Call to Repent

13 Now on that very occasion there were some present who reported to Him about the Galileans whose blood ^(A)Pilate had ^[a]mixed with their sacrifices. ² And Jesus responded and said to them, “^(B)Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans just because they have suffered this fate? ³ No, I tell you, but unless you ^[b]repent, you will all likewise perish. ⁴ Or do you think that those eighteen on whom the tower in ^(C)Siloam fell and killed them were worse ^[c](D)offenders than all the other people who live in Jerusalem? ⁵ No, I tell you, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”

⁶ And He began telling this parable: “A man had ^(E)a fig tree which had been planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and did not find any. ⁷ And he said to the vineyard-keeper, ‘Look! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree ^[d]without finding any. ^(F)Cut it down! Why does it even use up the ground?’ ⁸ But he answered and said to him, ‘Sir, leave it alone for this year too, until I dig around it and put in fertilizer; ⁹ and if it bears fruit next year, fine; but if not, cut it down.’”

Healing on the Sabbath

¹⁰ Now Jesus was ^(G)teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. ¹¹ And ^[e]there was a woman who for eighteen years had had ^(H)a ^[f]sickness caused by a spirit; and she was bent over double, and could not straighten up at all. ¹² When Jesus saw her, He called her over and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your sickness.” ¹³ And He ^(I)laid His hands on her; and immediately she stood up straight again, and began ^(J)glorifying God. ¹⁴ But ^(K)the synagogue leader, indignant because Jesus ^(L)had healed on the Sabbath, began saying to the crowd in response, “^(M)There are six days during which work should be done; so come during them and get healed, and not on the Sabbath day.” ¹⁵ But ^(N)the Lord answered him and said, “You hypocrites, ^(O)does each of you on the Sabbath not untie his ox or donkey from the stall and lead it away to water it? ¹⁶ And this woman, ^(P)a daughter of Abraham as she is, whom ^(Q)Satan has bound for ^[g]eighteen long years, should she not have been released from this restraint on the Sabbath day?” ¹⁷ And as He said this, all His opponents were being ^[h]humiliated; and ^(R)the entire crowd was rejoicing over all the glorious things being done by Him.

Parables of Mustard Seed and Leaven

¹⁸ So ^(S)He was saying, “^(T)What is the kingdom of God like, and to what shall I compare it? ¹⁹ It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and threw into his own garden; and it grew and became a tree, and ^(U)the birds of the sky nested in its branches.”

²⁰ And again He said, “^(V)To what shall I compare the kingdom of God? ^21 (W)It is like ^[i]leaven, which a woman took and hid in ^(X)three ^[j]sata of flour until it was all leavened.”

Teaching in the Villages

²² And He was passing through one city and village after another, teaching, and ^(Y)proceeding on His way to Jerusalem. ²³ And someone said to Him, “Lord, are there just a few who are being saved?” And He said to them, ²⁴ “^(Z)Strive to enter through the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. ²⁵ Once the head of the house gets up and ^(AA)shuts the door, and you begin standing outside and knocking on the door, saying, ‘^(AB)Lord, open up to us!’ and He then will answer and say to you, ‘^(AC)I do not know where you are from.’ ²⁶ Then you will ^(AD)begin saying, ‘We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets!’ ²⁷ And yet He will ^[k]say, ‘^(AE)I do not know where you are from; ^(AF)leave Me, all you ^[l]evildoers.’ ^28 (AG)In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but yourselves being thrown out. ²⁹ And they ^(AH)will come from east and west, and from north and south, and will recline at the table in the kingdom of God. ³⁰ And behold, ^(AI)some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.”

³¹ At that very time some Pharisees approached, saying to Him, “Go away and leave this place, because ^(AJ)Herod wants to kill You.” ³² And He said to them, “Go and tell that ^[m]fox, ‘Behold, I am casting out demons and performing healings today and tomorrow, and on the third day I ^[n](AK)reach My goal.’ ³³ Nevertheless ^(AL)I must go on My journey today and tomorrow and the next day; for it cannot be that a ^(AM)prophet would perish outside Jerusalem. ^34 (AN)Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who have been sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, ^(AO)just as a hen gathers her ^[o]young under her wings, and you were unwilling! ³⁵ Behold, your house is left to you desolate; and I say to you, you will not see Me until you say, ‘^(AP)Blessed is the One who comes in the name of the Lord!’”

John the Baptist Preaches

3 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when ^(A)Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and ^(B)Herod was tetrarch of Galilee and his brother Philip was tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene, ² in the high priesthood of ^(C)Annas and ^(D)Caiaphas, ^(E)the word of God came to John, the son of Zechariah, in the wilderness. ³ And he came into all ^(F)the region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance ^[a]for the forgiveness of sins; ⁴ as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet:

⁷ So he was saying to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by him, “^(K)You ^[d]offspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? ⁸ Therefore produce fruits that are consistent with repentance, and ^(L)do not start saying ^[e]to yourselves, ‘^(M)We have Abraham as our father,’ for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children for Abraham. ⁹ But indeed the axe is already being laid at the root of the trees; so ^(N)every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

¹⁰ And the crowds were questioning him, saying, “^(O)Then what are we to do?” ¹¹ And he would answer and say to them, “The one who has two ^[f]tunics is to ^(P)share with the one who has none; and the one who has food is to do likewise.” ¹² Now even ^(Q)tax collectors came to be baptized, and they said to him, “Teacher, what are we to do?” ¹³ And he said to them, “^[g]Collect no more than what you have been ordered to.” ¹⁴ And soldiers also were questioning him, saying, “What are we to do, we as well?” And he said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone, nor ^[h](R)harass anyone, and ^(S)be content with your wages.”

¹⁵ Now while the people were in a state of expectation and they all were thinking carefully in their hearts about John, ^(T)whether he himself perhaps was the ^[i]Christ, ^16 (U)John responded to them all, saying, “As for me, I baptize you with water; but He is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to untie the straps of His sandals; He will baptize you ^[j]with the Holy Spirit and fire. ¹⁷ His ^(V)winnowing fork is in His hand to thoroughly clear His threshing floor, and to gather the wheat into His barn; but He will burn up the chaff with ^(W)unquenchable fire.”

¹⁸ So with many other exhortations he preached the gospel to the people. ¹⁹ But when ^(X)Herod the tetrarch was reprimanded by him regarding ^(Y)Herodias, his brother’s wife, and regarding all the evil things which ^(Z)Herod had done, ²⁰ Herod also added this to them all: ^(AA)he locked John up in prison.

Jesus Is Baptized

^21 (AB)Now when all the people were baptized, Jesus also was baptized, and while He was ^(AC)praying, heaven was opened, ²² and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came from heaven: “^(AD)You are My beloved Son, in You I am well pleased.”

Genealogy of Jesus

^23 (AE)When He began His ministry, Jesus Himself was about thirty years old, being, as was commonly held, the son of ^(AF)Joseph, ^[k]the son of ^[l]Eli, ²⁴ the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melchi, the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph, ²⁵ the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of ^[m]Hesli, the son of Naggai, ²⁶ the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Josech, the son of Joda, ²⁷ the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, ^(AG)the son of Zerubbabel, the son of ^[n]Shealtiel, the son of Neri, ²⁸ the son of Melchi, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmadam, the son of Er, ²⁹ the son of ^[o]Joshua, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, ³⁰ the son of Simeon, the son of ^[p]Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim, ³¹ the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David, ^32 (AH)the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of ^[q]Salmon, the son of ^[r]Nahshon, ³³ the son of Amminadab, the son of Admin, the son of ^[s]Ram, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah, ³⁴ the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, ^(AI)the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor, ³⁵ the son of Serug, the son of ^[t]Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of ^[u]Heber, the son of Shelah, ³⁶ the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, ^(AJ)the son of Noah, the son of Lamech, ³⁷ the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalaleel, the son of Cainan, ³⁸ the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.