God Knows and Cares

1Under these circumstances, after [a]so many thousands of [b]people had gathered together that they were stepping on one another, He began saying to His disciples first of all, “Beware of the [c]leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. 2But there is nothing covered up that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known. 3Accordingly, whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have [d]whispered in the inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops.

4“Now I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. 5But I will warn you whom to fear: fear the One who, after He has killed someone, has the power to throw that person into [e]hell; yes, I tell you, fear [f]Him! 6Are five sparrows not sold for two [g]assaria? And yet not one of them has gone unnoticed in the sight of God. 7But even the hairs of your head are all counted. [h]Do not fear; you are more valuable than a great number of sparrows.

8“Now I say to you, everyone who confesses Me before people, the Son of Man will also confess him before the angels of God; 9but the one who denies Me before people will be denied before the angels of God. 10And everyone who [i]speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him. 11Now when they bring you before the synagogues and the officials and the authorities, do not worry about how or what you are to speak in your defense, or what you are to say; 12for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”

Greed Denounced

13Now someone [j]in the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.” 14But He said to him, “[k]You there—who appointed Me a judge or arbitrator over the two of you?” 15But He said to them, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one is affluent does his life consist of his possessions.” 16And He told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man was very productive. 17And he began thinking to himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’ 18And he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and I will store all my grain and my goods there. 19And I will say to [l]myself, “You have many goods stored up for many years to come; relax, eat, drink, and enjoy yourself!”’ 20But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night [m]your soul is demanded of you; and as for all that you have prepared, who will own it now?’ 21Such is the one who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich in relation to God.”

22And He said to His disciples, “For this reason I tell you, [n]do not worry about your [o]life, as to what you are to eat; nor for your body, as to what you are to wear. 23For life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing. 24Consider the ravens, that they neither sow nor reap; they have no storeroom nor barn, and yet God feeds them; how much more valuable you are than the birds! 25And which of you by worrying can add a [p]day to his [q]life’s span? 26Therefore if you cannot do even a very little thing, why do you worry about the other things? 27Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither labor nor [r]spin; but I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. 28Now if God so clothes the grass in the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, how much more will He clothe you? You of little faith! 29And do not [s]seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, and do not keep worrying. 30For [t]all these things are what the nations of the world [u]eagerly seek; and your Father knows that you need these things. 31But [v]seek His kingdom, and these things will be [w]provided to you. 32[x]Do not be afraid, little flock, because your Father has chosen to give you the kingdom.

33“Sell your possessions and give to charity; make yourselves money belts that do not wear out, an inexhaustible treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near nor does a moth destroy. 34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Be in Readiness

35“[y]Be prepared, and keep your lamps lit. 36You are also to be like people who are waiting for their master when he returns from the wedding feast, so that they may immediately open the door for him when he comes and knocks. 37Blessed are those slaves whom the master will find on the alert when he comes; truly I say to you, that he will [z]prepare himself to serve, and have them recline at the table, and he will come up and serve them. 38Whether he comes in the [aa]second watch, or even in the [ab]third, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves.

39“But [ac]be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have allowed his house to be broken into. 40You too, be ready; because the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not think He will.”

41Peter said, “Lord, are You telling this parable to us, or to everyone else as well?” 42And the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and sensible steward, whom his master will put in charge of his servants, to give them their rations at the proper time? 43Blessed is that slave whom his [ad]master finds so doing when he comes. 44Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions. 45But if that slave says in his heart, ‘My master will take a long time to come,’ and he begins to beat the other slaves, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk; 46then the master of that slave will come on a day that he does not expect, and at an hour that he does not know, and will [ae]cut him in two, and assign [af]him a place with the unbelievers. 47And that slave who knew his master’s will and did not get ready or act in accordance with his will, will receive many blows, 48but the one who did not know it, and committed acts deserving of [ag]a beating, will receive only a few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.

Christ Divides People

49“I [ah]have come to cast fire upon the earth; and [ai]how I wish it were already kindled! 50But I have a baptism [aj]to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is accomplished! 51Do you think that I came to provide peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division; 52for from now on five members in one household will be divided, three against two and two against three. 53They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”

54And He was also saying to the crowds, “Whenever you see a cloud rising [ak]in the west, you immediately say, ‘A shower is coming,’ and so it turns out. 55And whenever you feel a [al]south wind blowing, you say, ‘It will be a hot day,’ and it turns out that way. 56You hypocrites! You know how to analyze the appearance of the earth and the sky, but how is it that you do not know how to analyze this present time?

57“And why do you not even judge by yourselves what is right? 58For when you are going with your accuser to appear before the magistrate, on the way, make an effort to [am]settle with him, so that he does not drag you before the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer throw you into prison. 59I tell you, you will not get out of there until you have paid up [an]the very last [ao]lepton.”

[a] 1 Lit myriads
[b] 1 Lit the crowd
[c] 1 I.e., fermented dough
[d] 3 Lit spoken to the ear
[e] 5 Gr Gehenna
[f] 5 Lit this one
[g] 6 A Roman copper coin (singular assarion), about 116 of a laborer’s daily wage
[h] 7 Or Stop being afraid
[i] 10 Lit will speak
[j] 13 Lit from
[k] 14 Lit Man, who
[l] 19 Lit my soul, “Soul, you have...”
[m] 20 Lit they are demanding your soul from you
[n] 22 Or stop being worried
[o] 22 Lit soul
[p] 25 Lit cubit (about 18 in. or 45 cm)
[q] 25 Or height
[r] 27 I.e., spin thread for cloth
[s] 29 Or keep seeking
[t] 30 Or these things all the nations of the world
[u] 30 Or wish for
[v] 31 Or continually seek
[w] 31 Or added to
[x] 32 Or Stop being afraid
[y] 35 Lit Have your waist belted
[z] 37 Lit belt himself up
[aa] 38 I.e., 9 p.m. to midnight
[ab] 38 I.e., midnight to 3 a.m.
[ac] 39 Lit know
[ad] 43 Or lord
[ae] 46 Possibly referring to other extreme punishment
[af] 46 Lit his part with
[ag] 48 Lit blows
[ah] 49 Or came
[ai] 49 Lit what do I wish if...?
[aj] 50 Lit with which to be baptized
[ak] 54 I.e., from the Mediterranean
[al] 55 I.e., from the desert
[am] 58 Lit be rid of him
[an] 59 Lit even the last
[ao] 59 The smallest Greek copper coin, about 1128 of a laborer’s daily wage