Sin, Faith, Duty
1Jesus said to his disciples: โThings that cause people to stumble are bound to come, but woe to anyone through whom they come.2It would be better for them to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around their neck than to cause one of these little ones to stumble. 3So watch yourselves.
โIf your brother or sister a sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them.4Even if they sin against you seven times in a day and seven times come back to you saying โI repent,โ you must forgive them.โ
5The apostles said to the Lord, โIncrease our faith!โ
6He replied, โIf you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, โBe uprooted and planted in the sea,โ and it will obey you.
7โSuppose one of you has a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Will he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, โCome along now and sit down to eatโ? 8Wonโt he rather say, โPrepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drinkโ? 9Will he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do?10So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, โWe are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.โโฏโ
Jesus Heals Ten Men With Leprosy
11Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. 12As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy b met him. They stood at a distance 13and called out in a loud voice, โJesus, Master, have pity on us!โ
14When he saw them, he said, โGo, show yourselves to the priests.โ And as they went, they were cleansed.
15One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. 16He threw himself at Jesusโ feet and thanked himโand he was a Samaritan.
17Jesus asked, โWere not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? 18Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?โ 19Then he said to him, โRise and go; your faith has made you well.โ
The Coming of the Kingdom of God
20Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, โThe coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, 21nor will people say, โHere it is,โ or โThere it is,โ because the kingdom of God is in your midst.โ c
22Then he said to his disciples, โThe time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it.23People will tell you, โThere he is!โ or โHere he is!โ Do not go running off after them. 24For the Son of Man in his day d will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other. 25But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.
26โJust as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man.27People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all.
28โIt was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. 29But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all.
30โIt will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed. 31On that day no one who is on the housetop, with possessions inside, should go down to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything.32Remember Lotโs wife! 33Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it. 34I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. 35Two women will be grinding grain together; one will be taken and the other left.โ [36] e
37โWhere, Lord?โ they asked.
He replied, โWhere there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather.โ
Footnotes:
a 3 The Greek word for brother or sister(adelphos) refers here to a fellow disciple, whether man or woman.
b 12 The Greek word traditionally translated leprosy was used for various diseases affecting the skin.
c 21 Or is within you
d 24 Some manuscripts do not have in his day.
e 36 Some manuscripts include here words similar to Matt. 24:40
Leave a Reply