Matthew 16:24

16:24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone wants to become my follower, 1  he must deny 2  himself, take up his cross, 3  and follow me.

Matthew 18:21

18:21 Then Peter came to him and said, “Lord, how many times must I forgive my brother 4  who sins against me? As many as seven times?”

Matthew 22:24

22:24 “Teacher, Moses said, ‘If a man dies without having children, his brother must marry the widow and father children 5  for his brother.’ 6 

Matthew 24:6

24:6 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars. Make sure that you are not alarmed, for this must happen, but the end is still to come. 7 

Matthew 24:44

24:44 Therefore you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him. 8 

Matthew 26:35

26:35 Peter said to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will never deny you.” And all the disciples said the same thing.

Matthew 26:42

26:42 He went away a second time and prayed, 9  “My Father, if this cup 10  cannot be taken away unless I drink it, your will must be done.”

1 tn Grk “to come after me.”

2 tn This translation better expresses the force of the Greek third person imperative than the traditional “let him deny,” which could be understood as merely permissive.

3 sn To bear the cross means to accept the rejection of the world for turning to Jesus and following him. Discipleship involves a death that is like a crucifixion; see Gal 6:14.

4 tn Here the term “brother” means “fellow believer” or “fellow Christian” (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 2.a), whether male or female. Concerning the familial connotations, see also the note on the first occurrence of this term in v. 15.

5 tn Grk “and raise up seed,” an idiom for fathering children (L&N 23.59).

6 sn A quotation from Deut 25:5. This practice is called levirate marriage (see also Ruth 4:1-12; Mishnah, m. Yevamot; Josephus, Ant. 4.8.23 [4.254-256]). The levirate law is described in Deut 25:5-10. The brother of a man who died without a son had an obligation to marry his brother’s widow. This served several purposes: It provided for the widow in a society where a widow with no children to care for her would be reduced to begging, and it preserved the name of the deceased, who would be regarded as the legal father of the first son produced from that marriage.

7 tn Grk “it is not yet the end.”

8 sn Jesus made clear that his coming could not be timed, and suggested it would take some time – so long, in fact, that some will not be looking for him any longer (at an hour when you do not expect him).

9 tn Grk “saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant here in contemporary English and has not been translated.

10 tn Grk “this”; the referent (the cup) has been specified in the translation for clarity.