Matthew 19

Translated from the SBL Greek New Testament. Tap a verse to see why it reads as it does. Tap a small letter to read its footnote.

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Jesus leaves Galilee for Judea

¹When Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went on into the region of Judea beyond the Jordan. ²Great crowds went after him, and there he healed them.

A question about divorce

³Some Pharisees came to him to put him to the test. “Does the law allow a man to divorce his wife for any reason at all?” they asked. ⁴Jesus answered, “Have you never read that the Creator, at the beginning, made them male and female? ⁵And he said, ‘That is why a man will leave his father and his mother and cling to his wife, and the two will be one flesh.’ ⁶So they are not two any longer; they are one flesh. What God has yoked together, then, no human being may pull apart.” ⁷They said to him, “Then why did Moses order a man to give his wife a written notice of divorce and send her away?” ⁸Jesus answered, “It was because your hearts were so hard that Moses permitted you to divorce your wives. That is not how things were at the beginning. ⁹And I tell you this: a man who divorces his wife for any reason other than sexual unfaithfulness and then marries someone else commits adultery, and the man who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.”

Those who do not marry

¹⁰His disciples said to him, “If that is how it stands between a man and his wife, then it would be better not to marry at all.” ¹¹He answered them, “This saying is not something everyone can accept. Only those to whom it has been given can do so. ¹²For some are eunuchs because they were born that way; some have been made eunuchs by others; and some have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let anyone who is able to accept this accept it.”

Jesus blesses the children

¹³After this, some people brought young children to Jesus so that he would put his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples spoke sternly to the people. ¹⁴Jesus said, “Let the children be. Do not prevent them from coming to me, because the kingdom of heaven is for those who are like them.” ¹⁵He put his hands on them, and then he went on from there.

A young man asks about eternal life

¹⁶Then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to gain eternal life?” ¹⁷Jesus answered him, “Why ask me about what is good? There is one who is good. If you wish to enter into life, obey the commandments.” ¹⁸“Which ones?” the man asked. Jesus said, “’Do not commit murder; do not commit adultery; do not steal; do not give false testimony; ¹⁹honor your father and your mother’; and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’” ²⁰The young man said to him, “I have obeyed every one of these. What am I still missing?” ²¹Jesus told him, “Do you want to be perfect? Then go, sell your property, and give the money to people who are poor, and treasure in heaven will be yours. After that, come and follow me.” ²²When the young man heard this, he went away in sorrow, because he owned a great deal of property.

Hard for the rich

²³Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, a rich person will find it hard to get into the kingdom of heaven. ²⁴I say it again: a camel could pass through the eye of a needle more easily than a rich person could enter the kingdom of God.” ²⁵The disciples were utterly amazed at this. “Then who can be saved?” they asked. ²⁶Jesus looked straight at them and said, “For human beings this cannot be done, but for God everything is possible.”

What the Twelve will receive

²⁷Then Peter spoke up. “We have left everything behind and followed you,” he said to him. “So what will we receive?” ²⁸Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, when all things are made new and the Son of Man takes his seat on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also take your seats on twelve thrones and judge the twelve tribes of Israel. ²⁹Anyone who has left behind houses, or brothers or sisters, or father or mother, or wife or children, or fields, for the sake of my name will be repaid a hundred times over and will receive eternal life as an inheritance. ³⁰But many who are first now will end up last, and the last will end up first.