21:1 Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples,
21:2 saying to them, “Go into the village · ahead of you, and right away you will find a donkey tethered, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me.
21:3 · If anyone says anything to you, you are to say, ‘The Lord has need of them.’ And he will send them at once.”
21:4 This · took place in order that what had been spoken by the prophet might be fulfilled, saying,
21:5 “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, · your king is coming to you, humble and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’”
21:6 So the disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. ·
21:7 They brought the donkey and the colt, and placed their cloaks on them; and he sat on them.
21:8 · · A very large crowd spread their · cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from · trees and spread them on the road.
21:9 The · crowds that went before him and those that followed were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”
21:10 And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil, asking, “Who is this?”
21:11 And the crowds said, “This is the prophet, Jesus · from Nazareth of Galilee.”
21:12 And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who were selling and buying in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the moneychangers and the chairs of those who were selling · doves.
21:13 And he said to them, “It stands written, · ‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it a den of thieves.”
21:14 Then the blind and the lame came to him in the temple and he healed them.
21:15 But when the ruling priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children who were crying out in the temple, · “Hosanna to the Son of David!” they were indignant,
21:16 and they said to him, “Do you hear what they are saying?” “Yes,” replied · · Jesus, “but have you never read, ‘Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies you have brought forth praise’?”
21:17 And leaving them, he went out of the city to Bethany and spent the night there.
21:18 In the morning, · as he was returning to the city, he became hungry.
21:19 And seeing a fig tree by the road, he went over to it and found nothing on it except leaves only. And he said to it, “May no fruit ever come from you for all time!” And at once the fig tree withered away.
21:20 · When the disciples saw this, they were astonished and said, “How did the fig tree wither away so quickly?”
21:21 And Jesus answered · them, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only will you do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen.
21:22 And whatever you ask in · prayer, if you believe, you will receive.”
21:23 And when he had entered the temple, the ruling priests and the elders of the people approached him while he was teaching and said, “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you · this authority?”
21:24 Jesus answered · · them, saying, “I also will ask you one question, and if you give me an answer, then I will tell you by what authority I do these things.
21:25 The baptism of John, where did it come from? From heaven or from man?” They · reasoned among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’
21:26 But if we say, ‘From man,’ we are afraid of the crowd, for they hold that John was a prophet.” ·
21:27 So they answered · Jesus, saying, “We do not know.” And he said to them, · “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.
21:28 “What · do you think? A man had two sons, and he went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’
21:29 And he answered, saying, ‘I will not,’ but later he changed his mind and went.
21:30 Then the man went to the second son and said the same thing. And he answered, saying, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go.
21:31 Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, · “I tell you the truth, · tax collectors and · prostitutes will enter the kingdom of God before you!
21:32 For John came to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him; · but tax collectors and · prostitutes did believe. And even when you saw it, you did not change your minds afterward · and believe him.
21:33 “Listen to another parable: There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. · He put a fence around it, · dug a winepress in it, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenants and went away on a journey.
21:34 When · the harvest time drew near, · he sent · his servants to the tenants to collect his share of the crop.
21:35 But the tenants seized · his servants; one they severely beat, another they killed, and still another they stoned.
21:36 Then he sent other servants, more than the first time, and they did the same to them.
21:37 Finally · he sent his son to them, · saying, ‘They will respect · my son.’
21:38 But when the tenants saw the son, they said to one another, ‘This is the heir; come on, let us kill him and take · his inheritance.’
21:39 So they seized him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.
21:40 Now when the owner of the vineyard returns, what will he do to those tenants?”
21:41 They said to him, “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him his share at · their harvest.”
21:42 Jesus said to them, · “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘A stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is amazing in our eyes’?
21:43 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.”
21:44 and the one who falls on this · stone will be broken to pieces; and upon whomever it falls, it will crush him
21:45 · When the ruling priests and the Pharisees heard · his parables, they perceived that he was speaking about them.
21:46 And although they wanted to arrest him, they were afraid of the crowds because they held him to be a prophet.
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