Luke 19; Luke 20

Luke 19

1 Jesus was going through the city of Jericho.

2 A man was there named Zacchaeus, who was a very important tax collector, and he was wealthy.

3 He wanted to see who Jesus was, but he was not able because he was too short to see above the crowd.

4 He ran ahead to a place where Jesus would come, and he climbed a sycamore tree so he could see him.

5 When Jesus came to that place, he looked up and said to him, "Zacchaeus, hurry and come down! I must stay at your house today."

6 Zacchaeus came down quickly and welcomed him gladly.

7 All the people saw this and began to complain, "Jesus is staying with a sinner!"

8 But Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, "I will give half of my possessions to the poor. And if I have cheated anyone, I will pay back four times more."

9 Jesus said to him, "Salvation has come to this house today, because this man also belongs to the family of Abraham.

10 The Son of Man came to find lost people and save them."

11 As the people were listening to this, Jesus told them a story because he was near Jerusalem and they thought God's kingdom would appear immediately.

12 He said: "A very important man went to a country far away to be made a king and then to return home.

13 So he called ten of his servants and gave a coinn to each servant. He said, 'Do business with this money until I get back.'

14 But the people in the kingdom hated the man. So they sent a group to follow him and say, 'We don't want this man to be our king.'

15 "But the man became king. When he returned home, he said, 'Call those servants who have my money so I can know how much they earned with it.'

16 "The first servant came and said, 'Sir, I earned ten coins with the one you gave me.'

17 The king said to the servant, 'Excellent! You are a good servant. Since I can trust you with small things, I will let you rule over ten of my cities.'

18 "The second servant said, 'Sir, I earned five coins with your one.'

19 The king said to this servant, 'You can rule over five cities.'

20 "Then another servant came in and said to the king, 'Sir, here is your coin which I wrapped in a piece of cloth and hid.

21 I was afraid of you, because you are a hard man. You even take money that you didn't earn and gather food that you didn't plant.'

22 Then the king said to the servant, 'I will condemn you by your own words, you evil servant. You knew that I am a hard man, taking money that I didn't earn and gathering food that I didn't plant.

23 Why then didn't you put my money in the bank? Then when I came back, my money would have earned some interest.'

24 "The king said to the men who were standing by, 'Take the coin away from this servant and give it to the servant who earned ten coins.'

25 They said, 'But sir, that servant already has ten coins.'

26 The king said, 'Those who have will be given more, but those who do not have anything will have everything taken away from them.

27 Now where are my enemies who didn't want me to be king? Bring them here and kill them before me.'"

28 After Jesus said this, he went on toward Jerusalem.

29 As Jesus came near Bethphage and Bethany, towns near the hill called the Mount of Olives, he sent out two of his followers.

30 He said, "Go to the town you can see there. When you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here to me.

31 If anyone asks you why you are untying it, say that the Master needs it."

32 The two followers went into town and found the colt just as Jesus had told them.

33 As they were untying it, its owners came out and asked the followers, "Why are you untying our colt?"

34 The followers answered, "The Master needs it."

35 So they brought it to Jesus, threw their coats on the colt's back, and put Jesus on it.

36 As Jesus rode toward Jerusalem, others spread their coats on the road before him.

37 As he was coming close to Jerusalem, on the way down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of followers began joyfully shouting praise to God for all the miracles they had seen.

38 They said, "God bless the king who comes in the name of the Lord!

39 Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, "Teacher, tell your followers not to say these things."

40 But Jesus answered, "I tell you, if my followers didn't say these things, then the stones would cry out."

41 As Jesus came near Jerusalem, he saw the city and cried for it,

42 saying, "I wish you knew today what would bring you peace. But now it is hidden from you.

43 The time is coming when your enemies will build a wall around you and will hold you in on all sides.

44 They will destroy you and all your people, and not one stone will be left on another. All this will happen because you did not recognize the time when God came to save you."

45 Jesus went into the Temple and began to throw out the people who were selling things there.

46 He said, "It is written in the Scriptures, 'My Temple will be a house for prayer.' But you have changed it into a 'hideout for robbers'!"

47 Jesus taught in the Temple every day. The leading priests, the experts on the law, and some of the leaders of the people wanted to kill Jesus.

48 But they did not know how they could do it, because all the people were listening closely to him.

Luke 20

1 One day Jesus was in the Temple, teaching the people and telling them the Good News. The leading priests, teachers of the law, and older Jewish leaders came up to talk with him,

2 saying, "Tell us what authority you have to do these things? Who gave you this authority?"

3 Jesus answered, "I will also ask you a question. Tell me:

4 When John baptized people, was that authority from God or just from other people?"

5 They argued about this, saying, "If we answer, 'John's baptism was from God,' Jesus will say, 'Then why did you not believe him?'

6 But if we say, 'It was from other people,' all the people will stone us to death, because they believe John was a prophet."

7 So they answered that they didn't know where it came from.

8 Jesus said to them, "Then I won't tell you what authority I have to do these things."

9 Then Jesus told the people this story: "A man planted a vineyard and leased it to some farmers. Then he went away for a long time.

10 When it was time for the grapes to be picked, he sent a servant to the farmers to get some of the grapes. But they beat the servant and sent him away empty-handed.

11 Then he sent another servant. They beat this servant also, and showed no respect for him, and sent him away empty-handed.

12 So the man sent a third servant. The farmers wounded him and threw him out.

13 The owner of the vineyard said, 'What will I do now? I will send my son whom I love. Maybe they will respect him.'

14 But when the farmers saw the son, they said to each other, 'This son will inherit the vineyard. If we kill him, it will be ours.'

15 So the farmers threw the son out of the vineyard and killed him. "What will the owner of this vineyard do to them?

16 He will come and kill those farmers and will give the vineyard to other farmers." When the people heard this story, they said, "Let this never happen!"

17 But Jesus looked at them and said, "Then what does this verse mean: 'The stone that the builders rejected became the cornerstone'?

18 Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken, and the person on whom it falls, that person will be crushed!"

19 The teachers of the law and the leading priests wanted to arrest Jesus at once, because they knew the story was about them. But they were afraid of what the people would do.

20 So they watched Jesus and sent some spies who acted as if they were sincere. They wanted to trap Jesus in saying something wrong so they could hand him over to the authority and power of the governor.

21 So the spies asked Jesus, "Teacher, we know that what you say and teach is true. You pay no attention to who people are, and you always teach the truth about God's way.

22 Tell us, is it right for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?"

23 But Jesus, knowing they were trying to trick him, said,

24 "Show me a coin. Whose image and name are on it?" They said, "Caesar's."

25 Jesus said to them, "Then give to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and give to God the things that are God's."

26 So they were not able to trap Jesus in anything he said in the presence of the people. And being amazed at his answer, they became silent.

27 Some Sadducees, who believed people would not rise from the dead, came to Jesus.

28 They asked, "Teacher, Moses wrote that if a man's brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, then that man must marry the widow and have children for his brother.

29 Once there were seven brothers. The first brother married and died, but had no children.

30 Then the second brother married the widow, and he died.

31 And the third brother married the widow, and he died. The same thing happened with all seven brothers; they died and had no children.

32 Finally, the woman died also.

33 Since all seven brothers had married her, whose wife will she be when people rise from the dead?"

34 Jesus said to them, "On earth, people marry and are given to someone to marry.

35 But those who will be worthy to be raised from the dead and live again will not marry, nor will they be given to someone to marry.

36 In that life they are like angels and cannot die. They are children of God, because they have been raised from the dead.

37 Even Moses clearly showed that the dead are raised to life. When he wrote about the burning bush, he said that the Lord is 'the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.'

38 God is the God of the living, not the dead, because all people are alive to him."

39 Some of the teachers of the law said, "Teacher, your answer was good."

40 No one was brave enough to ask him another question.

41 Then Jesus said, "Why do people say that the Christ is the Son of David?

42 In the book of Psalms, David himself says: 'The Lord said to my Lord: Sit by me at my right side,

43 until I put your enemies under your control.'

44 David calls the Christ 'Lord,' so how can the Christ be his son?"

45 While all the people were listening, Jesus said to his followers,

46 "Beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around wearing fancy clothes, and they love for people to greet them with respect in the marketplaces. They love to have the most important seats in the synagogues and at feasts.

47 But they cheat widows and steal their houses and then try to make themselves look good by saying long prayers. They will receive a greater punishment."