The Importance of the Law and the Prophets^(A)

¹⁷ “Don’t think that I have come to ·destroy [abolish; do away with] ·the law of Moses or the teaching of the prophets [^Lthe Law and the Prophets; ^Creferring to the OT]. I have not come to destroy them but to ·bring about what they said [fulfill/complete them]. ¹⁸ I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth ·are gone [pass away; disappear], not even ·the smallest letter [^Tone jot; ^Lone iota; ^Cthe smallest Greek letter] or the smallest ·part [stroke; ^Ttittle] of a letter will ·be lost [pass away; disappear] until everything ·has happened [is accomplished/achieved]. ¹⁹ [^LTherefore] Whoever ·refuses to obey [ignores; breaks; annuls] ·any command [^Lone of the least of these commands] and teaches other people ·not to obey that command [^Lto do likewise] will be ·the least important [^Lcalled/considered least] in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever ·obeys [keeps; practices] the commands and teaches other people to obey them will be [considered; ^Lcalled] great in the kingdom of heaven. ²⁰ [^LFor] I tell you that ·if you are no more obedient than [^Lunless your righteousness surpasses/exceeds that of] the ·teachers of the law [scribes] and the Pharisees, you will ·never [or certainly not] enter the kingdom of heaven.

¹⁶ “The law of Moses and the writings of the prophets [^Cthe Old Testament] ·were preached [or were in force; ^Lwere] until John [^Cthe Baptist] came [3:1–20; ^CJohn is the transitional figure between the age of promise and the age of salvation]. Since then the ·Good News [Gospel] about the kingdom of God is being ·told [preached; proclaimed], and everyone ·tries to enter it by force [or is eager to get into it; or is strongly urged to enter it]. ¹⁷ It would be easier for heaven and earth to ·pass away [disappear] than for ·the smallest part [^Lone stroke] of a letter in the law to ·be changed [drop out; Matt. 5:18; 11:12–13].