Some Women Accompany Jesus

8 After this, Jesus^[a] traveled from one city and village to another, preaching and spreading the good news about God’s kingdom. The Twelve were with him, ² as well as some women who had been healed of evil spirits and illnesses: Mary, also called Magdalene,^[b] from whom seven demons had gone out; ³ Joanna, the wife of Herod’s household manager Chuza; Susanna; and many others. These women^[c] continued to support them^[d] out of their personal resources.

The Parable about a Farmer^(A)

⁴ Now while a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to Jesus^[e] from every city, he said in a parable: ⁵ “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was sowing, some seeds fell along the path, were trampled on, and birds from the sky ate them up. ⁶ Others fell on stony ground, and as soon as they came up, they dried up because they had no moisture. ⁷ Others fell among thorn bushes, and the thorn bushes grew with them and choked them. ⁸ But others fell on good soil, and when they came up, they produced 100 times as much as was planted.” As he said this, he called out, “Let the person who has ears to hear, listen!”

The Purpose of the Parables^(B)

⁹ Then his disciples began to ask him what this parable meant. ¹⁰ So he said, “You have been given knowledge about the secrets of the kingdom of God. But to others they are given^[f] in parables, so that

Jesus Explains the Parable about the Farmer^(C)

¹¹ “Now this is what the parable means. The seed is God’s word. ¹² The ones on the path are the people who listen, but then the Devil comes and takes the word away from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. ¹³ The ones on the stony ground are the people who joyfully welcome the word when they hear it. But since they don’t have any roots, they believe for a while, but in a time of testing they fall away. ¹⁴ The ones that fell among the thorn bushes are the people who listen, but as they go on their way they are choked by the worries, wealth, and pleasures of life, and their fruit doesn’t mature. ¹⁵ But the ones on the good soil are the people who hear the word but also hold on to it with good and honest hearts, producing a crop through endurance.”

A Light under a Bowl^(D)

¹⁶ “No one lights a lamp and hides it under a bowl or puts it under a bed. Instead, he puts it on a lamp stand so that those who come in will see the light. ¹⁷ There is nothing hidden that won’t be revealed, and there is nothing secret that won’t become known and come to light. ¹⁸ So pay attention to how you listen, because to the one who has something, more will be given. However, from the one who doesn’t have, even what he thinks he has will be taken away from him.”

The True Family of Jesus^(E)

¹⁹ His mother and his brothers came to him, but they couldn’t get near him because of the crowd. ²⁰ Jesus^[h] was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside and want to see you.”

²¹ But he answered those people,^[i] “My mother and my brothers are those who hear a message from God and heed it.”

Jesus Calms the Sea^(F)

²² One day, Jesus^[j] and his disciples got into a boat. He told them, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.” So they started out.

²³ Now as they were sailing, Jesus^[k] fell asleep. A violent storm swept over the lake, and they were taking on water and were in great danger. ²⁴ So his disciples^[l] went to him, woke him up, and kept telling him, “Master! Master! We’re going to die!” He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waves. They stopped, and there was calm.

²⁵ Then he asked the disciples,^[m] “Where’s your faith?”

Frightened and amazed, they asked one another, “Who is this man? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him!”

Jesus Heals a Demon-Possessed Man^(G)

²⁶ They landed in the region of the Gerasenes,^[n] which is just across the lake from Galilee. ²⁷ When Jesus^[o] stepped out on the shore, a man from the city met him. This man was controlled by^[p] demons and had not worn clothes for a long time. He did not live in a house but in the tombs. ²⁸ When he saw Jesus, he screamed, fell down in front of him, and cried out in a loud voice, “What do you want from me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you not to torture me!” ²⁹ because Jesus^[q] was in the process of ordering the unclean spirit to come out of the man. On many occasions the unclean spirit^[r] had seized the man,^[s] and though he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, he would break the chains and be driven by the demon into deserted places.

³⁰ Jesus asked the man,^[t] “What’s your name?”

He answered, “Legion,”^[u] because many demons had gone into him. ³¹ Then the demons^[v] began begging Jesus^[w] not to order them to go into the bottomless pit.^[x]

³² Now a large herd of pigs was grazing there on the hillside. So the demons^[y] begged Jesus^[z] to let them go into those pigs, and he consented to that. ³³ Then the demons came out of the man and went into the pigs, and the herd rushed down a steep slope into the lake and drowned.

³⁴ Now when those who had been taking care of the pigs saw what had happened, they ran away and reported it in the city and in the countryside. ³⁵ So the people^[aa] went out to see what had happened. When they came to Jesus and found the man from whom the demons had gone out sitting at Jesus’ feet, dressed and in his right mind, they were frightened. ³⁶ The people who had seen it told them how the demon-possessed man had been healed. ³⁷ Then all the people from the region surrounding the Gerasenes^[ab] asked Jesus^[ac] to leave them, because they were terrified. So he got into a boat and started back.

³⁸ Now the man from whom the demons had gone out kept begging Jesus^[ad] to let him go with him. But Jesus^[ae] sent him away, saying, ³⁹ “Go home and tell what God has done for you.” So the man^[af] left and kept proclaiming throughout the whole city how much Jesus had done for him.

Jesus Heals a Woman and Resurrects a Girl^(H)

⁴⁰ When Jesus came back, the crowd welcomed him, because everyone was expecting him. ⁴¹ Just then a synagogue leader by the name of Jairus arrived. He fell at Jesus’ feet and kept begging him to come to his home, ⁴² because his only living^[ag] daughter, who was about twelve years old, was dying. While Jesus^[ah] was on his way, the crowds continued to press in on him.

⁴³ A woman was there^[ai] who had been suffering from chronic bleeding for twelve years. Although she had spent all she had on doctors,^[aj] no one could heal her. ⁴⁴ She came up behind Jesus^[ak] and touched the tassel of his garment, and her bleeding stopped at once.

⁴⁵ Jesus asked, “Who touched me?”

While everyone was denying it, Peter and those who were with him^[al] said, “Master, the crowds are surrounding you and pressing in on you.”

⁴⁶ Still Jesus said, “Somebody touched me, because I know that power has gone out of me.”

⁴⁷ When the woman saw that she couldn’t hide, she came forward trembling. Bowing down in front of him, she explained in the presence of all the people why she had touched Jesus^[am] and how she had been instantly healed. ⁴⁸ Then he told her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace.”

⁴⁹ While he was still speaking, someone came from the synagogue leader’s home^[an] and told him,^[ao] “Your daughter is dead. Stop bothering the teacher anymore.”

⁵⁰ But when Jesus heard this, he told the synagogue leader,^[ap] “Stop being afraid! Just believe, and she will get well.”

⁵¹ When he arrived at the man’s^[aq] house, he allowed no one to go in with him except Peter, John, James, and the young girl’s father and mother. ⁵² Now everyone was crying and wailing for her. But Jesus^[ar] said, “Stop crying! She’s not dead. She’s sleeping.” ⁵³ They laughed and laughed at him, because they knew she was dead. ⁵⁴ But he took her hand and called out, “Young lady, get up!” ⁵⁵ So her spirit returned, and she got up at once. Then Jesus^[as] directed that she be given something to eat. ⁵⁶ Her parents were amazed, but he ordered them not to tell anyone what had happened.