The Flood Recedes

8 God remembered Noah,^(A) as well as all the wildlife and all the livestock that were with him in the ark. God caused a wind to pass over the earth,^(B) and the water began to subside. ² The sources of the watery depths and the floodgates of the sky were closed, and the rain from the sky stopped.^{(C) 3} The water steadily receded from the earth, and by the end of 150 days the water had decreased significantly.^{(D) 4} The ark came to rest in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on the mountains of Ararat.^(E)

⁵ The water continued to recede until the tenth month; in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains were visible. ⁶ After forty days Noah opened the window of the ark that he had made, ⁷ and he sent out a raven. It went back and forth until the water had dried up from the earth. ⁸ Then he sent out a dove to see whether the water on the earth’s surface had gone down, ⁹ but the dove found no resting place for its foot. It returned to him in the ark because water covered the surface of the whole earth. He reached out and brought it into the ark to himself. ¹⁰ So Noah waited seven more days and sent out the dove from the ark again. ¹¹ When the dove came to him at evening, there was a plucked olive leaf in its beak. So Noah knew that the water on the earth’s surface had gone down. ¹² After he had waited another seven days, he sent out the dove, but it did not return to him again. ¹³ In the six hundred first year,^[a] in the first month, on the first day of the month, the water that had covered the earth was dried up. Then Noah removed the ark’s cover and saw that the surface of the ground was drying. ¹⁴ By the twenty-seventh day of the second month, the earth was dry.

The Lord’s Promise

¹⁵ Then God spoke to Noah, ¹⁶ “Come out of the ark, you, your wife, your sons, and your sons’ wives with you. ¹⁷ Bring out all the living creatures that are with you—birds, livestock, those that crawl on the earth—and they will spread over the earth and be fruitful and multiply on the earth.”^{(F) 18} So Noah, along with his sons, his wife, and his sons’ wives, came out. ¹⁹ All the animals, all the creatures that crawl, and all the flying creatures—everything that moves on the earth—came out of the ark by their families.

²⁰ Then Noah built an altar to the Lord. He took some of every kind of clean animal and every kind of clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar. ²¹ When the Lord smelled the pleasing aroma,^(G) he said to himself, “I will never again curse the ground^(H) because of human beings, even though the inclination of the human heart is evil from youth onward.^(I) And I will never again strike down every living thing as I have done.^(J)

3 Jesus^(A) entered the synagogue^(B) again, and a man was there who had a shriveled^(C) hand. ² In order to accuse^(D) him, they were watching him closely^(E) to see whether he would heal^(F) him on the Sabbath.^{(G) 3} He told the man with the shriveled hand, “Stand before us.” ⁴ Then he said to them, “Is it lawful^(H) to do good^(I) on the Sabbath or to do evil,^(J) to save life^(K) or to kill?”^(L) But they were silent.^{(M) 5} After looking around at them with anger,^(N) he was grieved at the hardness^(O) of their hearts and told the man, “Stretch out your hand.” So he stretched it out, and his hand was restored.^{(P) 6} Immediately the Pharisees^(Q) went out and started plotting^(R) with the Herodians^(S) against him, how they might kill^(T) him.

Ministering to the Multitude

⁷ Jesus^(U) departed with his disciples to the sea, and a large crowd followed from Galilee,^(V) and a large crowd followed from Judea,^{(W) 8} Jerusalem,^(X) Idumea, beyond the Jordan,^(Y) and around Tyre^(Z) and Sidon.^(AA) The large crowd came to him because they heard about everything he was doing. ⁹ Then he told his disciples to have a small boat^(AB) ready for him, so that the crowd wouldn’t crush him. ¹⁰ Since he had healed^(AC) many, all who had diseases were pressing toward him to touch^(AD) him. ¹¹ Whenever the unclean^(AE) spirits^(AF) saw him, they fell down^(AG) before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God!” ^{(AH) 12} And he would strongly warn^(AI) them not to make him known.^(AJ)

The Twelve Apostles

¹³ Jesus^(AK) went up the mountain^(AL) and summoned those he wanted, and they came to him. ¹⁴ He appointed twelve, whom he also named apostles,^[a](AM) to be with him, to send them out to preach,^{(AN) 15} and to have authority to^[b] drive out demons. ¹⁶ He appointed the Twelve:^[c](AO) To Simon,^(AP) he gave the name Peter;^{(AQ) 17} and to James^(AR) the son of Zebedee,^(AS) and to his brother John,^(AT) he gave the name “Boanerges” (that is, “Sons of Thunder”^(AU)); ¹⁸ Andrew;^(AV) Philip^(AW) and Bartholomew; Matthew^(AX) and Thomas;^(AY) James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot, ¹⁹ and Judas Iscariot,^(AZ) who also betrayed him.

A House Divided

²⁰ Jesus entered a house, and the crowd gathered again so that they were not even able to eat.^{[d] 21} When his family^(BA) heard this, they set out to restrain him, because they said, “He’s out of his mind.”^(BB)

²² The scribes^(BC) who had come down from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,”^(BD) and, “He drives out^(BE) demons^(BF) by the ruler^(BG) of the demons.”^(BH)

²³ So he summoned^(BI) them and spoke to them in parables:^(BJ) “How can Satan^(BK) drive out Satan?^{(BL) 24} If a kingdom^(BM) is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. ²⁵ If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. ²⁶ And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand but is finished. ²⁷ But no one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his possessions unless he first ties up^(BN) the strong man. Then he can plunder his house.

²⁸ “Truly I tell you, people will be forgiven for all sins and whatever blasphemies^(BO) they utter. ²⁹ But whoever blasphemes^(BP) against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness,^(BQ) but is guilty^(BR) of an eternal sin”^[e](BS)— ³⁰ because they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”^(BT)

True Relationships

³¹ His^(BU) mother^(BV) and his brothers^(BW) came, and standing outside, they sent word to him and called him. ³² A crowd was sitting around him and told him, “Look, your mother, your brothers,^(BX) and your sisters^[f] are outside asking for you.”

³³ He replied to them, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” ³⁴ Looking at those sitting in a circle around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers!^{(BY) 35} Whoever does the will of God^(BZ) is my brother and sister and mother.”

The Christian Life

¹² Therefore, as God’s chosen ones, holy and dearly loved,^(A) put on compassion, kindness,^(B) humility,^(C) gentleness,^(D) and patience,^{(E) 13} bearing with one another and forgiving one another if anyone has a grievance against another. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you are also to forgive.^{(F) 14} Above all, put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. ¹⁵ And let the peace of Christ, to which you were also called^(G) in one body, rule your hearts. And be thankful. ¹⁶ Let the word of Christ dwell richly among you, in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another through psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs,^[a] singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. ¹⁷ And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name^(H) of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.