The Parable of the Persistent Widow

18 Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.^(A)

Olive Oil and Bread Set Before the Lord^(A)

24 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Command the Israelites to bring you clear oil of pressed olives for the light so that the lamps may be kept burning continually. ³ Outside the curtain that shields the ark of the covenant law in the tent of meeting, Aaron is to tend the lamps before the Lord from evening till morning, continually. This is to be a lasting ordinance^(B) for the generations to come. ⁴ The lamps on the pure gold lampstand^(C) before the Lord must be tended continually.

⁵ “Take the finest flour and bake twelve loaves of bread,^(D) using two-tenths of an ephah^[a](E) for each loaf. ⁶ Arrange them in two stacks, six in each stack, on the table of pure gold^(F) before the Lord. ⁷ By each stack put some pure incense^(G) as a memorial^[b] portion^(H) to represent the bread and to be a food offering presented to the Lord. ⁸ This bread is to be set out before the Lord regularly,^(I) Sabbath after Sabbath,^(J) on behalf of the Israelites, as a lasting covenant. ⁹ It belongs to Aaron and his sons,^(K) who are to eat it in the sanctuary area,^(L) because it is a most holy^(M) part of their perpetual share of the food offerings presented to the Lord.”

A Blasphemer Put to Death

¹⁰ Now the son of an Israelite mother and an Egyptian father went out among the Israelites, and a fight broke out in the camp between him and an Israelite. ¹¹ The son of the Israelite woman blasphemed the Name^(N) with a curse;^(O) so they brought him to Moses.^(P) (His mother’s name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri the Danite.)^{(Q) 12} They put him in custody until the will of the Lord should be made clear to them.^(R)

¹³ Then the Lord said to Moses: ¹⁴ “Take the blasphemer outside the camp. All those who heard him are to lay their hands on his head, and the entire assembly is to stone him.^{(S) 15} Say to the Israelites: ‘Anyone who curses their God^(T) will be held responsible;^{(U) 16} anyone who blasphemes^(V) the name of the Lord is to be put to death.^(W) The entire assembly must stone them. Whether foreigner or native-born, when they blaspheme the Name they are to be put to death.

¹⁷ “‘Anyone who takes the life of a human being is to be put to death.^{(X) 18} Anyone who takes the life of someone’s animal must make restitution^(Y)—life for life. ¹⁹ Anyone who injures their neighbor is to be injured in the same manner: ²⁰ fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth.^(Z) The one who has inflicted the injury must suffer the same injury. ²¹ Whoever kills an animal must make restitution,^(AA) but whoever kills a human being is to be put to death.^{(AB) 22} You are to have the same law for the foreigner^(AC) and the native-born.^(AD) I am the Lord your God.’”

²³ Then Moses spoke to the Israelites, and they took the blasphemer outside the camp and stoned him.^(AE) The Israelites did as the Lord commanded Moses.

Jerusalem Under Siege

⁶ This is what the Lord Almighty says:

⁹ This is what the Lord Almighty says:

The Parable of the Persistent Widow

18 Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.^{(A) 2} He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. ³ And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice^(B) against my adversary.’

⁴ “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, ⁵ yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’”^(C)

⁶ And the Lord^(D) said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. ⁷ And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out^(E) to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? ⁸ I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man^(F) comes,^(G) will he find faith on the earth?”

The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector

⁹ To some who were confident of their own righteousness^(H) and looked down on everyone else,^(I) Jesus told this parable: ¹⁰ “Two men went up to the temple to pray,^(J) one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. ¹¹ The Pharisee stood by himself^(K) and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. ¹² I fast^(L) twice a week and give a tenth^(M) of all I get.’

¹³ “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast^(N) and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’^(O)

¹⁴ “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”^(P)

The Little Children and Jesus^(Q)

¹⁵ People were also bringing babies to Jesus for him to place his hands on them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. ¹⁶ But Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. ¹⁷ Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child^(R) will never enter it.”

The Rich and the Kingdom of God^(S)

¹⁸ A certain ruler asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”^(T)

¹⁹ “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. ²⁰ You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’^[a]”^(U)

²¹ “All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said.

²² When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor,^(V) and you will have treasure in heaven.^(W) Then come, follow me.”

²³ When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy. ²⁴ Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!^{(X) 25} Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

²⁶ Those who heard this asked, “Who then can be saved?”

²⁷ Jesus replied, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”^(Y)

²⁸ Peter said to him, “We have left all we had to follow you!”^(Z)

²⁹ “Truly I tell you,” Jesus said to them, “no one who has left home or wife or brothers or sisters or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God ³⁰ will fail to receive many times as much in this age, and in the age to come^(AA) eternal life.”^(AB)

Jesus Predicts His Death a Third Time^(AC)

³¹ Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, “We are going up to Jerusalem,^(AD) and everything that is written by the prophets^(AE) about the Son of Man^(AF) will be fulfilled. ³² He will be delivered over to the Gentiles.^(AG) They will mock him, insult him and spit on him; ³³ they will flog him^(AH) and kill him.^(AI) On the third day^(AJ) he will rise again.”^(AK)

³⁴ The disciples did not understand any of this. Its meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what he was talking about.^(AL)

A Blind Beggar Receives His Sight^(AM)

³⁵ As Jesus approached Jericho,^(AN) a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. ³⁶ When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. ³⁷ They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.”^(AO)

³⁸ He called out, “Jesus, Son of David,^(AP) have mercy^(AQ) on me!”

³⁹ Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”^(AR)

⁴⁰ Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked him, ⁴¹ “What do you want me to do for you?”

“Lord, I want to see,” he replied.

⁴² Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.”^{(AS) 43} Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God.^(AT)