The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible New Testament (18 page)

25
 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you cleanse the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of extortion and rapacity.
²⁶
You blind Pharisee! first cleanse the inside of the cup and of the plate, that the outside also may be clean.

27
 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you are like
whitewashed tombs
, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within they are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness.
²⁸
So you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but within you are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.

29
 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous,
³⁰
saying, 'If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.'
³¹
Thus you witness against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.
³²
Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers.
³³
You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell?
 
^w
34
Therefore I send you prophets and wise men and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from town to town,
³⁵
that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of innocent
Abel to the blood of Zechari'ah
the son of Barachi'ah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar.
³⁶
Truly, I say to you, all this will come upon this generation.

The Lament over Jerusalem

37
 "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, killing the prophets and stoning those who are sent to you! How often would I have gathered your children together
as a hen
gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not!
³⁸
Behold,
your house is forsaken
and desolate.
 
^x
39
For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.' "

The Destruction of the Temple Foretold

24
  
Jesus left the temple
and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. 
*
²
But he answered them, "You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another, that will not be thrown down."

Signs of Jesus' Coming and of the Close of the Age

3
 As he sat on the
Mount of Olives
, the disciples came to him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign of your
coming
and of the close of the age?"
⁴
And Jesus answered them, "Take heed that no one leads you astray.
⁵
For many will come in my name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and they will lead many astray.
⁶
And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not alarmed; for this must take place, but the end is not yet.
⁷
For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places:
⁸
all this is but the beginning of
the sufferings
.

Persecutions Foretold

9
 "Then they will deliver you up to tribulation, and put you to death; and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake.
¹⁰
And then many will fall away,
 
^y
and betray one another, and hate one another.
¹¹
And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.
¹²
And because wickedness is multiplied, most men's love will grow cold.
¹³
But he who endures to the end will be saved.
¹⁴
And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached
throughout the whole world
, as a testimony to all nations; and then the end will come.

The Desolating Sacrilege

15
 "So when you see
the desolating sacrilege
spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand),
¹⁶
then let those who are in Judea
flee to the mountains
;
¹⁷
let him who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house;
¹⁸
and let him who is in the field not turn back to get a coat.
¹⁹
And alas for those who are with child and for those who are nursing in those days!
²⁰
Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a sabbath.
²¹
For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be.
²²
And if those days had not been shortened, no human being would be saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.
²³
Then if any one says to you, 'Behold, here is the Christ!' or 'There he is!' do not believe it.
²⁴
For false Christs and false prophets will arise and show great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.
²⁵
Behold, I have told you beforehand.
²⁶
So, if they say to you, 'Behold, he is in the wilderness,' do not go out; if they say, 'Behold, he is in the inner rooms,' do not believe it.
²⁷
For as the
lightning
comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of man.
²⁸
Wherever the body is, there
the eagles
 
^z
will be gathered together.

The Coming of the Son of Man

29
 "Immediately after the tribulation of those days
the sun
will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken;
³⁰
then will appear the sign of the
Son of man
in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory;
³¹
and he will send out his
angels
with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

The Lesson of the Fig Tree

32
 "From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near.
³³
So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates.
³⁴
Truly, I say to you,
this generation
will not pass away till all these things take place.
³⁵
Heaven and earth will pass away
, but my words will not pass away.

The Necessity for Watchfulness

36
 "
But of that day and hour
no one knows, not even the angels of heaven,
nor the Son
,
 
^a
but the Father only.
³⁷
As were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of man.
³⁸
For as in those days before
the flood
they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark,
³⁹
and they did not know until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of man.
⁴⁰
Then two men will be in the field;
one is taken and one is left
.
⁴¹
Two women will be grinding at the mill; one is taken and one is left.
⁴²
Watch therefore
, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.
⁴³
But know this, that if the householder had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have watched and would not have let his house be broken into.
⁴⁴
Therefore you also must be ready; for the Son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

The Faithful and the Unfaithful Servant

45
 "Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time?
⁴⁶
Blessed is that servant whom his master when he comes will find so doing.
⁴⁷
Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions.
⁴⁸
But if that wicked servant says to himself, 'My master is delayed,'
⁴⁹
and begins to beat his fellow servants, and eats and drinks with the drunken,
⁵⁰
the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know,
⁵¹
and will punish
 
^b
him, and put him with the hypocrites; there men will weep and gnash their teeth.

The Parable of the Wise and Foolish Maidens

25
  
"Then the kingdom of heaven shall becompared to
ten maidens
who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.
 
^c
2
Five of them were foolish, and five were wise.
³
For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them;
⁴
but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps.
⁵
As the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.
⁶
But at midnight there was a cry, 'Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.'
⁷
Then all those maidens rose and trimmed their lamps.
⁸
And the foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.'
⁹
But the wise replied, 'Perhaps there will not be enough for us and for you; go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.'
¹⁰
And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast; and the door was shut.
¹¹
Afterward the other maidens came also, saying, 'Lord, lord, open to us.'
¹²
But he replied, 'Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.'
¹³
Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.

The Parable of the Talents

14
 "
For it will be
as when a man going
on a journey
called his servants and entrusted to them his property;
¹⁵
to one he gave five
talents
,
 
^d
to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away.
¹⁶
He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them; and he made five talents more.
¹⁷
So also, he who had the two talents made two talents more.
¹⁸
But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master's money.
¹⁹
Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them.
²⁰
And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, 'Master, you delivered to me five talents; here I have made five talents more.'
²¹
His master said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a little, I will set you over much; enter into the joy of your master.'
²²
And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, 'Master, you delivered to me two talents; here I have made two talents more.'
²³
His master said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a little, I will set you over much; enter into the joy of your master.'
²⁴
He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, 'Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not winnow;
²⁵
so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.'
²⁶
But his master answered him, 'You wicked and
slothful servant
! You knew that I reap where I have not sowed, and gather where I have not winnowed?
²⁷
Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest.
²⁸
So
take the talent from him
, and give it to him who has the ten talents.
²⁹
For to every one who has will more be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away. 
*
³⁰
And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'