Six Days of Creation and the Sabbath

1 When God began to create^[a] the heavens and the earth,^{(A) 2} the earth was complete chaos, and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God^[b] swept over the face of the waters.^{(B) 3} Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.^{(C) 4} And God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness.^{(D) 5} God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.^(E)

⁶ And God said, “Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.”^{(F) 7} So God made the dome and separated the waters that were under the dome from the waters that were above the dome. And it was so.^{(G) 8} God called the dome Sky. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.

⁹ And God said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so.^{(H) 10} God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good.^(I)

11 Now when Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and proclaim his message in their cities.

Messengers from John the Baptist

² When John heard in prison what the Messiah^[a] was doing, he sent word by his^[b] disciples^{(A) 3} and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?”^{(B) 4} Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: ⁵ the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, those with a skin disease are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them.^{(C) 6} And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.”^(D)

Jesus Praises John the Baptist

⁷ As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind?^{(E) 8} What, then, did you go out to see? Someone^[c] dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. ⁹ What, then, did you go out to see? A prophet?^[d] Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet.^{(F) 10} This is the one about whom it is written,

¹¹ “Truly I tell you, among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist, yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.