The Purifier

3 “^(A)Behold, I am sending ^(B)My ^[a]messenger, and he will ^(C)clear a way before Me. And the Lord, whom you are seeking, will suddenly come to His temple; ^[b]and the ^[c](D)messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,” says the Lord of armies. ² “But who can ^(E)endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a ^(F)refiner’s fire, and like launderer’s soap. ³ And He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver, and He will ^(G)purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may ^(H)present to the Lord ^[d]offerings in righteousness. ⁴ Then the ^[e]offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be ^(I)pleasing to the Lord as in the ^(J)days of old, and as in former years.

⁵ “Then I will come near to you for judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the ^(K)sorcerers, the ^(L)adulterers, against those who ^(M)swear falsely, those who ^[f]oppress the ^(N)wage earner in his wages or the ^(O)widow or the ^[g]orphan, and those who turn away the ^(P)stranger from justice and do not ^[h]fear Me,” says the Lord of armies. ⁶ “For ^[i]I, the Lord, ^(Q)do not change; therefore you, the sons of Jacob, have not come to an end.

⁷ “From the ^(R)days of your fathers you have turned away from My statutes and have not kept them. ^(S)Return to Me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of armies. “But you say, ‘How shall we return?’

You Have Robbed God

⁸ “Would anyone rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you say, ‘How have we robbed You?’ In ^(T)tithes and ^[j]offerings. ⁹ You are ^(U)cursed with a curse, for you are robbing Me, the entire nation of you! ^10 (V)Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and put Me to the test now in this,” says the Lord of armies, “if I do not ^(W)open for you the windows of heaven and ^(X)pour out for you a blessing until ^[k](Y)it overflows. ¹¹ Then I will rebuke the ^(Z)devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruit of your ground; nor will the vine in the field prove fruitless to you,” says the Lord of armies. ¹² “^(AA)All the nations will call you blessed, for you will be a ^(AB)delightful land,” says the Lord of armies.

¹³ “Your words have been ^[l]arrogant against Me,” says the Lord. “Yet you say, ‘What have we spoken against You?’ ¹⁴ You have said, ‘It is ^(AC)pointless to serve God; and what ^(AD)benefit is it for us that we have done what He required, and that we have walked in mourning before the Lord of armies? ¹⁵ So now we ^(AE)call the arrogant blessed; not only are the doers of wickedness built up, but they also put God to the test and ^(AF)escape punishment.’”

The Book of Remembrance

¹⁶ Then those who ^[m]feared the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord ^(AG)listened attentively and heard it, and a ^(AH)book of remembrance was written before Him for those who ^[n]fear the Lord and esteem His name. ¹⁷ “And they will be ^(AI)Mine,” says the Lord of armies, “on the ^(AJ)day that I ^[o]prepare My ^(AK)own possession, and I will have compassion for them just as a man ^(AL)has compassion for his own son who serves him.” ¹⁸ So you will again ^(AM)distinguish between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve Him.

Final Admonition

4 “^[p]For behold, the day is coming, ^(AN)burning like a furnace; and all the arrogant and every evildoer will be ^(AO)chaff; and the day that is coming will ^(AP)set them ablaze,” says the Lord of armies, “so that it will leave them neither root nor branches. ² But for you who ^[q]fear My name, the ^(AQ)sun of righteousness will rise with ^(AR)healing in its wings; and you will go forth and ^(AS)frolic like calves from the stall. ³ And you will ^(AT)crush the wicked underfoot, for they will be ^(AU)ashes under the soles of your feet ^(AV)on the day ^[r]that I am preparing,” says the Lord of armies.

⁴ “^(AW)Remember the Law of Moses My servant, the statutes and ordinances which I commanded him in Horeb for all Israel.

⁵ “Behold, I am going to send you ^(AX)Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord. ⁶ He will ^(AY)turn the hearts of the fathers back to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and ^(AZ)strike the land with complete destruction.”

The Genealogy of Jesus the Messiah

1 The ^[a]record of the genealogy of ^[b]Jesus the ^[c]Messiah, ^(A)the son of David, ^(B)the son of Abraham:

² Abraham fathered Isaac, Isaac fathered Jacob, and Jacob fathered ^[d]Judah and his brothers. ³ Judah fathered Perez and Zerah by Tamar, ^(C)Perez fathered Hezron, and Hezron fathered ^[e]Ram. ⁴ Ram fathered Amminadab, Amminadab fathered Nahshon, and Nahshon fathered Salmon. ⁵ Salmon fathered Boaz by Rahab, Boaz fathered Obed by Ruth, and Obed fathered Jesse. ⁶ Jesse fathered David the king.

David ^(D)fathered Solomon by ^[f]her who had been the wife of Uriah. ⁷ Solomon ^(E)fathered Rehoboam, Rehoboam fathered Abijah, and Abijah fathered ^[g]Asa. ⁸ Asa fathered Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat fathered ^[h]Joram, and Joram fathered Uzziah. ⁹ Uzziah fathered ^[i]Jotham, Jotham fathered Ahaz, and Ahaz fathered Hezekiah. ¹⁰ Hezekiah fathered Manasseh, Manasseh fathered ^[j]Amon, and Amon ^(F)fathered Josiah. ¹¹ Josiah fathered ^[k]Jeconiah and his brothers, at the time of the ^(G)deportation to Babylon.

¹² After the ^(H)deportation to Babylon: Jeconiah fathered ^[l]Shealtiel, and Shealtiel fathered Zerubbabel. ¹³ Zerubbabel fathered ^[m]Abihud, Abihud fathered Eliakim, and Eliakim fathered Azor. ¹⁴ Azor fathered Zadok, Zadok fathered Achim, and Achim fathered Eliud. ¹⁵ Eliud fathered Eleazar, Eleazar fathered Matthan, and Matthan fathered Jacob. ¹⁶ Jacob fathered Joseph the husband of Mary, by whom Jesus was born, ^(I)who is called the ^[n]Messiah.

¹⁷ So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; from David to the ^(J)deportation to Babylon, fourteen generations; and from the ^(K)deportation to Babylon to the ^[o]Messiah, fourteen generations.

Conception and Birth of Jesus

¹⁸ Now the birth of Jesus the ^[p]Messiah was as follows: when His ^(L)mother Mary had been ^[q]betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was ^(M)found to be pregnant by the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ And her husband Joseph, since he was a righteous man and did not want to disgrace her, planned to ^[r](N)send her away secretly. ²⁰ But when he had thought this over, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “^(O)Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for ^[s]the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will give birth to a Son; and ^(P)you shall name Him Jesus, for ^[t]He ^(Q)will save His people from their sins.” ²² Now all this ^[u]took place so that what was ^(R)spoken by the Lord through ^[v]the prophet would be fulfilled: ²³ “^(S)Behold, the virgin will ^[w](T)conceive and give birth to a Son, and they shall name Him ^[x]Immanuel,” which translated means, “^(U)God with us.” ²⁴ And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, ^25 [y]but kept her a virgin until she ^(V)gave birth to a Son; and ^(W)he named Him Jesus.

The Visit of the Magi

2 Now after Jesus was ^(X)born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of ^(Y)Herod the king, behold, ^[z]magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, ² “Where is He who has been born ^(Z)King of the Jews? For we saw ^(AA)His star in the east and have come to worship Him.” ³ When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. ⁴ And gathering together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the ^[aa]Messiah was to be born. ⁵ They said to him, “^(AB)In Bethlehem of Judea; for this is what has been written ^[ab]by ^[ac]the prophet:

⁷ Then Herod secretly called for the magi and determined from them the exact ^[ad]time ^(AE)the star appeared. ⁸ And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the Child; and when you have found Him, report to me, so that I too may come and worship Him.” ⁹ After hearing the king, they went on their way; and behold, the star, which they had seen in the east, went on ahead of them until it came to a stop over the place where the Child was to be found. ¹⁰ When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. ¹¹ And after they came into the house, they saw the Child with ^(AF)His mother Mary; and they fell down and ^[ae](AG)worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. ¹² And after being ^(AH)warned by God ^(AI)in a dream not to return to Herod, the magi left for their own country by another way.

The Escape to Egypt

¹³ Now when they had gone, behold, an ^(AJ)angel of the Lord *^(AK)appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up! Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you; for Herod is going to search for the Child to kill Him.”

¹⁴ So ^[af]Joseph got up and took the Child and His mother while it was still night, and left for Egypt. ¹⁵ He ^[ag]stayed there until the death of Herod; this happened so that what had been spoken by the Lord through ^[ah]the prophet would be fulfilled: “^(AL)Out of Egypt I called ^(AM)My Son.”

Herod Slaughters Babies

¹⁶ Then when Herod saw that he had been tricked by ^(AN)the magi, he became very enraged, and sent men and ^(AO)killed all the boys who were in Bethlehem and all its vicinity ^[ai]who were two years old or under, according to the time which he had determined from the magi. ¹⁷ Then what had been spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled:

¹⁹ But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord *^(AQ)appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, and said, ²⁰ “Get up, take the Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel; for those who sought the Child’s life are dead.” ²¹ So ^[aj]Joseph got up, took the Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel. ²² But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Then after being ^(AR)warned by God in a dream, he left for the regions of Galilee, ²³ and came and settled in a city called ^(AS)Nazareth. This happened so that what was spoken through the prophets would be fulfilled: “He will be called a ^(AT)Nazarene.”

The Preaching of John the Baptist

3 Now ^(AU)in those days ^(AV)John the Baptist *^[ak]came, ^[al]preaching in the ^(AW)wilderness of Judea, saying, ² “^(AX)Repent, for ^(AY)the kingdom of heaven ^[am]is at hand.” ³ For this is the ^(AZ)one referred to ^[an]by Isaiah the prophet when he said,

⁴ Now John himself had ^[aq](BC)a garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist; and his food was ^(BD)locusts and wild honey. ⁵ At that time Jerusalem ^(BE)was going out to him, and all Judea and all ^(BF)the region around the Jordan; ⁶ and they were being ^(BG)baptized by him in the Jordan River, as they confessed their sins.

⁷ But when he saw many of the ^(BH)Pharisees and ^(BI)Sadducees coming for ^[ar]baptism, he said to them, “You ^[as](BJ)offspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from ^(BK)the wrath to come? ^8 (BL)Therefore produce fruit ^(BM)consistent with repentance; ⁹ and do not assume that you can say to yourselves, ‘^(BN)We have Abraham as our father’; for I tell you that God is able, from these stones, to raise up children for Abraham. ¹⁰ And the ^(BO)axe is already laid at the root of the trees; therefore, ^(BP)every tree that does not bear good fruit is being cut down and thrown into the fire.

¹¹ “As for me, ^(BQ)I baptize you ^[at]with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; ^(BR)He will baptize you ^[au]with the Holy Spirit and fire. ¹² His ^(BS)winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clear His threshing floor; and He will ^(BT)gather His wheat into the barn, but He will burn up the ^(BU)chaff with ^(BV)unquenchable fire.”

The Baptism of Jesus

^13 (BW)Then Jesus *arrived ^(BX)from Galilee at the Jordan, coming to John to be baptized by him. ¹⁴ But John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I have the need to be baptized by You, and yet You are coming to me?” ¹⁵ But Jesus, answering, said to him, “Allow it at this time; for in this way it is fitting for us ^(BY)to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he *allowed Him. ¹⁶ After He was baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and ^[av](BZ)he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and ^[aw]settling on Him, ¹⁷ and behold, a voice from the heavens said, “^(CA)This is ^[ax]My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

The Temptation of Jesus

4 ^(CB)Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness ^(CC)to be tempted by the devil. ² And after He had ^(CD)fasted for forty days and forty nights, He ^[ay]then became hungry. ³ And ^(CE)the tempter came and said to Him, “If You are the ^(CF)Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” ⁴ But He answered and said, “It is written: ‘^(CG)Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes out of the mouth of God.’”

⁵ Then the devil *took Him along into ^(CH)the holy city and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, ⁶ and he *said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written:

and

⁷ Jesus said to him, “^[az]On the other hand, it is written: ‘^(CJ)You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

^8 (CK)Again, the devil *took Him along to a very high mountain and *showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory; ⁹ and he said to Him, “^(CL)All these things I will give You, if You fall down and ^[ba]worship me.” ¹⁰ Then Jesus *said to him, “Go away, Satan! For it is written: ‘^(CM)You shall worship the Lord your God, and ^[bb]serve Him only.’” ¹¹ Then the devil *left Him; and behold, ^(CN)angels came and began to serve Him.

Jesus Begins His Ministry

¹² Now when Jesus heard that ^(CO)John had been taken into custody, ^(CP)He withdrew into Galilee; ¹³ and leaving Nazareth, He came and ^(CQ)settled in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali. ¹⁴ This happened so that what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet would be fulfilled:

^17 (CT)From that time Jesus began to ^[be]preach and say, “^(CU)Repent, for the kingdom of heaven ^[bf]is at hand.”

The First Disciples

^18 (CV)Now as Jesus was walking by ^(CW)the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, ^(CX)Simon, who was called Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. ¹⁹ And He *said to them, “^[bg]Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of people.” ²⁰ Immediately they left their nets and followed Him. ²¹ Going on from there He saw two other brothers, ^[bh](CY)James the son of Zebedee, and his brother ^[bi]John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets; and He called them. ²² Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.

Ministry in Galilee

²³ Jesus was going ^(CZ)about in all of Galilee, ^(DA)teaching in their synagogues and ^(DB)proclaiming the ^[bj]gospel of the kingdom, and ^(DC)healing every disease and every sickness among the people.

²⁴ And the news about Him spread ^(DD)throughout Syria; and they brought to Him all who were ill, those suffering with various diseases and severe pain, ^(DE)demon-possessed, people with ^(DF)epilepsy, and people who were ^(DG)paralyzed; and He healed them. ²⁵ Large crowds ^(DH)followed Him from Galilee and ^(DI)the Decapolis, and Jerusalem, and Judea, and from ^(DJ)beyond the Jordan.

The Sermon on the Mount; The Beatitudes

5 ^(DK)Now when Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on ^(DL)the ^[bk]mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. ² And ^(DM)He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying,

³ “^[bl](DN)Blessed are the poor in spirit, for ^(DO)theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

⁴ “Blessed are ^(DP)those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

⁵ “Blessed are ^(DQ)the ^[bm]gentle, for they will inherit the earth.

⁶ “Blessed are ^(DR)those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.

⁷ “Blessed are ^(DS)the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

⁸ “Blessed are ^(DT)the pure in heart, for ^(DU)they will see God.

⁹ “Blessed are the peacemakers, for ^(DV)they will be called sons of God.

¹⁰ “Blessed are those who have been ^(DW)persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for ^(DX)theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

¹¹ “Blessed are you when people ^(DY)insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for ^(DZ)in this same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Disciples and the World

¹³ “You are the salt of the earth; but ^(EA)if the salt has become tasteless, how ^[bn]can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by people.

¹⁴ “You are ^(EB)the light of the world. A city set on a ^[bo]hill cannot be hidden; ^15 (EC)nor do people light a lamp and put it under a ^[bp]basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. ¹⁶ Your light must shine before people in such a way that they may ^(ED)see your good works, and ^(EE)glorify your Father who is in heaven.

¹⁷ “Do not presume that I came to abolish the ^(EF)Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. ¹⁸ For truly I say to you, ^(EG)until heaven and earth pass away, not ^[bq]the smallest letter or stroke of a letter shall pass from the Law, until all is accomplished! ¹⁹ Therefore, whoever nullifies one of the least of these commandments, and teaches ^[br]others to do the same, shall be called least ^(EH)in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever ^[bs]keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

²⁰ “For I say to you that unless your ^(EI)righteousness far surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.

Personal Relationships

²¹ “^(EJ)You have heard that ^[bt]the ancients were told, ‘^(EK)You shall not murder,’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be answerable to ^(EL)the court.’ ²² But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be answerable to ^(EM)the court; and whoever says to his brother, ‘^[bu]You good-for-nothing,’ shall be answerable to ^[bv](EN)the supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be guilty enough to go into the ^[bw](EO)fiery hell. ²³ Therefore, if you are ^(EP)presenting your ^[bx]offering at the altar, and there you remember that your brother has something against you, ²⁴ leave your ^[by]offering there before the altar and go; first be ^(EQ)reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your ^[bz]offering. ^25 (ER)[ca]Come to good terms with your accuser quickly, while you are with him on the way to court, so that your accuser will not hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the officer, and you will not be thrown into prison. ²⁶ Truly I say to you, ^(ES)you will not come out of there until you have paid up the last ^[cb]quadrans.

²⁷ “^(ET)You have heard that it was said, ‘^(EU)You shall not commit adultery’; ²⁸ but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman ^(EV)with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. ²⁹ Now ^(EW)if your right eye is causing you to sin, tear it out and throw it away from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, ^[cc]than for your whole body to be thrown into ^[cd](EX)hell. ³⁰ And ^(EY)if your right hand is causing you to sin, cut it off and throw it away from you; for it is better for you ^[ce]to lose one of the parts of your body, ^[cf]than for your whole body to go into ^[cg](EZ)hell.

³¹ “Now it was said, ‘^(FA)Whoever sends his wife away is to give her a certificate of divorce’; ^32 (FB)but I say to you that everyone who ^[ch]divorces his wife, except for the reason of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery; and whoever marries a ^[ci]divorced woman commits adultery.

³³ “Again, ^(FC)you have heard that ^[cj]the ancients were told, ‘^[ck](FD)You shall not ^[cl]make false vows, but shall fulfill your ^[cm]vows to the Lord.’ ³⁴ But I say to you, ^(FE)take no oath at all, neither by heaven, for it is ^(FF)the throne of God, ³⁵ nor by the earth, for it is the ^(FG)footstool of His feet, nor ^[cn]by Jerusalem, for it is ^(FH)the city of the great King. ³⁶ Nor shall you take an oath by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black. ³⁷ But make sure your statement is, ‘^[co]Yes, yes’ or ‘No, no’; anything beyond these is ^[cp]of ^(FI)evil origin.

³⁸ “^(FJ)You have heard that it was said, ‘^(FK)Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ ³⁹ But I say to you, do not show opposition against an evil person; but ^(FL)whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other toward him also. ⁴⁰ And if anyone wants to sue you and take your ^[cq]tunic, let him have your ^[cr]cloak also. ⁴¹ Whoever ^[cs]forces you to go one mile, go with him two. ^42 (FM)Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you.

⁴³ “^(FN)You have heard that it was said, ‘^(FO)You shall love your neighbor ^(FP)and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴ But I say to you, ^(FQ)love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵ so that you may prove yourselves to be ^(FR)sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. ⁴⁶ For ^(FS)if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Even the tax collectors, do they not do the same? ⁴⁷ And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Even the Gentiles, do they not do the same? ⁴⁸ Therefore ^(FT)you shall be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Charitable Giving to the Poor and Prayer

6 “Take care not to practice your righteousness in the sight of people, ^(FU)to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.

² “So when you ^[ct]give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, so that they ^(FV)will be praised by people. ^(FW)Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. ³ But when you ^[cu]give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, ⁴ so that your charitable giving will be in secret; and ^(FX)your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

⁵ “And when you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to ^(FY)stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners ^(FZ)so that they ^[cv]will be seen by people. ^(GA)Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. ⁶ But as for you, when you pray, ^(GB)go into your inner room, close your door, and pray to your Father who is in secret; and ^(GC)your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

⁷ “And when you are praying, do not use thoughtless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard because of their ^(GD)many words. ⁸ So do not be like them; for ^(GE)your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.

The Lord’s Prayer

⁹ “^(GF)Pray, then, in this way:

^14 (GM)For if you forgive other people for their ^[dc]offenses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵ But ^(GN)if you do not forgive other people, then your Father will not forgive your ^[dd]offenses.

Fasting; The True Treasure; Wealth

¹⁶ “Now ^(GO)whenever you fast, do not make a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they ^[de]distort their faces so that they will be noticed by people when they are fasting. ^(GP)Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. ¹⁷ But as for you, when you fast, ^[df](GQ)anoint your head and wash your face, ¹⁸ so that your fasting will not be noticed by people but by your Father who is in secret; and your ^(GR)Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

¹⁹ “^(GS)Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰ But store up for yourselves ^(GT)treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; ²¹ for ^(GU)where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

²² “^(GV)The eye is the lamp of the body; so then, if your eye is ^[dg]clear, your whole body will be full of light. ²³ But if ^(GW)your eye is ^[dh]bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. So if the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!

²⁴ “^(GX)No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and ^[di](GY)wealth.

The Cure for Anxiety

²⁵ “^(GZ)For this reason I say to you, ^[dj]do not be ^(HA)worried about your ^[dk]life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is life not more than food, and the body more than clothing? ^26 (HB)Look at the birds of the sky, that they do not sow, nor reap, nor gather crops into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more important than they? ²⁷ And which of you by ^(HC)worrying can ^(HD)add a single ^[dl]day to his ^[dm]life’s span? ²⁸ And why are you ^(HE)worried about clothing? Notice how the lilies of the field grow; they do not labor nor do they spin thread for cloth, ²⁹ yet I say to you that not even ^(HF)Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. ³⁰ But if God so clothes the ^(HG)grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? ^(HH)You of little faith! ³¹ Do not ^(HI)worry then, saying, ‘What are we to eat?’ or ‘What are we to drink?’ or ‘What are we to wear for clothing?’ ³² For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for ^(HJ)your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. ³³ But ^[dn]seek first ^[do]His kingdom and His righteousness, and ^(HK)all these things will be ^[dp]provided to you.

³⁴ “So do not ^(HL)worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will ^[dq]worry about itself. ^[dr]Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Judging Others

7 “^(HM)Do not ^[ds]judge, so that you will not be judged. ² For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and ^[dt](HN)by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. ³ Why do you ^(HO)look at the ^[du]speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? ^4 (HP)Or how ^[dv]can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the ^[dw]speck out of your eye,’ and look, the log is in your own eye? ⁵ You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the ^[dx]speck out of your brother’s eye!

⁶ “^(HQ)Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.

Prayer and the Golden Rule

⁷ “^[dy](HR)Ask, and ^(HS)it will be given to you; ^[dz]seek, and you will find; ^[ea]knock, and it will be opened to you. ⁸ For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. ⁹ Or what person is there among you ^[eb]who, when his son asks for a loaf of bread, ^[ec]will give him a stone? ¹⁰ Or ^[ed]if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? ¹¹ So if you, despite being ^[ee]evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, ^(HT)how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!

¹² “In everything, ^(HU)therefore, ^[ef]treat people the same way you want ^[eg]them to treat you, for ^(HV)this is the Law and the Prophets.

The Narrow and Wide Gates

¹³ “^(HW)Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. ¹⁴ For the gate is narrow and the way is constricted that leads to life, and there are few who find it.

A Tree and Its Fruit

¹⁵ “Beware of the ^(HX)false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ^(HY)ravenous wolves. ¹⁶ You will ^[eh](HZ)know them by their fruits. ^[ei]Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor figs from thistles, are they? ¹⁷ So ^(IA)every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸ A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. ^19 (IB)Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰ So then, you will ^[ej]know them ^(IC)by their fruits.

²¹ “^(ID)Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. ^22 (IE)Many will say to Me on ^(IF)that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many ^[ek]miracles?’ ²³ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; ^(IG)leave Me, you who practice lawlessness.’

The Two Foundations

²⁴ “Therefore, ^(IH)everyone who hears these words of Mine, and ^[el]acts on them, will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. ²⁵ And the rain fell and the ^[em]floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. ²⁶ And everyone who hears these words of Mine, and does not ^[en]act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. ²⁷ And the rain fell and the ^[eo]floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and its collapse was great.”

^28 [ep](II)When Jesus had finished these words, ^(IJ)the crowds were amazed at His teaching; ²⁹ for He was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.

Jesus Cleanses a Man with Leprosy

8 When ^[eq]Jesus came down from the mountain, ^[er]large crowds followed Him. ² And ^(IK)a man with ^[es]leprosy came to Him and ^[et](IL)bowed down before Him, and said, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.” ^3 [eu]Jesus reached out with His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” And immediately his ^(IM)leprosy was cleansed. ⁴ And Jesus *said to him, “^(IN)See that you tell no one; but ^(IO)go, ^(IP)show yourself to the priest and present the ^[ev]offering that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”

The Centurion’s Faith

⁵ And ^(IQ)when ^[ew]Jesus entered Capernaum, a ^[ex]centurion came to Him, begging Him, ⁶ and saying, “^[ey]Lord, my ^[ez]servant is lying ^(IR)paralyzed at home, terribly tormented.” ⁷ Jesus *said to him, “I will come and heal him.” ⁸ But the centurion replied, “^[fa]Lord, I am not worthy for You to come under my roof, but just ^[fb]say the word, and my ^[fc]servant will be healed. ⁹ For I also am a man under ^(IS)authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, ‘Go!’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come!’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this!’ and he does it.” ¹⁰ Now when Jesus heard this, He was amazed and said to those who were following, “Truly I say to you, I have not found such great faith ^[fd]with anyone in Israel. ¹¹ And I say to you that many ^(IT)will come from east and west, and ^[fe]recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven; ¹² but ^(IU)the sons of the kingdom will be thrown out into ^(IV)the outer darkness; in that place ^(IW)there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” ¹³ And Jesus said to the centurion, “Go; ^[ff]it shall be done for you ^(IX)as you have believed.” And the ^[fg]servant was healed at that very ^[fh]moment.

Peter’s Mother-in-law and Many Others Healed

^14 (IY)When Jesus came into Peter’s ^[fi]home, He saw his mother-in-law lying sick in bed with a fever. ¹⁵ And He touched her hand, and the fever left her; and she got up and ^[fj]waited on Him. ¹⁶ Now when evening came, they brought to Him many ^(IZ)who were demon-possessed; and He cast out the spirits with a word, and ^(JA)healed all who were ill. ¹⁷ This happened so that what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet would be fulfilled: “^(JB)He Himself took our illnesses and ^[fk]carried away our diseases.”

Discipleship Tested

¹⁸ Now when Jesus saw a crowd around Him, ^(JC)He gave orders to depart to the other side of the sea. ^19 (JD)Then a scribe came and said to Him, “Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go.” ²⁰ And Jesus *said to him, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the sky have nests, but ^(JE)the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” ²¹ And another of the disciples said to Him, “Lord, allow me first to go and bury my father.” ²² But Jesus *said to him, “^(JF)Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”

Jesus Calms the Storm

^23 (JG)When He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him. ²⁴ And behold, a ^[fl]violent storm developed on the sea, so that the boat was being covered by the waves; but Jesus Himself was asleep. ²⁵ And they came to Him and woke Him, saying, “^(JH)Save us, Lord; we are perishing!” ²⁶ He *said to them, “Why are you ^[fm]afraid, ^(JI)you men of little faith?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and ^[fn]it became perfectly calm. ²⁷ The men were amazed, and said, “What kind of a man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”

Jesus Sends Demons into Pigs

^28 (JJ)And when He came to the other side into the country of the Gadarenes, two ^(JK)demon-possessed men confronted Him as they were coming out of the tombs. They were so extremely violent that no one could pass by that way. ²⁹ And they cried out, saying, “^[fo](JL)What business do You have with us, Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before ^[fp]the time?” ³⁰ Now there was a herd of many pigs feeding at a distance from them. ³¹ And the demons begged Him, saying, “If You are going to cast us out, send us into the herd of pigs.” ³² And He said to them, “Go!” And they came out and went into the pigs; and behold, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and ^[fq]drowned in the waters. ³³ And the herdsmen ran away, and went to the city and reported everything, ^[fr]including what had happened to the ^(JM)demon-possessed men. ³⁴ And behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus; and when they saw Him, ^(JN)they pleaded with Him to leave their region.

A Paralyzed Man Healed

9 Getting into a boat, Jesus crossed over the Sea of Galilee and came to ^(JO)His own city.

^2 (JP)And they brought to Him a ^(JQ)paralyzed man lying on a stretcher. And seeing their faith, Jesus said to the man who was paralyzed, “^(JR)Take courage, ^[fs]son; ^(JS)your sins are forgiven.” ³ And some of the scribes said ^[ft]to themselves, “This man is ^(JT)blaspheming!” ⁴ And Jesus, ^(JU)perceiving their thoughts, said, “Why are you thinking evil in your hearts? ⁵ For which is easier, to say, ‘^(JV)Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? ⁶ But so that you may know that ^(JW)the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—then He *said to the ^(JX)paralyzed man, “Get up, pick up your stretcher and go home.” ⁷ And he got up and ^[fu]went home. ⁸ But when the crowds saw this, they were ^[fv]awestruck, and they ^(JY)glorified God, who had given such authority to men.

Matthew Called

^9 (JZ)As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man called ^(KA)Matthew sitting in the tax collector’s office; and He *said to him, “^(KB)Follow Me!” And he got up and followed Him.

¹⁰ Then it happened that as ^[fw]Jesus was reclining at the table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and ^[fx]sinners came and began dining with Jesus and His disciples. ¹¹ And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, “^(KC)Why is your Teacher eating with the tax collectors and sinners?” ¹² But when Jesus heard this, He said, “It is not ^(KD)those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick. ¹³ Now go and learn ^[fy](KE)what this means: ‘^(KF)I desire ^[fz]compassion, ^[ga]rather than sacrifice,’ for ^(KG)I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

The Question about Fasting

¹⁴ Then the disciples of John *came to Him, asking, “Why do we and ^(KH)the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?” ¹⁵ And Jesus said to them, “The ^[gb]attendants of the groom cannot mourn as long as the groom is with them, can they? But the days will come when the groom is taken away from them, and then they will fast. ¹⁶ But no one puts a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for ^[gc]the patch pulls away from the garment, and a worse tear results. ¹⁷ Nor do people put new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wineskins burst, and the wine pours out and the wineskins are ruined; but they put new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved.”

Miracles of Healing

^18 (KI)While He was saying these things to them, behold, ^[gd]a synagogue ^[ge]official came and ^[gf](KJ)bowed down before Him, and said, “My daughter has just died; but come and lay Your hand on her, and she will become alive again.” ¹⁹ Jesus got up from the table and began to accompany him, along with His disciples.

²⁰ And behold, a woman who had been suffering from a hemorrhage for twelve years came up behind Him, and touched ^(KK)the ^[gg]border of His ^[gh]cloak; ²¹ for she was ^[gi]saying ^[gj]to herself, “If I only ^(KL)touch His cloak, I will ^[gk]get well.” ²² But Jesus, turning and seeing her, said, “Daughter, ^(KM)take courage; ^(KN)your faith has ^[gl]made you well.” And ^[gm]at once the woman was ^[gn]made well.

²³ When Jesus came into the ^[go]official’s house and saw ^(KO)the flute players and the crowd in noisy disorder, ²⁴ He said, “Leave; for the girl ^(KP)has not died, but is asleep.” And they began laughing at Him. ²⁵ But ^(KQ)when the crowd had been sent out, He entered and ^(KR)took her by the hand, and the girl ^[gp]got up. ²⁶ And ^(KS)this news spread throughout that land.

²⁷ As Jesus went on from there, two men who were blind followed Him, crying out, “Have mercy on us, ^(KT)Son of David!” ²⁸ And after He entered the house, the men who were blind came up to Him, and Jesus *said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They *said to Him, “Yes, Lord.” ²⁹ Then He touched their eyes, saying, “^[gq]It shall be done for you ^(KU)according to your faith.” ³⁰ And their eyes were opened. And Jesus ^(KV)sternly warned them, saying, “See that no one knows about this!” ³¹ But they went out and ^(KW)spread the news about Him throughout that land.

³² And as they were going out, behold, ^(KX)a ^(KY)demon-possessed man who was unable to speak ^[gr]was brought to Him. ³³ And after the demon was cast out, the man who was previously unable to speak talked; and the crowds were amazed, and were saying, “^(KZ)Nothing like this has ever ^[gs]been seen in Israel.” ³⁴ But the Pharisees were saying, “He ^(LA)casts out the demons by the ruler of the demons.”

³⁵ Jesus was going through all the cities and villages, ^(LB)teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness.

^36 (LC)Seeing the crowds, He felt compassion for them, ^(LD)because they were ^[gt]distressed and downcast, like sheep ^[gu]without a shepherd. ³⁷ Then He *said to His disciples, “^(LE)The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. ³⁸ Therefore, plead with the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.”

The Twelve Disciples; Instructions for Service

10 Jesus ^(LF)summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to ^(LG)heal every disease and every sickness.

^2 (LH)Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: The first, ^(LI)Simon, who is called Peter, and his brother ^(LJ)Andrew; and ^[gv](LK)James the son of Zebedee, and his brother ^[gw]John; ^3 (LL)Philip and ^[gx]Bartholomew; ^(LM)Thomas and ^(LN)Matthew the tax collector; ^[gy](LO)James the son of Alphaeus, and ^(LP)Thaddaeus; ⁴ Simon the ^[gz]Zealot, and ^(LQ)Judas Iscariot, the one who also betrayed Him.

^5 (LR)These twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them, saying, “Do not go on a road ^[ha]to Gentiles, and do not enter a city of ^(LS)Samaritans; ⁶ but rather go to ^(LT)the lost sheep of the house of Israel. ⁷ And as you go, ^[hb]preach, saying, ‘^(LU)The kingdom of heaven ^[hc]has come near.’ ⁸ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those with leprosy, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give. ^9 (LV)Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts, ¹⁰ or a ^[hd]bag for your journey, or even two ^[he]tunics, or sandals, or a staff; for ^(LW)the worker is deserving of his ^[hf]support. ¹¹ And whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it, and stay ^[hg]at his house until you leave that city. ¹² As you enter the ^[hh]house, ^(LX)give it your ^[hi]greeting. ¹³ If the house is worthy, see that your blessing of peace comes upon it. But if it is not worthy, ^[hj]take back your blessing of peace. ¹⁴ And whoever does not receive you nor listen to your words, as you leave that house or city, ^(LY)shake the dust off your feet. ¹⁵ Truly I say to you, ^(LZ)it will be more tolerable for the land of ^(MA)Sodom and Gomorrah on ^(MB)the day of judgment, than for that city.

A Hard Road Ahead of Them

¹⁶ “^(MC)Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be as ^(MD)wary as serpents, and as ^(ME)innocent as doves. ¹⁷ But be on guard against people, for they will hand you over to the ^(MF)courts and flog you ^(MG)in their synagogues; ¹⁸ and you will even be brought before governors and kings on My account, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. ^19 (MH)But when they hand you over, ^(MI)do not worry about how or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given you in that hour. ²⁰ For ^(MJ)it is not you who are speaking, but it is the Spirit of your Father who is speaking ^[hk]in you.

²¹ “Now ^(MK)brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and ^(ML)children will rise up against parents and ^[hl]cause them to be put to death. ²² And ^(MM)you will be hated by all because of My name, but ^(MN)it is the one who has endured to the end who will be saved.

²³ “But whenever they ^(MO)persecute you in ^[hm]one city, flee to the ^[hn]next; for truly I say to you, you will not finish going through the cities of Israel ^(MP)until the Son of Man comes.

The Meaning of Discipleship

²⁴ “^(MQ)A ^[ho]disciple is not above his teacher, nor a slave above his master. ²⁵ It is enough for the disciple that he may become like his teacher, and the slave like his master. ^(MR)If they have called the head of the house ^[hp](MS)Beelzebul, how much more will they insult the members of his household!

²⁶ “So do not ^(MT)fear them, ^(MU)for there is nothing concealed that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. ^27 (MV)What I tell you in the darkness, tell in the light; and what you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim ^(MW)on the housetops. ²⁸ And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather ^(MX)fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in ^[hq](MY)hell. ^29 (MZ)Are two sparrows not sold for an ^[hr]assarion? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. ³⁰ But ^(NA)even the hairs of your head are all counted. ³¹ So do not fear; ^(NB)you are more valuable than a great number of sparrows.

³² “Therefore, ^(NC)everyone who ^[hs]confesses Me before people, I will also confess ^[ht]him before My Father who is in heaven. ³³ But ^(ND)whoever denies Me before people, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven.

³⁴ “^(NE)Do not think that I came to ^[hu]bring peace on the earth; I did not come to ^[hv]bring peace, but a sword. ³⁵ For I came to ^(NF)turn a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; ³⁶ and ^(NG)a person’s enemies will be the members of his household.

³⁷ “^(NH)The one who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and the one who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. ³⁸ And ^(NI)the one who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. ^39 (NJ)The one who has found his ^[hw]life will lose it, and the one who has lost his ^[hx]life on My account will find it.

The Reward for Service

⁴⁰ “^(NK)The one who ^[hy]receives you ^[hz]receives Me, and ^(NL)the one who ^[ia]receives Me ^[ib]receives Him who sent Me. ^41 (NM)The one who ^[ic]receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward; and the one who ^[id]receives a righteous person in the name of a righteous person shall receive a righteous person’s reward. ⁴² And ^(NN)whoever gives one of these ^[ie]little ones just a cup of cold water to drink in the name of a disciple, truly I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward.”

John’s Questions

11 ^(NO)When Jesus had finished ^[if]giving instructions to His twelve disciples, He went on from there ^(NP)to teach and ^[ig]preach in their cities.

^2 (NQ)Now while in prison, ^(NR)John heard about the works of Christ, and he sent word by his disciples, ³ and said to Him, “Are You ^(NS)the Coming One, or are we to ^[ih]look for someone else?” ⁴ Jesus answered and said to them, “Go and report to John what you hear and see: ^5 (NT)those who are blind receive sight and those who limp walk, those with leprosy are cleansed and those who are deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the ^(NU)poor have the ^[ii]gospel preached to them. ⁶ And blessed is ^[ij]any person who ^(NV)does not ^[ik]take offense at Me.”

Jesus’ Tribute to John

⁷ As these disciples of John were going away, Jesus began speaking to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into ^(NW)the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? ^8 [il]But what did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ ^[im]palaces! ^9 [in]But what did you go out to see? ^(NX)A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and one who is more than a prophet. ¹⁰ This is the one about whom it ^[io]is written:

¹¹ Truly I say to you, among those born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist! Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. ¹² And ^(NZ)from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has been treated violently, and violent men take it by force. ¹³ For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. ¹⁴ And if you are willing to accept it, John himself is ^(OA)Elijah who ^[iq]was to come. ^15 (OB)The one who has ears to hear, ^[ir]let him hear.

¹⁶ “But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces, who call out to the other children, ¹⁷ and say, ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a song of mourning, and you did not ^[is]mourn.’ ¹⁸ For John came neither ^(OC)eating nor ^(OD)drinking, and they say, ‘^(OE)He has a demon!’ ¹⁹ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Behold, a gluttonous man and a ^[it]heavy drinker, ^(OF)a friend of tax collectors and ^[iu]sinners!’ And yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.”

The Unrepenting Cities

²⁰ Then He began to reprimand the cities in which most of His ^[iv](OG)miracles were done, because they did not repent. ²¹ “^(OH)Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, ^(OI)Bethsaida! For if the ^[iw]miracles that occurred in you had occurred in ^(OJ)Tyre and ^(OK)Sidon, they would have repented long ago in ^[ix](OL)sackcloth and ashes. ²² Nevertheless I say to you, ^(OM)it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon on ^(ON)the day of judgment than for you. ²³ And you, ^(OO)Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You will be ^(OP)brought down to ^(OQ)Hades! For if the ^[iy]miracles that occurred in you had occurred in ^(OR)Sodom, it would have remained to this day. ²⁴ Nevertheless I say to you that ^(OS)it will be more tolerable for the land of ^(OT)Sodom on the day of judgment, than for you.”

Come to Me

^25 [iz](OU)At that time Jesus said, “I praise You, ^(OV)Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that ^(OW)You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent, and have revealed them to infants. ²⁶ Yes, ^(OX)Father, for this way was well pleasing in Your sight. ^27 (OY)All things have been handed over to Me by My Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father; nor does anyone know the Father ^(OZ)except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son determines to reveal Him.

²⁸ “^(PA)Come to Me, all ^[ja]who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take My yoke upon you and ^(PB)learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and ^(PC)you will find ^[jb]rest for your souls. ³⁰ For ^(PD)My yoke is comfortable, and My burden is light.”

Sabbath Questions

12 ^[jc](PE)At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath, and His disciples became hungry and began to ^(PF)pick the heads of grain and eat. ² Now when the Pharisees saw this, they said to Him, “Look, Your disciples are doing what ^(PG)is not lawful to do on a Sabbath!” ³ But He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he became hungry, he and his companions— ⁴ how he entered the house of God, and ^(PH)they ate the ^[jd]consecrated bread, which was not lawful for him to eat nor for those with him, but for the priests alone? ⁵ Or have you not read in the Law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple ^[je]violate the Sabbath, and yet are innocent? ⁶ But I say to you that something ^(PI)greater than the temple is here. ⁷ But if you had known what this ^[jf]means: ‘^(PJ)I desire ^[jg]compassion, ^[jh]rather than sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned ^[ji]the innocent.

Lord of the Sabbath

⁸ For ^(PK)the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”

^9 (PL)Departing from there, He went into their synagogue. ¹⁰ And a man was there whose hand was withered. And they questioned ^[jj]Jesus, asking, “^(PM)Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”—so that they might bring charges against Him. ¹¹ But He said to them, “^(PN)What man ^[jk]is there among you who ^[jl]has a sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will he not take hold of it and lift it out? ^12 (PO)How much more valuable then is a person than a sheep! So then, it is lawful to do ^[jm]good on the Sabbath.” ¹³ Then He *said to the man, “Stretch out your hand!” ^(PP)He stretched it out, and it was restored to ^[jn]normal, like the other. ¹⁴ But the Pharisees went out and ^[jo](PQ)conspired against Him, as to how they might destroy Him.

¹⁵ But Jesus, ^[jp]aware of this, withdrew from there. Many followed Him, and ^(PR)He healed them all, ¹⁶ and ^(PS)warned them not to ^[jq]tell who He was. ¹⁷ This happened so that what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet would be fulfilled:

The Pharisees Rebuked

^22 (QA)Then a ^(QB)demon-possessed man who was blind and unable to speak was brought to ^[jz]Jesus, and He healed him so that the man who was unable to speak talked and ^[ka]could see. ²³ And all the crowds were amazed and were saying, “This man cannot be the ^(QC)Son of David, can he?” ²⁴ But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “This man ^(QD)casts out demons only by ^[kb]Beelzebul the ruler of the demons.”

^25 (QE)And ^(QF)knowing their thoughts, Jesus said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and no city or house divided against itself will stand. ²⁶ And if ^(QG)Satan is casting out Satan, he ^[kc]has become divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand? ²⁷ And if ^(QH)by ^[kd]Beelzebul I cast out the demons, ^(QI)by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore, they will be your judges. ²⁸ But ^(QJ)if I cast out the demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. ²⁹ Or, how can anyone enter the strong man’s house and carry off his property, unless he first ties up the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.

The Unpardonable Sin

^30 (QK)The one who is not with Me is against Me; and the one who does not gather with Me scatters.

³¹ “^(QL)Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. ^32 (QM)And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in ^(QN)this age or in the age to come.

Words Reveal Character

³³ “Either ^[ke]assume the tree to be good as well as its fruit good, or ^[kf]assume the tree to be bad as well as its fruit bad; for ^(QO)the tree is known by its fruit. ^34 (QP)You ^[kg]offspring of vipers, how can you, being evil, express any good things? ^(QQ)For the mouth speaks from that which fills the heart. ^35 (QR)The good person brings out of his good treasure good things; and the evil person brings out of his evil treasure evil things. ³⁶ But I tell you that for every ^[kh]careless word that people ^[ki]speak, they will give an account of it on the ^(QS)day of judgment. ³⁷ For ^[kj]by your words you will be justified, and ^[kk]by your words you will be condemned.”

The Desire for Signs

³⁸ Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, “Teacher, ^(QT)we want to see a ^[kl]sign from You.” ³⁹ But He answered and said to them, “^(QU)An evil and adulterous generation craves a ^[km]sign; and so no ^[kn]sign will be given to it except the ^[ko]sign of Jonah the prophet; ⁴⁰ for just as ^(QV)Jonah was in the stomach of the sea monster for three days and three nights, so will ^(QW)the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth for ^(QX)three days and three nights. ^41 (QY)The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment, and will condemn it because ^(QZ)they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, something ^(RA)greater than Jonah is here. ^42 (RB)The Queen of the South will rise up with this generation at the judgment and will condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, something ^(RC)greater than Solomon is here.

⁴³ “^(RD)Now when the unclean spirit comes out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and does not find it. ⁴⁴ Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came’; and when it comes, it finds it unoccupied, swept, and put in order. ⁴⁵ Then it goes and brings along with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they come in and live there; and ^(RE)the last condition of that person becomes worse than the first. That is the way it will also be with this evil generation.”

Changed Relationships

^46 (RF)While He was still speaking to the crowds, behold, His ^(RG)mother and ^(RH)brothers were standing outside, seeking to speak to Him. ⁴⁷ [^[kp]Someone said to Him, “Look, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, seeking to speak to You.”] ⁴⁸ But ^[kq]Jesus replied to the one who was telling Him and said, “Who is My mother, and who are My brothers?” ⁴⁹ And extending His hand toward His disciples, He said, “Behold: My mother and My brothers! ⁵⁰ For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother, and sister, and mother.”

Jesus Teaches in Parables

13 On that day Jesus had gone out of ^(RI)the house and was sitting ^(RJ)by the sea. ² And large crowds gathered to Him, so ^(RK)He got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd was standing on the beach.

³ And He told them many things in ^(RL)parables, saying, “Behold, the sower went out to sow; ⁴ and as he sowed, some seeds fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate them up. ⁵ Others fell on the rocky places, where they did not have much soil; and they sprang up immediately, because they had no depth of soil. ⁶ But after the sun rose, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. ⁷ Others fell ^[kr]among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them out. ⁸ But others fell on the good soil and yielded a crop, some a ^(RM)hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times as much. ^9 (RN)The one who has ears, ^[ks]let him hear.”

An Explanation for Parables

¹⁰ And the disciples came up and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” ¹¹ And ^[kt]Jesus answered them, “^(RO)To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. ^12 (RP)For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. ¹³ Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while ^(RQ)seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. ¹⁴ And ^[ku]in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,

^16 (RT)But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. ¹⁷ For truly I say to you that ^(RU)many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

The Sower Explained

¹⁸ “^(RV)Listen then to the parable of the sower. ¹⁹ When anyone hears ^(RW)the ^[kz]word of the kingdom and does not understand it, ^(RX)the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one sown with seed beside the road. ²⁰ The one sown with seed on the rocky places, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; ²¹ yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution occurs because of the ^[la]word, immediately he ^[lb](RY)falls away. ²² And the one sown with seed among the thorns, this is the one who hears the word, and the anxiety of ^(RZ)the ^[lc]world and the ^(SA)deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it ^[ld]becomes unfruitful. ²³ But the one sown with seed on the good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces, some ^(SB)a hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times as much.”

Weeds among Wheat

²⁴ Jesus presented another parable to them, saying, “^(SC)The kingdom of heaven ^[le]is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. ²⁵ But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed ^[lf]weeds among the wheat, and left. ²⁶ And when the ^[lg]wheat sprouted and produced grain, then the weeds also became evident. ²⁷ And the slaves of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? ^[lh]How then does it have weeds?’ ²⁸ And he said to them, ‘^[li]An enemy has done this!’ The slaves *said to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?’ ²⁹ But he *said, ‘No; while you are gathering up the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. ³⁰ Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and at the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather up the weeds and bind them in bundles to burn them; but ^(SD)gather the wheat into my barn.”’”

The Mustard Seed

³¹ He presented another parable to them, saying, “^(SE)The kingdom of heaven is like ^(SF)a mustard seed, which a person took and sowed in his field; ³² and this is smaller than all the other seeds, but when it is fully grown, it is larger than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that ^(SG)the birds of the sky come and nest in its branches.”

The Leaven

³³ He spoke another parable to them: “^(SH)The kingdom of heaven is like ^[lj]leaven, which a woman took and hid in ^(SI)three ^[lk]sata of flour until it was all leavened.”

³⁴ All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables, and He did not speak anything to them ^(SJ)without a parable. ³⁵ This was so that what was spoken through the prophet would be ^[ll]fulfilled:

The Weeds Explained

³⁶ Then He left the crowds and went into ^(SL)the house. And His disciples came to Him and said, “^(SM)Explain to us the parable of the ^[lm]weeds of the field.” ³⁷ And He said, “The one who sows the good seed is ^(SN)the Son of Man, ³⁸ and the field is the world; and as for the good seed, these are ^(SO)the sons of the kingdom; and the weeds are ^(SP)the sons of ^(SQ)the evil one; ³⁹ and the enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is ^(SR)the ^[ln]end of the age; and the reapers are angels. ⁴⁰ So just as the weeds are gathered up and burned with fire, so shall it be at ^(SS)the ^[lo]end of the age. ^41 (ST)The Son of Man ^(SU)will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom ^[lp]all ^(SV)stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, ⁴² and they ^(SW)will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place ^(SX)there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. ^43 (SY)Then the righteous will shine forth like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. ^(SZ)The one who has ears, ^[lq]let him hear.

Hidden Treasure

⁴⁴ “^(TA)The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from ^[lr]joy over it he goes and ^(TB)sells everything that he has, and buys that field.

A Costly Pearl

⁴⁵ “Again, ^(TC)the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls, ⁴⁶ and upon finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold everything that he had and bought it.

A Dragnet

⁴⁷ “Again, ^(TD)the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered fish of every kind; ⁴⁸ and when it was filled, they pulled it up on the beach; and they sat down and gathered the good fish into containers, but the bad they threw away. ⁴⁹ So it will be at ^(TE)the ^[ls]end of the age: the angels will come forth and remove the wicked from among the righteous, ⁵⁰ and they ^(TF)will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place ^(TG)there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

⁵¹ “Have you understood all these things?” They *said to Him, “Yes.” ⁵² And ^[lt]Jesus said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a head of a household, who brings out of his treasure new things and old.”

Jesus Revisits Nazareth

^53 (TH)When Jesus had finished these parables, He departed from there. ⁵⁴ And ^(TI)He came to ^[lu]His hometown and ^(TJ)began teaching them in their synagogue, with the result that ^(TK)they were astonished, and said, “Where did this man acquire this wisdom and these ^[lv]miraculous powers? ⁵⁵ Is this not the carpenter’s son? Is ^(TL)His mother not called Mary, and His ^(TM)brothers, James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas? ⁵⁶ And ^(TN)His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did this man acquire all these things?” ⁵⁷ And they took ^(TO)offense at Him. But Jesus said to them, “^(TP)A prophet is not dishonored except in his ^[lw]hometown and in his own household.” ⁵⁸ And He did not do many ^[lx]miracles there because of their unbelief.

John the Baptist Beheaded

14 ^[ly](TQ)At that time ^[lz](TR)Herod ^[ma]the tetrarch heard the news about Jesus, ² and said to his servants, “^(TS)This is John the Baptist; he himself has been raised from the dead, and that is why miraculous powers are at work in him.”

³ For when ^(TT)Herod had John arrested, he bound him and put him ^(TU)in prison because of ^(TV)Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip. ⁴ For John had been saying to him, “^(TW)It is not lawful for you to have her.” ⁵ Although Herod wanted to put him to death, he feared the crowd, because they regarded ^[mb]John as ^(TX)a prophet.

⁶ But when Herod’s birthday came, the daughter of ^(TY)Herodias danced ^[mc]before them and pleased ^(TZ)Herod, ⁷ so much that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked. ⁸ And after being prompted by her mother, she *said, “Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter.” ⁹ And although he was grieved, the king commanded it to be given because of his oaths and ^[md]his dinner guests. ¹⁰ He sent word and had John beheaded in the prison. ¹¹ And his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother. ^12 [me]John’s disciples came and took away the body and buried ^[mf]it; and they went and reported to Jesus.

Five Thousand Men Fed

^13 (UA)Now when Jesus heard about John, He withdrew from there in a boat to a secluded place by Himself; and when the ^[mg]people heard about this, they followed Him on foot from the cities. ¹⁴ When He came ^[mh]ashore, He ^(UB)saw a large crowd, and felt compassion for them and ^(UC)healed their sick.

¹⁵ Now when it was evening, the disciples came to Him and said, “This place is secluded and the hour is already past to eat; send the crowds away, so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” ¹⁶ But Jesus said to them, “They do not need to go; you give them something to eat!” ¹⁷ They *said to Him, “We have nothing here except ^(UD)five loaves and two fish.” ¹⁸ And He said, “Bring them here to Me.” ¹⁹ And ordering the crowds to ^[mi]sit down on the grass, He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looked up toward heaven. He ^(UE)blessed the food and breaking the loaves, He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. ²⁰ And they all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up what was left over of the broken pieces: twelve full ^(UF)baskets. ²¹ There were about five thousand men who ate, besides women and children.

Jesus Walks on the Water

^22 (UG)Immediately afterward He compelled the disciples to get into the boat and to go ahead of Him to the other side, while He sent the crowds away. ²³ After He had sent the crowds away, ^(UH)He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was there alone.