Matthew 21:22-32

22 "And ¹all things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive."

Authority Challenged

23 ²When He entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to Him ³while He was teaching, and said, "By what authority are You doing these things, and who gave You this authority?"

24 Jesus said to them, "I will also ask you one thing, which if you tell Me, I will also tell you by what authority I do these things.

25 "The baptism of John was from what source, from heaven or from men?" And they began reasoning among themselves, saying, "If we say, 'From heaven,' He will say to us, 'Then why * did you not believe him?'

26 "But if we say, 'From men,' we fear the people; for they all regard John as ⁴a prophet."

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

Parable of Two Sons

28 "But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, 'Son, go work today in the ⁵vineyard.'

29 "And he answered, 'I will not'; but afterward he regretted it and went.

30 "The man came to the second and said the same thing; and he answered, 'I will, sir '; but he did not go.

31 "Which of the two did the will of his father?" They said, "The first." Jesus said to them, "Truly I say to you that ⁶the tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you.

32 "For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but ⁷the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not even feel remorse afterward so as to believe him.

Cross References

• 1. Matthew 7:7
• 2. Matthew 21:23-27: {Mark 11:27-33; Luke 20:1-8}
• 3. Matthew 26:55
• 4. Matthew 11:9; Mark 6:20
• 5. Matthew 20:1; Matthew 21:33
• 6. Luke 7:29, 37-50
• 7. Luke 3:12; Luke 7:29

Footnotes

• [a] Lit "word"
• [b] Lit "crowd"
• [c] Lit "children"
• [d] Lit "Child"
• [e] Lit "are getting into"