Study Desk

He then taught the people: "It is written in the Scriptures that God said, ‘My Temple will be called a house of prayer for the people of all nations.' But you have turned it into a hideout for thieves!"

Jesus answered them, "Have faith in God.

Tell me, where did John's right to baptize come from: was it from God or from human beings?"

They started to argue among themselves: "What shall we say? If we answer, ‘From God,' he will say, ‘Why, then, did you not believe John?'

So Jesus said, "Well, then, pay to the Emperor what belongs to the Emperor, and pay to God what belongs to God." And they were amazed at Jesus.

Now, as for the dead being raised: haven't you ever read in the Book of Moses the passage about the burning bush? There it is written that God said to Moses, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.'

He is the God of the living, not of the dead. You are completely wrong!"

Jesus replied, "The most important one is this: ‘Listen, Israel! The Lord our God is the only Lord.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.'

The teacher of the Law said to Jesus, "Well done, Teacher! It is true, as you say, that only the Lord is God and that there is no other god but he.

And you must love God with all your heart and with all your mind and with all your strength; and you must love your neighbor as you love yourself. It is more important to obey these two commandments than to offer on the altar animals and other sacrifices to God."

Jesus noticed how wise his answer was, and so he told him, "You are not far from the Kingdom of God." After this nobody dared to ask Jesus any more questions.

Pray to God that these things will not happen in the winter!

For the trouble of those days will be far worse than any the world has ever known from the very beginning when God created the world until the present time. Nor will there ever be anything like it again.

Then he took a cup, gave thanks to God, and handed it to them; and they all drank from it.

I tell you, I will never again drink this wine until the day I drink the new wine in the Kingdom of God."

Jesus said to them, "All of you will run away and leave me, for the scripture says, ‘God will kill the shepherd, and the sheep will all be scattered.'

But Jesus kept quiet and would not say a word. Again the High Priest questioned him, "Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed God?"

Then Peter said, "I swear that I am telling the truth! May God punish me if I am not! I do not know the man you are talking about!"

At three o'clock Jesus cried out with a loud shout, "Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?" which means, "My God, my God, why did you abandon me?"