Jesus Curses the Fig Tree

^12 (A)On the following day, when they came from Bethany, ^(B)he was hungry. ^13 (C)And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for ^(D)it was not the season for figs. ¹⁴ And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it.

Jesus Cleanses the Temple

^15 (E)And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of ^(F)the money-changers and the seats of those who sold ^(G)pigeons. ¹⁶ And he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple. ¹⁷ And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ^(H)‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But ^(I)you have made it a den of robbers.” ¹⁸ And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and ^(J)were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because ^(K)all the crowd was astonished at his teaching. ^19 (L)And when evening came they^[a] went out of the city.

The Lesson from the Withered Fig Tree

^20 (M)As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. ²¹ And Peter remembered and said to him, ^(N)“Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” ²² And Jesus answered them, “Have ^(O)faith in God. ^23 (P)Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ^(Q)‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not ^(R)doubt in his heart, but ^(S)believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. ²⁴ Therefore I tell you, ^(T)whatever you ask in prayer, ^(U)believe that you ^(V)have received^[b] it, and it will be yours. ²⁵ And whenever ^(W)you stand praying, ^(X)forgive, ^(Y)if you have anything against anyone, so that ^(Z)your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”^[c]

His Steadfast Love Endures Forever

A Psalm for ^(A)giving thanks.