And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them,

And brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon.

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]."

And as he entered into Jerusalem, the whole city was moved, saying, Who is this?

Now in the morning as he returned into the city, he hungered.

Seeing a lone fig tree at the roadside, He went to it and found nothing but leaves on it; and He said to it, “Never again will fruit come from you.” And at once the fig tree withered.

"I solemnly tell you," said Jesus, "that if you have an unwavering faith, you shall not only perform such a miracle as this of the fig-tree, but that even if you say to this mountain, 'Be thou lifted up and hurled into the sea,' it shall be done;

And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.

And when he was come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came unto him as he was teaching, and said, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority?

And Jesus answered and said unto them, I also will ask you one thing, which if ye tell me, I in like wise will tell you by what authority I do these things.

The baptism of John—from where did it come? From heaven [that is, ordained by God] or from men?” And they began debating among themselves [considering the implications of their answer], saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe John?’

But if we shall say, Of men; we fear the people; for all hold John as a prophet.

So they answered Jesus, "We do not know." He said to them, "No more will I tell you what authority I have for acting as I do.

Which of the two did as his father desired?" "The first," they said. "I solemnly tell you,' replied Jesus, "that the tax-gatherers and the notorious sinners are entering the Kingdom of God in front of you.

For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did believe him. And [when] you saw [it], you did not even change your minds later [so as] to believe in him.

As a last resource he sent his son to them. 'They will respect my son,' he said.

they answered, he will give those wretches no quarter, and will let out his vineyard to such as shall duly account for the profits thereof.

And he that falleth on this stone shall be broken to pieces: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will scatter him as dust.

As they listened to his parables, the chief priests and the Pharisees recognized that he was speaking about them;

and seeking to lay hold on him, they feared the multitudes, seeing they were holding him as a prophet.

the kingdom of the Messiah is such, as when a certain king made a wedding-feast for his son.

Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.

So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests.

Then the Pharisees conspired as to how they could trap Jesus by what He said.

asking, “Teacher, Moses said, ‘If a man dies having no children, his brother as next of kin shall marry his wife, and raise up children for his brother.’

Now we had living among us seven brothers; of whom the eldest married and died, and, as he had no family, left his wife for his brother.

In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife of the seven will she be? For they all had her [as wife]."

For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven.

But as touching the resurrection of the dead, have ye not read that which was spoken unto you by God, saying,

As soon as the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered themselves together,

and one of them, an expounder of the Law, asked Him as a test question,

This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

As the Pharisees had mustered, Jesus put a question to them.

"The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit at my right hand, till I put thine enemies as a footstool for thy feet."

And no man was able to answer him a word, neither durst any man from that day forth ask him any more questions.

"The scribes and Pharisees have taken Moses' seat as teachers.

all, then, as much as they may say to you to observe, observe and do, but according to their works do not, for they say, and do not;

Heavy and cumbrous burdens they bind together and load men's shoulders with them, while as for themselves, not with one finger do they choose to lift them.

But all their works they do so as to be seen by men: for they make wide their phylacteries, and the edges of their robes,

and like to be bowed to in places of public resort, and to be addressed by men as 'Rabbi.'

“But as for you, do not be called ‘Rabbi,’ because you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers.

And whoever exalts himself [as important] will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted [as important].

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows' houses, and as a pretense you make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation.

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows' houses, and pray at length as a pretense. Therefore you shall receive the greater condemnation.

“Woe to you, [self-righteous] scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel over sea and land to make a single proselyte (convert to Judaism), and when he becomes a convert, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.

"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].

You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and the dish, so that the outside may become clean as well.

As a result, you will be held accountable for all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of the righteous Abel to the blood of Berechiah's son Zechariah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar.

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!

And [as] Jesus went out of the temple [courts] he was going along, and his disciples came up to point out to him the buildings of the temple.

And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?

Jesus replied to them as follows: "See that no one leads you astray;

and as iniquity becomes more flagrant, the zeal of many will grow cool.

This good news of the kingdom [the gospel] will be preached throughout the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end [of the age] will come.

As soon, then, as you see 'the Foul Desecration,' mentioned by the Prophet Daniel, standing in the Holy Place," (the reader must consider what this means)

then let such as are in Judea flee into the mountains.

[Also], the person who is on a housetop [Note: This was a flat area where people retired for rest, prayer, etc., with its stairway on the outside], is not to take any of the belongings from his house as he comes down [to flee].

For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.

And if those days had not been as short as they were no one would have been saved [i.e., from the devastating destruction]. But for the sake of the elect [i.e., God's people], those days will be short.

For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.

For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

Wherever there is a dead body, [you can expect to see] vultures gathered there. [Note: This may mean that such a significant event as the coming of Christ would surely not go unnoticed].

Then the sign [i.e., signifying the coming] of the Son of man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will be stricken with grief as they see the Son of man coming in the clouds of the sky [See Acts 1:9-11] with power and great splendor.

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']

“Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its young shoots become tender and it puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near;

In the same way also, when you see all these things happening, you [should] know that He [i.e., Jesus] is as near as your [front] door.

"But as to that day and the exact time no one knows--not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.

But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,

and as they knew nothing till the deluge came and swept them all away; so will the arrival of the Son of man be.

But you should know this: if the owner of a house had known when a thief was coming, he would have been watching so as not to allow his house to be broken into.

Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.

And [that master] will whip him to shreds and will turn him over to suffer the same fate as hypocrites do. That fate will involve crying and excruciating pain."

The kingdom of the Messiah will then be such, as when ten virgins took their lamps, and went out to meet the bridegroom.

whereas the sensible took oil in their vessels as well as their lamps.

And as the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.

But as they went away to buy, the bridegroom came, and the ones that were ready went in with him to the wedding feast, and the door was shut.

For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods.

And to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one; to everyone as he was able; and he went on his journey.

For, to him who has, more will be given, and he shall have abundance; but, as for him who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away from him.

But as for this worthless servant, put him out into the darkness outside: *there* will be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth.'

And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:

“Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father [you favored of God, appointed to eternal salvation], inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

For I was hungry and you gave me [something] to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me [something] to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me as a guest,

And when did we see you a stranger and welcome [you] as a guest, or naked and clothe [you]?

And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

I was a stranger and you did not welcome me as a guest, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not care for me.'

"Then they will reply, "Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or as a stranger or naked or sick or in prison and didn't help you?'

Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.

They were taking counsel together as to how they might take Jesus by trickery and kill Him.

There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat.

For, she, pouring this perfume upon my body, so as to prepare me for burial, did it.

Most certainly I tell you, wherever this Good News is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be spoken of as a memorial of her."

And said "What are you willing to give me, if I betray Jesus to you?" The Priests 'weighed him out thirty pieces of silver' as payment.

And He said, Go into the city, to such a man, and tell him, The master saith, my time is near, I will keep the passover at thy house with my disciples: and the disciples did as Jesus ordered them,

And the disciples did as Jesus had appointed them; and they made ready the passover.

When the evening was come, he sat down with the twelve. And as they ate he said, Verily I say to you, One of you will betray me.

And as they did eat, he said, Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me.

They were exceedingly sorrowful, and each began to ask him, "It isn't me, is it, Lord?"