Mark 9:14-10:34

English Standard Version

Jesus Heals a Boy with an Unclean Spirit

^14 (A)And when they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd around them, and scribes arguing with them. ¹⁵ And immediately all the crowd, when they saw him, ^(B)were greatly amazed and ran up to him and greeted him. ¹⁶ And he asked them, “What are you arguing about with them?” ¹⁷ And someone from the crowd answered him, “Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has ^(C)a spirit that makes him mute. ¹⁸ And whenever it seizes him, it throws him down, and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid. So I asked your disciples to cast it out, and ^(D)they were not able.” ¹⁹ And he answered them, “O ^(E)faithless generation, ^(F)how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me.” ²⁰ And they brought the boy to him. And when the spirit saw him, immediately it ^(G)convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth. ²¹ And Jesus asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood. ²² And it has often cast him into fire and into water, to destroy him. But ^(H)if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” ²³ And Jesus said to him, ^(I)“‘If you can’! ^(J)All things are possible for one who believes.” ²⁴ Immediately the father of the child cried out^[a] and said, “I believe; ^(K)help my unbelief!” ²⁵ And when Jesus saw that ^(L)a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, ^(M)“You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.” ²⁶ And after crying out and ^(N)convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse, so that most of them said, “He is dead.” ²⁷ But Jesus ^(O)took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. ²⁸ And when he had ^(P)entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” ²⁹ And he said to them, “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.”^[b]

Jesus Again Foretells Death, Resurrection

^30 (Q)They went on from there and passed through Galilee. And he did not want anyone to know, ³¹ for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, “The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. And when he is killed, ^(R)after three days he will rise.” ^32 (S)But they did not understand the saying, and were afraid to ask him.

Who Is the Greatest?

³³ And ^(T)they came to Capernaum. And when he was in the house ^(U)he asked them, “What were you discussing on the way?” ³⁴ But they kept silent, for on the way ^(V)they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. ³⁵ And he sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, ^(W)“If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.” ³⁶ And he took a child and put him in the midst of them, and ^(X)taking him in his arms, he said to them, ^37 (Y)“Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and ^(Z)whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me.”

Anyone Not Against Us Is for Us

^38 (AA)John said to him, “Teacher, we saw someone ^(AB)casting out demons in your name,^[c] and ^(AC)we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.” ³⁹ But Jesus said, “Do not stop him, for no one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. ^40 (AD)For the one who is not against us is for us. ⁴¹ For truly, I say to you, ^(AE)whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ will by no means lose his reward.

Temptations to Sin

^42 (AF)“Whoever causes one of ^(AG)these little ones who believe in me to sin,^{[d] (AH)}it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. ^43 (AI)And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to ^(AJ)hell,^[e] to ^(AK)the unquenchable fire.^{[f] 45 (AL)}And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into ^(AM)hell. ^47 (AN)And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into ^(AO)hell, ⁴⁸ ‘where ^(AP)their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’ ⁴⁹ For everyone will be salted with fire.^{[g] 50 (AQ)}Salt is good, ^(AR)but if the salt has lost its saltiness, how will you make it salty again? ^(AS)Have salt in yourselves, and ^(AT)be at peace with one another.”

Teaching About Divorce

10 ^(AU)And he left there and went ^(AV)to the region of Judea and beyond the Jordan, and crowds gathered to him again. And again, as was his custom, he taught them.

² And Pharisees came up and in order ^(AW)to test him asked, ^(AX)“Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” ³ He answered them, “What did Moses command you?” ⁴ They said, ^(AY)“Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of divorce and to send her away.” ⁵ And Jesus said to them, “Because of your ^(AZ)hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment. ⁶ But ^(BA)from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them ^(BB)male and female.’ ^7 (BC)‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife,^{[h] 8} and ^(BD)the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. ^9 (BE)What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”

¹⁰ And in the house the disciples asked him again about this matter. ¹¹ And he said to them, ^(BF)“Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her, ¹² and ^(BG)if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.”

Let the Children Come to Me

^13 (BH)And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples ^(BI)rebuked them. ¹⁴ But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, ^(BJ)“Let the children come to me; ^(BK)do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. ^15 (BL)Truly, I say to you, whoever does not ^(BM)receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” ¹⁶ And ^(BN)he took them in his arms and blessed them, ^(BO)laying his hands on them.

The Rich Young Man

^17 (BP)And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and ^(BQ)knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to ^(BR)inherit eternal life?” ¹⁸ And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. ¹⁹ You know the commandments: ^(BS)‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’” ²⁰ And he said to him, “Teacher, ^(BT)all these I have kept from my youth.” ²¹ And Jesus, ^(BU)looking at him, ^(BV)loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, ^(BW)sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have ^(BX)treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” ^22 (BY)Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

²³ And Jesus ^(BZ)looked around and said to his disciples, ^(CA)“How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter ^(CB)the kingdom of God!” ²⁴ And the disciples ^(CC)were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, ^(CD)“Children, ^(CE)how difficult it is^[i] to enter ^(CF)the kingdom of God! ²⁵ It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter ^(CG)the kingdom of God.” ²⁶ And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him,^[j] “Then who can be saved?” ²⁷ Jesus ^(CH)looked at them and said, ^(CI)“With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.” ²⁸ Peter began to say to him, “See, ^(CJ)we have left everything and followed you.” ²⁹ Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, ^(CK)there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and ^(CL)for the gospel, ³⁰ who will not receive a hundredfold ^(CM)now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, ^(CN)with persecutions, and in ^(CO)the age to come eternal life. ³¹ But ^(CP)many who are first will be last, and the last first.”

Jesus Foretells His Death a Third Time

^32 (CQ)And they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and ^(CR)Jesus was walking ahead of them. And ^(CS)they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. And taking the twelve again, he began to tell them what was to happen to him, ³³ saying, “See, ^(CT)we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will ^(CU)condemn him to death and ^(CV)deliver him over to the Gentiles. ³⁴ And they will ^(CW)mock him and ^(CX)spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And ^(CY)after three days he will rise.”