Hello, this is Father Paul, and I'm glad we're
taking this journey together to read the Bible
in a year. Today's reading is from the Gospel
of Matthew, chapters 24 through 26. Chapter 24
Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple,
and his disciples came up to show him the buildings
of the temple. And Jesus said to them, Do you
not see all these things? Assuredly I say to
you, not one stone shall be left here upon another
that shall not be thrown down. Now as he sat
on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to
him privately, saying, Tell us, when will these
things be? And what will be the sign of your
coming, and of the end of the age? And Jesus
answered and said to them, Take heed that no
one deceives you, for many will come in my name,
saying, I am the Christ, and will deceive many.
And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars.
See that you are not troubled, for all these
things must come to pass. But the end is not
yet. For nation will rise against nation, and
kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines,
pestilences, and earthquakes in various places.
All these are the beginning of sorrows. Then
they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill
you, and you will be hated by all nations for
my name's sake. And then many will be offended,
will betray one another, and will hate one another.
Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive
many. And because lawlessness will abound, the
love of many will grow cold, but he who endures
to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of
the kingdom will be preached in all the world
as a witness to all the nations, and then the
end will come. Therefore, when you see the abomination
of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet,
standing in the holy place, whoever reads, let
him understand. Then let those who are in Judea
flee to the mountains let him who is on a housetop
not go down to take anything out of his house
and let him who is in the field not go back to
get his clothes but woe to those who are pregnant
and to those who are nursing babies in those
days and pray that your flight may not be in
winter or on a sabbath for then there will be
great tribulation such as has not been since
the beginning of the world until this time no
nor ever shall be and unless those days were
shortened no flesh would be saved but for the
elect's sake those days will be shortened then
if anyone says to you look here is the christ
or there do not believe it for false christs
and false prophets will rise and show great signs
and wonders to deceive if possible even the elect
see i have told you beforehand Therefore, if
they say to you, look, he is in the desert, do
not go out, or look, he is in the inner rooms,
do not believe it. For as the lightning comes
from the east and flashes to the west, so also
will the coming of the Son of Man be. For wherever
the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered
together. Immediately after the tribulation of
those days, the sun will be darkened and the
moon will not give its light. The stars will
fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens
will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man
will appear 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. And he will send his angels
with the great sound of a trumpet, and they will
gather together his elect from the four winds,
from one end of heaven to the other. Now learn
this parable from the fig tree. when its branch
has already become tender and puts forth leaves
you know that summer is near so you also when
you see all these things know that it is near
at the doors assuredly i say to you this generation
will by no means pass away till all these things
take place heaven and earth will pass away but
my words will by no means pass away but of that
day and hour no one knows not even the angels
of heaven but my father only But as the days
of Noah were, so also will the coming of the
Son of Man be. For as in the days before the
flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying
and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah
entered the ark, and did not know until the flood
came and took them all away, so also will the
coming of the Son of Man be. Then two men will
be in the field, one will be taken and the other
left. Two women will be grinding at the mill,
one will be taken and the other left. Watch therefore,
for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming.
But know this, that if the master of the house
had known what hour the thief would come, he
would have watched and not allowed his house
to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready,
for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do
not expect. Who then is a faithful and wise servant,
whom his master made ruler over his household
to give them food in due season? Blessed is that
servant whom his master, when he comes, will
find so doing. Assuredly I say to you that he
will make him ruler over all his goods. But if
that evil servant says in his heart, My master
is delaying his coming and begins to beat his
fellow servants and to eat and drink with the
drunkards, the master of that servant will come
on a day when he is not looking for him and at
an hour that he is not aware of. and will cut
him in two and appoint him his portion with the
hypocrites. There shall be weeping and gnashing
of teeth. Chapter 25 Then the kingdom of heaven
shall be likened to ten virgins, who took their
lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Now
five of them were wise and five were foolish.
Those who were foolish took their lamps and took
no oil with them. But the wise took oil in their
vessels with their lamps. but while the bridegroom
was delayed they all slumbered and slept and
at midnight a cry was heard behold the bridegroom
is coming go out to meet him then all those virgins
arose and trimmed their lamps then the foolish
said to the wise give us some of your oil for
our lamps are going out but the wise answered
saying no lest there should not be enough for
us and you but go rather to those who sell and
buy for yourselves and while they went to buy
the bridegroom came And those who were ready
went in with him to the wedding, and the door
was shut. Afterward, the other virgins came also,
saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered
and said, Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know
you. Watch, therefore, for you know neither the
day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.
For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling
to a far country, who called his own servants
and delivered his goods to them. And to one he
gave five talents, to another two, and to another
one, to each according to his own ability. And
immediately he went on a journey. Then he who
had received the five talents went and traded
with them and made another five talents. And
likewise he who had received two gained two more
also. But he who had received one went and dug
in the ground and hid his lord's money. After
a long time the lord of those servants came and
settled accounts with them. So he who had received
five talents came and brought five other talents,
saying, Lord, you delivered to me five talents.
Look, I have gained five more talents besides
them. The Lord said to him, Well done, good and
faithful servant. You are faithful over a few
things. I will make you ruler over many things.
Enter into the joy of your Lord. He also who
had received two talents came and said, Lord,
you delivered to me two talents. Look, I have
gained two more talents besides them. His Lord
said to him, Well done, good and faithful servant.
You have been faithful over a few things. I will
make you ruler over many things. Enter into the
joy of your Lord. Then he who had received the
one talent came and said, Lord, I knew you to
be a hard man. reaping where you have not sown,
and gathering where you have not scattered seed.
And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent
in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.
But his lord answered and said to him, You wicked
and lazy servant! You knew that I reap where
I have not sown, and gather where I have not
scattered seed. So you ought to have deposited
my money with the bankers, and at my coming I
would have received back my own with interest.
So take the talent from him, and give it to him
who has ten talents. For to everyone who has,
more will be given, and he will have abundance.
But from him who does not have, even what he
has will be taken away. And cast the unprofitable
servant into the outer darkness. There will be
weeping and gnashing of teeth. When the Son of
Man comes in his glory, and all the holy angels
with him, then he will sit on the throne of his
glory. All the nations will be gathered before
him, and he will separate them. one from another
as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats
and he will set the sheep on his right hand but
the goats on the left then the king will say
to those on his right hand come you blessed of
my father inherit the kingdom prepared for you
from the foundation of the world for i was hungry
and you gave me food i was thirsty and you gave
me drink i was a stranger and you took me in
i was naked and you clothed me i was sick and
you visited me i was in prison and you came to
me Then the righteous will answer him, saying,
Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you,
or thirsty and give you drink? When did we see
you a stranger and took you in, or naked and
clothe you? Or when did we see you sick or in
prison and come to you? And the king will answer
and say to them, Assuredly I say to you, inasmuch
as you did it to one of the least of these my
brethren, you did it to me. Then he will also
say to those on the left hand, Depart from me,
you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared
for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry
and you gave me no food. I was thirsty and you
gave me no drink. I was a stranger and you did
not take me in. Naked and you did not clothe
me. Sick and in prison and you did not visit
me. Then they also will answer him saying, Lord,
when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger
or naked or sick or in prison and did not minister
to you? Then he will answer them, saying, Assuredly
I say to you, Inasmuch as you did not do it to
one of the least of these, you did not do it
to me. And these will go away into everlasting
punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.
Chapter 26 Now it came to pass, when Jesus had
finished all these sayings, that he said to his
disciples, You know that after two days is the
Passover. and the Son of Man will be delivered
up to be crucified. Then the chief priests, the
scribes, and the elders of the people assembled
at the palace of the high priest, who was called
Caiaphas, and plotted to take Jesus by trickery
and kill him. But they said, Not during the feast,
lest there be an uproar among the people. And
when Jesus was in Bethany at the house of Simon
the leper, a woman came to him, having an alabaster
flask of very costly fragrant oil, and she poured
it on his head as he sat at the table. But when
his disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying,
Why this waste? For this fragrant oil might have
been sold for much and given to the poor. But
when Jesus was aware of it, he said to them,
Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done
a good work for me. For you have the poor with
you always, but me you do not have always. For
in pouring this fragrant oil on my body, she
did it for my burial. Assuredly I say to you,
Wherever this gospel is preached in the whole
world, what this woman has done will also be
told as a memorial to her. Then one of the twelve,
called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests
and said, What are you willing to give me if
I deliver him to you? And they counted out to
him thirty pieces of silver. So from that time
he sought opportunity to betray him. Now on the
first day of the feast of the unleavened bread,
The disciples came to Jesus, saying to him, Where
do you want us to prepare for you to eat the
Passover? And he said, Go into the city to a
certain man and say to him, The teacher says,
My time is at hand. I will keep the Passover
at your house with my disciples. So the disciples
did as Jesus had directed them, and they prepared
the Passover. When evening had come, he sat down
with the twelve. Now as they were eating, he
said, Assuredly, I say to you, one of you will
betray me. And they were exceedingly sorrowful,
and each of them began to say to him, Lord, is
it I? He answered and said, He who dipped his
hand with me in the dish will betray me. The
Son of Man indeed goes just as it is written
of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of
Man is betrayed. It would have been good for
that man if he had not been born. Then Judas,
who was betraying him, answered and said, Rabbi,
is it I? He said to him, You have said it. And
as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed
and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and
said, Take, eat, this is my body. Then he took
the cup and gave thanks and gave it to them,
saying, Drink from it, all of you, for this is
my blood of the new covenant, which is shed for
many for their remission of sins. But I say to
you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine
from now on until that day when I drink it new
with you in my Father's kingdom. And when they
had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of
Olives. Then Jesus said to them, Peter answered
and said to him, Jesus said to him, Assuredly,
I say to you that this night before the rooster
crows, you will deny me three times. Peter said
to him, Even if I have to die with you, I will
not deny you. And so said all the disciples.
Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane
and said to the disciples, Sit here while I go
and pray over there. And he took with him Peter
and the two sons of Zebedee, and he began to
be sorrowful and deeply distressed. Then he said
to them, My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even
to death. Stay here and watch with me. He went
a little farther and fell on his face and prayed,
saying, O my father, if it is possible, let this
cup pass from me. Nevertheless, not as I will,
but as you will. Then he came to the disciples
and found them sleeping and said to Peter, What,
could you not watch with me one hour? Watch and
pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit
indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. Again
a second time he went away and prayed, saying,
O my father, if this cup cannot pass away from
me unless I drink it, your will be done. And
he came and found them asleep again, for their
eyes were heavy. So he left them, went away again,
and prayed the third time, saying the same words.
Then he came to his disciples and said to them,
And while he was still speaking, behold, Judas,
one of the twelve, with a great multitude with
swords and clubs, came from the chief priests
and elders of the people. Now his betrayer had
given them a sign, saying, Whomever I kiss, he
is the one, seize him. immediately he went up
to jesus and said greetings rabbi and kissed
him but jesus said to him friend why have you
come then they came and laid hands on jesus and
took him and suddenly one of those who were with
jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword
struck the servant of the high priest and cut
off his ear but jesus said to him put your sword
in its place for all who take the sword will
perish by the sword Or do you think that I cannot
now pray to my father and he will provide me
with more than twelve legions of angels? How
then could the scriptures be fulfilled that it
must happen thus? In that hour Jesus said to
the multitudes, Have you come out as against
the robber with swords and clubs to take me?
I sat daily with you, teaching in the temple,
and you did not seize me. But all this was done
that the scriptures of the prophets might be
fulfilled. Then all the disciples forsook him
and fled. And those who had laid hold of Jesus
led him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where
the scribes and elders were assembled. But Peter
followed him at a distance to the high priest's
courtyard, and he went in and sat with the servants
to see the end. Now the chief priests, the elders,
and all the council sought false testimony against
Jesus to put him to death, but found none. Even
though many false witnesses came forward, They
found none. But at last, two false witnesses
came forward and said, This fellow said, I am
able to destroy the temple of God and to build
it in three days. And the high priest arose and
said to him, Do you answer nothing? What is it
these men testify against you? But Jesus kept
silent. And the high priest answered and said
to him, I put you under oath by the living God.
Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.
Jesus said to him, It is as you said. Nevertheless,
I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son
of Man sitting at the right hand of the power
and coming on the clouds of heaven. Then the
high priest tore his clothes, saying, He has
spoken blasphemy. What further need do we have
of witnesses? Look, now you have heard his blasphemy.
What do you think? They answered and said, He
is deserving of death. Then they spat in his
face and beat him. And others struck him with
the palms of their hands, saying, Prophesy to
us, Christ, who is the one who struck you? Now
Peter sat outside in the courtyard, and a servant
girl came to him, saying, You also were with
Jesus of Galilee. But he denied it before them
all, saying, I do not know what you are saying.
And when he had gone out to the gateway, another
girl saw him and said to those who were there,
This fellow also was with Jesus of Nazareth.
But again he denied with an oath. I do not know
the man. And a little later, those who stood
by came up and said to Peter, Surely you also
are one of them, for your speech betrays you.
Then he began to curse and swear, saying, I do
not know the man. Immediately a rooster crowed,
and Peter remembered the word of Jesus, who had
said to him, Before the rooster crows, you will
deny me three times. So he went out and wept
bitterly. I hope you enjoyed today's reading
as much as I did and I look forward to seeing
you again tomorrow to continue on our journey.
God bless you and have a great day.