Open English Translation MAT Chapter 21

21 When they were getting close to Yerusalem and arrived at Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Yeshua sent two of his apprentices ahead, 2 telling them, “Go ahead to the next village and in front of you you’ll see a donkey tied up and her colt near her. Untie the donkey and bring them back here to me. 3 But if anyone says anything to you, just tell them that the master needs them, and they’ll let you take them.”

4 “All this is happening so that the message that was written by the prophet will come to pass:

5 [ref]‘Tell the daughter of Zion:

“Look, your king is coming,

gentle and riding a donkey,

and on a colt, a donkey’s offspring.” ’ ”

6 So the two apprentices left and did what Yeshua had instructed them. 7 They brought back the donkey and the colt, and they put their coats on them and he sat on them. 8 Then the huge crowd spread their coats on the road, while others cut branches off trees and spread them on the road. 9 [ref]The crowd that walked ahead of him and the crowd that followed along behind all yelled out, “David’s descendant, honoured saviour! Blessed one who comes in the name of the master! Honoured saviour in the highest!”

10 As they entered Yerusalem, everyone in the city was stunned, asking, “Who is this?”

11 The crowds responded, “It’s the prophet Yeshua—the prophet from Nazareth in the Galilee!”

12 Then Yeshua dismounted and entered the temple. He drove out those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the moneychangers and the seats of those who were selling doves, 13 [ref]telling them, “It was written that my house will be called a house of prayer, but you all are making it a hideout of robbers.”

14 Those in the temple who were blind or lame approached Yeshua and he healed them. 15 But the chief priests and religious teachers, having seen him do miracles and heard the children in the temple yelling out ‘David’s descendant, honoured saviour!’ became angry 16 [ref]and accused him, “Can’t you hear what they’re saying?”

“Yes, I can,” Yeshua responded. “Didn’t you ever read where it says ‘You caused praises to come from the lips of infants and babies’?”

17 Then he left the temple and Yerusalem and went and stayed overnight out at Bethany.

18 In the morning as he headed back into the city, Yeshua was hungry. 19 He saw a single fig tree near the road, but when he got close, it only had leaves on it, so he spoke to it, “You will never again bear fruit,” and immediately the fig tree withered up.

20 His followers who saw this happen were amazed and asked each other, “How did that tree instantly wither up?”

21 [ref]“I can assure you all,” Yeshua answered, “if you have faith and don’t doubt, not only could you do that to a fig tree, you could tell this hill to move away and go into the sea, and it would happen. 22 You’d be able to do everything—anything that you request in prayer and believe.”

23 When Yeshua went back into the temple and started teaching the people, the chief priests and the Jewish elders came and challenged him, “What authority do you have to do these things?”

24 “Well, I have one question for you first,” Yeshua answered. “If you answer it, then I’ll tell you all about my authority to do these things. 25 So, where did Yohan’s practice of immersion come from?”

They discussed this among themselves, saying, “If we say from heaven, he’ll ask us why we didn’t believe Yohan. 26 But if we say it was a human idea, then the crowd might revolt against us because they consider Yohan to be a prophet.” 27 So they answered, “We don’t know.”

“Well then, nor will I tell you about my authority to do these things,” Yeshua answered.

28 “But what does it matter to you all, anyway? There was a man who had two children and he went up to the first one and instructed, ‘Son, go and work in my vineyard today.’ 29 ‘I can’t,’ he answered, but later he regretted what he’d said and went and did the work. 30 The father also approached the other child with the same instruction. ‘I will, master’ this one answered, but he never went. 31 Which of the two did what the father wanted?”

“The first one,” the hearers answered.

“I can assure you all,” Yeshua continued, “that tax collectors and prostitutes will enter God’s kingdom ahead of you lot, 32 [ref]because Yohan came to you all teaching the road to becoming right with God, but you didn’t believe that he was sent by God. Yet the tax collectors and prostitutes believed in him, and still, even when you saw that, you didn’t later regret and change your minds and believe.

33 [ref]“Listen to another parable: A landowner planted a vineyard and fenced it, and he carved a wine-press in it and built a watchtower. Then he rented it out to tenant farmers and moved away. 34 At harvest time, he sent some of his slaves to the tenant farmers to bring back his share of the harvest. 35 However, the tenants grabbed his slaves and beat them. They killed some and threw rocks at others. 36 So the owner sent a larger group of slaves, but the tenants did the same things to them.

37 “Next he sent his son because he thought his son would have influence over them. 38 But when the tenant farmers saw the son, they thought, ‘Hey, this is the heir of the estate. If we kill him, then the inheritance will be ours.’ 39 So they grabbed the son, dragged him out of the vineyard, and killed him there outside.

40 “Now, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what do you think he’ll do to those tenant farmers?”

41 “He’ll brutally destroy those wicked tenants,” they answered, “then he’ll rent the vineyard out to other tenant farmers who will give him his share of the harvest.”

42 [ref]Then Yeshua said to them, “Haven’t you ever read in the scriptures:

‘The stone which the builders rejected,

this would become the cornerstone.

This one came from the master,

and it was amazing to see.’

43 “Because of that, I’m telling you that God’s kingdom will be taken away from all of you and be given to a people who will produce a harvest. 44 And anyone who falls down onto this stone will be shattered, but anyone that this stone falls on will be totally pulverised.”

45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard those parables, they knew that he was talking about them. 46 They attempted to arrest him, but couldn’t because they knew that the crowds believed him to be a prophet from God.