Day 20 of 365

¹When they drew near to Jerusalem, and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples,

²saying to them, "Go into the village that is opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them, and bring them to me.

³If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, 'The Lord needs them,' and immediately he will send them."

⁴This took place that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through the prophet, saying,

⁵"Tell the daughter of Zion, behold, your King comes to you, humble, and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey."

⁶The disciples went, and did just as Jesus directed them,

⁷and brought the donkey and the colt, and placed their clothes on them; and he sat on them.

⁸A very great multitude spread their clothes on the road. Others cut branches from the trees, and spread them on the road.

⁹The multitudes who went before him, and who followed kept shouting, "Hosanna to the son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!"

¹⁰When he had come into Jerusalem, all the city was stirred up, saying, "Who is this?"

¹¹The multitudes said, "This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee."

¹²Jesus entered into the temple, and drove out all of those who sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the money changers' tables and the seats of those who sold the doves.

¹³He said to them, "It is written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer,' but you have made it a den of robbers!"

¹⁴The blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he healed them.

¹⁵But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple and saying, "Hosanna to the son of David!" they were indignant,

¹⁶and said to him, "Do you hear what these are saying?" Jesus said to them, "Yes. Did you never read, 'Out of the mouth of babes and nursing babies you have perfected praise?'"

¹⁷He left them, and went out of the city to Bethany, and lodged there.

¹⁸Now in the morning, as he returned to the city, he was hungry.

¹⁹Seeing a fig tree by the road, he came to it, and found nothing on it but leaves. He said to it, "Let there be no fruit from you forever!" Immediately the fig tree withered away.

²⁰When the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, "How did the fig tree immediately wither away?"

²¹Jesus answered them, "Truly I tell you, if you have faith, and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you told this mountain, 'Be taken up and cast into the sea,' it would be done.

²²All things, whatever you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive."

²³When he had come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching, and said, "By what authority do you do these things? Who gave you this authority?"

²⁴Jesus answered them, "I also will ask you one question, which if you tell me, I likewise will tell you by what authority I do these things.

²⁵The baptism of John, where was it from? From heaven or from man?" They reasoned with themselves, saying, "If we say, 'From heaven,' he will ask us, 'Why then did you not believe him?'

²⁶But if we say, 'From man,' we fear the multitude, for all hold John as a prophet."

²⁷They answered Jesus, and said, "We do not know." He also said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.

²⁸But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first, and said, 'Son, go work today in the vineyard.'

²⁹He answered, 'I will not,' but afterward he changed his mind, and went.

³⁰He came to the second, and said the same thing. He answered, 'I go, sir,' but he did not go.

³¹Which of the two did the will of his father?" They said, "The first." Jesus said to them, "Truly I tell you that the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering into the Kingdom of God before you.

³²For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him. When you saw it, you did not even repent afterward, that you might believe him.

³³"Hear another parable. There was a man who was a master of a household, who planted a vineyard, set a hedge about it, dug a winepress in it, built a tower, leased it out to farmers, and went on a journey.

³⁴When the season for the fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the farmers, to receive his fruit.

³⁵The farmers took his servants, beat one, killed another, and stoned another.

³⁶Again, he sent other servants more than the first: and they treated them the same way.

³⁷But afterward he sent to them his son, saying, 'They will respect my son.'

³⁸But the farmers, when they saw the son, said among themselves, 'This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and seize his inheritance.'

³⁹So they took him, and threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him.

⁴⁰When therefore the lord of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those farmers?"

⁴¹They told him, "He will miserably destroy those miserable men, and will lease out the vineyard to other farmers, who will give him the fruit in its season."

⁴²Jesus said to them, "Did you never read in the Scriptures, 'The stone which the builders rejected, the same was made the head of the corner. This was from the Lord. It is marvelous in our eyes?'

⁴³"Therefore I tell you, the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you, and will be given to a nation bringing forth its fruit.

⁴⁴He who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, but on whomever it will fall, it will scatter him as dust."

⁴⁵When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they perceived that he spoke about them.

⁴⁶When they sought to seize him, they feared the multitudes, because they considered him to be a prophet.

¹Jesus answered and spoke again in parables to them, saying,

²"The Kingdom of Heaven is like a certain king, who made a marriage feast for his son,

³and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the marriage feast, but they would not come.

⁴Again he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "Behold, I have made ready my dinner. My cattle and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the marriage feast!"'

⁵But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his merchandise,

⁶and the rest grabbed his servants, and treated them shamefully, and killed them.

⁷The king was enraged, and sent his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city.

⁸"Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited weren't worthy.

⁹Go therefore to the intersections of the highways, and as many as you may find, invite to the marriage feast.'

¹⁰Those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together as many as they found, both bad and good. The wedding was filled with guests.

¹¹But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man who did not have on wedding clothing,

¹²and he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here not wearing wedding clothing?' He was speechless.

¹³Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; there is where the weeping and grinding of teeth will be.'

¹⁴For many are called, but few chosen."

¹⁵Then the Pharisees went and took counsel how they might entrap him in his talk.

¹⁶They sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that you are honest, and teach the way of God in truth, no matter whom you teach, for you are not partial to anyone.

¹⁷Tell us therefore, what do you think? Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?"

¹⁸But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, "Why do you test me, you hypocrites?

¹⁹Show me the tax money." They brought to him a denarius.

²⁰He asked them, "Whose is this image and inscription?"

²¹They said to him, "Caesar's." Then he said to them, "Give therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."

²²When they heard it, they marveled, and left him, and went away.

²³On that day Sadducees (those who say that there is no resurrection) came to him. They asked him,

²⁴saying, "Teacher, Moses said, 'If a man dies, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife, and raise up seed for his brother.'

²⁵Now there were with us seven brothers. The first married and died, and having no seed left his wife to his brother.

²⁶In like manner the second also, and the third, to the seventh.

²⁷After them all, the woman died.

²⁸In the resurrection therefore, whose wife will she be of the seven? For they all had her."

²⁹But Jesus answered them, "You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures, nor the power of God.

³⁰For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are like the angels in heaven.

³¹But concerning the resurrection of the dead, have not you read that which was spoken to 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."

³³When the multitudes heard it, they were astonished at his teaching.

³⁴But the Pharisees, when they heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, gathered themselves together.

³⁵One of them, a Law scholar, asked him a question, testing him.

³⁶"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the law?"

³⁷He said to him, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.'

³⁸This is the great and first commandment.

³⁹A second likewise is this, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'

⁴⁰The whole Law and the Prophets depend on these two commandments."

⁴¹Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question,

⁴²saying, "What do you think of the Messiah? Whose son is he?" They said to him, "Of David."

⁴³He said to them, "How then does David in the Spirit call him Lord, saying,

⁴⁴'The Lord said to my Lord, sit on my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet'?

⁴⁵"If then David calls him Lord, how is he his son?"

⁴⁶No one was able to answer him a word, neither did any man dare ask him any more questions from that day forth.

¹Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to his disciples,

²saying, "Upon the seat of Moses the Pharisees and scribes sit.

³All which they will say unto you, observe and do; but their works do not do, because they say, and do not do.

⁴For they bind heavy burdens that are grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not lift a finger to help them.

⁵But all their works they do to be seen by others. They make their tefillin broad and enlarge the fringe of their garments,

⁶and love the place of honor at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues,

⁷the salutations in the marketplaces, and to be called 'Rabbi' by men.

⁸But you are not to be called 'Rabbi,' for one is your Teacher, and all of you are brothers.

⁹Call no man on the earth your father, for one is your Father, he who is in heaven.

¹⁰Neither be called masters, for one is your master, the Messiah.

¹¹But he who is greatest among you will be your servant.

¹²Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

¹³"But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you shut up the Kingdom of Heaven against men; for you do not enter in yourselves, neither do you allow those who are entering in to enter." [

¹⁴Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows' houses, and as a pretense you make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation.]

¹⁵Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel around by sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much of a son of hell as yourselves.

¹⁶"Woe to you, you blind guides, who say, 'Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obligated.'

¹⁷You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifies the gold?

¹⁸'Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obligated?'

¹⁹You blind men! For which is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifies the gift?

²⁰He therefore who swears by the altar, swears by it, and by everything on it.

²¹He who swears by the temple, swears by it, and by him who was living in it.

²²He who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God, and by him who sits on it.

²³"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cumin, and have left undone the weightier matters of the Law: justice, mercy, and faith. But you ought to have done these, and not to have left the other undone.

²⁴You blind guides, who strain out a gnat, and swallow a camel!

²⁵"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and self-indulgence.

²⁶You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the platter, that its outside may become clean also.

²⁷"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitened tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but inwardly are full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.

²⁸Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.

²⁹"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets, and decorate the tombs of the righteous,

³⁰and say, 'If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.'

³¹Therefore you testify to yourselves that you are children of those who killed the prophets.

³²Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers.

³³You serpents, you offspring of vipers, how will you escape the judgment of hell?

³⁴Therefore, behold, I send to you prophets, wise men, and scribes. Some of them you will kill and crucify; and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city;

³⁵that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berechiah, whom you killed between the sanctuary and the altar.

³⁶Truly I tell you, that all these things will come upon this generation.

³⁷"Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets, and stones those who are sent to her! How often I would have gathered your children together, even as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you would not!

³⁸Behold, your house is left to you desolate.

³⁹For I tell you, you will not see me from now on, until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!'"

¹May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble. May the name of the God of Jacob set you up on high,

²send you help from the sanctuary, grant you support from Zion,

³remember all your offerings, and accept your burnt sacrifice. Selah.

⁴May He grant you your heart's desire, and fulfill all your counsel.

⁵We will triumph in your salvation. In the name of our God, we will set up our banners. May the Lord grant all your requests.

⁶Now I know that the Lord saves his anointed. He will answer him from his holy heaven, with the saving strength of his right hand.

⁷Some trust in chariots, and some in horses, but we trust the name of the Lord our God.

⁸They are bowed down and fallen, but we rise up, and stand upright.

⁹Save, Lord! Let the King answer us when we call!

¹Wine is a mocker, and beer is a brawler. Whoever is led astray by them is not wise.

²The terror of a king is like the roaring of a lion. He who provokes him to anger forfeits his own life.

³It is an honor for a man to keep aloof from strife; but every fool will be quarreling.

⁴The sluggard will not plow by reason of the winter; therefore he shall beg in harvest, and have nothing.

⁵Counsel in the heart of man is like deep water; but a man of understanding will draw it out.

⁶Many men claim to be men of unfailing love, but who can find a faithful man?

⁷A righteous man walks in integrity. Blessed are his children after him.

⁸A king who sits on the throne of judgment scatters away all evil with his eyes.

⁹Who can say, "I have made my heart pure. I am clean and without sin?"

¹⁰Differing weights and differing measures, both of them alike are an abomination to the Lord.

¹¹Even a child makes himself known by his doings, whether his work is pure, and whether it is right.

¹²The hearing ear, and the seeing eye, The Lord has made even both of them.

¹³Do not love sleep, lest you come to poverty. Open your eyes, and you shall be satisfied with bread.

¹⁴"It's no good, it's no good," says the buyer; but when he is gone his way, then he boasts.

¹⁵There is gold and abundance of rubies; but the lips of knowledge are a rare jewel.

¹⁶Take the garment of one who puts up collateral for a stranger; and hold him in pledge for a wayward woman.

¹⁷Fraudulent food is sweet to a man, but afterwards his mouth is filled with gravel.

¹⁸Plans are established by advice; by wise guidance you wage war!

¹⁹He who goes about as a tale-bearer reveals secrets; therefore do not keep company with him who opens wide his lips.

²⁰Whoever curses his father or his mother, his lamp shall be put out in blackness of darkness.

²¹An inheritance quickly gained at the beginning, won't be blessed in the end.

²²Do not say, "I will pay back evil." Wait for the Lord, and he will save you.

²³The Lord detests differing weights, and dishonest scales are not pleasing.

²⁴A man's steps are from the Lord; how then can man understand his way?

²⁵It is a snare to a man to make a rash dedication, then later to consider his vows.

²⁶A wise king winnows out the wicked, and drives the threshing wheel over them.

²⁷The spirit of man is the Lord's lamp, searching all his innermost parts.

²⁸Love and faithfulness keep the king safe. His throne is sustained by love.

²⁹The glory of young men is their strength. The splendor of old men is their gray hair.

³⁰Wounding blows cleanse away evil, and beatings purge the innermost parts.