Matius 5:20

5:20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness goes beyond that of the experts in the law ¹  and the Pharisees, ²  you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Matius 7:21

Judgment of Pretenders

7:21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ ³  will enter into the kingdom of heaven – only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.

Matius 8:12

8:12 but the sons of the kingdom will be thrown out into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” ⁴ 

Matius 11:11

11:11 “I tell you the truth, ⁵  among those born of women, no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least ⁶  in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he is.

Matius 13:38

13:38 The field is the world and the good seed are the people ⁷  of the kingdom. The weeds are the people ⁸  of the evil one,

Matius 13:52

13:52 Then he said to them, “Therefore every expert in the law ⁹  who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his treasure what is new and old.”

Matius 18:3

18:3 and said, “I tell you the truth, ¹⁰  unless you turn around and become like little children, ¹¹  you will never ¹²  enter the kingdom of heaven!

Matius 19:14

19:14 But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not try to stop them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” ¹³ 

Matius 24:22

24:22 And if those days had not been cut short, no one would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.

[5:20]  ¹ tn Or “that of the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.

[5:20]  ² sn See the note on Pharisees in 3:7.

[7:21]  ³ sn The double use of the vocative is normally used in situations of high emotion or emphasis. Even an emphatic confession without action means little.

[8:12]  ⁴ sn Weeping and gnashing of teeth is a figure for remorse and trauma, which occurs here because of exclusion from God’s promise.

[11:11]  ⁵ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[11:11]  ⁶ sn After John comes a shift of eras. The new era is so great that the lowest member of it (the one who is least in the kingdom of God) is greater than the greatest one of the previous era.

[13:38]  ⁷ tn Grk “the sons of the kingdom.” This idiom refers to people who should properly be, or were traditionally regarded as, a part of God’s kingdom. L&N 11.13 translates the phrase: “people of God’s kingdom, God’s people.”

[13:38]  ⁸ tn Grk “the sons of the evil one.” See the preceding note on the phrase “people of the kingdom” earlier in this verse, which is the opposite of this phrase. See also L&N 9.4; 11.13; 11.14.

[13:52]  ⁹ tn Or “every scribe.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4. It is possible that the term translated “expert in the law” (traditionally, “scribe”) here is a self-description used by the author, Matthew, to represent his role in conveying the traditions about Jesus to his intended audience. See David E. Orton, The Understanding Scribe [JSNTSup].

[18:3]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[18:3]  ¹¹ sn The point of the comparison become like little children has more to do with a child’s trusting spirit, as well as willingness to be dependent and receive from others, than any inherent humility the child might possess.

[18:3]  ¹² tn The negation in Greek (οὐ μή, ou mh) is very strong here.

[19:14]  ¹³ sn The kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these. Children are a picture of those whose simple trust illustrates what faith is all about. The remark illustrates how everyone is important to God, even those whom others regard as insignificant.