Jesus Comes to Jerusalem as King
1As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, 2saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”
4This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:
5“Say to Daughter Zion,
‘See, your king comes to you,
gentle and riding on a donkey,
and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’ ”21:5 Zech. 9:9
6The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. 7They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on. 8A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted,
“Hosanna21:9 A Hebrew expression meaning “Save!” which became an exclamation of praise; also in verse 15 to the Son of David!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”21:9 Psalm 118:25,26
“Hosanna21:9 A Hebrew expression meaning “Save!” which became an exclamation of praise; also in verse 15 in the highest heaven!”
10When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”
11The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”
Jesus at the Temple
12Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. 13“It is written,” he said to them, “ ‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’21:13 Isaiah 56:7 but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’21:13 Jer. 7:11”
14The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them. 15But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were indignant.
16“Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked him.
“Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read,
“ ‘From the lips of children and infants
you, Lord, have called forth your praise’21:16 Psalm 8:2 (see Septuagint)?”
17And he left them and went out of the city to Bethany, where he spent the night.
Jesus Curses a Fig Tree
18Early in the morning, as Jesus was on his way back to the city, he was hungry. 19Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” Immediately the tree withered.
20When the disciples saw this, they were amazed. “How did the fig tree wither so quickly?” they asked.
21Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. 22If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”
The Authority of Jesus Questioned
23Jesus entered the temple courts, and, while he was teaching, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him. “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you this authority?”
24Jesus replied, “I will also ask you one question. If you answer me, I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. 25John’s baptism—where did it come from? Was it from heaven, or of human origin?”
They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 26But if we say, ‘Of human origin’—we are afraid of the people, for they all hold that John was a prophet.”
27So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”
Then he said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.
The Parable of the Two Sons
28“What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’
29“ ‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went.
30“Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go.
31“Which of the two did what his father wanted?”
“The first,” they answered.
Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. 32For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him.
The Parable of the Tenants
33“Listen to another parable: There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a winepress in it and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place. 34When the harvest time approached, he sent his servants to the tenants to collect his fruit.
35“The tenants seized his servants; they beat one, killed another, and stoned a third. 36Then he sent other servants to them, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way. 37Last of all, he sent his son to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said.
38“But when the tenants saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and take his inheritance.’ 39So they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.
40“Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?”
41“He will bring those wretches to a wretched end,” they replied, “and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants, who will give him his share of the crop at harvest time.”
42Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures:
“ ‘The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone;
the Lord has done this,
and it is marvelous in our eyes’21:42 Psalm 118:22,23?
43“Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit. 44Anyone who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.”21:44 Some manuscripts do not have verse 44.
45When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard Jesus’ parables, they knew he was talking about them. 46They looked for a way to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowd because the people held that he was a prophet.
光荣进圣城
1耶稣和门徒将近耶路撒冷，来到橄榄山的伯法其。耶稣派了两个门徒， 2并嘱咐说：“你们到前面的村庄去，就会看见一头母驴拴在那里，旁边还有一头驴驹。你们把它们解开，牵到我这里。 3要是有人问起，你们就说，‘主要用它们’，那人会立刻让你们牵来。” 4这件事发生是要应验先知的话：
5“要对少女锡安说，‘看啊，你的君王来了！祂谦卑地骑着驴，骑着一头驴驹。’21:5 撒迦利亚书9:9。”
6两个门徒照着耶稣的吩咐去了， 7把母驴和驴驹带了回来。他们把衣服搭在驴背上，让耶稣骑上去。 8许多人把衣服铺在路上，还有些人砍下树枝铺在路上。 9众人前呼后拥，高喊道：
“和散那21:9 “和散那”原意是“拯救我们”，此处有“赞美”的意思。归于大卫的后裔！”
“奉主名来的当受称颂！”21:9 诗篇118:26。
“和散那归于至高之处的上帝！”
10耶稣进耶路撒冷时，全城轰动，说：“这是谁？”
11众人说：“祂是先知耶稣，来自加利利的拿撒勒。”
洁净圣殿
12耶稣进入圣殿，赶走里面所有做买卖的人，推翻兑换钱币之人的桌子和卖鸽子之人的凳子。
13耶稣斥责他们说：“圣经上说，‘我的殿必称为祷告的殿。’21:13 以赛亚书56:7。你们竟把它变成了贼窝。21:13 耶利米书7:11。”
14殿中瞎眼的和瘸腿的都来到耶稣面前，祂便治好了他们。 15祭司长和律法教师看见祂所行的奇事，又听见小孩子在圣殿里高声喊着：“和散那归于大卫的后裔！”便十分恼怒。 16他们责问耶稣说：“你听见这些人说的了吗？”21:16 诗篇8:2。
耶稣说：“我听见了。圣经上说，‘你使孩童和婴儿口中发出颂赞’，你们从未读过吗？” 17然后，祂便离开他们，出城前往伯大尼，在那里住宿。
咒诅无花果树
18清早，耶稣在回城的路上饿了。 19祂看见路旁有一棵无花果树，便走过去，却发现除了叶子外什么也没有。
祂对那棵树说：“你永远不会再结果子！”那棵树立刻枯萎了。
20门徒见了就惊奇地问：“这棵树怎么一下子枯萎了？”
21耶稣回答说：“我实在告诉你们，你们如果有信心、不怀疑，不但能使无花果树枯萎，就算对这座山说，‘从这里挪开，投进大海里！’也照样可以实现。 22所以，只要相信，你们无论祷告求什么，都必得到。”
质问耶稣的权柄
23耶稣进了圣殿，正在教导人的时候，祭司长和百姓的长老上前质问祂：“你凭什么权柄做这些事？谁授权给你了？”
24耶稣说：“我也要问你们一个问题，你们回答了，我就告诉你们我凭什么权柄做这些事。 25约翰的洗礼是从哪里来的？从天上来的，还是从人间来的？”
他们便彼此议论说：“如果我们说‘是从天上来的’，祂一定会问我们，‘那你们为什么不信他？’ 26但如果我们说‘是从人间来的’，又怕触怒百姓，因为他们都相信约翰是先知。” 27于是，他们回答耶稣说：“我们不知道。”
耶稣说：“我也不告诉你们我凭什么权柄做这些事。”
两个儿子的比喻
28耶稣又说：“你们怎样看这件事？某人有两个儿子。他对大儿子说，‘孩子，你今天到葡萄园工作吧！’
29“大儿子回答说，‘我不去！’但后来他改变了主意，就去了。
30“那父亲又去对小儿子说同样的话。小儿子回答说，‘好的，父亲’，却没有去。
31“这两个儿子到底哪一个服从父亲呢？”
他们回答道：“大儿子。”
耶稣说：“我实在告诉你们，税吏和娼妓要比你们先进上帝的国。 32因为约翰来指示你们当行的正路，你们不信他，但税吏和娼妓信了。你们亲眼看见了这些事，竟然还是执迷不悟，不肯信他。
恶毒的佃户
33“你们再听一个比喻。有个园主开垦了一个葡萄园，在园子的四周围上篱笆，又在园中挖了一个榨酒池，建了一座瞭望台，然后把葡萄园租给佃户，就出远门了。 34到了收获的季节，园主派奴仆去佃户那里收取他的那份果实。 35佃户却抓住他的奴仆，打伤一个，杀死一个，又用石头打死了一个。 36于是，园主又派去更多奴仆，结果也遭到同样的对待。 37最后，园主派了自己的儿子去，心想，‘他们肯定会尊重我的儿子。’ 38可是那些佃户看见园主的儿子，就彼此商量说，‘这是产业继承人。来吧！我们杀掉他，占了他的产业！’ 39于是，他们抓住他，把他扔到葡萄园外杀了。 40那么，当园主回来的时候，他会怎样处置那些佃户呢？”
41他们说：“他会毫不留情地除掉那些恶人，然后把葡萄园租给其他按时交果子的佃户。”
42耶稣说：
“‘工匠丢弃的石头已成了房角石。
这是主的作为，在我们看来奇妙莫测。’21:42 诗篇118:22、23。
你们从未读过这段经文吗？ 43所以，我告诉你们，上帝将把祂的国从你们那里夺去，赐给结果子的人。 44凡跌在这石头上的人，都会粉身碎骨；这石头落在谁身上，会把谁砸烂。”
45祭司长和法利赛人听了耶稣的比喻，明白祂是针对他们讲的。 46他们试图逮捕耶稣，但又害怕百姓，因为百姓都认为耶稣是先知。
