The Word of God taken verse by verse. The meanings of the words and verses are explained in context, and in many cases translation from the original written language for the words, phrases, and context are explained.
“But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.” — Matthew 24:36 The Temple Will Fall (Verses 1–2) Leaving the temple after the woes of chapter twenty-three, Jesus’s disciples draw his attention to the buildings — their scale, their stones, their magnificence….
“You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell?” — Matthew 23:33 The Warning to the Crowds (Verses 1–12) Jesus speaks first to the crowds and his disciples about the scribes and Pharisees. They sit on Moses’ seat — they hold the authority of the tradition and their teaching…
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” — Matthew 22:37–40…
“The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes.” — Matthew 21:42 The Triumphal Entry (Verses 1–11) Approaching Jerusalem from the east, Jesus sends two disciples ahead to retrieve a donkey and her colt from the village of Bethphage. The instructions are…
“Even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” — Matthew 20:28 Laborers in the Vineyard (Verses 1–16) The chapter opens mid-thought, completing the teaching that ended chapter nineteen: the first will be last and the last first. The parable that…
“With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” — Matthew 19:26 On Marriage and Divorce (Verses 1–12) Jesus leaves Galilee and enters the region of Judea beyond the Jordan — he is now moving toward Jerusalem, and the chapters ahead have a different character from those before. Large crowds still follow…
“So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.” — Matthew 18:35 Who Is the Greatest? (Verses 1–6) Coming directly off the transfiguration and the second passion prediction, the disciples arrive at Jesus with a question that reveals exactly how much they…
“This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” — Matthew 17:5 The Transfiguration (Verses 1–8) Six days after Peter’s confession and the first passion prediction, Jesus takes Peter, James, and John up a high mountain by themselves. What happens there is unlike anything else in the gospel. Jesus is…
“But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” — Matthew 16:15–16 The Sign of Jonah Again (Verses 1–4) The Pharisees and Sadducees — groups that agree on almost nothing — arrive together to test Jesus, demanding a sign from heaven. Jesus points…
“It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” — Matthew 15:11 Tradition Versus Commandment (Verses 1–9) Pharisees and scribes arrive from Jerusalem with a complaint: why do the disciples eat without washing their hands according to the tradition of the…