Matthew 21

And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples,

As they neared Jerusalem, reaching Bethphage at the Mount of Olives, Jesus, with a sense of purpose, sent two of his disciples ahead.

Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me.

He told them, "Head to the nearby village. Immediately, you'll spot a donkey and her young one, tied up. Set them free and bring them to me."

And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them.

If anyone questions you, simply respond, "The Lord needs them," and they will be sent immediately.

All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying,

Everything happened just as the prophet had predicted, to fulfill his words.

Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass.

Tell the girl from Zion, look, your humble King is coming to you, riding gently on a donkey and its young foal.

And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them,

With hearts full of faith, the disciples set off, carrying out Jesus' instructions with unwavering obedience.

And brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon.

They fetched the donkey and its foal, draped their own garments over them, and gently helped him to mount.

And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them in the way.

An enormous crowd laid their clothes on the path, while others chopped branches from trees, scattering them along the way.

And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest.

The crowds, both ahead and behind, cheered passionately, "Praise be to the descendant of David! Blessings on the one who arrives in the Lord's name! Highest praises to him!"

And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this?

As he entered Jerusalem, the entire city was stirred up, curiously asking, "Who is this?"

And the multitude said, This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee.

The crowd exclaimed, "Look, it's Jesus, the holy prophet from Nazareth in Galilee!"

And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves,

Jesus, filled with righteous anger, entered God's temple. He drove out everyone buying and selling there, upsetting the moneychangers' tables and the dove sellers' seats.

And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.

He told them, "God's home was meant to be a sanctuary for prayer, but you've turned it into a hideout for crooks."

And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple; and he healed them.

Those with sightless eyes and unsteady legs sought him in the sacred place; he lovingly restored their strength and vision.

And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, Hosanna to the son of David; they were sore displeased,

When the high priests and scholars saw the miracles he performed, and heard the children in the temple shouting praises to the son of David, they were deeply upset.

And said unto him, Hearest thou what these say? And Jesus saith unto them, Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise?

"Do you hear what they're saying?" they asked Him. Jesus replied, "Yes, haven't you ever heard the saying, 'Even the innocent and young can express the most sincere praise'?"

And he left them, and went out of the city into Bethany; and he lodged there.

Leaving them behind, he departed from the bustling city, seeking refuge in the serene town of Bethany, where he found a place to rest.

Now in the morning as he returned into the city, he hungered.

As dawn broke and he journeyed back to the city, a deep hunger stirred within him.

And when he saw a fig tree in the way, he came to it, and found nothing thereon, but leaves only, and said unto it, Let no fruit grow on thee henceforward for ever. And presently the fig tree withered away.

When he spotted a fig tree on his path, he approached it, only to find it barren, with nothing but leaves. Disappointed, he commanded, "Never bear fruit again!" And just like that, the fig tree shriveled up.

And when the disciples saw it, they marvelled, saying, How soon is the fig tree withered away!

When the disciples noticed it, they were amazed, exclaiming, "How quickly has the fig tree dried up!"

Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done.

Jesus assured them, "Truly, if you believe without a shred of doubt, you can do more than just wither a fig tree. Even if you command a mountain to move into the sea, it will happen."

And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.

In every heartfelt prayer, if you truly believe, you will receive all that you ask for.

And when he was come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came unto him as he was teaching, and said, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority?

As he stepped into the sacred temple, the high priests and respected elders approached him while he was imparting wisdom. They questioned him, "On whose orders are you acting? Who granted you this power?"

And Jesus answered and said unto them, I also will ask you one thing, which if ye tell me, I in like wise will tell you by what authority I do these things.

Jesus responded, "Let me ask you something too. If you answer me, I'll reveal the source of my power."

The baptism of John, whence was it? from heaven, or of men? And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say unto us, Why did ye not then believe him?

Where did John's baptism originate? From heaven or from people? They debated internally, thinking, "If we say it's from heaven, he'll ask why we didn't believe him."

But if we shall say, Of men; we fear the people; for all hold John as a prophet.

If we claim it's from men, we're scared of the crowd; they all see John as a prophet.

And they answered Jesus, and said, We cannot tell. And he said unto them, Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things.

They responded to Jesus, "We don't know." He replied, "Then, I won't reveal the source of my power either."

But what think ye? A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, Son, go work to day in my vineyard.

What do you think? Imagine a man with two sons. He approached the elder one and gently asked, "Son, could you please work in our vineyard today?"

He answered and said, I will not: but afterward he repented, and went.

He initially refused, expressing a firm 'No'. But later, filled with regret, he changed his mind and decided to go.

And he came to the second, and said likewise. And he answered and said, I go, sir: and went not.

He approached the second one, just as he had the first. The second one responded, "Yes, sir, I will go," but he never did.

Whether of them twain did the will of his father? They say unto him, The first. Jesus saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you.

Who truly followed their father's wishes? They answered, "The first one." Jesus then told them, "I assure you, even tax collectors and prostitutes will enter God's kingdom before you do."

For John came unto you in the way of righteousness, and ye believed him not: but the publicans and the harlots believed him: and ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterward, that ye might believe him.

John approached you with truth and goodness, but you didn't trust him. Yet, those society deemed unworthy, like tax collectors and prostitutes, they trusted him. Even after witnessing this, you didn't change your hearts to believe in him.

Hear another parable: There was a certain householder, which planted a vineyard, and hedged it round about, and digged a winepress in it, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country:

Listen to this story: A homeowner once planted a vineyard. He surrounded it with a fence, dug a winepress, built a tower, and rented it out to farmers. Then, he traveled to a distant land.

And when the time of the fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the husbandmen, that they might receive the fruits of it.

As harvest season approached, he dispatched his workers to the farmers, hoping to collect the fruits of their labor.

And the husbandmen took his servants, and beat one, and killed another, and stoned another.

The farmers seized his helpers, brutally attacking one, murdering another, and cruelly pelting a third with stones.

Again, he sent other servants more than the first: and they did unto them likewise.

Once more, he dispatched additional helpers, even more than before. Yet, they were treated in the same cruel manner.

But last of all he sent unto them his son, saying, They will reverence my son.

Finally, he sent his beloved son to them, hoping they would respect and honor him.

But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance.

When the farmers saw the landowner's son, they whispered to each other, "He's the one who will inherit everything. Let's kill him and take his wealth for ourselves."

And they caught him, and cast him out of the vineyard, and slew him.

They seized him, violently threw him out of the vineyard, and heartlessly took his life.

When the lord therefore of the vineyard cometh, what will he do unto those husbandmen?

When the owner of the vineyard returns, what will he do to those workers?

They say unto him, He will miserably destroy those wicked men, and will let out his vineyard unto other husbandmen, which shall render him the fruits in their seasons.

They told him, He will harshly punish those evil men, and entrust his vineyard to new caretakers who will faithfully provide him with its fruits in due time.

Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes?

Jesus asked them, "Haven't you ever read in the scriptures about the stone the builders tossed aside, only for it to become the cornerstone? This is God's work, and it's truly amazing to us."

Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof.

I tell you this with a heavy heart, the divine realm will be taken away from you and given to a people who truly value and nurture its blessings.

And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.

Anyone who stumbles on this stone will be shattered, but if it falls on anyone, they'll be crushed to dust.

And when the chief priests and Pharisees had heard his parables, they perceived that he spake of them.

When the high priests and Pharisees heard his stories, they realized he was talking about them, and it stirred their emotions.

But when they sought to lay hands on him, they feared the multitude, because they took him for a prophet.

When they tried to seize him, they hesitated, afraid of the crowd's reaction, for they revered him as a prophet.