Matthew 22
22
Parable of the Marriage Feast
1Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying, 2“The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. 3And he sent his servants to call those who had [previously] been invited to the wedding feast, but they refused to come. 4Then he sent out some other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited, “Look, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fattened calves are butchered and everything is ready; come to the wedding feast.” ’ 5But they paid no attention [they disregarded the invitation, treating it with contempt] and went away, one to his farm, another to his business. 6The rest [of the invited guests] seized his servants and mistreated them [insulting and humiliating them] and killed them. 7The king was enraged [when he heard this], and sent his soldiers and destroyed those murderers and burned their city. 8Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding [feast] is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. 9So go to the main highways that lead out of the city, and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.’ 10Those servants went out into the streets and gathered together all the people they could find, both bad and good; so the wedding hall was filled with dinner guests [sitting at the banquet table].
11 “But when the king came in to see the dinner guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed [appropriately] in wedding clothes, 12and he said, ‘Friend, how did you come in here without wearing the wedding clothes [that were provided for you]?’ And the man was speechless and without excuse. 13Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him into the darkness outside; in that place there will be weeping [over sorrow and pain] and grinding of teeth [over distress and anger].’ 14For many are called (invited, summoned), but few are chosen.”
Tribute to Caesar
15Then the Pharisees went and conspired together plotting how to trap Him by [distorting] what He said. 16They sent their disciples to Him, along with the #A Jewish political party loyal to Herod. The Pharisees, who strongly opposed Herod and Roman rule, and the Herodians, who were strong allies of Herod and Rome, set aside their political differences in order to conspire together against Jesus.Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that You are sincere and that You teach the way of God truthfully, without concerning Yourself about [what] anyone [thinks or says of Your teachings]; for You are impartial and do not seek anyone’s favor [and You treat all people alike, regardless of status]. 17Tell us then, what do You think? Is it permissible [according to Jewish law and tradition] to pay a #Every Jew was required to pay the poll-tax. It was considered a sign of subservience to Rome.poll-tax to Caesar, or not?” 18But Jesus, aware of their malice, asked, “Why are you testing Me, you hypocrites? 19Show me the coin used for the poll-tax.” And they brought Him a denarius [a day’s wage]. 20And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” 21They said, “[#Tiberius Caesar came to the throne after the death of his stepfather, Augustus, in a.d. 14 and ruled the Roman Empire until his death in a.d. 37. He was a brilliant military general, but an incompetent, irresponsible ruler. Most biblical references to “Caesar” refer to Tiberius.The Emperor Tiberius] Caesar’s.” Then He said to them, “Then pay to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s; and to God the things that are God’s.” 22When they heard this, they were caught off guard, and they left Him and went away.
Jesus Answers the Sadducees
23On that day some Sadducees, who say that there is no resurrection [of the dead], came to Him and asked Him a question, 24saying, “Teacher, Moses said, ‘If a man dies, leaving no children, his brother as next of kin shall #The purpose of this was to carry on the family line and keep property within the family.marry his widow, and raise children for his brother.’ 25Now there were seven brothers among us; the first married and died, and having no children left his wife to his brother. 26The second also [died childless], and the third, down to the seventh. 27Last of all, the woman died. 28So in the resurrection, whose wife of the seven will she be? For they all had married her.”
29But Jesus replied to them, “You are all wrong because you know neither the Scriptures [which teach the resurrection] nor the power of God [for He is able to raise the dead]. 30For in the resurrection neither do men marry nor are women given in marriage, but they are like angels in heaven [who do not marry nor produce children]. 31But as to the resurrection of the dead—have you not read [in the Scripture] what God said to you: 32‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead, but of the living.” 33When the crowds heard this, they were astonished at His teaching.
34Now when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced (muzzled) the Sadducees, they gathered together. 35One of them, a lawyer [an expert in Mosaic Law], asked Jesus a question, to test Him: 36“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 37And Jesus replied to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself [that is, unselfishly seek the best or higher good for others].’ 40The whole Law and the [writings of the] Prophets depend on these two commandments.”
41Now while the Pharisees were [still] gathered together, Jesus asked them a question: 42“What do you [Pharisees] think of the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed)? Whose Son is He?” They said to Him, “#The Pharisees may have thought of the Messiah merely as a human descendant of David.The son of David.” 43Jesus asked them, “How is it then that David by the inspiration of the Spirit, calls Him ‘Lord,’ saying,
44 ‘The Lord (the Father) said to my Lord (the Son, the Messiah),
“Sit at My right hand,
Until I put Your enemies under Your feet” ’?
45 So then, if David calls Him (the Son, the Messiah) ‘Lord,’ # See note Mark 12:35. how is He David’s son?” 46No one was able to say a word to Him in answer, nor from that day on did anyone dare to question Him again.
Currently Selected:
Matthew 22: AMP
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Amplified® Bible
Copyright © 2015 by
The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631
All rights reserved. http://www.lockman.org
Matthew 22
22
The Story of the Wedding Dinner
1Jesus told them more stories. He said, 2“Here is what the kingdom of heaven is like. A king prepared a wedding dinner for his son. 3He sent his slaves to those who had been invited to the dinner. The slaves told them to come. But they refused.
4“Then he sent some more slaves. He said, ‘Tell those who were invited that I have prepared my dinner. I have killed my oxen and my fattest cattle. Everything is ready. Come to the wedding dinner.’
5“But the people paid no attention. One went away to his field. Another went away to his business. 6The rest grabbed his slaves. They treated them badly and then killed them. 7The king became very angry. He sent his army to destroy them. They killed those murderers and burned their city.
8“Then the king said to his slaves, ‘The wedding dinner is ready. But those I invited were not fit to come. 9So go to the street corners. Invite to the dinner anyone you can find.’ 10So the slaves went out into the streets. They gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good. Soon the wedding hall was filled with guests.
11“The king came in to see the guests. He noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. 12‘Friend,’ he asked, ‘how did you get in here without wedding clothes?’ The man couldn’t think of anything to say.
13“Then the king told his slaves, ‘Tie up his hands and feet. Throw him outside into the darkness. Out there people will weep and grind their teeth.’
14“Many are invited, but few are chosen.”
Is It Right to Pay the Royal Tax to Caesar?
15The Pharisees went out. They made plans to trap Jesus with his own words. 16They sent their followers to him. They sent the Herodians with them. “Teacher,” they said, “we know that you are a man of honor. You teach the way of God truthfully. You don’t let others tell you what to do or say. You don’t care how important they are. 17Tell us then, what do you think? Is it right to pay the royal tax to Caesar or not?”
18But Jesus knew their evil plans. He said, “You pretenders! Why are you trying to trap me? 19Show me the coin people use for paying the tax.” They brought him a silver coin. 20He asked them, “Whose picture is this? And whose words?”
21“Caesar’s,” they replied.
Then he said to them, “So give back to Caesar what belongs to Caesar. And give back to God what belongs to God.”
22When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away.
Marriage When the Dead Rise
23That same day the Sadducees came to Jesus with a question. They do not believe that people rise from the dead. 24“Teacher,” they said, “here is what Moses told us. If a man dies without having children, his brother must get married to the widow. He must provide children to carry on his brother’s name. 25There were seven brothers among us. The first one got married and died. Since he had no children, he left his wife to his brother. 26The same thing happened to the second and third brothers. It happened right on down to the seventh brother. 27Finally, the woman died. 28Now then, when the dead rise, whose wife will she be? All seven of them were married to her.”
29Jesus replied, “You are mistaken, because you do not know the Scriptures. And you do not know the power of God. 30When the dead rise, they won’t get married. And their parents won’t give them to be married. They will be like the angels in heaven. 31What about the dead rising? Haven’t you read what God said to you? 32He said, ‘I am the God of Abraham. I am the God of Isaac. And I am the God of Jacob.’ (Exodus 3:6) He is not the God of the dead. He is the God of the living.”
33When the crowds heard this, they were amazed by what he taught.
The Most Important Commandment
34The Pharisees heard that the Sadducees weren’t able to answer Jesus. So the Pharisees got together. 35One of them was an authority on the law. So he tested Jesus with a question. 36“Teacher,” he asked, “which is the most important commandment in the Law?”
37Jesus replied, “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Love him with all your mind.’ (Deuteronomy 6:5) 38This is the first and most important commandment. 39And the second is like it. ‘Love your neighbor as you love yourself.’ (Leviticus 19:18) 40Everything that is written in the Law and the Prophets is based on these two commandments.”
Whose Son Is the Messiah?
41The Pharisees were gathered together. Jesus asked them, 42“What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?”
“The son of David,” they replied.
43He said to them, “Then why does David call him ‘Lord’? The Holy Spirit spoke through David himself. David said,
44“ ‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at my right hand
until I put your enemies
under your control.” ’ (Psalm 110:1)
45So if David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be David’s son?” 46No one could give any answer to him. From that day on, no one dared to ask him any more questions.
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®
Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.®
Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.