Matthew 6:33

6:33 But above all pursue his kingdom ¹  and righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

Matthew 24:7

24:7 For nation will rise up in arms ²  against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines ³  and earthquakes ⁴  in various places.

Matthew 18:3

18:3 and said, “I tell you the truth, ⁵  unless you turn around and become like little children, ⁶  you will never ⁷  enter the kingdom of heaven!

Matthew 19:23-24

19:23 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “I tell you the truth, ⁸  it will be hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven! 19:24 Again I say, ⁹  it is easier for a camel ¹⁰  to go through the eye of a needle ¹¹  than for a rich person to enter into the kingdom of God.”

Matthew 5:20

5:20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness goes beyond that of the experts in the law ¹²  and the Pharisees, ¹³  you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 7:21

Judgment of Pretenders

7:21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ ¹⁴  will enter into the kingdom of heaven – only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.

Matthew 23:13

23:13 “But woe to you, experts in the law ¹⁵  and you Pharisees, hypocrites! ¹⁶  You keep locking people out of the kingdom of heaven! ¹⁷  For you neither enter nor permit those trying to enter to go in.

Matthew 25:34

25:34 Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

Matthew 19:12

19:12 For there are some eunuchs who were that way from birth, ¹⁸  and some who were made eunuchs ¹⁹  by others, ²⁰  and some who became eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. The one who is able to accept this should accept it.”

Matthew 21:31

21:31 Which of the two did his father’s will?” They said, “The first.” ²¹  Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, ²²  tax collectors ²³  and prostitutes will go ahead of you into the kingdom of God!

[6:33]  ¹ tc ‡ Most mss (L W Θ 0233 Ë^1,13 33 Ï lat sy mae) read τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ τὴν δικαιοσύνην αὐτοῦ (thn basileian tou qeou kai thn dikaiosunhn aujtou, “the kingdom of God and his righteousness”) here, but the words “of God” are lacking in א B pc sa bo Eus. On the one hand, there is the possibility of accidental omission on the part of these Alexandrian witnesses, but it seems unlikely that the scribe’s eye would skip over both words (especially since τοῦ θεοῦ is bracketed by first declension nouns). Intrinsically, the author generally has a genitive modifier with βασιλεία – especially θεοῦ or οὐρανῶν (ouranwn) – but this argument cuts both ways: Although he might be expected to use such an adjunct here, scribes might also be familiar with his practice and would thus naturally insert it if it were missing in their copy of Matthew. Although a decision is difficult, the omission of τοῦ θεοῦ is considered most likely to be original. NA²⁷ includes the words in brackets, indicating doubt as to their authenticity.

[24:7]  ² tn For the translation “rise up in arms” see L&N 55.2.

[24:7]  ³ sn See Isa 5:13-14; 13:6-16; Hag 2:6-7; Zech 14:4.

[24:7]  ⁴ tc Most witnesses (C Θ 0102 Ë^1,13 Ï) have “and plagues” (καὶ λοιμοί, kai loimoi) between “famines” (λιμοί, limoi) and “earthquakes” (σεισμοί, seismoi), while others have “plagues and famines and earthquakes” (L W 33 pc lat). The similarities between λιμοί and λοιμοί could explain how καὶ λοιμοί might have accidentally dropped out, but since the Lukan parallel has both terms (and W lat have the order λοιμοὶ καὶ λιμοί there too, as they do in Matthew), it seems more likely that scribes added the phrase here. The shorter reading does not enjoy overwhelming support ([א] B D 892 pc, as well as versional witnesses), but it is nevertheless significant; coupled with the internal evidence it should be given preference.

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

[18:3]  ⁴ 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]  ⁵ tn The negation in Greek (οὐ μή, ou mh) is very strong here.

[19:23]  ⁴ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[19:24]  ⁵ tn Grk “I say to you.”

[19:24]  ⁶ tc A few late witnesses (579 1424 pc) read κάμιλον (kamilon, “rope”) for κάμηλον (kamhlon, “camel”), either through accidental misreading of the text or intentionally so as to soften Jesus’ words.

[19:24]  ⁷ sn The eye of a needle refers to a sewing needle. (The gate in Jerusalem known as “The Needle’s Eye” was built during the middle ages and was not in existence in Jesus’ day.) Jesus was saying rhetorically that it is impossible for a rich person to enter God’s kingdom, unless God (v. 26) intervenes.

[5:20]  ⁶ tn Or “that of the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.

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

[7:21]  ⁷ 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.

[23:13]  ⁸ tn Or “scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.

[23:13]  ⁹ tn Grk “Woe to you…because you…” The causal particle ὅτι (Joti) has not been translated here for rhetorical effect (and so throughout this chapter).

[23:13]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “because you are closing the kingdom of heaven before people.”

[19:12]  ⁹ tn Grk “from the womb of the mother” (an idiom).

[19:12]  ¹⁰ tn The verb εὐνουχίζω occurs twice in this verse, translated the first time as “made eunuchs” and the second time as “became eunuchs.” The term literally refers to castration. The second occurrence of the word in this verse is most likely figurative, though, referring to those who willingly maintain a life of celibacy for the furtherance of the kingdom (see W. D. Davies and D. C. Allison, Matthew [ICC], 3:23).

[19:12]  ¹¹ tn Grk “people.”

[21:31]  ¹⁰ tc Verses 29-31 involve a rather complex and difficult textual problem. The variants cluster into three different groups: (1) The first son says “no” and later has a change of heart, and the second son says “yes” but does not go. The second son is called the one who does his father’s will. This reading is found in the Western mss (D it). But the reading is so hard as to be nearly impossible. One can only suspect some tampering with the text, extreme carelessness on the part of the scribe, or possibly a recognition of the importance of not shaming one’s parent in public. (Any of these reasons is not improbable with this texttype, and with codex D in particular.) The other two major variants are more difficult to assess. Essentially, the responses make sense (the son who does his father’s will is the one who changes his mind after saying “no”): (2) The first son says “no” and later has a change of heart, and the second son says “yes” but does not go. But here, the first son is called the one who does his father’s will (unlike the Western reading). This is the reading found in (א) C L W (Z) 0102 0281 ˹ 33 Ï and several versional witnesses. (3) The first son says “yes” but does not go, and the second son says “no” but later has a change of heart. This is the reading found in B Θ Ë¹³ 700 and several versional witnesses. Both of these latter two readings make good sense and have significantly better textual support than the first reading. The real question, then, is this: Is the first son or the second the obedient one? If one were to argue simply from the parabolic logic, the second son would be seen as the obedient one (hence, the third reading). The first son would represent the Pharisees (or Jews) who claim to obey God, but do not (cf. Matt 23:3). This accords well with the parable of the prodigal son (in which the oldest son represents the unbelieving Jews). Further, the chronological sequence of the second son being obedient fits well with the real scene: Gentiles and tax collectors and prostitutes were not, collectively, God’s chosen people, but they did repent and come to God, while the Jewish leaders claimed to be obedient to God but did nothing. At the same time, the external evidence is weaker for this reading (though stronger than the first reading), not as widespread, and certainly suspect because of how neatly it fits. One suspects scribal manipulation at this point. Thus the second reading looks to be superior to the other two on both external and transcriptional grounds. But what about intrinsic evidence? One can surmise that Jesus didn’t always give predictable responses. In this instance, he may well have painted a picture in which the Pharisees saw themselves as the first son, only to stun them with his application (v. 32).

[21:31]  ¹¹ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[21:31]  ¹² sn See the note on tax collectors in 5:46.