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In this lesson:
The Olivet Discourse (conclusion). Jesus on the final judgment. Reward or punishment. Does showing kindness in this life benefit us in the next? 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. |
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The Gospel According to St. Matthew
The King James Bible
The King James Bible
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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:
"When the Son of man shall come in his glory." (25:31) - "When Jesus Christ comes again in glory." This will be The Second Coming of the Messiah. The prophet Daniel foretold Jesus' Second Coming in Daniel 7:13-14, over six hundred years before His first coming. How could Daniel have known this unless he was inspired by God? Additional note: Jesus repeatedly promised He would 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 reign from His throne when He returns. Christians eagerly anticipate the Second Coming, as it will mark the day when Satan is 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) - "He will separate the people into two groups." This passage reinforces Jesus' teaching from verses 13:47-50. This separation of people will occur during the final judgment of those still living at the time of Jesus' return (35:31). "He shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left." (25:33) - "Jesus will put the sheep (representing Gentile believers) on His right hand and goats (Gentile unbelievers) on the left." To learn the fate of believers, see verse 25:34. For the sad fate of unbelievers, see verses 25:41 and 25:46. "For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat." (25:35) - "For I was hungry, and you gave me food." "Righteous." (25:37) - "Believers." "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) - "Whatever you've done for the least of my brothers and sisters, you've done for me." Some believe that Jesus refers to all people as His "brethren." Others feel that He is specifically referring to Christians as His brethren (Mark 9:41). Still others believe He is referring just 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 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."
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."
Key verses from this passage
"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." (25:31)
"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." (25:40)
"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." (25:40)
Today's Question:
1. Can performing good deeds earn our salvation? (25:35-36)
Make God a part of your life by studying the Bible every day. Your Bible has more to teach than these lessons can cover.
1. Can performing good deeds earn our salvation? (25:35-36)
Make God a part of your life by studying the Bible every day. Your Bible has more to teach than these lessons can cover.
Answer: (Do you agree?)
1. No, the New Testament makes it clear that 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 from God and cannot earn through our actions. 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 evidence of salvation, the byproduct of our faith, 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 how God's punishment and 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; "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; "Atlas of the Bible" edited by Joseph L. Gardner, published by Readers Digest, Pleasantville, New York; "Halley's Bible Handbook" by Henry H. Halley, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "The Everyday Bible," published by World Wide Publications, Minneapolis, Minnesota; "The New Testament" Recovery Version, published by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, California; "The Living New Testament," published by Tyndale house, Wheaten, Illinois; "The New Living Translation," published by Tyndale House, Wheaten, Illinois; "The New Testament" translated from the Latin Vulgate, published by Guild Press, New York, New York; 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; "The New Scofield Reference Bible," published by Oxford University Press, New York, New York; BibleGateway.com for all their wonderful links; and of course, the "King James Bible." All were critical in putting these lessons together.
© 2025 evolke
© 2025 evolke