Κατα Ματθαιον 19
1 Καὶ ἐγένετο ὅτε ἐτέλεσεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς τοὺς λόγους τούτους μετῆρεν ἀπὸ τῆς Γαλιλαίας καὶ ἦλθεν εἰς τὰ ὅρια τῆς Ἰουδαίας πέραν τοῦ Ἰορδάνου.
At the conclusion of this teaching, Jesus withdrew from Galilee, and went into that district of Judea which is on the other side of the Jordan.
2 καὶ ἠκολούθησαν αὐτῷ ὄχλοι πολλοί, καὶ ἐθεράπευσεν αὐτοὺς ἐκεῖ.
Great crowds followed him, and he cured them there.
3 Καὶ προσῆλθον αὐτῷ οἱ Φαρισαῖοι πειράζοντες αὐτὸν καὶ λέγοντες αὐτῷ· εἰ ἔξεστιν ἀνθρώπῳ ἀπολῦσαι τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ κατὰ πᾶσαν αἰτίαν;
Presently some Pharisees came up to him, and, to test him, said, ‘Has a man the right to divorce his wife for every cause?’
4 ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· οὐκ ἀνέγνωτε ὅτι ὁ ποιήσας ἀπ᾽ ἀρχῆς ἄρσεν καὶ θῆλυ ἐποίησεν αὐτοὺς καὶ εἶπεν,
‘Haven’t you read,’ replied Jesus, ‘that at the beginning the Creator “made them male and female,”
5 ἕνεκεν τούτου καταλείψει ἄνθρωπος τὸν πατέρα αὐτοῦ καὶ τὴν μητέρα καὶ κολληθήσεται τῇ γυναικὶ αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἔσονται οἱ δύο εἰς σάρκα μίαν;
and said – “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother, and be united to his wife, and the man and his wife will become one”?
6 ὥστε οὐκέτι εἰσὶ δύο, ἀλλὰ σὰρξ μία. ὃ οὖν ὁ Θεὸς συνέζευξεν, ἄνθρωπος μὴ χωριζέτω.
So that they are no longer two, but one. What God himself, then, has yoked together people must not separate.’
7 λέγουσιν αὐτῷ· τί οὖν Μωσῆς ἐνετείλατο δοῦναι βιβλίον ἀποστασίου καὶ ἀπολῦσαι αὐτήν;
‘Why, then,’ they said, ‘did Moses direct that a man should serve his wife with a notice of separation and divorce her?’
8 λέγει αὐτοῖς· ὅτι Μωσῆς πρὸς τὴν σκληροκαρδίαν ὑμῶν ἐπέτρεψεν ὑμῖν ἀπολῦσαι τὰς γυναῖκας ὑμῶν· ἀπ᾽ ἀρχῆς δὲ οὐ γέγονεν οὕτω.
‘Moses, owing to the hardness of your hearts,’ answered Jesus, ‘permitted you to divorce your wives, but that was not so at the beginning.
9 λέγω δὲ ὑμῖν ὅτι ὃς ἂν ἀπολύσῃ τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ μὴ ἐπὶ πορνείᾳ καὶ γαμήσῃ ἄλλην, μοιχᾶται· καὶ ὁ ἀπολελυμένην γαμήσας μοιχᾶται.
But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of some serious sexual sin, and marries another woman, is guilty of adultery.’
10 λέγουσιν αὐτῷ οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ· εἰ οὕτως ἐστὶν ἡ αἰτία τοῦ ἀνθρώπου μετὰ τῆς γυναικός, οὐ συμφέρει γαμῆσαι.
‘If that,’ said the disciples, ‘is the position of a man with regard to his wife, it is better not to marry.’
11 ὁ δὲ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· οὐ πάντες χωροῦσι τὸν λόγον τοῦτον, ἀλλ᾽ οἷς δέδοται·
‘It is not everyone,’ replied Jesus, ‘who can accept this teaching, but only those who have been enabled to do so.
12 εἰσὶ γὰρ εὐνοῦχοι οἵτινες ἐκ κοιλίας μητρὸς ἐγεννήθησαν οὕτω. καὶ εἰσὶν εὐνοῦχοι οἵτινες εὐνουχίσθησαν ὑπὸ τῶν ἀνθρώπων, καὶ εἰσὶν εὐνοῦχοι οἵτινες εὐνούχισαν ἑαυτοὺς διὰ τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν. ὁ δυνάμενος χωρεῖν χωρείτω.
Some men are incapable of marriage because they were born that way, or have been made so by other people, while there are others who stay single for the sake of the kingdom of Heaven. Accept this if you can.’
13 Τότε προσηνέχθη αὐτῷ παιδία, ἵνα ἐπιθῇ αὐτοῖς τὰς χεῖρας καὶ προσεύξηται· οἱ δὲ μαθηταὶ ἐπετίμησαν αὐτοῖς.
Then some little children were brought to Jesus, for him to place his hands on them, and pray; but the disciples found fault with those who had brought them.
14 ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν· ἄφετε τὰ παιδία καὶ μὴ κωλύετε αὐτὰ ἐλθεῖν πρός με· τῶν γὰρ τοιούτων ἐστὶν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν.
Jesus, however, said, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for it is to the childlike that the kingdom of heaven belongs.’
15 καὶ ἐπιθεὶς τὰς χεῖρας αὐτοῖς ἐπορεύθη ἐκεῖθεν.
So he placed his hands on them, and then went on his way.
16 Καὶ ἰδοὺ εἷς προσελθὼν εἶπεν αὐτῷ· διδάσκαλε ἀγαθέ, τί ἀγαθὸν ποιήσω ἵνα ἔχω ζωὴν αἰώνιον; (aiōnios g166)
A man came up to Jesus, and said, ‘Teacher, what good thing must I do to obtain eternal life?’ (aiōnios g166)
17 ὁ δὲ εἶπεν αὐτῷ· τί με λέγεις ἀγαθόν; οὐδεὶς ἀγαθὸς εἰ μὴ εἷς ὁ Θεός. εἰ δὲ θέλεις εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὴν ζωήν, τήρησον τὰς ἐντολάς.
‘Why ask me about goodness?’ answered Jesus. ‘There is but One who is good. If you want to enter the life, keep the commandments.’
18 λέγει αὐτῷ· ποίας; ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς εἶπε· τὸ οὐ φονεύσεις, οὐ μοιχεύσεις, οὐ κλέψεις, οὐ ψευδομαρτυρήσεις,
‘What commandments?’ asked the man. ‘These,’ answered Jesus, – ‘“You must not kill. You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not say what is false about others.
19 τίμα τὸν πατέρα καὶ τὴν μητέρα, καὶ ἀγαπήσεις τὸν πλησίον σου ὡς σεαυτόν.
Honour your father and your mother.” And “You must love your neighbour as you love yourself.”’
20 λέγει αὐτῷ ὁ νεανίσκος· πάντα ταῦτα ἐφυλαξάμην ἐκ νεότητός μου· τί ἔτι ὑστερῶ;
‘I have observed all these,’ said the young man. ‘What is still wanting in me?’
21 ἔφη αὐτῷ ὁ Ἰησοῦς· εἰ θέλεις τέλειος εἶναι, ὕπαγε πώλησόν σου τὰ ὑπάρχοντα καὶ δὸς πτωχοῖς, καὶ ἕξεις θησαυρὸν ἐν οὐρανῷ, καὶ δεῦρο ἀκολούθει μοι.
‘If you wish to be perfect,’ answered Jesus, ‘go and sell your property, and give to the poor, and you will have wealth in heaven; then come and follow me.’
22 ἀκούσας δὲ ὁ νεανίσκος τὸν λόγον ἀπῆλθε λυπούμενος· ἦν γὰρ ἔχων κτήματα πολλά.
On hearing these words, the young man went away distressed, for he had great possessions.
23 Ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς εἶπε τοῖς μαθηταῖς αὐτοῦ· ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν ὅτι δυσκόλως πλούσιος εἰσελεύσεται εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν.
At this, Jesus said to his disciples, ‘I tell you that a rich person will find it hard to enter the kingdom of heaven!
24 πάλιν δὲ λέγω ὑμῖν, εὐκοπώτερόν ἐστι κάμηλον διὰ τρυπήματος ῥαφίδος διελθεῖν ἢ πλούσιον εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰσελθεῖν.
I say again, it is easier for a camel to get through a needle’s eye than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven!’
25 ἀκούσαντες δὲ οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ ἐξεπλήσσοντο σφόδρα λέγοντες· τίς ἄρα δύναται σωθῆναι;
On hearing this, the disciples exclaimed in great astonishment, ‘Who then can possibly be saved?’
26 ἐμβλέψας δὲ ὁ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· παρὰ ἀνθρώποις τοῦτο ἀδύνατόν ἐστι, παρὰ δὲ Θεῷ πάντα δυνατά ἐστι.
But Jesus looked at them, and said, ‘With people this is impossible, but with God everything is possible.’ Then Peter turned and said to Jesus,
27 Τότε ἀποκριθεὶς ὁ Πέτρος εἶπεν αὐτῷ· ἰδοὺ ἡμεῖς ἀφήκαμεν πάντα καὶ ἠκολουθήσαμέν σοι· τί ἄρα ἔσται ἡμῖν;
‘But we – we left everything, and followed you; what, then, will we have?’
28 ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν ὅτι ὑμεῖς οἱ ἀκολουθήσαντές μοι, ἐν τῇ παλιγγενεσίᾳ, ὅταν καθίσῃ ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐπὶ θρόνου δόξης αὐτοῦ, καθίσεσθε καὶ ὑμεῖς ἐπὶ δώδεκα θρόνους κρίνοντες τὰς δώδεκα φυλὰς τοῦ Ἰσραήλ.
‘I tell you,’ answered Jesus, ‘that at the new creation, when the Son of Man takes his seat on his throne of glory, you who followed me will be seated on twelve thrones, as judges of the twelve tribes of Israel.
29 καὶ πᾶς ὃς ἀφῆκεν οἰκίας ἢ ἀδελφοὺς ἢ ἀδελφὰς ἢ πατέρα ἢ μητέρα ἢ γυναῖκα ἢ τέκνα ἢ ἀγροὺς ἕνεκεν τοῦ ὀνόματός μου, ἑκατονταπλασίονα λήψεται καὶ ζωὴν αἰώνιον κληρονομήσει. (aiōnios g166)
Everyone who has left houses, or brothers, or sisters, or father, or mother, or children, or land, for my sake, will receive many times as much, and will gain eternal life. (aiōnios g166)
30 Πολλοὶ δὲ ἔσονται πρῶτοι ἔσχατοι καὶ ἔσχατοι πρῶτοι.
But many who are first now will then be last, and those who are last will be first.
