Zophar Says the Rejoicing of the Wicked Is Short

20 Then Zophar the Naamathite responded,

“Therefore my disquieting thoughts make me [a]respond,
Even because of my [b]inward agitation.
I listened to (A)the reprimand which insults me,
And the spirit of my understanding makes me answer.
Do you know this from (B)ancient times,
From the establishment of mankind on earth,
That the (C)rejoicing of the wicked is short,
And (D)the joy of the godless momentary?
Though his arrogance [c](E)reaches the heavens,
And his head touches the clouds,
He (F)perishes forever like his refuse;
Those who have seen him (G)will say, ‘Where is he?’
He flies away like a (H)dream, and they cannot find him;
Like a vision of the night he is (I)chased away.
The (J)eye which saw him sees him no longer,
And (K)his place no longer beholds him.
10 His (L)sons [d]favor the poor,
And his hands (M)give back his wealth.
11 His (N)bones are full of his youthful strength,
But it lies down with him [e]in the dust.

12 “Though (O)evil tastes sweet in his mouth
And he hides it under his tongue,
13 Though he [f]desires it and will not let it go,
But holds it (P)in his [g]mouth,
14 Yet his food in his stomach is changed
To the [h]venom of cobras within him.
15 He swallows riches,
But will (Q)vomit them up;
God will expel them from his belly.
16 He sucks (R)the poison of cobras;
The viper’s tongue kills him.
17 He does not look at (S)the streams,
The rivers flowing with honey and curds.
18 He (T)returns the product of his labor
And cannot swallow it;
As to the riches of his trading,
He cannot even enjoy them.
19 For he has (U)oppressed and neglected the poor;
He has seized a house which he has not built.

20 “Because he knew no quiet [i]within him,
He does (V)not retain anything he desires.
21 Nothing remains [j]for him to devour,
Therefore (W)his prosperity does not endure.
22 In the fullness of his excess he will be cramped;
The (X)hand of everyone who suffers will come against him.
23 When he (Y)fills his belly,
God will send His fierce anger on him
And (Z)rain it on him [k]while he is eating.
24 He may (AA)flee from the iron weapon,
But the bronze bow will pierce him.
25 It is drawn and comes out of his back,
Even the flashing point from (AB)his gallbladder;
(AC)Terrors come upon him,
26 Complete (AD)darkness is held in reserve for his treasures,
And unfanned (AE)fire will devour him;
It will consume the survivor in his tent.
27 The (AF)heavens will reveal his guilt,
And the earth will rise up against him.
28 The (AG)increase of his house will disappear;
His possessions will flow away (AH)on the day of His anger.
29 This is a wicked person’s (AI)portion from God,
The inheritance decreed to him by God.”

Footnotes

  1. Job 20:2 Lit return
  2. Job 20:2 Lit haste within me
  3. Job 20:6 Lit goes up to
  4. Job 20:10 Or seek the favor of
  5. Job 20:11 Lit on
  6. Job 20:13 Lit spares it
  7. Job 20:13 Lit palate
  8. Job 20:14 Lit gall
  9. Job 20:20 Lit in his belly
  10. Job 20:21 Or of what he devours
  11. Job 20:23 Or as his food

Zophar

20 Then Zophar the Naamathite(A) replied:

“My troubled thoughts prompt me to answer
    because I am greatly disturbed.(B)
I hear a rebuke(C) that dishonors me,
    and my understanding inspires me to reply.

“Surely you know how it has been from of old,(D)
    ever since mankind[a] was placed on the earth,
that the mirth of the wicked(E) is brief,
    the joy of the godless(F) lasts but a moment.(G)
Though the pride(H) of the godless person reaches to the heavens(I)
    and his head touches the clouds,(J)
he will perish forever,(K) like his own dung;
    those who have seen him will say, ‘Where is he?’(L)
Like a dream(M) he flies away,(N) no more to be found,
    banished(O) like a vision of the night.(P)
The eye that saw him will not see him again;
    his place will look on him no more.(Q)
10 His children(R) must make amends to the poor;
    his own hands must give back his wealth.(S)
11 The youthful vigor(T) that fills his bones(U)
    will lie with him in the dust.(V)

12 “Though evil(W) is sweet in his mouth
    and he hides it under his tongue,(X)
13 though he cannot bear to let it go
    and lets it linger in his mouth,(Y)
14 yet his food will turn sour in his stomach;(Z)
    it will become the venom of serpents(AA) within him.
15 He will spit out the riches(AB) he swallowed;
    God will make his stomach vomit(AC) them up.
16 He will suck the poison(AD) of serpents;
    the fangs of an adder will kill him.(AE)
17 He will not enjoy the streams,
    the rivers(AF) flowing with honey(AG) and cream.(AH)
18 What he toiled for he must give back uneaten;(AI)
    he will not enjoy the profit from his trading.(AJ)
19 For he has oppressed the poor(AK) and left them destitute;(AL)
    he has seized houses(AM) he did not build.

20 “Surely he will have no respite from his craving;(AN)
    he cannot save himself by his treasure.(AO)
21 Nothing is left for him to devour;
    his prosperity will not endure.(AP)
22 In the midst of his plenty, distress will overtake him;(AQ)
    the full force of misery will come upon him.(AR)
23 When he has filled his belly,(AS)
    God will vent his burning anger(AT) against him
    and rain down his blows on him.(AU)
24 Though he flees(AV) from an iron weapon,
    a bronze-tipped arrow pierces him.(AW)
25 He pulls it out of his back,
    the gleaming point out of his liver.
Terrors(AX) will come over him;(AY)
26     total darkness(AZ) lies in wait for his treasures.
A fire(BA) unfanned will consume him(BB)
    and devour what is left in his tent.(BC)
27 The heavens will expose his guilt;
    the earth will rise up against him.(BD)
28 A flood will carry off his house,(BE)
    rushing waters[b] on the day of God’s wrath.(BF)
29 Such is the fate God allots the wicked,
    the heritage appointed for them by God.”(BG)

Footnotes

  1. Job 20:4 Or Adam
  2. Job 20:28 Or The possessions in his house will be carried off, / washed away

Jesus Heals on the Sabbath

(A)He (B)entered a synagogue again; and a man was there whose hand was withered. And (C)they were watching Him [a]closely to see if He would heal him on the Sabbath, (D)so that they might accuse Him. He *said to the man with the withered hand, [b]Get up and come forward!” And He *said to them, “Is it lawful to do good on the Sabbath or to do harm, to save a life or to kill?” But they kept silent. After (E)looking around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, He *said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored. The Pharisees went out and immediately began [c]conspiring with the (F)Herodians against Him, as to how they might put Him to death.

(G)Jesus withdrew to the sea with His disciples; and (H)a large multitude from Galilee followed, and also from Judea, and from Jerusalem, and from (I)Idumea, and beyond the Jordan, and the vicinity of (J)Tyre and Sidon, a great number of people heard about everything that He was doing and came to Him. (K)And He told His disciples to see that a boat would be ready for Him because of the [d]masses, so that they would not crowd Him; 10 for He had (L)healed many, with the result that all those who had (M)diseases pushed in around Him in order to (N)touch Him. 11 And whenever the unclean spirits saw Him, they would fall down before Him and shout, “You are (O)the Son of God!” 12 And He (P)strongly warned them not to [e]reveal who He was.

The Twelve Are Chosen

13 And He *went up on (Q)the mountain and *(R)summoned those whom He Himself wanted, and they came to Him. 14 And He appointed twelve, so that they would be with Him and that He could send them out to preach, 15 and to have authority to cast out the demons. 16 And He appointed the twelve: (S)Simon (to whom He gave the name Peter), 17 [f]James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of [g]James (to them He gave the name Boanerges, which means, “Sons of Thunder”); 18 and Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, [h]James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, and Simon the [i]Zealot; 19 and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.

20 And He *came [j](T)home, and the (U)crowd *gathered again, (V)to such an extent that they could not even eat [k]a meal. 21 And when (W)His own [l]people heard about this, they came out to take custody of Him; for they were saying, “(X)He has lost His senses.” 22 The scribes who came down (Y)from Jerusalem were saying, “He [m]is possessed by [n](Z)Beelzebul,” and “(AA)He casts out the demons by the ruler of the demons.” 23 (AB)And so He called them to Himself and began speaking to them in (AC)parables: “How can (AD)Satan cast out Satan? 24 And if a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 If a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. 26 And if (AE)Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but [o]he is finished! 27 (AF)But no one can enter the strong man’s house and plunder his property unless he first ties up the strong man, and then he will plunder his house.

28 (AG)Truly I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons and daughters of men, and whatever blasphemies they commit; 29 but (AH)whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin” 30 because they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”

31 (AI)Then His mother and His brothers *came, and while standing outside they sent word to Him, calling for Him. 32 And a crowd was sitting around Him, and they *said to Him, “Behold, Your mother and Your brothers are outside looking for You.” 33 Answering them, He *said, “Who are My mother and My brothers?” 34 And looking around at those who were sitting around Him, He *said, (AJ)Here are My mother and My brothers! 35 For whoever (AK)does the will of God, this is My brother, and sister, and mother.”

Parable of the Sower and Soils

Again (AL)He began to teach (AM)by the sea. And such a very large crowd gathered to Him that (AN)He got into a boat on the sea and sat down; and the whole crowd was by the sea on the land. And He was teaching them many things in (AO)parables, and was saying to them in His teaching, “Listen to this! Behold, the sower went out to sow; as he was sowing, some seed fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate it up. Other seed fell on the rocky ground where it did not have much soil; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of soil. And when the sun had risen, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away. Other seed fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked it, and it yielded no crop. Other seeds fell into the good soil, and as they grew up and increased, they yielded a crop and produced thirty, sixty, and a hundred times as much.” And He was saying, (AP)He who has ears to hear, [p]let him hear.”

10 As soon as He was alone, [q]His followers, along with the twelve disciples, began asking Him about the parables. 11 And He was saying to them, “To you has been given the mystery of the kingdom of God, but for (AQ)those who are outside, everything comes (AR)in parables, 12 so that (AS)while seeing they may see, and not perceive, and while hearing, they may hear, and not understand, otherwise they might return and it would be forgiven them.”

Explanation of the Parable

13 (AT)And He *said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How will you understand all the parables? 14 The sower sows the word. 15 These are the ones who are beside the road where the word is sown; and when they hear, immediately (AU)Satan comes and takes away the word which has been sown in them. 16 And in a similar way these are the ones sown with seed on the rocky places, who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy; 17 and yet they have no firm root in themselves, but are only temporary; then, when affliction or persecution occurs because of the word, immediately they [r]fall away. 18 And others are the ones sown with seed among the thorns; these are the ones who have heard the word, 19 but the worries of (AV)the [s]world, and the (AW)deceitfulness of wealth, and the desires for other things enter and choke the word, and it [t]becomes unfruitful. 20 And those are the ones sown with seed on the good soil; and they hear the word and accept it and (AX)bear fruit, thirty, sixty, and a hundred times as much.”

21 And He was saying to them, (AY)A lamp is not brought to be put under a [u]basket, or under a bed, is it? Is it not brought to be put on the lampstand? 22 (AZ)For nothing is hidden, except to be revealed; nor has anything been secret, but that it would come to light. 23 (BA)If anyone has ears to hear, [v]let him hear.” 24 And He was saying to them, “Take care what you listen to. [w](BB)By your standard of measure it will be measured to you; and more will be given you besides. 25 (BC)For whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.”

Parable of the Seed

26 And He was saying, “The kingdom of God is like a man who casts seed upon the soil; 27 and he goes to bed at night and gets up daily, and the seed sprouts and grows—how, he himself does not know. 28 The soil produces crops by itself; first the stalk, then the head, then the mature grain in the head. 29 Now when the crop permits, he immediately [x](BD)puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”

Parable of the Mustard Seed

30 (BE)And He was saying, “How shall we [y](BF)picture the kingdom of God, or by what parable shall we present it? 31 It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the soil, though it is the smallest of all the seeds that are upon the soil, 32 yet when it is sown, it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants, and forms large branches, with the result that (BG)the birds of the sky can nest under its shade.”

33 And with many such parables He was speaking the word to them, so far as they were able to [z]understand it; 34 and He did not speak to them (BH)without a parable; but He was (BI)explaining everything privately to His own disciples.

Jesus Stills the Sea

35 (BJ)On that day, when evening came, He *said to them, “Let’s go over to the other side.” 36 After dismissing the crowd, they *took Him along with them (BK)in the boat, just as He was; and other boats were with Him. 37 And a fierce gale of wind *developed, and the waves were breaking over the boat so much that the boat was already filling with water. 38 And yet Jesus Himself was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they *woke Him and *said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” 39 And He got up and (BL)rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Hush, be still.” And the wind died down and [aa]it became perfectly calm. 40 And He said to them, “Why are you [ab]afraid? (BM)Do you still have no faith?” 41 They became very much afraid and said to one another, “Who, then, is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?”

Footnotes

  1. Mark 3:2 Or maliciously
  2. Mark 3:3 Lit Arise into the midst
  3. Mark 3:6 Lit giving counsel
  4. Mark 3:9 Lit crowd
  5. Mark 3:12 Lit make Him known
  6. Mark 3:17 Or Jacob
  7. Mark 3:17 Or Jacob
  8. Mark 3:18 Or Jacob
  9. Mark 3:18 Or Cananaean
  10. Mark 3:20 Lit into a house
  11. Mark 3:20 Lit bread
  12. Mark 3:21 Or family
  13. Mark 3:22 Lit has Beelzebul
  14. Mark 3:22 One early ms Beezebul; some early ancient versions Beelzebub
  15. Mark 3:26 Lit he has an end
  16. Mark 4:9 Or hear! or listen!
  17. Mark 4:10 Lit those about Him
  18. Mark 4:17 I.e., from the faith
  19. Mark 4:19 Or age
  20. Mark 4:19 Or proves to be unfruitful
  21. Mark 4:21 Lit peck-measure
  22. Mark 4:23 Or hear! or listen!
  23. Mark 4:24 Lit By what measure you measure
  24. Mark 4:29 Lit sends forth
  25. Mark 4:30 Lit compare
  26. Mark 4:33 Lit hear
  27. Mark 4:39 Lit a great calm occurred
  28. Mark 4:40 Lit cowardly

Jesus Heals on the Sabbath

Another time Jesus went into the synagogue,(A) and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely(B) to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath.(C) Jesus said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.”

Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent.

He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians(D) how they might kill Jesus.(E)

Crowds Follow Jesus(F)

Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the lake, and a large crowd from Galilee followed.(G) When they heard about all he was doing, many people came to him from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, and the regions across the Jordan and around Tyre and Sidon.(H) Because of the crowd he told his disciples to have a small boat ready for him, to keep the people from crowding him. 10 For he had healed many,(I) so that those with diseases were pushing forward to touch him.(J) 11 Whenever the impure spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.”(K) 12 But he gave them strict orders not to tell others about him.(L)

Jesus Appoints the Twelve(M)

13 Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him.(N) 14 He appointed twelve[a](O) that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach 15 and to have authority to drive out demons.(P) 16 These are the twelve he appointed: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter),(Q) 17 James son of Zebedee and his brother John (to them he gave the name Boanerges, which means “sons of thunder”), 18 Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

Jesus Accused by His Family and by Teachers of the Law(R)(S)

20 Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered,(T) so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat.(U) 21 When his family[b] heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”(V)

22 And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem(W) said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul!(X) By the prince of demons he is driving out demons.”(Y)

23 So Jesus called them over to him and began to speak to them in parables:(Z) “How can Satan(AA) drive out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. 26 And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come. 27 In fact, no one can enter a strong man’s house without first tying him up. Then he can plunder the strong man’s house.(AB) 28 Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter, 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.”(AC)

30 He said this because they were saying, “He has an impure spirit.”

31 Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived.(AD) Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. 32 A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.”

33 “Who are my mother and my brothers?” he asked.

34 Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 35 Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”

The Parable of the Sower(AE)(AF)

Again Jesus began to teach by the lake.(AG) The crowd that gathered around him was so large that he got into a boat and sat in it out on the lake, while all the people were along the shore at the water’s edge. He taught them many things by parables,(AH) and in his teaching said: “Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed.(AI) As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain. Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, some multiplying thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times.”(AJ)

Then Jesus said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”(AK)

10 When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around him asked him about the parables. 11 He told them, “The secret of the kingdom of God(AL) has been given to you. But to those on the outside(AM) everything is said in parables 12 so that,

“‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving,
    and ever hearing but never understanding;
otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’[c](AN)

13 Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable? 14 The farmer sows the word.(AO) 15 Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan(AP) comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. 16 Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. 17 But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. 18 Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; 19 but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth(AQ) and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. 20 Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown.”

A Lamp on a Stand

21 He said to them, “Do you bring in a lamp to put it under a bowl or a bed? Instead, don’t you put it on its stand?(AR) 22 For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to be brought out into the open.(AS) 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let them hear.”(AT)

24 “Consider carefully what you hear,” he continued. “With the measure you use, it will be measured to you—and even more.(AU) 25 Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them.”(AV)

The Parable of the Growing Seed

26 He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like.(AW) A man scatters seed on the ground. 27 Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. 28 All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. 29 As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.”(AX)

The Parable of the Mustard Seed(AY)

30 Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like,(AZ) or what parable shall we use to describe it? 31 It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. 32 Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.”

33 With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand.(BA) 34 He did not say anything to them without using a parable.(BB) But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.

Jesus Calms the Storm(BC)

35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat.(BD) There were also other boats with him. 37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”

39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”(BE)

41 They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”

Footnotes

  1. Mark 3:14 Some manuscripts twelve—designating them apostles—
  2. Mark 3:21 Or his associates
  3. Mark 4:12 Isaiah 6:9,10