Matius 2:4

2:4 After assembling all the chief priests and experts in the law, ¹  he asked them where the Christ ²  was to be born.

Matius 2:7

2:7 Then Herod ³  privately summoned the wise men and determined from them when the star had appeared.

Matius 2:15

2:15 He stayed there until Herod ⁴  died. In this way what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet was fulfilled: “I called my Son out of Egypt.” ⁵ 

Matius 5:20

5:20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness goes beyond that of the experts in the law ⁶  and the Pharisees, ⁷  you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Matius 5:28

5:28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to desire her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

Matius 5:39

5:39 But I say to you, do not resist the evildoer. ⁸  But whoever strikes you on the ⁹  right cheek, turn the other to him as well.

Matius 7:5

7:5 You hypocrite! First remove the beam from your own eye, and then you can see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

Matius 9:6

9:6 But so that you may know ¹⁰  that the Son of Man ¹¹  has authority on earth to forgive sins” – then he said to the paralytic ¹²  – “Stand up, take your stretcher, and go home.” ¹³ 

Matius 9:11

9:11 When the Pharisees ¹⁴  saw this they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” ¹⁵ 

Matius 10:23

10:23 Whenever ¹⁶  they persecute you in one place, ¹⁷  flee to another. I tell you the truth, ¹⁸  you will not finish going through all the towns ¹⁹  of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

Matius 10:41

10:41 Whoever receives a prophet in the name of a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward. Whoever ²⁰  receives a righteous person in the name of a righteous person will receive a righteous person’s reward.

Matius 12:1

Lord of the Sabbath

12:1 At that time Jesus went through the grain fields on a Sabbath. His ²¹  disciples were hungry, and they began to pick heads of wheat ²²  and eat them.

Matius 12:15

God’s Special Servant

12:15 Now when Jesus learned of this, he went away from there. Great ²³  crowds ²⁴  followed him, and he healed them all.

Matius 12:24

12:24 But when the Pharisees ²⁵  heard this they said, “He does not cast out demons except by the power of Beelzebul, ²⁶  the ruler ²⁷  of demons!”

Matius 12:31-32

12:31 For this reason I tell you, people will be forgiven for every sin and blasphemy, ²⁸  but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. 12:32 Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven. ²⁹  But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, ³⁰  either in this age or in the age to come.

Matius 12:44

12:44 Then it says, ‘I will return to the home I left.’ ³¹  When it returns, ³²  it finds the house ³³  empty, swept clean, and put in order. ³⁴ 

Matius 14:14

14:14 As he got out he saw the large crowd, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.

Matius 15:5

15:5 But you say, ‘If someone tells his father or mother, “Whatever help you would have received from me is given to God,” ³⁵ 

Matius 16:1

The Demand for a Sign

16:1 Now when the Pharisees ³⁶  and Sadducees ³⁷  came to test Jesus, ³⁸  they asked him to show them a sign from heaven. ³⁹ 

Matius 16:11

16:11 How could you not understand that I was not speaking to you about bread? But beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees!”

Matius 17:1

The Transfiguration

17:1 Six days later ⁴⁰  Jesus took with him Peter, James, and John the brother of James, ⁴¹  and led them privately up a high mountain.

Matius 17:12

17:12 And I tell you that Elijah has already come. Yet they did not recognize him, but did to him whatever they wanted. In ⁴²  the same way, the Son of Man will suffer at their hands.”

Matius 17:15

17:15 and said, “Lord, have mercy on my son, because he has seizures ⁴³  and suffers terribly, for he often falls into the fire and into the water.

Matius 17:24

The Temple Tax

17:24 After ⁴⁴  they arrived in Capernaum, ⁴⁵  the collectors of the temple tax ⁴⁶  came to Peter and said, “Your teacher pays the double drachma tax, doesn’t he?”

Matius 18:28

18:28 After ⁴⁷  he went out, that same slave found one of his fellow slaves who owed him one hundred silver coins. ⁴⁸  So ⁴⁹  he grabbed him by the throat and started to choke him, ⁵⁰  saying, ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ ⁵¹ 

Matius 18:32

18:32 Then his lord called the first slave ⁵²  and said to him, ‘Evil slave! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me!

Matius 19:5

19:5 and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and will be united with his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? ⁵³ 

Matius 20:13

20:13 And the landowner ⁵⁴  replied to one of them, ⁵⁵  ‘Friend, I am not treating you unfairly. Didn’t you agree with me to work for the standard wage? ⁵⁶ 

Matius 21:30

21:30 The father ⁵⁷  went to the other son and said the same thing. This boy answered, ⁵⁸  ‘I will, sir,’ but did not go.

Matius 21:41

21:41 They said to him, “He will utterly destroy those evil men! Then he will lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him his portion at the harvest.”

Matius 23:3

23:3 Therefore pay attention to what they tell you and do it. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they teach. ⁵⁹ 

Matius 23:5

23:5 They ⁶⁰  do all their deeds to be seen by people, for they make their phylacteries ⁶¹  wide and their tassels ⁶²  long.

Matius 23:39--24:1

23:39 For I tell you, you will not see me from now until you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!’” ⁶³ 

The Destruction of the Temple

24:1 Now ⁶⁴  as Jesus was going out of the temple courts and walking away, his disciples came to show him the temple buildings. ⁶⁵ 

Matius 24:15

The Abomination of Desolation

24:15 “So when you see the abomination of desolation ⁶⁶  – spoken about by Daniel the prophet – standing in the holy place (let the reader understand),

Matius 24:43

24:43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief ⁶⁷  was coming, he would have been alert and would not have let his house be broken into.

Matius 26:29

26:29 I ⁶⁸  tell you, from now on I will not drink of this fruit ⁶⁹  of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”

Matius 26:35

26:35 Peter said to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will never deny you.” And all the disciples said the same thing.

Matius 26:40

26:40 Then he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. He ⁷⁰  said to Peter, “So, couldn’t you stay awake with me for one hour?

Matius 26:42

26:42 He went away a second time and prayed, ⁷¹  “My Father, if this cup ⁷²  cannot be taken away unless I drink it, your will must be done.”

Matius 26:56

26:56 But this has happened so that ⁷³  the scriptures of the prophets would be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples left him and fled.

Matius 26:65

26:65 Then the high priest tore his clothes and declared, ⁷⁴  “He has blasphemed! Why do we still need witnesses? Now ⁷⁵  you have heard the blasphemy!

Matius 27:21

27:21 The ⁷⁶  governor asked them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas!”

Matius 28:9

28:9 But ⁷⁷  Jesus met them, saying, “Greetings!” They ⁷⁸  came to him, held on to his feet and worshiped him.

[2:4]  ¹ tn Or “and scribes of the people.” The traditional rendering of γραμματεύς (grammateu") as “scribe” does not communicate much to the modern English reader, for whom the term might mean “professional copyist,” if it means anything at all. The people referred to here were recognized experts in the law of Moses and in traditional laws and regulations. Thus “expert in the law” comes closer to the meaning for the modern reader.

[2:4]  ² tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[2:4]  sn See the note on Christ in 1:16.

[2:7]  ³ sn See the note on King Herod in 2:1.

[2:15]  ⁴ sn See the note on King Herod in 2:1.

[2:15]  ⁵ sn A quotation from Hos 11:1.

[5:20]  ⁶ tn Or “that of the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.

[5:20]  ⁷ sn See the note on Pharisees in 3:7.

[5:39]  ⁸ tn The articular πονηρός (ponhro", “the evildoer”) cannot be translated simply as “evil” for then the command would be “do not resist evil.” Every instance of this construction in Matthew is most likely personified, referring either to an evildoer (13:49) or, more often, “the evil one” (as in 5:37; 6:13; 13:19, 38).

[5:39]  ⁹ tc ‡ Many mss (B D K L Δ Θ Ë¹³ 565 579 700 1424 pm) have σου (sou) here (“your right cheek”), but many others lack the pronoun (א W ˹ 33 892 1241 pm). The pronoun was probably added by way of clarification. NA²⁷ has σου in brackets, indicating doubt as to its authenticity.

[9:6]  ¹⁰ sn Now Jesus put the two actions together. The walking of the man would be proof (so that you may know) that his sins were forgiven and that God had worked through Jesus (i.e., the Son of Man).

[9:6]  ¹¹ sn The term Son of Man, which is a title in Greek, comes from a pictorial description in Dan 7:13 of one “like a son of man” (i.e., a human being). It is Jesus’ favorite way to refer to himself. Jesus did not reveal the background of the term here, which mixes human and divine imagery as the man in Daniel rides a cloud, something only God does. He just used it. It also could be an idiom in Aramaic meaning either “some person” or “me.” So there is a little ambiguity in its use here, since its origin is not clear at this point. However, the action makes it clear that Jesus used it to refer to himself here.

[9:6]  ¹² sn Jesus did not finish his sentence with words but with action, that is, healing the paralytic with an accompanying pronouncement to him directly.

[9:6]  ¹³ tn Grk “to your house.”

[9:11]  ¹⁴ sn See the note on Pharisees in 3:7.

[9:11]  ¹⁵ sn The issue here is inappropriate associations. Jews were very careful about personal associations and contact as a matter of ritual cleanliness. Their question borders on an accusation that Jesus is ritually unclean.

[10:23]  ¹⁶ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[10:23]  ¹⁷ tn The Greek word here is πόλις (polis), which can mean either “town” or “city.”

[10:23]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “For truly (ἀμήν, amhn) I say to you.” Here γάρ (gar, “for”) has not been translated.

[10:23]  ¹⁹ tn The Greek word here is πόλις (polis), which can mean either “town” or “city.” “Town” was chosen here to emphasize the extensive nature of the disciples’ ministry. The same word is translated earlier in the verse as “place.”

[10:41]  ²⁰ tn Grk “And whoever.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

[12:1]  ²¹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[12:1]  ²² tn Or “heads of grain.” While the generic term στάχυς (stacus) can refer to the cluster of seeds at the top of grain such as barley or wheat, in the NT the term is restricted to wheat (L&N 3.40; BDAG 941 s.v. 1).

[12:15]  ²³ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

[12:15]  ²⁴ tc א B pc lat read only πολλοί (polloi, “many”) here, the first hand of N reads ὄχλοι (ocloi, “crowds”), while virtually all the rest of the witnesses have ὄχλοι πολλοί (ocloi polloi, “great crowds”). In spite of the good quality of both א and B (especially in combination), and the testimony of the Latin witnesses, the longer reading is most likely correct; the shorter readings were probably due to homoioteleuton.

[12:24]  ²⁵ sn See the note on Pharisees in 3:7.

[12:24]  ²⁶ tn Grk “except by Beelzebul.”

[12:24]  sn Beelzebul is another name for Satan. So some people recognized Jesus’ work as supernatural, but called it diabolical.

[12:24]  ²⁷ tn Or “prince.”

[12:31]  ²⁸ tn Grk “every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men.”

[12:32]  ²⁹ tn Grk “it will be forgiven him.”

[12:32]  ³⁰ tn Grk “it will not be forgiven him.”

[12:32]  sn Whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. This passage has troubled many people, who have wondered whether or not they have committed this sin. Three things must be kept in mind: (1) the nature of the sin is to ascribe what is the obvious work of the Holy Spirit (e.g., releasing people from Satan’s power) to Satan himself; (2) it is not simply a momentary doubt or sinful attitude, but is indeed a settled condition which opposes the Spirit’s work, as typified by the religious leaders who opposed Jesus; and (3) a person who is concerned about it has probably never committed this sin, for those who commit it here (i.e., the religious leaders) are not in the least concerned about Jesus’ warning.

[12:44]  ³¹ tn Grk “I will return to my house from which I came.”

[12:44]  ³² tn Grk “comes.”

[12:44]  ³³ tn The words “the house” are not in Greek but are implied.

[12:44]  ³⁴ sn The image of the house empty, swept clean, and put in order refers to the life of the person from whom the demon departed. The key to the example appears to be that no one else has been invited in to dwell. If an exorcism occurs and there is no response to God, then the way is free for the demon to return. Some see the reference to exorcism as more symbolic; thus the story’s only point is about responding to Jesus. This is possible and certainly is an application of the passage.

[15:5]  ³⁵ tn Grk “is a gift,” that is, something dedicated to God.

[16:1]  ³⁶ sn See the note on Pharisees in 3:7.

[16:1]  ³⁷ sn See the note on Sadducees in 3:7.

[16:1]  ³⁸ tn The object of the participle πειράζοντες (peirazontes) is not given in the Greek text but has been supplied here for clarity.

[16:1]  ³⁹ sn What exactly this sign would have been, given what Jesus was already doing, is not clear. But here is where the fence-sitters reside, refusing to commit to him.

[17:1]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “And after six days.”

[17:1]  ⁴¹ tn Grk “John his brother” with “his” referring to James.

[17:12]  ⁴² tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

[17:15]  ⁴³ tn Grk “he is moonstruck,” possibly meaning “lunatic” (so NAB, NASB), although now the term is generally regarded as referring to some sort of seizure disorder such as epilepsy (L&N 23.169; BDAG 919 s.v. σεληνιάζομαι).

[17:24]  ⁴⁴ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[17:24]  ⁴⁵ map For location see Map1 D2; Map2 C3; Map3 B2.

[17:24]  ⁴⁶ tn Grk “Collectors of the double drachma.” This is a case of metonymy, where the coin formerly used to pay the tax (the double drachma coin, or δίδραχμον [didracmon]) was put for the tax itself (cf. BDAG 241 s.v.). Even though this coin was no longer in circulation in NT times and other coins were used to pay the tax, the name for the coin was still used to refer to the tax itself.

[17:24]  sn The temple tax refers to the half-shekel tax paid annually by male Jews to support the temple (Exod 30:13-16).

[18:28]  ⁴⁷ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[18:28]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “one hundred denarii.” The denarius was a silver coin worth about a day’s wage for a laborer; this would be about three month’s pay.

[18:28]  ⁴⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so.” A new sentence was started at this point in the translation in keeping with the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences.

[18:28]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “and he grabbed him and started choking him.”

[18:28]  ⁵¹ tn The word “me” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

[18:32]  ⁵² tn Grk “him”; the referent (the first slave mentioned in v. 24) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[19:5]  ⁵³ sn A quotation from Gen 2:24.

[20:13]  ⁵⁴ tn Grk “he”; the referent (the landowner) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[20:13]  ⁵⁵ tn Grk “And answering, he said to one of them.” This construction is somewhat redundant in contemporary English and has been simplified in the translation.

[20:13]  ⁵⁶ tn Grk “for a denarius a day.”

[21:30]  ⁵⁷ tn “And he”; here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[21:30]  ⁵⁸ tn Grk “And answering, he said.” This is somewhat redundant and has been simplified in the translation. Here δέ (de) has not been translated. Here the referent (“this boy”) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[23:3]  ⁵⁹ tn Grk “for they say and do not do.”

[23:5]  ⁶⁰ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[23:5]  ⁶¹ sn Phylacteries were small leather cases containing OT scripture verses, worn on the arm and forehead by Jews, especially when praying. The custom was derived from such OT passages as Exod 13:9; 16; Deut 6:8; 11:18.

[23:5]  ⁶² tn The term κράσπεδον (kraspedon) in some contexts could refer to the outer fringe of the garment (possibly in Mark 6:56). This edge could have been plain or decorated. L&N 6.180 states, “In Mt 23:5 κράσπεδον denotes the tassels worn at the four corners of the outer garment (see 6.194).”

[23:5]  sn Tassels refer to the tassels that a male Israelite was obligated to wear on the four corners of his outer garment according to the Mosaic law (Num 15:38; Deut 22:12).

[23:39]  ⁶³ sn A quotation from Ps 118:26.

[24:1]  ⁶⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.

[24:1]  ⁶⁵ sn The Jerusalem temple was widely admired around the world. See Josephus, Ant. 15.11 [15.380-425]; J. W. 5.5 [5.184-227] and Tacitus, History 5.8, who called it “immensely opulent.” Josephus compared it to a beautiful snowcapped mountain.

[24:15]  ⁶⁶ sn The reference to the abomination of desolation is an allusion to Dan 9:27. Though some have seen the fulfillment of Daniel’s prophecy in the actions of Antiochus IV (or a representative of his) in 167 b.c., the words of Jesus seem to indicate that Antiochus was not the final fulfillment, but that there was (from Jesus’ perspective) still another fulfillment yet to come. Some argue that this was realized in a.d. 70, while others claim that it refers specifically to Antichrist and will not be fully realized until the period of the great tribulation at the end of the age (cf. Mark 13:14, 19, 24; Rev 3:10).

[24:43]  ⁶⁷ sn On Jesus pictured as a returning thief, see 1 Thess 5:2, 4; 2 Pet 3:10; Rev 3:3; 16:15.

[26:29]  ⁶⁸ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[26:29]  ⁶⁹ tn Grk “produce” (“the produce of the vine” is a figurative expression for wine).

[26:40]  ⁷⁰ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

[26:42]  ⁷¹ tn Grk “saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant here in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[26:42]  ⁷² tn Grk “this”; the referent (the cup) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[26:56]  ⁷³ tn Grk “But so that”; the verb “has happened” is implied.

[26:65]  ⁷⁴ tn Grk “the high priest tore his clothes, saying.”

[26:65]  ⁷⁵ tn Grk “Behold now.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[27:21]  ⁷⁶ tn Grk “answering, the governor said to them.” This construction is somewhat redundant in English and has been simplified in the translation. Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[28:9]  ⁷⁷ tn Grk “And behold.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate that the return of the women from the tomb was interrupted by this appearance of Jesus. The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[28:9]  ⁷⁸ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.