ye shall receive.'
23 And he having come to the temple, there came to him when teaching the chief priests and the elders of the people, saying, `By what authority dost thou do these things? and who gave thee this authority?'
24 And Jesus answering said to them, `I will ask you -- I also -- one word, which if ye may tell me, I also will tell you by what authority I do these things;
25 the baptism of John, whence was it? -- from heaven, or from men?' And they were reasoning with themselves, saying, `If we should say, From heaven; he will say to us, Wherefore, then, did ye not believe him?
26 and if we should say, From men, we fear the multitude, for all hold John as a prophet.'
27 And answering Jesus they said, `We have not known.' He said to them -- he also -- `Neither do I tell you by what authority I do these things.
28 `And what think ye? A man had two children, and having come to the first, he said, Child, go, to-day be working in my vineyard.'
29 And he answering said, `I will not,' but at last, having repented, he went.
30 `And having come to the second, he said in the same manner, and he answering said, I [go], sir, and went not;
31 which of the two did the will of the father?' They say to him, `The first.' Jesus saith to them, `Verily I say to you, that the tax-gatherers and the harlots do go before you into the reign of God,
32 for John came unto you in the way of righteousness, and ye did not believe him, and the tax-gatherers and the harlots did believe him, and ye, having seen, repented not at last -- to believe him.
33 `Hear ye another simile: There was a certain man, a householder, who planted a vineyard, and did put a hedge round it, and digged in it a wine-press, and built a tower, and gave it out to husbandmen, and went abroad.
34 `And when the season of the fruits came nigh, he sent his servants unto the husbandmen, to receive the fruits of it,
35 and the husbandmen having taken his servants, one they scourged, and one they killed, and one they stoned.
36 `Again he sent other servants more than the first, and they did to them in the same manner.
37 `And at last he sent unto them his son, saying, They will reverence my son;
38 and the husbandmen having seen the son, said among themselves, This is the heir, come, we may kill him, and may possess his inheritance;
39 and having taken him, they cast [him] out of the vineyard, and killed him;
40 whenever therefore the lord of the vineyard may come, what will he do to these husbandmen?'
41 They say to him, `Evil men -- he will evilly destroy them, and the vineyard will give out to other husbandmen, who will give back to him the fruits in their seasons.'
42 Jesus saith to them, `Did ye never read in the Writings, A stone that the builders disallowed, it became head of a corner; from the Lord hath this come to pass, and it is wonderful in our eyes.
43 `Because of this I say to you, that the reign of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth its fruit;
44 and he who is falling on this stone shall be broken, and on whomsoever it may fall it will crush him to pieces.'
45 And the chief priests and the Pharisees having heard his similes, knew that of them he speaketh,
46 and seeking to lay hold on him, they feared the multitudes, seeing they were holding him as a prophet.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
