Matthew 20:12-22

New International Version

¹² ‘These who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat^(A) of the day.’

¹³ “But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend.^(B) Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? ¹⁴ Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. ¹⁵ Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’^(C)

¹⁶ “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”^(D)

Jesus Predicts His Death a Third Time^(E)

¹⁷ Now Jesus was going up to Jerusalem. On the way, he took the Twelve aside and said to them, ¹⁸ “We are going up to Jerusalem,^(F) and the Son of Man^(G) will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law.^(H) They will condemn him to death ¹⁹ and will hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged^(I) and crucified.^(J) On the third day^(K) he will be raised to life!”^(L)

A Mother’s Request^(M)

²⁰ Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons^(N) came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down,^(O) asked a favor of him.

²¹ “What is it you want?” he asked.

She said, “Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.”^(P)

²² “You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said to them. “Can you drink the cup^(Q) I am going to drink?”

“We can,” they answered.