Matthew 25:31-46 Lesson 53

Matthew 25:31-46
Lesson 53

Read both the "King James Bible" and the "New Living Translation."

In this lesson:

The Olivet Discourse (conclusion).
Jesus on the final judgment.

This entire passage is Jesus speaking to us.

Study Tip:

To understand a verse, put it in your own words. The extra time and thought will help you get more meaning from each passage.

The Gospel According to St. Matthew

The King James Bible

Matthew 25:31-46
Jesus describes the future

31 When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:

32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:

33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.

34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:

35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:

36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.

37 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?

38 When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?

39 Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?

40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:

42 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:

43 I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.

44 Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?

45 Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.

46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

Margin notes:

"The Son of man shall come in his glory." (25:31) - Daniel prophesized the Second Coming of Christ in Daniel 7:13-14 a full six hundred years before the first coming. Jesus repeatedly promised to return (Matthew 16:27; 24:27; 24:29-30; 24:37; Mark 8:38; Luke 17:28-30; 21:27; John 14:2-3.

"Then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory." (25:31) - Jesus will "sit upon the throne" when He returns. Christians look forward to the Second Coming as the day when Satan is finally defeated, and sin and death are conquered forever.

"Before him shall be gathered all nations." (25:32) - "Before Him will be gathered all the people of the world."

"He shall separate them one from another." (25:32) - Jesus is reinforcing His teaching from verses 13:47-50.

"He shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left." (25:33) - "Jesus will set believers on His right hand and unbelievers on the left."

"For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat." (25:35) - "For I was hungry and you gave me food."

"When saw we thee an hungred." (25:37) - "When did we see you hungry?"

"Insomuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." (25:40) - "Anything you've done for one of the least of my brothers and sisters, you've done for me." Some people believe that Jesus is referring to all people as His "brethren." Others feel that Jesus is just talking about Christians as His brethren (Mark 9:41) while still others believe He is referring only to His fellow Jews. What do you think?

"Did not minister unto thee." (25:44) - "Did not help you."

"Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me." (25:45) - See also Proverbs 14:31; 17:5.

"Everlasting punishment." (25:46) - Means, eternal, never-ending, perpetual, continuous, permanent punishment.

"The righteous into life eternal." (25:46) - The righteous will never perish but will enjoy everlasting life in paradise (John 3:15; 36) as prophesied in Daniel 12:2 2500 years ago.

New Living Translation

Matthew 25:31-46
The Final Judgment

31 "But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne.

32 All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.

33 He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left.

34 "Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world.

35 For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home.

36 I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.'

37 "Then these righteous ones will reply, 'Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink?

38 Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing?

39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?'

40 "And the King will say, 'I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!'

41 "Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, 'Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons.

42 For I was hungry, and you didn't feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn't give me a drink.

43 I was a stranger, and you didn't invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn't give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn't visit me.'

44 "Then they will reply, 'Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?'

45 "And he will answer, 'I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.'

46 "And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life."

This second Bible text from the "New Living Translation" (Tyndale House, Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois) is a paraphrase and not an accurate word for word translation of the Bible. However, it is a helpful tool when read with the "King James Version."

Today's Question:

1. Do our good deeds earn salvation? (25:35-36)

Make God a part of your life by studying His word every day. Your Bible has more to teach than these lessons can cover.

Answer: (Do you agree?)

1. No, according to the New Testament, performing good deeds doesn't earn salvation. Salvation comes from God's grace, not our good deeds (Titus 3:3-5). Except for believing in Jesus Christ, there is nothing we can do to save ourselves (Ephesians 2:8-10). Salvation is a gift that we receive and cannot earn. Once we accept this gift, our love for God will naturally lead us to love and help others (James 1:27; 1 John 3:16-18). Our good deeds are the evidence of salvation, the byproduct, and not the cause. It is only by God's mercy that we are saved.

We recommend reading James 2:14-26 for further insights.

Application thought for the day:

Spend the day thinking about how God's punishment and His reward are everlasting (25:46).

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Thanks to the writings and commentary of John Wesley and Adam Clarke. Also, "The Layman's Bible Study Notebook" by Irving Jensen published by Harvest House Publishing, Irvine, California; the "Life Change Series" published by NavPress Books, Colorado Springs, Colorado; the "Life Application Study Bible" published by Tyndale House Publishing, Carol Stream, Illinois; "The Quest Study Bible" published by The Zondervan Corporation, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "Robertson's New Testament Word Studies"; "The MacArthur Bible Commentary" by John MacArthur published by Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee; "Wisdom of the Bible" CD by Topics Entertainment, Inc., Renton, Washington for their inspiring pictures; "My utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers published by Barbour publishing, Inc., Uhrichsville, Ohio; The "Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge" by Reuben Archer Torrey; "Hope For Each Day" by Billy Graham published by J. Countryman, a division of Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee; "Easton's Bible Dictionary" by Matthew George Easton; "Unger's Bible Dictionary" by Merrill F. Unger, published by Moody Press, Chicago, Illinois; "Halley's Bible Handbook" by Henry H. Halley, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "The Living New Testament" published by Tyndale house; "The New Living Translation" published by Tyndale House; BibleGateway.com for all their wonderful links; and of course the "King James Bible." All were critical in putting these lessons together.
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