Isaiah 41
New King James Version
Israel Assured of God’s Help
41 “Keep (A)silence before Me, O coastlands,
And let the people renew their strength!
Let them come near, then let them speak;
Let us (B)come near together for judgment.
2 “Who raised up one (C)from the east?
Who in righteousness called him to His feet?
Who (D)gave the nations before him,
And made him rule over kings?
Who gave them as the dust to his sword,
As driven stubble to his bow?
3 Who pursued them, and passed [a]safely
By the way that he had not gone with his feet?
4 (E)Who has performed and done it,
Calling the generations from the beginning?
‘I, the Lord, am (F)the first;
And with the last I am (G)He.’ ”
5 The coastlands saw it and feared,
The ends of the earth were afraid;
They drew near and came.
6 (H)Everyone helped his neighbor,
And said to his brother,
[b]“Be of good courage!”
7 (I)So the craftsman encouraged the (J)goldsmith;[c]
He who smooths with the hammer inspired him who strikes the anvil,
Saying, [d]“It is ready for the soldering”;
Then he fastened it with pegs,
(K)That it might not totter.
8 “But you, Israel, are My servant,
Jacob whom I have (L)chosen,
The descendants of Abraham My (M)friend.
9 You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth,
And called from its farthest regions,
And said to you,
‘You are My servant,
I have chosen you and have not cast you away:
10 (N)Fear not, (O)for I am with you;
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’
11 “Behold, all those who were incensed against you
Shall be (P)ashamed and disgraced;
They shall be as nothing,
And those who strive with you shall perish.
12 You shall seek them and not find them—
[e]Those who contended with you.
Those who war against you
Shall be as nothing,
As a nonexistent thing.
13 For I, the Lord your God, will hold your right hand,
Saying to you, ‘Fear not, I will help you.’
14 “Fear not, you (Q)worm Jacob,
You men of Israel!
I will help you,” says the Lord
And your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.
15 “Behold, (R)I will make you into a new threshing sledge with sharp teeth;
You shall thresh the mountains and beat them small,
And make the hills like chaff.
16 You shall (S)winnow them, the wind shall carry them away,
And the whirlwind shall scatter them;
You shall rejoice in the Lord,
And (T)glory in the Holy One of Israel.
17 “The poor and needy seek water, but there is none,
Their tongues fail for thirst.
I, the Lord, will hear them;
I, the God of Israel, will not (U)forsake them.
18 I will open (V)rivers in desolate heights,
And fountains in the midst of the valleys;
I will make the (W)wilderness a pool of water,
And the dry land springs of water.
19 I will plant in the wilderness the cedar and the acacia tree,
The myrtle and the oil tree;
I will set in the (X)desert the cypress tree and the pine
And the box tree together,
20 (Y)That they may see and know,
And consider and understand together,
That the hand of the Lord has done this,
And the Holy One of Israel has created it.
The Futility of Idols
21 “Present your case,” says the Lord.
“Bring forth your strong reasons,” says the (Z)King of Jacob.
22 “Let(AA) them bring forth and show us what will happen;
Let them show the (AB)former things, what they were,
That we may [f]consider them,
And know the latter end of them;
Or declare to us things to come.
23 (AC)Show the things that are to come hereafter,
That we may know that you are gods;
Yes, (AD)do good or do evil,
That we may be dismayed and see it together.
24 Indeed (AE)you are nothing,
And your work is nothing;
He who chooses you is an abomination.
25 “I have raised up one from the north,
And he shall come;
From the [g]rising of the sun (AF)he shall call on My name;
(AG)And he shall come against princes as though mortar,
As the potter treads clay.
26 (AH)Who has declared from the beginning, that we may know?
And former times, that we may say, ‘He is righteous’?
Surely there is no one who shows,
Surely there is no one who declares,
Surely there is no one who hears your words.
27 (AI)The first time (AJ)I said to Zion,
‘Look, there they are!’
And I will give to Jerusalem one who brings good tidings.
28 (AK)For I looked, and there was no man;
I looked among them, but there was no counselor,
Who, when I asked of them, could answer a word.
29 (AL)Indeed they are all [h]worthless;
Their works are nothing;
Their molded images are wind and confusion.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 41:3 Lit. in peace
- Isaiah 41:6 Lit. Be strong
- Isaiah 41:7 refiner
- Isaiah 41:7 Or The soldering is good
- Isaiah 41:12 Lit. Men of your strife
- Isaiah 41:22 Lit. set our heart on them
- Isaiah 41:25 East
- Isaiah 41:29 So with MT, Vg.; DSS, Syr., Tg. nothing; LXX omits first line
Matthew 20
New King James Version
The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard
20 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2 Now when he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. 3 And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, 4 and said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they went. 5 Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did likewise. 6 And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing [a]idle, and said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here idle all day?’ 7 They said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, [b]and whatever is right you will receive.’
8 “So when evening had come, the owner of the vineyard said to his steward, ‘Call the laborers and give them their wages, beginning with the last to the first.’ 9 And when those came who were hired about the eleventh hour, they each received a denarius. 10 But when the first came, they supposed that they would receive more; and they likewise received each a denarius. 11 And when they had received it, they [c]complained against the landowner, 12 saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the heat of the day.’ 13 But he answered one of them and said, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? 14 Take what is yours and go your way. I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. 15 (A)Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with my own things? Or (B)is your eye evil because I am good?’ 16 (C)So the last will be first, and the first last. (D)For[d] many are called, but few chosen.”
Jesus a Third Time Predicts His Death and Resurrection(E)
17 (F)Now Jesus, going up to Jerusalem, took the twelve disciples aside on the road and said to them, 18 (G)“Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and to the scribes; and they will condemn Him to death, 19 (H)and deliver Him to the Gentiles to (I)mock and to (J)scourge and to (K)crucify. And the third day He will (L)rise again.”
Greatness Is Serving(M)
20 (N)Then the mother of (O)Zebedee’s sons came to Him with her sons, kneeling down and asking something from Him.
21 And He said to her, “What do you wish?”
She said to Him, “Grant that these two sons of mine (P)may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on the left, in Your kingdom.”
22 But Jesus answered and said, “You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink (Q)the cup that I am about to drink, [e]and be baptized with (R)the baptism that I am baptized with?”
They said to Him, “We are able.”
23 So He said to them, (S)“You will indeed drink My cup, [f]and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with; but to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it is prepared by My Father.”
24 (T)And when the ten heard it, they were greatly displeased with the two brothers. 25 But Jesus called them to Himself and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. 26 Yet (U)it shall not be so among you; but (V)whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. 27 (W)And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave— 28 (X)just as the (Y)Son of Man did not come to be served, (Z)but to serve, and (AA)to give His life a ransom (AB)for many.”
Two Blind Men Receive Their Sight(AC)
29 (AD)Now as they went out of Jericho, a great multitude followed Him. 30 And behold, (AE)two blind men sitting by the road, when they heard that Jesus was passing by, cried out, saying, “Have mercy on us, O Lord, (AF)Son of David!”
31 Then the multitude (AG)warned them that they should be quiet; but they cried out all the more, saying, “Have mercy on us, O Lord, Son of David!”
32 So Jesus stood still and called them, and said, “What do you want Me to do for you?”
33 They said to Him, “Lord, that our eyes may be opened.” 34 So Jesus had (AH)compassion and touched their eyes. And immediately their eyes received sight, and they followed Him.
Footnotes
- Matthew 20:6 NU omits idle
- Matthew 20:7 NU omits the rest of v. 7.
- Matthew 20:11 grumbled
- Matthew 20:16 NU omits the rest of v. 16.
- Matthew 20:22 NU omits and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with
- Matthew 20:23 NU omits and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with
Matthew 21:1-22
New King James Version
The Triumphal Entry(A)
21 Now (B)when they drew near Jerusalem, and came to [a]Bethphage, at (C)the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Loose them and bring them to Me. 3 And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and immediately he will send them.”
4 [b]All this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:
5 “Tell(D) the daughter of Zion,
‘Behold, your King is coming to you,
Lowly, and sitting on a donkey,
A colt, the foal of a donkey.’ ”
6 (E)So the disciples went and did as Jesus commanded them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt, (F)laid their clothes on them, [c]and set Him on them. 8 And a very great multitude spread their clothes on the road; (G)others cut down branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying:
“Hosanna to the Son of David!
(H)‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’
Hosanna in the highest!”
10 (I)And when He had come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, “Who is this?”
11 So the multitudes said, “This is Jesus, (J)the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee.”
Jesus Cleanses the Temple(K)
12 (L)Then Jesus went into the temple [d]of God and drove out all those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the (M)money changers and the seats of those who sold doves. 13 And He said to them, “It is written, (N)‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a (O)‘den of thieves.’ ”
14 Then the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple and saying, “Hosanna to the (P)Son of David!” they were [e]indignant 16 and said to Him, “Do You hear what these are saying?”
And Jesus said to them, “Yes. Have you never read,
(Q)‘Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants
You have perfected praise’?”
17 Then He left them and (R)went out of the city to Bethany, and He lodged there.
The Fig Tree Withered(S)
18 (T)Now in the morning, as He returned to the city, He was hungry. 19 (U)And seeing a fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves, and said to it, “Let no fruit grow on you ever again.” Immediately the fig tree withered away.
The Lesson of the Withered Fig Tree(V)
20 (W)And when the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, “How did the fig tree wither away so soon?”
21 So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, (X)if you have faith and (Y)do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, (Z)but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done. 22 And (AA)whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Matthew 21:1 M Bethsphage
- Matthew 21:4 NU omits All
- Matthew 21:7 NU and He sat
- Matthew 21:12 NU omits of God
- Matthew 21:15 angry
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Bible Gateway Recommends
