Mark 11

And when they came nigh to Jerusalem, unto Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount of Olives, he sendeth forth two of his disciples,

1They came near Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, by the Mount of Olives. There Jesus sent two of his followers ahead.

2And saith unto them, Go your way into the village over against you: and as soon as ye be entered into it, ye shall find a colt tied, whereon never man sat; loose him, and bring him.

2He said to them, "Go into the village ahead of you. As soon as you go in, you will find a young donkey tied up. No one has ever ridden it. Untie it and bring it here."

3And if any man say unto you, Why do ye this? say ye that the Lord hath need of him; and straightway he will send him hither.

3"If anyone asks why you are doing this, say, 'The Lord needs it. He will send it back soon.'"

4And they went their way, and found the colt tied by the door without in a place where two ways met; and they loose him.

4They went and found the young donkey outside on the street, tied by a door. They untied it.

5And certain of them that stood there said unto them, What do ye, loosing the colt?

5Some people standing there asked them, "Why are you untying that donkey?"

6And they said unto them even as Jesus had commanded: and they let them go.

6They answered just as Jesus had told them. So the people let them take it.

7And they brought the colt to Jesus, and cast their garments on him; and he sat upon him.

7They brought the donkey to Jesus. They laid their coats on its back, and Jesus sat on it.

8And many spread their garments in the way: and others cut down branches off the trees, and strawed them in the way.

8Many people spread their coats on the road. Others spread branches they had cut from the fields.

9And they that went before, and they that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna; Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord:

9Some people walked in front of him and some walked behind. They shouted, "Hosanna! God bless the one who comes in the Lord's name!"

Note"Hosanna" is an old Hebrew word. It means "please save us." People shouted it to welcome and praise someone.

10Blessed be the kingdom of our father David, that cometh in the name of the Lord: Hosanna in the highest.

10"God bless the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna to God in heaven!"

11And Jesus entered into Jerusalem, and into the temple: and when he had looked round about upon all things, and now the eventide was come, he went out unto Bethany with the twelve.

11Jesus went into Jerusalem and into the temple, God's house. He looked all around at everything. It was late, so he went out to Bethany with his twelve close followers.

12And on the morrow, when they were come from Bethany, he was hungry:

12The next day they left Bethany. Jesus was hungry.

13And seeing a fig tree afar off having leaves, he came, if haply he might find any thing thereon: and when he came to it, he found nothing but leaves; for the time of figs was not yet.

13From far off he saw a fig tree with leaves. He went to see if it had any fruit. When he got there, he found only leaves. It was not the right time of year for figs.

14And Jesus answered and said unto it, No man eat fruit of thee hereafter for ever. And his disciples heard it.

14Jesus said to the tree, "May no one ever eat fruit from you again." His followers heard him say it.

15And they come to Jerusalem: and Jesus went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves;

15They came to Jerusalem. Jesus went into the temple and began to send out the people buying and selling there. He turned over the tables of the men who traded money. He turned over the seats of the men selling doves.

NoteThe men who traded money swapped travelers' coins for the coins people needed to use at the temple. Doves were small birds people brought to give to God.

16And would not suffer that any man should carry any vessel through the temple.

16He would not let anyone carry goods for selling through the temple.

17And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.

17He taught them and said, "God's book says, 'My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.' But you have made it a hideout for robbers."

18And the scribes and chief priests heard it, and sought how they might destroy him: for they feared him, because all the people was astonished at his doctrine.

18The scribes and the chief priests heard this. Scribes were teachers who knew God's law well. They started looking for a way to kill Jesus. They were afraid of him, because the whole crowd was amazed at his teaching.

19And when even was come, he went out of the city.

19When evening came, Jesus and his followers went out of the city.

20And in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots.

20In the morning they walked past the fig tree. They saw that it had dried up, all the way down to its roots.

21And Peter calling to remembrance saith unto him, Master, behold, the fig tree which thou cursedst is withered away.

21Peter remembered and said, "Teacher, look! The fig tree you cursed has dried up."

22And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God.

22Jesus answered them, "Have faith in God."

23For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.

23"I tell you the truth. Someone might say to this mountain, 'Lift up and throw yourself into the sea.' If he does not doubt inside, but believes it will happen, then it will happen for him."

24Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.

24"So I tell you this. When you pray and ask for something, believe that you have it. Then it will be yours."

25And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.

25"When you stand and pray, forgive anyone you are holding something against. Then your Father in heaven will forgive the wrong things you have done."

26But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.

26"But if you do not forgive, then your Father in heaven will not forgive the wrong things you have done."

ManuscriptsMost modern translations leave this verse out. It is in the Greek text the King James translators worked from, but not in the older manuscripts found since, so scholars generally take it as a copyist’s addition rather than part of the original.

27And they come again to Jerusalem: and as he was walking in the temple, there come to him the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders,

27They came back to Jerusalem. Jesus was walking in the temple. The chief priests, the scribes, and the elders came to him. Elders were older leaders of the people.

28And say unto him, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority to do these things?

28They asked him, "Who says you may do these things? Who gave you the right?"

29And Jesus answered and said unto them, I will also ask of you one question, and answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things.

29Jesus said, "I will ask you one question too. Answer me, and I will tell you who gave me the right."

30The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or of men? answer me.

30"When John baptized people, did that come from God or from men? Answer me."

31And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say, Why then did ye not believe him?

31They talked it over with each other. "If we say it came from God, he will ask why we did not believe John."

32But if we shall say, Of men; they feared the people: for all men counted John, that he was a prophet indeed.

32"But if we say it came from men—" They were afraid of the people. Everyone believed John really was a prophet, someone who spoke God's words.

33And they answered and said unto Jesus, We cannot tell. And Jesus answering saith unto them, Neither do I tell you by what authority I do these things.

33So they told Jesus, "We do not know." Jesus said, "Then I will not tell you who gave me the right to do these things."