Matthew 19 - Disciples’ Literal New Testament (DLNT)

The King Leaves Galilee For Judea. Large Crowds Follow Him And He Heals Them

19 And it came about that when Jesus finished^[a] these words, He went-away from Galilee and came into the districts^[b] of Judea, beyond the Jordan. ² And large crowds followed Him, and He cured them there.

The Pharisees Test Jesus With a Question About Divorce. Divorce Is Not God’s Will

³ And Pharisees came to Him— testing Him, and saying, “Is it lawful for a man^[c] to send-away^[d] his wife for any reason^[e]?” ⁴ And the One, having responded, said, “Did you not read [in Gen 1:27] that the One having created from the beginning^[f] ‘made them male and female’? ⁵ And He said [in Gen 2:24], ‘For this reason^[g] a man will leave-behind his father and his mother and will be joined^[h] to his wife. And the two will be one flesh’. ⁶ So then, they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God paired-together^[i], let a person^[j] not separate”. ⁷ They say to Him, “Why then did Moses command us to give a certificate^[k] of divorce and send her away?” ⁸ He says to them that “Moses permitted^[l] you to send-away your wives because of your hardness-of-heart. But from the beginning it has not been so^[m]. ⁹ And I say to you that whoever sends-away his wife not based on sexual-immorality, and marries another, is committing-adultery”.

The Disciples Conclude It Is Better Not To Marry. Jesus Says This Is Right For Some

¹⁰ His disciples say to Him, “If the case of the man with the wife is like this, it is not expedient^[n] to marry!” ¹¹ But the One said to them, “Not all give-way-to^[o] this statement, but [only] ones to whom it has been given. ¹² For there are eunuchs^[p] who were born thus from a mother’s womb. And there are eunuchs who were made-eunuchs by people. And there are eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of the heavens. Let the one being able to give way, give way”.

Don’t Forbid The Children To Come To Me. Of Such Is The Kingdom of God

¹³ Then children were brought to Him in order that He might lay His hands on them and pray. But the disciples rebuked them^[q]. ¹⁴ But Jesus said, “Permit^[r] the children, and do not be forbidding them to come to Me. For the kingdom of the heavens is of ^[s] such ones”. ¹⁵ And having laid His hands on them, He proceeded from there.

A Rich Man Asks What To Do To Enter Heaven. Jesus Says, Sell Everything And Follow Me

¹⁶ And behold— one having come to Him said, “Teacher, what good thing should I do in order that I may have eternal life?” ¹⁷ And the One said to him, “Why do you ask Me about what is good? There is One Who is good. But if you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments”. ¹⁸ He says to Him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not murder. You shall not commit-adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not give-false-testimony. ¹⁹ Be honoring your father and your mother”. And, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself ”. ²⁰ The young man says to Him, “I kept all these things. What am I still lacking?” ²¹ Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be perfect^[t], go, sell your possessions and give it to the poor, and you will have treasure in the heavens. And come, be following Me”. ²² But having heard the statement, the young man went away grieving. For he was having many properties.

It Is Hard For The Rich To Enter. But All Who Leave Anything Will Inherit More

²³ And Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I say to you that a rich one will enter with-difficulty into the kingdom of the heavens. ²⁴ And again I say to you, it is easier that a camel go through a hole of a needle^[u] than^[v] that a rich one enter into the kingdom of God”. ²⁵ And having heard it, the disciples were extremely astounded, saying, “Who then can be saved?” ²⁶ And having looked at them, Jesus said to them, “With humans, this is impossible. But with God, all things are possible”. ²⁷ Then Peter, having responded, said to Him, “Behold— we left everything and followed You. What then will there be for us?” ²⁸ And Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you that you, the ones having followed Me— at the regeneration^[w] when the Son of Man sits on the throne^[x] of His glory, you also will sit on twelve thrones, judging^[y] the twelve tribes of Israel. ²⁹ And everyone who left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for the sake of My name will receive a hundred-fold^[z], and will inherit eternal life.

The First In This World Will Be Last And The Last Will Be First

³⁰ “But many first^[aa] ones will be last, and last ones, first.

Footnotes

1. Matthew 19:1 This marks the end of the ministry of Jesus in Galilee.
2. Matthew 19:1 Or, boundaries.
3. Matthew 19:3 This question is asked from the Jewish husband’s perspective. Jesus refutes the Jewish man’s commonly held view of divorce.
4. Matthew 19:3 That is, divorce.
5. Matthew 19:3 Or, for all grounds, for every cause. That is, for any fault the husband might find with her.
6. Matthew 19:4 That is, created, made them from the beginning. Or, created them at the beginning, made them.
7. Matthew 19:5 That is, because God made them to be a complementary pair. This is God’s intent.
8. Matthew 19:5 Or, join-himself.
9. Matthew 19:6 Or, yoked together, joined as a pair.
10. Matthew 19:6 Or, man (generically speaking), a human. The broader sense is clear in Mk 10:9-12. Do not divorce your wives.
11. Matthew 19:7 This document was to protect the wife and make it possible for her to remarry.
12. Matthew 19:8 Jesus corrects the Pharisees. Deut 24:1 does not command divorce.
13. Matthew 19:8 That is, it has not been God’s plan and intent that you divorce your wives.
14. Matthew 19:10 Or, advantageous, profitable. This direct attack of Jesus upon male authority is shocking even to the disciples.
15. Matthew 19:11 Or, make room for, accept. Not all have the ability to live in an unmarried state. This is an understatement, since God made them to be a pair, v 4-5. But Jesus validates singleness as also a gift from God, in contradiction to the views of that day.
16. Matthew 19:12 That is, celibate or castrated males. Some are born with this disposition, some are forced into it, some choose to remain unmarried.
17. Matthew 19:13 That is, those who brought the children.
18. Matthew 19:14 Or, Leave the children alone.
19. Matthew 19:14 That is, made up of; or, belonging to.
20. Matthew 19:21 That is, complete, so as not to ‘lack’ anything.
21. Matthew 19:24 Lit, bored-hole of a sewing-needle.
22. Matthew 19:24 In other words, it is impossible, as Jesus says next. This is another shocking statement. Wealth was considered a clear sign of God’s blessing.
23. Matthew 19:28 Or, rebirth [of the world].
24. Matthew 19:28 Or, His throne of glory; His glorious throne.
25. Matthew 19:28 That is, administering justice to.
26. Matthew 19:29 That is, a hundred times as much. Or this may be a hyperbole meaning ‘many times as much’, as in Lk 18:30.
27. Matthew 19:30 Or, foremost, chief. That is, first in time; or first in status. The parable that follows illustrates this point. In answer to Peter’s question in v 27, Jesus says God will reward based on His own will, not what we think we deserve; and based on completion of the work assigned to us, not based on comparison to the work done by others or in proportion to our part of the total work performed. Compare the parable at 25:14. Thus from the human viewpoint, some seeming to have done the least will seem to be rewarded the most; some who appear to deserve more will receive the same as others who appear to deserve less.