Matthew 18:2-12

2 And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them
3 and said, "Truly, I say to you, unless you 1turn and 2become like children, you 3will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
4 4Whoever humbles himself like this child is the 5greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
5 6"Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me,
6 but 7whoever causes one of these 8little ones who believe in me to sin,[a] it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.

Temptations to Sin

7 "Woe to the world for 9temptations to sin![b]10For it is necessary that temptations come, 11but woe to the one by whom the temptation comes!
8 12And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into 13the eternal fire.
9 14And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the 15hell[c] of fire.

The Parable of the Lost Sheep

10 "See that you do not despise 16one of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven 17their angels always 18see the face of my Father who is in heaven.[d]
12 19What do you think? 20If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray?

Cross References 20

  • 1. See Luke 22:32
  • 2. Matthew 19:14; Mark 10:15; Luke 18:17; [Psalms 131:2; 1 Corinthians 14:20; 1 Peter 2:2]
  • 3. [Matthew 5:19, 20]
  • 4. Matthew 20:27; Matthew 23:11, 12
  • 5. [See ver. 3 above]
  • 6. [Matthew 10:40, 42]
  • 7. Mark 9:42
  • 8. Luke 17:2; [1 Corinthians 8:12]
  • 9. See Matthew 13:41
  • 10. Luke 17:1; See 1 Corinthians 11:19
  • 11. Matthew 26:24
  • 12. Matthew 5:29, 30; Mark 9:43-48
  • 13. See Matthew 25:41
  • 14. [See ver. 8 above]
  • 15. [See ver. 8 above]
  • 16. [Matthew 6:29; Matthew 25:40, 45; Luke 15:7, 10]
  • 17. Acts 12:15; [Psalms 34:7; Psalms 91:11; Hebrews 1:14]
  • 18. Luke 1:19; Revelation 8:2; [Esther 1:14]
  • 19. Matthew 17:25; Matthew 21:28
  • 20. For ver. 12-14, [Luke 15:4-7]

Footnotes 4

  • [a]. Greek causes... to stumble; also verses 8, 9
  • [b]. Greek stumbling blocks
  • [c]. Greek Gehenna
  • [d]. Some manuscripts add verse 11: For the Son of Man came to save the lost
The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.