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Prayer and the Parable of the Persistent Widow

¹ Then Jesus told them a parable to show them they should always pray and not lose heart. ² He said, "In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected people. ³ There was also a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.' ⁴ For a while he refused, but later on he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor have regard for people, ⁵ yet because this widow keeps on bothering me, I will give her justice, or in the end she will wear me out by her unending pleas.'" ⁶ And the Lord said, "Listen to what the unrighteous judge says! ⁷ Won't God give justice to his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he delay long to help them? ⁸ I tell you, he will give them justice speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?"

The Parable of the Pharisee and Tax Collector

⁹ Jesus also told this parable to some who were confident that they were righteous and looked down on everyone else. ¹⁰ "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. ¹¹ The Pharisee stood and prayed about himself like this: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people: extortionists, unrighteous people, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. ¹² I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of everything I get.' ¹³ The tax collector, however, stood far off and would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, be merciful to me, sinner that I am!' ¹⁴ I tell you that this man went down to his home justified rather than the Pharisee. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted."

Jesus and Little Children

¹⁵ Now people were even bringing their babies to him for him to touch. But when the disciples saw it, they began to scold those who brought them. ¹⁶ But Jesus called for the children, saying, "Let the little children come to me and do not try to stop them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. ¹⁷ I tell you the truth, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will never enter it."

The Wealthy Ruler

¹⁸ Now a certain ruler asked him, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" ¹⁹ Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. ²⁰ You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.'" ²¹ The man replied, "I have wholeheartedly obeyed all these laws since my youth." ²² When Jesus heard this, he said to him, "One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." ²³ But when the man heard this he became very sad, for he was extremely wealthy. ²⁴ When Jesus noticed this, he said, "How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! ²⁵ In fact, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God." ²⁶ Those who heard this said, "Then who can be saved?" ²⁷ He replied, "What is impossible for mere humans is possible for God." ²⁸ And Peter said, "Look, we have left everything we own to follow you!" ²⁹ Then Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, there is no one who has left home or wife or brothers or parents or children for the sake of God's kingdom ³⁰ who will not receive many times more in this age—and in the age to come, eternal life."

Another Prediction of Jesus' Passion

³¹ Then Jesus took the twelve aside and said to them, "Look, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished. ³² For he will be handed over to the Gentiles; he will be mocked, mistreated, and spat on. ³³ They will flog him severely and kill him. Yet on the third day he will rise again." ³⁴ But the twelve understood none of these things. This saying was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what Jesus meant.

Healing a Blind Man

³⁵ As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the road begging. ³⁶ When he heard a crowd going by, he asked what was going on. ³⁷ They told him, "Jesus the Nazarene is passing by." ³⁸ So he called out, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" ³⁹ And those who were in front scolded him to get him to be quiet, but he shouted even more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" ⁴⁰ So Jesus stopped and ordered the beggar to be brought to him. When the man came near, Jesus asked him, ⁴¹ "What do you want me to do for you?" He replied, "Lord, let me see again." ⁴² Jesus said to him, "Receive your sight; your faith has healed you." ⁴³ And immediately he regained his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they too gave praise to God.