"But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a huge millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the open sea.

Woe to the world because of stumbling blocks! It is necessary that stumbling blocks come, but woe to the person through whom they come.

Then Peter came to him and said, "Lord, how many times must I forgive my brother who sins against me? As many as seven times?"

"For this reason, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his slaves.

As he began settling his accounts, a man who owed ten thousand talents was brought to him.

After he went out, that same slave found one of his fellow slaves who owed him one hundred silver coins. So he grabbed him by the throat and started to choke him, saying, 'Pay back what you owe me!'

He said to them, "Not everyone can accept this statement, except those to whom it has been given.

For there are some eunuchs who were that way from birth, and some who were made eunuchs by others, and some who became eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. The one who is able to accept this should accept it."

Then little children were brought to him for him to lay his hands on them and pray. But the disciples scolded those who brought them.

He said to him, "Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments."

The disciples were greatly astonished when they heard this and said, "Then who can be saved?"

Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth: In the age when all things are renewed, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

But many who are first will be last, and the last first.

"For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard.

saying, 'These last fellows worked one hour, and you have made them equal to us who bore the hardship and burning heat of the day.'

He told them, "You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right and at my left is not mine to give. Rather, it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father."

The crowds that went ahead of him and those following kept shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!"

As he entered Jerusalem the whole city was thrown into an uproar, saying, "Who is this?"

Then Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all those who were selling and buying in the temple courts, and turned over the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those selling doves.

Now after Jesus entered the temple courts, the chief priests and elders of the people came up to him as he was teaching and said, "By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?"

"Listen to another parable: There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a fence around it, dug a pit for its winepress, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenant farmers and went on a journey.

They said to him, "He will utterly destroy those evil men! Then he will lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him his portion at the harvest."

For this reason I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit.

The one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, and the one on whom it falls will be crushed."

"The kingdom of heaven can be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son.

He sent his slaves to summon those who had been invited to the banquet, but they would not come.

Again he sent other slaves, saying, 'Tell those who have been invited, "Look! The feast I have prepared for you is ready. My oxen and fattened cattle have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet."'

Then he said to his slaves, 'The wedding is ready, but the ones who had been invited were not worthy.

But when the king came in to see the wedding guests, he saw a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes.

The same day Sadducees (who say there is no resurrection) came to him and asked him,

And call no one your 'father' on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven.

"Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'Whoever swears by the temple is bound by nothing. But whoever swears by the gold of the temple is bound by the oath.'

And whoever swears by the temple swears by it and the one who dwells in it.

And whoever swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and the one who sits on it.

By saying this you testify against yourselves that you are descendants of those who murdered the prophets.

"For this reason I am sending you prophets and wise men and experts in the law, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town,

so that on you will come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those who are sent to you! How often I have longed to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you would have none of it!

For I tell you, you will not see me from now until you say, 'Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!'"

But the person who endures to the end will be saved.

Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing their babies in those days!

"Who then is the faithful and wise slave, whom the master has put in charge of his household, to give the other slaves their food at the proper time?

Blessed is that slave whom the master finds at work when he comes.

"At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.

No,' they replied. 'There won't be enough for you and for us. Go instead to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.'

But while they had gone to buy it, the bridegroom arrived, and those who were ready went inside with him to the wedding banquet. Then the door was shut.

"For it is like a man going on a journey, who summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them.

The one who had received five talents went off right away and put his money to work and gained five more.

In the same way, the one who had two gained two more.

But the one who had received one talent went out and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master's money in it.

The one who had received the five talents came and brought five more, saying, 'Sir, you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.'

Then the one who had received the one talent came and said, 'Sir, I knew that you were a hard man, harvesting where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed,

Therefore take the talent from him and give it to the one who has ten.

For the one who has will be given more, and he will have more than enough. But the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.

Then the king will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

Then the chief priests and the elders of the people met together in the palace of the high priest, who was named Caiaphas.

He answered, "The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with me will betray me.

The Son of Man will go as it is written about him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would be better for him if he had never been born."

Then Judas, the one who would betray him, said, "Surely not I, Rabbi?" Jesus replied, "You have said it yourself."

Then Jesus said to him, "Put your sword back in its place! For all who take hold of the sword will die by the sword.

Now the ones who had arrested Jesus led him to Caiaphas, the high priest, in whose house the experts in the law and the elders had gathered.

saying, "Prophesy for us, you Christ! Who hit you?"

Now when Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus had been condemned, he regretted what he had done and returned the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders,

So after they had assembled, Pilate said to them, "Whom do you want me to release for you, Jesus Barabbas or Jesus who is called the Christ?"

Pilate said to them, "Then what should I do with Jesus who is called the Christ?" They all said, "Crucify him!"

As they were going out, they found a man from Cyrene named Simon, whom they forced to carry his cross.

Those who passed by defamed him, shaking their heads

and saying, "You who can destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are God's Son, come down from the cross!"

The robbers who were crucified with him also spoke abusively to him.

And tombs were opened, and the bodies of many saints who had died were raised.

Now when the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and what took place, they were extremely terrified and said, "Truly this one was God's Son!"

Many women who had followed Jesus from Galilee and given him support were also there, watching from a distance.

Now when it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who was also a disciple of Jesus.

But the angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.

As it is written in Isaiah the prophet, "Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way,

The people there were amazed by his teaching, because he taught them like one who had authority, not like the experts in the law.

"Leave us alone, Jesus the Nazarene! Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are -- the Holy One of God!"

When it was evening, after sunset, they brought to him all who were sick and demon-possessed.

So he healed many who were sick with various diseases and drove out many demons. But he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.

"Why does this man speak this way? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?"

As Jesus was having a meal in Levi's home, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him.

When Jesus heard this he said to them, "Those who are healthy don't need a physician, but those who are sick do. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."

Then Jesus entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a withered hand.

So he said to the man who had the withered hand, "Stand up among all these people."

For he had healed many, so that all who were afflicted with diseases pressed toward him in order to touch him.

He appointed twelve (whom he named apostles), so that they would be with him and he could send them to preach

and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

The experts in the law who came down from Jerusalem said, "He is possessed by Beelzebul," and, "By the ruler of demons he casts out demons."

He answered them and said, "Who are my mother and my brothers?"

And looking at those who were sitting around him in a circle, he said, "Here are my mother and my brothers!

Others are the ones sown among thorns: They are those who hear the word,

He also said, "The kingdom of God is like someone who spreads seed on the ground.

They were overwhelmed by fear and said to one another, "Who then is this? Even the wind and sea obey him!"

They came to Jesus and saw the demon-possessed man sitting there, clothed and in his right mind -- the one who had the "Legion" -- and they were afraid.

Those who had seen what had happened to the demon-possessed man reported it, and they also told about the pigs.

As he was getting into the boat the man who had been demon-possessed asked if he could go with him.

Now a woman was there who had been suffering from a hemorrhage for twelve years.

Jesus knew at once that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and said, "Who touched my clothes?"

His disciples said to him, "You see the crowd pressing against you and you say, 'Who touched me?'"

But he looked around to see who had done it.