Matthew 8:18-9:8

Lexham English Bible

Would-be Followers

¹⁸ Now when^[a] Jesus saw many crowds^[b] around him, he gave orders to depart to the other side.^{[c] 19} And a scribe approached and^[d] said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go!” ²⁰ And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” ²¹ And another of the disciples^[e] said to him, “Lord, allow me first to go and bury my father.” ²² But Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead!”

Calming of a Storm

²³ And as^[f] he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. ²⁴ And behold, a great storm arose on the sea, so that the boat was being inundated by the waves, but he himself was asleep. ²⁵ And they came and^[g] woke him, saying, “Lord, save us!^[h] We are perishing!” ²⁶ And he said to them, “Why are you fearful, you of little faith?” Then he got up and^[i] rebuked the winds and the sea and there was a great calm. ²⁷ And the men were astonished, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him?”

Demon-possessed Gadarenes Healed

²⁸ And when^[j] he came to the other side,^[k] to the region of the Gadarenes,^[l] two demon-possessed men coming from among the tombs met him, very violent, so that no one was able to pass by along that road. ²⁹ And behold, they cried out, saying, “What do you have to do with us,^[m] Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?”^{[n] 30} Now a long way from them a large herd of pigs was feeding. ³¹ So the demons implored him, saying, “If you are going to expel us, send us into the herd of pigs.” ³² And he said to them, “Go!” So they departed and^[o] went into the pigs, and behold, the whole herd rushed headlong down the steep slope into the sea and drowned in the water. ³³ Now the herdsmen fled and went into the town and^[p] reported everything, including the things concerning the demon-possessed men. ³⁴ And behold, the whole town came out to meet Jesus, and when they^[q] saw him, they implored him^[r] that he would depart from their region.

A Paralytic Healed

9 And getting into a boat, he crossed over and came to his own town.^{[s] 2} And behold, they brought to him a paralytic lying on a stretcher, and when^[t] Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Have courage, child, your sins are forgiven.” ³ And behold, some of the scribes said to themselves, “This man is blaspheming!” ⁴ And knowing^[u] their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why do you think evil in your hearts? ⁵ For which is easier to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? ⁶ But in order that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins,” then he said to the paralytic, “Get up, pick up your stretcher and go to your home.” ⁷ And he got up and^[v] went to his home. ⁸ But when^[w] the crowds saw this,^[x] they were afraid and glorified God who had given such authority to men.