Instruction about Prayer

11 It happened that while ^[a]Jesus was praying in a certain place, when He had finished, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John also taught his disciples.” ² And He said to them, “^(A)When you pray, say:

⁵ And He said to them, “^[f]Suppose one of you has a friend, and goes to him at midnight and says to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, ⁶ because a friend of mine has come to me from a journey and I have nothing to serve him’; ⁷ and from inside he answers and says, ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been shut and my children ^[g]and I are in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.’ ⁸ I tell you, even if he will not get up and give him anything just because he is his friend, yet ^(D)because of his ^[h]shamelessness he will get up and give him as much as he needs.

⁹ “So I say to you, ^[i](E)ask, and it will be given to you; ^[j]seek, and you will find; ^[k]knock, and it will be opened to you. ¹⁰ For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, it will be opened. ¹¹ Now ^[l]which one of you fathers will his son ask for a ^[m]fish, and instead of a fish, he will give him a snake? ¹² Or he will even ask for an egg, and his father will give him a scorpion? ¹³ So ^(F)if you, despite being ^[n]evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will ^[o]your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?”

Pharisees’ Blasphemy

^14 (G)And He was casting out a mute demon; when the demon had gone out, the man who was previously unable to speak talked, and the crowds were amazed. ¹⁵ But some of them said, “He casts out the demons ^(H)by ^(I)Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons.” ¹⁶ Others, ^[p]to test Him, ^(J)were demanding of Him a ^[q]sign from heaven. ^17 (K)But He knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and a house divided against ^[r]itself falls. ¹⁸ And if ^(L)Satan also has been divided against himself, how will his kingdom ^[s]stand? For you claim that I cast out the demons by ^(M)Beelzebul. ¹⁹ Yet if by ^(N)Beelzebul I cast out the demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore, they will be your judges. ²⁰ But if I cast out the demons by ^[t]the ^(O)finger of God, then ^(P)the kingdom of God has come upon you. ²¹ When ^[u]a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are ^[v]secure. ²² But when someone stronger than he attacks him and overpowers him, that man takes away his armor on which he had relied and distributes his plunder. ^23 (Q)The one who is not with Me is against Me; and the one who does not gather with Me scatters.

²⁴ “^(R)When the unclean spirit comes out of ^[w]a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and not finding any, it then says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ ²⁵ And when it comes, it finds it swept and put in order. ²⁶ Then it goes and brings along seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they come in and live there; and the last condition of that person becomes worse than the first.”

²⁷ While ^[x]Jesus was saying these things, one of the women in the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, “^(S)Blessed is the womb that carried You, and the breasts at which You nursed!” ²⁸ But He said, “On the contrary, blessed are ^(T)those who hear the word of God and follow it.”