Matthew 19

19 ¹ When Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went into the region of Judea beyond the Jordan. ² Large crowds followed him, and he healed them there.

³ Some Pharisees came to him to test him, asking, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?"

⁴ He answered, "Haven't you read that our Father, who created them at the beginning, made them male and female, ⁵ and said, 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh'? ⁶ So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what our Father has joined together, let no one separate."

⁷ They said to him, "Why then did Moses command that a man give a certificate of divorce and send her away?"

⁸ He said to them, "Because your hearts were hard, Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not this way. ⁹ I tell you that whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery."

¹⁰ The disciples said to him, "If this is the situation between a man and his wife, it is better not to marry."

¹¹ He said to them, "Not everyone can accept this word, but only those to whom it has been given. ¹² For there are eunuchs who were born that way from their mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who were made that way by others, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves so for the sake of the kingdom of our Father. The one who is able to receive this, let him receive it."

Jesus Welcomes the Little Children

¹³ Then little children were brought to him so that he might lay his hands on them and pray, but the disciples rebuked those who brought them. ¹⁴ But Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of our Father belongs to such as these." ¹⁵ And he laid his hands on them and went on from there.

The One Thing He Lacked

¹⁶ Just then, a man came up to him and said, "Teacher, what good thing must I do to have eternal life?"

¹⁷ He said to him, "Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments."

¹⁸ "Which ones?" he asked. Jesus said, "You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, ¹⁹ honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself."

²⁰ The young man said to him, "All these I have kept. What do I still lack?"

²¹ Jesus said to him, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you own and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." ²² When the young man heard this, he went away grieving, because he had great wealth.

²³ Then Jesus said to his disciples, "Truly I tell you, it is hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of our Father. ²⁴ Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of our Father."

²⁵ When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, "Who then can be saved?"

²⁶ Jesus looked at them and said, "For people this is impossible, but with our Father all things are possible."

²⁷ Then Peter said to him, "Look, we have left everything and followed you. What then will we have?"

²⁸ Jesus said to them, "Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. ²⁹ And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my name's sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. ³⁰ But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.