Matthew 15

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The Parable of the Sower

13 That same day Jesus went out of the house oand sat beside the sea. And great crowds gathered about him, pso that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. And qhe told them many things in parables, saying: rA sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, but swhen the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, tthey withered away. Other seeds fell among uthorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some va hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. wHe who has ears,1 let him hear.

The Purpose of the Parables

10 Then the disciples came and said to him, Why do you speak to them in parables? 11 And he answered them, xTo you it has been given to know ythe secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. 12 zFor to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, aeven what he has will be taken away. 13 This is why I speak to them in parables, because bseeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, cnor do they understand. 14 Indeed, in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says:

dYou will indeed hear but never understand,

and you will indeed see but never perceive.

15  For this people’s heart has grown dull,

and with their ears ethey can barely hear,

and ftheir eyes they have closed,

lest they should see with their eyes

and hear with their ears

and gunderstand with their heart

and hturn, and I would heal them.

16 But iblessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. 17 iFor truly, I say to you, jmany prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

The Parable of the Sower Explained

18 kHear then the parable of the sower: 19 When anyone hears the word of lthe kingdom and mdoes not understand it, nthe evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. 20 As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately oreceives it with joy, 21 yet he has no root in himself, but pendures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately qhe falls away.2 22 As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but rthe cares of sthe world and tthe deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. 23 As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and munderstands it. He indeed ubears fruit and yields, in one case va hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.

The Parable of the Weeds

24 He put another parable before them, saying, wThe kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, 25 but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds3 among the wheat and went away. 26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. 27 And the servants4 of the master of the house came and said to him, Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds? 28 He said to them, An enemy has done this. So the servants said to him, Then do you want us to go and gather them? 29 But he said, xNo, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, yGather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.

The Mustard Seed and the Leaven

31 He put another parable before them, saying, zThe kingdom of heaven is like aa grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. 32 It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.

33 He told them another parable. bThe kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in cthree measures of flour, till it was dall leavened.

Prophecy and Parables

34 eAll these things Jesus said to the crowds in parables; indeed, he said nothing to them without a parable. 35 This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet:5

fI will open my mouth in parables;

gI will utter what has been hidden hsince the foundation of the world.

The Parable of the Weeds Explained

36 Then he left the crowds and went into ithe house. And his disciples came to him, saying, jExplain to us the parable of the weeds of the field. 37 He answered, The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed is kthe sons of the kingdom. The weeds are lthe sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. mThe harvest is nthe end of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40 Just as the weeds oare gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at nthe end of the age. 41 pThe Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all qcauses of sin and rall law-breakers, 42 sand throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place tthere will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then uthe righteous will shine like the sun vin the kingdom of their Father. wHe who has ears, let him hear.

The Parable of the Hidden Treasure

44 The kingdom of heaven xis like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy yhe goes and sells all that he has and zbuys that field.

The Parable of the Pearl of Great Value

45 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, 46 who, on finding aone pearl of great value, ywent and sold all that he had and zbought it.

The Parable of the Net

47 Again, the kingdom of heaven is blike a net that was thrown into the sea and cgathered fish of every kind. 48 When it was full, dmen drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into containers but threw away the bad. 49 So it will be at ethe end of the age. The angels will come out and fseparate the evil from the righteous 50 gand throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place gthere will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

New and Old Treasures

51 hHave you understood all these things? They said to him, Yes. 52 And he said to them, Therefore every iscribe jwho has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house, who kbrings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.

Jesus Rejected at Nazareth

53 And when Jesus had finished these parables, he went away from there, 54 land coming to mhis hometown nhe taught them in their synagogue, so that othey were astonished, and said, Where did this man get this wisdom and these mighty works? 55 pIs not this qthe carpenter’s son? Is not his mother called Mary? And are not rhis brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? 56 And are not all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things? 57 And sthey took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, tA prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his own household. 58 And he did not do many mighty works there, ubecause of their unbelief.

The Death of John the Baptist

14 vAt that time wHerod the tetrarch heard about the fame of Jesus, and he said to his servants, xThis is John the Baptist. He has been raised from the dead; that is why these miraculous powers are at work in him. For yHerod had seized John and bound him and zput him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife,1 because John had been saying to him, aIt is not lawful for you to have her. And though he wanted to put him to death, bhe feared the people, because they held him to be ca prophet. But when Herod’s dbirthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before the company and pleased Herod, so that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she might ask. Prompted by her mother, she said, Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter. And the king was sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests he commanded it to be given. 10 He sent and had John beheaded in the prison, 11 and his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother. 12 And ehis disciples came and took the body and buried it, and they went and told Jesus.

Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand

13 Now when Jesus heard this, fhe withdrew from there in a boat to a desolate place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns. 14 When he went ashore he gsaw a great crowd, and ghe had compassion on them and healed their sick. 15 Now when it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, This is a desolate place, and the day is now over; hsend the crowds away to go into the villages and buy food for themselves. 16 But Jesus said, They need not go away; iyou give them something to eat. 17 They said to him, We have only five loaves here and two fish. 18 And he said, Bring them here to me. 19 Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass, and taking the five loaves and the two fish, jhe looked up to heaven and ksaid a blessing. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 20 And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces left over. 21 And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.

Jesus Walks on the Water

22 lImmediately he mmade the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. 23 And after he had dismissed the crowds, nhe went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When oevening came, he was there alone, 24 but the boat by this time was a long way2 from the land,3 beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them. 25 And lin the fourth watch of the night4 he came to them, walking on the sea. 26 But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, pthey were terrified, and said, It is a ghost! and they cried out in fear. 27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, qTake heart; it is I. qDo not be afraid.

28 And Peter answered him, Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water. 29 He said, Come. So Peter got out of the boat and rwalked on the water and came to Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind,5 he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, sLord, save me. 31 Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, tO you of little faith, why did you udoubt? 32 And when they got into the boat, sthe wind ceased. 33 And vthose in the boat wworshiped him, saying, xTruly you are ythe Son of God.

Jesus Heals the Sick in Gennesaret

34 zAnd when they had crossed over, they came to land at aGennesaret. 35 And when the men of that place recognized him, they sent around to all that region and bbrought to him all who were sick 36 and implored him that they might only touch cthe fringe of his garment. And das many as touched it were made well.

Traditions and Commandments

15 eThen Pharisees and fscribes came to Jesus ffrom Jerusalem and said, gWhy do your disciples break hthe tradition of the elders? jFor they do not wash their hands when they eat. He answered them, And why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? For God commanded, kHonor your father and your mother, and, lWhoever reviles father or mother must surely die. But you say, If anyone tells his father or his mother, What you would have gained from me is given to God,1 he need not honor his father. So for the sake of your tradition you have mmade void the word2 of God. nYou hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said:

oThis people honors me with their lips,

but their heart is far from me;

in vain do they worship me,

teaching as pdoctrines the commandments of men.

What Defiles a Person

10 And he called the people to him and said to them, qHear and understand: 11 rit is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person. 12 Then the disciples came and said to him, Do you know that the Pharisees were soffended when they heard this saying? 13 He answered, tEvery plant that my heavenly Father has not planted uwill be rooted up. 14 Let them alone; vthey are blind guides.3 And wif the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit. 15 But Peter said to him, xExplain the parable to us. 16 And he said, yAre you also still without understanding? 17 Do you not see that zwhatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled?4 18 But awhat comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. 19 For out of the heart come bevil thoughts, cmurder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, dslander. 20 eThese are what defile a person. But fto eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.

The Faith of a Canaanite Woman

21 gAnd Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And behold, ha Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, iHave mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon. 23 But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, jSend her away, for she is crying out after us. 24 He answered, kI was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 25 But she came and lknelt before him, saying, Lord, help me. 26 And he answered, It is not right to take the children’s bread and mthrow it to the dogs. 27 She said, Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat nthe crumbs that fall from their masters’ table. 28 Then Jesus answered her, O woman, ogreat is your faith! pBe it done for you as you desire. qAnd her daughter was phealed instantly.5

Jesus Heals Many

29 rJesus went on from there and walked sbeside the Sea of Galilee. And he twent up on the mountain and sat down there. 30 And great crowds came to him, bringing with them uthe lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute, and many others, and they put them at his feet, and he healed them, 31 vso that the crowd wondered, when they saw the mute speaking, wthe crippled healthy, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And xthey glorified ythe God of Israel.

Jesus Feeds the Four Thousand

32 zThen Jesus called his disciples to him and said, aI have compassion on the crowd because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And I am unwilling to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way. 33 And the disciples said to him, Where are we to get enough bread in such a desolate place to feed so great a crowd? 34 And Jesus said to them, How many loaves do you have? They said, bSeven, and a few small fish. 35 And directing the crowd to sit down on the ground, 36 he took the seven loaves and the fish, and chaving given thanks he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 37 And dthey all ate and were satisfied. And they took up seven baskets full of the broken pieces left over. 38 Those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children. 39 And after sending away the crowds, he got into the boat and went to the region of eMagadan.

The Pharisees and Sadducees Demand Signs

16 fAnd the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and gto test him hthey asked him to show them ia sign from heaven. He answered them,1 jWhen it is evening, you say, It will be fair weather, for the sky is red. And in the morning, It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening. kYou know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret lthe signs of the times. mAn evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah. So nhe left them and departed.

The Leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees

When the disciples reached the other side, they had forgotten to bring any bread. Jesus said to them, Watch and obeware of pthe leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. And they began discussing it among themselves, saying, We brought no bread. But qJesus, aware of this, said, rO you of little faith, why are you discussing among yourselves the fact that you have no bread? sDo you not yet perceive? Do you not remember tthe five loaves for the five thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? 10 Or uthe seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? 11 How is it that you fail to understand that I did not speak about bread? oBeware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. 12 vThen they understood that he did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of wthe teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

Peter Confesses Jesus as the Christ

13 xNow when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, Who do people say that the Son of Man is? 14 And they said, Some say yJohn the Baptist, others say zElijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets. 15 He said to them, But who do you say that I am? 16 Simon Peter replied, aYou are bthe Christ, cthe Son of dthe living God. 17 And Jesus answered him, eBlessed are you, fSimon Bar-Jonah! For gflesh and blood has not revealed this to you, hbut my Father who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you, iyou are Peter, and jon this rock2 I will build my church, and kthe gates of lhell3 shall not prevail against it. 19 I will give you mthe keys of the kingdom of heaven, and nwhatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed4 in heaven. 20 oThen he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ.

Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection

21 pFrom that time Jesus began to show his disciples that qhe must go to Jerusalem and rsuffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on sthe third day be raised. 22 And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, Far be it from you, Lord!5 This shall never happen to you. 23 But he turned and said to Peter, tGet behind me, Satan! You are ua hindrance6 to me. For you vare not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.

Take Up Your Cross and Follow Jesus

24 Then Jesus told his disciples, If anyone would come after me, let him wdeny himself and xtake up his cross and follow me. 25 For xwhoever would save his life7 will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 26 For ywhat will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or zwhat shall a man give in return for his soul? 27 aFor the Son of Man is going to come with bhis angels in the glory of his Father, and cthen he will repay each person according to what he has done. 28 Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not dtaste death euntil they see the Son of Man fcoming in his kingdom.

The Transfiguration

17 gAnd after six days Jesus took with him hPeter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was itransfigured before them, and jhis face shone like the sun, and khis clothes became white as light. And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. And Peter said to Jesus, Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for lElijah. He was still speaking when, behold, ma bright cloud overshadowed them, and ma voice from the cloud said, nThis is my beloved Son,1 with whom I am well pleased; olisten to him. When pthe disciples heard this, qthey fell on their faces and were terrified. But Jesus came and rtouched them, saying, Rise, and shave no fear. And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.

tAnd as they were coming down the mountain, Jesus commanded them, uTell no one the vision, until the Son of Man is raised from the dead. 10 And the disciples asked him, Then why do the scribes say vthat first Elijah must come? 11 He answered, Elijah does come, and whe will restore all things. 12 But I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but xdid to him whatever they pleased. ySo also the Son of Man will certainly suffer at their hands. 13 zThen the disciples understood that he was speaking to them of John the Baptist.

Jesus Heals a Boy with a Demon

14 aAnd when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and, kneeling before him, 15 said, Lord, have mercy on my son, for he has bseizures and he suffers terribly. For often he falls into the fire, and often into the water. 16 And I brought him to your disciples, and cthey could not heal him. 17 And Jesus answered, O faithless and dtwisted generation, how long am I to be with you? eHow long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me. 18 And Jesus frebuked the demon,2 and it3 came out of him, and gthe boy was healed instantly.4 19 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, Why could we not cast it out? 20 He said to them, hBecause of your little faith. For itruly, I say to you, jif you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, kyou will say to this mountain, Move from here to there, and it will move, and lnothing will be impossible for you.5

Jesus Again Foretells Death, Resurrection

22 mAs they were gathering6 in Galilee, Jesus said to them, The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men, 23 and they will kill him, and he will be raised on nthe third day. And they were greatly distressed.

The Temple Tax

24 oWhen they came to Capernaum, the collectors of pthe two-drachma tax went up to Peter and said, Does your teacher not pay the tax? 25 He said, Yes. And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, qWhat do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or rtax? From their sons or from others? 26 And when he said, From others, Jesus said to him, Then the sons are free. 27 However, not to give offense to them, go to the sea and cast a hook and take the first fish that comes up, and when you open its mouth you will find a shekel.7 Take that and give it to them for me and for yourself.