Israel Rebels Against Rehoboam^(A)

10 Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone there to make him king. ² When Jeroboam^(B) son of Nebat heard this (he was in Egypt, where he had fled^(C) from King Solomon), he returned from Egypt. ³ So they sent for Jeroboam, and he and all Israel^(D) went to Rehoboam and said to him: ⁴ “Your father put a heavy yoke on us,^(E) but now lighten the harsh labor and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you.”

⁵ Rehoboam answered, “Come back to me in three days.” So the people went away.

⁶ Then King Rehoboam consulted the elders^(F) who had served his father Solomon during his lifetime. “How would you advise me to answer these people?” he asked.

⁷ They replied, “If you will be kind to these people and please them and give them a favorable answer,^(G) they will always be your servants.”

⁸ But Rehoboam rejected^(H) the advice the elders^(I) gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him. ⁹ He asked them, “What is your advice? How should we answer these people who say to me, ‘Lighten the yoke your father put on us’?”

¹⁰ The young men who had grown up with him replied, “The people have said to you, ‘Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but make our yoke lighter.’ Now tell them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist. ¹¹ My father laid on you a heavy yoke; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.’”

¹² Three days later Jeroboam and all the people returned to Rehoboam, as the king had said, “Come back to me in three days.” ¹³ The king answered them harshly. Rejecting the advice of the elders, ¹⁴ he followed the advice of the young men and said, “My father made your yoke heavy; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.” ¹⁵ So the king did not listen to the people, for this turn of events was from God,^(J) to fulfill the word the Lord had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah the Shilonite.^(K)

¹⁶ When all Israel^(L) saw that the king refused to listen to them, they answered the king:

So all the Israelites went home. ¹⁷ But as for the Israelites who were living in the towns of Judah, Rehoboam still ruled over them.

¹⁸ King Rehoboam sent out Adoniram,^[a](N) who was in charge of forced labor, but the Israelites stoned him to death. King Rehoboam, however, managed to get into his chariot and escape to Jerusalem. ¹⁹ So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day.

Two Adulterous Sisters

23 The word of the Lord came to me: ² “Son of man, there were two women, daughters of the same mother.^{(A) 3} They became prostitutes in Egypt,^(B) engaging in prostitution^(C) from their youth.^(D) In that land their breasts were fondled and their virgin bosoms caressed.^{(E) 4} The older was named Oholah, and her sister was Oholibah. They were mine and gave birth to sons and daughters. Oholah is Samaria, and Oholibah is Jerusalem.^(F)

⁵ “Oholah engaged in prostitution while she was still mine; and she lusted after her lovers, the Assyrians^(G)—warriors^{(H) 6} clothed in blue, governors and commanders, all of them handsome young men, and mounted horsemen. ⁷ She gave herself as a prostitute to all the elite of the Assyrians and defiled herself with all the idols of everyone she lusted after.^{(I) 8} She did not give up the prostitution she began in Egypt,^(J) when during her youth men slept with her, caressed her virgin bosom and poured out their lust on her.^(K)

⁹ “Therefore I delivered her into the hands^(L) of her lovers,^(M) the Assyrians, for whom she lusted.^{(N) 10} They stripped^(O) her naked, took away her sons and daughters and killed her with the sword. She became a byword among women,^(P) and punishment was inflicted^(Q) on her.^(R)

¹¹ “Her sister Oholibah saw this,^(S) yet in her lust and prostitution she was more depraved than her sister.^{(T) 12} She too lusted after the Assyrians—governors and commanders, warriors in full dress, mounted horsemen, all handsome young men.^{(U) 13} I saw that she too defiled herself; both of them went the same way.^(V)

¹⁴ “But she carried her prostitution still further. She saw men portrayed on a wall,^(W) figures of Chaldeans^[a] portrayed in red,^{(X) 15} with belts^(Y) around their waists and flowing turbans on their heads; all of them looked like Babylonian chariot officers, natives of Chaldea.^{[b] 16} As soon as she saw them, she lusted after them and sent messengers^(Z) to them in Chaldea.^{(AA) 17} Then the Babylonians^(AB) came to her, to the bed of love, and in their lust they defiled her. After she had been defiled by them, she turned away from them in disgust.^{(AC) 18} When she carried on her prostitution openly and exposed her naked body,^(AD) I turned away^(AE) from her in disgust, just as I had turned away from her sister.^{(AF) 19} Yet she became more and more promiscuous as she recalled the days of her youth, when she was a prostitute in Egypt. ²⁰ There she lusted after her lovers, whose genitals were like those of donkeys and whose emission was like that of horses. ²¹ So you longed for the lewdness of your youth, when in Egypt your bosom was caressed and your young breasts fondled.^[c](AG)

²² “Therefore, Oholibah, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will stir up your lovers^(AH) against you, those you turned away from in disgust, and I will bring them against you from every side^(AI)— ²³ the Babylonians^(AJ) and all the Chaldeans,^(AK) the men of Pekod^(AL) and Shoa and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them, handsome young men, all of them governors and commanders, chariot officers and men of high rank, all mounted on horses.^{(AM) 24} They will come against you with weapons,^[d] chariots and wagons^(AN) and with a throng of people; they will take up positions against you on every side with large and small shields and with helmets. I will turn you over to them for punishment,^(AO) and they will punish you according to their standards. ²⁵ I will direct my jealous anger^(AP) against you, and they will deal with you in fury. They will cut off your noses and your ears, and those of you who are left will fall by the sword. They will take away your sons and daughters,^(AQ) and those of you who are left will be consumed by fire.^{(AR) 26} They will also strip^(AS) you of your clothes and take your fine jewelry.^{(AT) 27} So I will put a stop^(AU) to the lewdness and prostitution you began in Egypt. You will not look on these things with longing or remember Egypt anymore.

²⁸ “For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am about to deliver you into the hands^(AV) of those you hate, to those you turned away from in disgust. ²⁹ They will deal with you in hatred and take away everything you have worked for. They will leave you stark naked,^(AW) and the shame of your prostitution will be exposed.^(AX) Your lewdness^(AY) and promiscuity^{(AZ) 30} have brought this on you, because you lusted after the nations and defiled yourself with their idols.^{(BA) 31} You have gone the way of your sister; so I will put her cup^(BB) into your hand.^(BC)

³² “This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

I have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord.^(BH)

³⁵ “Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Since you have forgotten^(BI) me and turned your back on me,^(BJ) you must bear^(BK) the consequences of your lewdness and prostitution.”

³⁶ The Lord said to me: “Son of man, will you judge Oholah and Oholibah? Then confront^(BL) them with their detestable practices,^{(BM) 37} for they have committed adultery and blood is on their hands. They committed adultery with their idols; they even sacrificed their children, whom they bore to me, as food for them.^{(BN) 38} They have also done this to me: At that same time they defiled my sanctuary^(BO) and desecrated my Sabbaths.^{(BP) 39} On the very day they sacrificed their children to their idols, they entered my sanctuary and desecrated^(BQ) it. That is what they did in my house.^(BR)

⁴⁰ “They even sent messengers for men who came from far away,^(BS) and when they arrived you bathed yourself for them, applied eye makeup^(BT) and put on your jewelry.^{(BU) 41} You sat on an elegant couch,^(BV) with a table^(BW) spread before it on which you had placed the incense^(BX) and olive oil that belonged to me.^(BY)

⁴² “The noise of a carefree^(BZ) crowd was around her; drunkards^(CA) were brought from the desert along with men from the rabble, and they put bracelets^(CB) on the wrists of the woman and her sister and beautiful crowns on their heads.^{(CC) 43} Then I said about the one worn out by adultery, ‘Now let them use her as a prostitute,^(CD) for that is all she is.’ ⁴⁴ And they slept with her. As men sleep with a prostitute, so they slept with those lewd women, Oholah and Oholibah. ⁴⁵ But righteous judges will sentence them to the punishment of women who commit adultery and shed blood,^(CE) because they are adulterous and blood is on their hands.^(CF)

⁴⁶ “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Bring a mob^(CG) against them and give them over to terror and plunder.^{(CH) 47} The mob will stone them and cut them down with their swords; they will kill their sons and daughters^(CI) and burn^(CJ) down their houses.^(CK)

⁴⁸ “So I will put an end^(CL) to lewdness in the land, that all women may take warning and not imitate you.^{(CM) 49} You will suffer the penalty for your lewdness and bear the consequences of your sins of idolatry.^(CN) Then you will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.^(CO)”

The Authority of Jesus Questioned^(A)

20 One day as Jesus was teaching the people in the temple courts^(B) and proclaiming the good news,^(C) the chief priests and the teachers of the law, together with the elders, came up to him. ² “Tell us by what authority you are doing these things,” they said. “Who gave you this authority?”^(D)

³ He replied, “I will also ask you a question. Tell me: ⁴ John’s baptism^(E)—was it from heaven, or of human origin?”

⁵ They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Why didn’t you believe him?’ ⁶ But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ all the people^(F) will stone us, because they are persuaded that John was a prophet.”^(G)

⁷ So they answered, “We don’t know where it was from.”

⁸ Jesus said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”

The Parable of the Tenants^(H)

⁹ He went on to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard,^(I) rented it to some farmers and went away for a long time.^{(J) 10} At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants so they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. ¹¹ He sent another servant, but that one also they beat and treated shamefully and sent away empty-handed. ¹² He sent still a third, and they wounded him and threw him out.

¹³ “Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my son, whom I love;^(K) perhaps they will respect him.’

¹⁴ “But when the tenants saw him, they talked the matter over. ‘This is the heir,’ they said. ‘Let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ ¹⁵ So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.

“What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? ¹⁶ He will come and kill those tenants^(L) and give the vineyard to others.”

When the people heard this, they said, “God forbid!”

¹⁷ Jesus looked directly at them and asked, “Then what is the meaning of that which is written:

¹⁸ Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.”^(N)

¹⁹ The teachers of the law and the chief priests looked for a way to arrest him^(O) immediately, because they knew he had spoken this parable against them. But they were afraid of the people.^(P)

Paying Taxes to Caesar^(Q)

²⁰ Keeping a close watch on him, they sent spies, who pretended to be sincere. They hoped to catch Jesus in something he said,^(R) so that they might hand him over to the power and authority of the governor.^{(S) 21} So the spies questioned him: “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach what is right, and that you do not show partiality but teach the way of God in accordance with the truth.^{(T) 22} Is it right for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”

²³ He saw through their duplicity and said to them, ²⁴ “Show me a denarius. Whose image and inscription are on it?”

“Caesar’s,” they replied.

²⁵ He said to them, “Then give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s,^(U) and to God what is God’s.”

²⁶ They were unable to trap him in what he had said there in public. And astonished by his answer, they became silent.

The Resurrection and Marriage^(V)

²⁷ Some of the Sadducees,^(W) who say there is no resurrection,^(X) came to Jesus with a question. ²⁸ “Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man must marry the widow and raise up offspring for his brother.^{(Y) 29} Now there were seven brothers. The first one married a woman and died childless. ³⁰ The second ³¹ and then the third married her, and in the same way the seven died, leaving no children. ³² Finally, the woman died too. ³³ Now then, at the resurrection whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?”

³⁴ Jesus replied, “The people of this age marry and are given in marriage. ³⁵ But those who are considered worthy of taking part in the age to come^(Z) and in the resurrection from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage, ³⁶ and they can no longer die; for they are like the angels. They are God’s children,^(AA) since they are children of the resurrection. ³⁷ But in the account of the burning bush, even Moses showed that the dead rise, for he calls the Lord ‘the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’^{[b](AB) 38} He is not the God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive.”

³⁹ Some of the teachers of the law responded, “Well said, teacher!” ⁴⁰ And no one dared to ask him any more questions.^(AC)

Whose Son Is the Messiah?^(AD)

⁴¹ Then Jesus said to them, “Why is it said that the Messiah is the son of David?^{(AE) 42} David himself declares in the Book of Psalms:

⁴⁴ David calls him ‘Lord.’ How then can he be his son?”

Warning Against the Teachers of the Law

⁴⁵ While all the people were listening, Jesus said to his disciples, ⁴⁶ “Beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets.^{(AG) 47} They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely.”