It is you who are the Salt of the earth; but, if the salt should lose its strength, what will you use to restore its saltiness? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown away, and trampled underfoot.

You have heard how it used to be said, Do not commit adultery.

And if your right eye is what ensnares you into falling away [from God], gouge it out and throw it away from you. For it would be better for you to lose a part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. [Note: This is the word "Gehenna," and because of its Old Testament connotation of burning bodies, II Chron. 33:6, it is used figuratively here, and elsewhere, to describe the place of future, final punishment of the wicked].

It used to be said, Whoever divorces his wife must give her a divorce-certificate.

But I say to you, Do not make use of force against an evil man; but to him who gives you a blow on the right side of your face let the left be turned.

Give to him who comes with a request, and keep not your property from him who would for a time make use of it.

But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.

For just as you [hypocritically] judge others [when you are sinful and unrepentant], so will you be judged; and in accordance with your standard of measure [used to pass out judgment], judgment will be measured to you.

And men do not put new wine into old wine-skins; or the skins will be burst and the wine will come out, and the skins are of no more use: but they put new wine into new wine-skins, and so the two will be safe.

Then it says, 'I will go back to my house which I left,' and it finds it unoccupied, swept, and ready for use.

for to him that uses what he has, shall be given, and he shall have abundantly: but from him that uses it not, shall be taken away, even what he hath.

Another figure which he used in speaking to them was this: "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field,

Another figure which he used in speaking to them was this: "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field.

Another figure which he used with them was this: "The Kingdom of Heaven is like yeast, which a woman took and buried in a bushel of flour until it had all risen."

Of all this Jesus spoke to the crowd in parables; indeed to them he used never to speak at all except in parables,

And they all took of the food and had enough: and they took up twelve baskets full of broken bits which were not used.

But you say, ‘If anyone says to his father or mother, “Whatever [money or resource that] I have that would help you is [already dedicated and] given to God,”

Then they understood that he did not say to beware of the yeast used in bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

When Jesus and His disciples came to Capernaum, the collectors of the tax [Note: This was the annual tax used for meeting the expenses of the Temple service and consisted of two days' worth of a farm laborer's pay, or about $140 in 1994] came to Peter and said, "Does not your teacher [also] pay the [Temple] tax?"

But Jesus called them and said, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those in high positions use their authority over them.

"Tell ye the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass used to the yoke."

And the crowds that walked ahead and followed behind Him shouted, "Hosanna to the son of David. [Note: The Syriac word 'Hosanna' originally meant 'save now' but came to be used as an expression of welcome, praise, blessing or acclamation]. May He, who comes in the name [i.e., by the authority] of the Lord, be blessed. Hosanna in the highest [i.e., may this blessing reach to the highest heaven]."

"Listen to another parable [i.e., a brief story used to illustrate His teaching]: There was the owner of a farm who planted a vineyard and built a fence around it. He constructed a grape squeezing device, built a [lookout] tower [near it], leased it to tenant farmers and then went to another country.

wherefore I declare to you, the gospel dispensation shall be taken from you, and given to a nation that shall make a proper use thereof.

When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard His parables, they understood that He was talking about them.

Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying,

Then the Pharisees went and had a meeting to see how they might make use of his words to take him.

Show me the coin used for the poll-tax.” And they brought Him a denarius [a day’s wage].

"It is too bad for you hypocritical experts in the law of Moses and [you] Pharisees! For you give a tenth of your mint, dill and cumin [i.e., small garden herbs used for seasoning or fragrance], and [yet] neglect the heavier responsibilities required by the law, [such as] justice, mercy and faith. You should have done these ["lighter"] things and not neglected to do the other ["heavier"] things [as well].

"It is too bad for you hypocritical experts in the law of Moses and [you] Pharisees! For you are like white-washed tombs, used for burial [sites], which appear beautiful on the outside, but on the inside are full of the bones and decaying flesh of dead people.

"When you have seen (to use the language of the Prophet Daniel)

And He will send out His angels [i.e., as messengers] with the sound of a great trumpet [See I Thess. 4:16] to gather His elect [i.e., God's people] from all directions, [even] from throughout the whole world. [Note: See Mark 13:27, which suggests this thought by its use of 'earth' and 'sky']

His master said to him 'Well done, my good and faithful slave, you have been faithful in the use of a small amount; I will put you in charge of a larger one. Come, share your master's joy!'

His master said to him, 'Well done, my good and faithful slave, you have been faithful in the use of a small amount; I will put you in charge of a larger one. Come, share your master's joy!'

for he that makes use of what he has, shall have more; but if he makes no improvement thereof, it shall be taken from him.

When the disciples saw this they were angry. "What is the use of this waste?" they said;

Now as they were eating Jesus took bread, and after blessing it, He broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.”

Jesus told him, "Put your sword back in its place! Everyone who uses a sword will be killed by a sword.

At that time Jesus said to the crowds, “Have you come out with swords and clubs, as if I were a criminal, to capture Me? Every day I used to sit, teaching in the temple complex, and you didn’t arrest Me.

Then the chief priests taking up the silver pieces, said, It is not lawful to put them to the treasure destined for sacred uses, because it is the price of blood.

So they decided to use the money to buy the Potter's Field as a burial ground for foreigners.

Now the governor used at the feast to release a prisoner to the people, whomsoever they desired:

When Pilate saw that it was of no use to contend, but that rather a tumult was rising, he took water, and washed his hands before the people, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this righteous man: ye must answer for it.

They stripped off His clothing and placed a scarlet robe on Him [Note: Mark 15:17 calls this a "purple" robe because in that day, any color with a mixture of "red" in it was often called "purple," so the use of "scarlet" was appropriate].

Then about three in the afternoon Jesus called out in a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama, sabachthani? [Note: These words were spoken in the commonly used Aramaic language], which mean, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth (burial wrapping),