Mark 2:15-3:6

English Standard Version

¹⁵ And as he reclined at table in his house, many ^(A)tax collectors and sinners were reclining with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. ¹⁶ And ^(B)the scribes of^[a] the Pharisees, when they saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors, said to his disciples, ^(C)“Why does he eat^[b] with tax collectors and sinners?” ¹⁷ And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. ^(D)I came not to call the righteous, ^(E)but sinners.”

A Question About Fasting

¹⁸ Now ^(F)John's disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. And people came and said to him, ^(G)“Why do John's disciples and ^(H)the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” ¹⁹ And Jesus said to them, ^(I)“Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. ^20 (J)The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and ^(K)then they will fast in that day. ²¹ No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the patch tears away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. ²² And no one puts new wine into old ^(L)wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins—and the wine is destroyed, and so are the skins. But new wine is for fresh wineskins.”^[c]

Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath

^23 (M)One Sabbath he was going through the grainfields, and as they made their way, his disciples ^(N)began to pluck heads of grain. ²⁴ And the Pharisees were saying to him, “Look, ^(O)why are they doing ^(P)what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” ²⁵ And he said to them, ^(Q)“Have you never read ^(R)what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: ²⁶ how he entered the house of God, in the time of^{[d] (S)}Abiathar the high priest, and ate ^(T)the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those who were with him?” ²⁷ And he said to them, ^(U)“The Sabbath was made for man, ^(V)not man for the Sabbath. ²⁸ So ^(W)the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.”

A Man with a Withered Hand

3 ^(X)Again ^(Y)he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. ² And ^(Z)they watched Jesus,^[e] to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. ³ And he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come here.” ⁴ And he said to them, ^(AA)“Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent. ⁵ And he ^(AB)looked around at them with anger, grieved at ^(AC)their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” ^(AD)He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. ^6 (AE)The Pharisees went out and immediately ^(AF)held counsel with ^(AG)the Herodians against him, how to destroy him.