Luke 7-8

Easy-to-Read Version

Jesus Heals an Officer’s Servant^(A)

7 Jesus finished saying all these things to the people. Then he went into Capernaum. ² In Capernaum there was an army officer. He had a servant who was very sick; he was near death. The officer loved the servant very much. ³ When he heard about Jesus, he sent some older Jewish leaders to him. He wanted the men to ask Jesus to come and save the life of his servant. ⁴ The men went to Jesus. They begged Jesus to help the officer. They said, “This officer is worthy to have your help. ⁵ He loves our people and he built the synagogue for us.”

⁶ So Jesus went with them. He was coming near the officer’s house when the officer sent friends to say, “Lord, you don’t need to do anything special for me. I am not good enough for you to come into my house. ⁷ That is why I did not come to you myself. You need only to give the order, and my servant will be healed. ⁸ I know this because I am a man under the authority of other men. And I have soldiers under my authority. I tell one soldier, ‘Go,’ and he goes. And I tell another soldier, ‘Come,’ and he comes. And I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and my servant obeys me.”

⁹ When Jesus heard this, he was amazed. He turned to the people following him and said, “I tell you, this is the most faith I have seen anywhere, even in Israel.”

¹⁰ The group that was sent to Jesus went back to the house. There they found that the servant was healed.

Jesus Brings a Woman’s Son Back to Life

¹¹ The next day Jesus and his followers went to a town called Nain. A big crowd was traveling with them. ¹² When Jesus came near the town gate, he saw some people carrying a dead body. It was the only son of a woman who was a widow. Walking with her were many other people from the town. ¹³ When the Lord saw the woman, he felt very sorry for her and said, “Don’t cry.” ¹⁴ He walked to the open coffin and touched it. The men who were carrying the coffin stopped. Jesus spoke to the dead son: “Young man, I tell you, get up!” ¹⁵ Then the boy sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother.

¹⁶ Everyone was filled with fear. They began praising God and said, “A great prophet is here with us!” and “God is taking care of his people.”

¹⁷ This news about Jesus spread all over Judea and to all the other places around there.

John Sends Men to Ask Jesus a Question^(B)

¹⁸ John’s followers told him about all these things. John called for two of his followers. ¹⁹ He sent them to the Lord to ask, “Are you the one we heard was coming, or should we wait for someone else?”

²⁰ So the men came to Jesus. They said, “John the Baptizer sent us to you with this question: ‘Are you the one who is coming, or should we wait for someone else?’”

²¹ Right then Jesus healed many people of their sicknesses and diseases. He healed those who had evil spirits and made many who were blind able to see again. ²² Then he said to John’s followers, “Go tell John what you have seen and heard: The blind can see. The crippled can walk. People with leprosy are healed. The deaf can hear. The dead are brought back to life. And the Good News is being told to the poor. ²³ Great blessings belong to those who don’t have a problem accepting me.”

²⁴ When John’s followers left, Jesus began talking to the people about John: “What did you people go out into the desert to see? Someone who is weak, like a stem of grass^[a] blowing in the wind? ²⁵ Really, what did you expect to see? Someone dressed in fine clothes? Of course not. People who wear fancy clothes and live in luxury are all in kings’ palaces. ²⁶ So what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, John is a prophet. But I tell you, he is more than that. ²⁷ This Scripture was written about him:

²⁸ I tell you, no one ever born is greater than John. But even the least important person in God’s kingdom is greater than John.”

²⁹ (When the people heard this, they all agreed that God’s teaching was good. Even the tax collectors agreed. These were the people who were baptized by John. ³⁰ But the Pharisees and experts in the law refused to accept God’s plan for themselves; they did not let John baptize them.)

³¹ “What shall I say about the people of this time? What can I compare them to? What are they like? ³² They are like children sitting in the marketplace. One group of children calls to the other children and says,

³³ John the Baptizer came and did not eat the usual food or drink wine. And you say, ‘He has a demon inside him.’ ³⁴ The Son of Man came eating and drinking. And you say, ‘Look at him! He eats too much and drinks too much wine! He is a friend of tax collectors and other sinners!’ ³⁵ But wisdom is shown to be right by those who accept it.”

Simon the Pharisee

³⁶ One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to eat with him. Jesus went into the Pharisee’s house and took a place at the table.

³⁷ There was a sinful woman in that town. She knew that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house. So the woman brought some expensive perfume in an alabaster jar. ³⁸ She stood at Jesus’ feet, crying. Then she began to wash his feet with her tears. She dried his feet with her hair. She kissed his feet many times and rubbed them with the perfume.

³⁹ When the Pharisee who asked Jesus to come to his house saw this, he thought to himself, “If this man were a prophet,^[b] he would know that the woman who is touching him is a sinner!”

⁴⁰ In response, Jesus said to the Pharisee, “Simon, I have something to say to you.”

Simon said, “Let me hear it, Teacher.”

⁴¹ Jesus said, “There were two men. Both men owed money to the same banker. One man owed him 500 silver coins. The other man owed him 50 silver coins. ⁴² The men had no money, so they could not pay their debt. But the banker told the men that they did not have to pay him. Which one of those two men will love him more?”

⁴³ Simon answered, “I think it would be the one who owed him the most money.”

Jesus said to him, “You are right.” ⁴⁴ Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? When I came into your house, you gave me no water for my feet. But she washed my feet with her tears and dried my feet with her hair. ⁴⁵ You did not greet me with a kiss, but she has been kissing my feet since I came in. ⁴⁶ You did not honor me with oil for my head, but she rubbed my feet with her sweet-smelling oil. ⁴⁷ I tell you that her many sins are forgiven. This is clear, because she showed great love. People who are forgiven only a little will love only a little.”

⁴⁸ Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”

⁴⁹ The people sitting at the table began to think to themselves, “Who does this man think he is? How can he forgive sins?”

⁵⁰ Jesus said to the woman, “Because you believed, you are saved from your sins. Go in peace.”

The Group With Jesus

8 The next day, Jesus traveled through some cities and small towns. Jesus told the people a message from God, the Good News about God’s kingdom. The twelve apostles were with him. ² There were also some women with him. Jesus had healed these women of sicknesses and evil spirits. One of them was Mary, who was called Magdalene. Seven demons had come out of her. ³ Also with these women were Joanna, the wife of Chuza (the manager of Herod’s property), Susanna, and many other women. These women used their own money to help Jesus and his apostles.

A Story About a Farmer Sowing Seed^(D)

⁴ A large crowd came together. People came to Jesus from every town, and he told them this story:

⁵ “A farmer went out to sow seed. While he was scattering the seed, some of it fell beside the road. People walked on the seed, and the birds ate it all. ⁶ Other seed fell on rock. It began to grow but then died because it had no water. ⁷ Some other seed fell among thorny weeds. This seed grew, but later the weeds stopped the plants from growing. ⁸ The rest of the seed fell on good ground. This seed grew and made 100 times more grain.”

Jesus finished the story. Then he called out, “You people who hear me, listen!”

⁹ Jesus’ followers asked him, “What does this story mean?”

¹⁰ He said, “You have been chosen to know the secret truths about God’s kingdom. But I use stories to speak to other people. I do this so that

Jesus Explains the Story About Seed^(F)

¹¹ “This is what the story means: The seed is God’s teaching. ¹² Some people are like the seed that fell beside the path. They hear God’s teaching, but then the devil comes and causes them to stop thinking about it. This keeps them from believing it and being saved. ¹³ Others are like the seed that fell on rock. That is like the people who hear God’s teaching and gladly accept it. But they don’t have deep roots. They believe for a while. But when trouble comes, they turn away from God.

¹⁴ “What about the seed that fell among the thorny weeds? That is like the people who hear God’s teaching, but they let the worries, riches, and pleasures of this life stop them from growing. So they never produce a crop.^{[c] 15} And what about the seed that fell on the good ground? That is like the people who hear God’s teaching with a good, honest heart. They obey it and patiently produce a good crop.

Use the Understanding You Have^(G)

¹⁶ “No one lights a lamp and then covers it with a bowl or hides it under a bed. Instead, they put the lamp on a lampstand so that the people who come in will have enough light to see. ¹⁷ Everything that is hidden will become clear. Every secret thing will be made known, and everyone will see it. ¹⁸ So think carefully about what you are hearing. The people who have some understanding will receive more. But those who do not have understanding will lose even what they think they have.”

Jesus’ Followers Are His True Family^(H)

¹⁹ Jesus’ mother and brothers came to visit him. But they could not get close to him, because there were so many people. ²⁰ Someone said to Jesus, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside. They want to see you.”

²¹ Jesus answered them, “My mother and my brothers are those who listen to God’s teaching and obey it.”

Jesus’ Followers See His Power^(I)

²² One day Jesus and his followers got into a boat. He said to them, “Come with me across the lake.” And so they started across. ²³ While they were sailing, Jesus slept. A big storm blew across the lake, and the boat began to fill with water. They were in danger. ²⁴ The followers went to Jesus and woke him. They said, “Master! Master! We will drown!”

Jesus got up. He gave a command to the wind and the waves. The wind stopped, and the lake became calm. ²⁵ He said to his followers, “Where is your faith?”

They were afraid and amazed. They said to each other, “What kind of man is this? He commands the wind and the water, and they obey him.”

Jesus Frees a Man From Evil Spirits^(J)

²⁶ Jesus and his followers sailed on across the lake. They sailed to the area where the Gerasene people live, across from Galilee. ²⁷ When Jesus got out of the boat, a man from that town came to him. This man had demons inside him. For a long time he had worn no clothes. He did not live in a house but in the caves where the dead are buried.

^28-29 The demon inside the man had often seized him, and he had been put in jail with his hands and feet in chains. But he would always break the chains. The demon inside him would force him to go out to the places where no one lived. Jesus commanded the evil spirit to come out of the man. When the man saw Jesus, he fell down before him, shouting loudly, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Please, don’t punish me!”

³⁰ Jesus asked him, “What is your name?”

The man answered, “Legion.”^[d] (He said his name was “Legion” because many demons had gone into him.) ³¹ The demons begged Jesus not to send them into the bottomless pit.^{[e] 32} On that hill there was a big herd of pigs eating. The demons begged Jesus to allow them to go into the pigs. So he allowed them to do this. ³³ Then the demons came out of the man and went into the pigs. The herd of pigs ran down the hill into the lake, and all were drowned.

³⁴ The men who were caring for the pigs ran away and told the story in the fields and in the town. ³⁵ People went out to see what had happened. They came to Jesus and found the man sitting there at the feet of Jesus. The man had clothes on and was in his right mind again; the demons were gone. This made the people afraid. ³⁶ The men who saw these things happen told the others all about how Jesus made the man well. ³⁷ All those who lived in the area around Gerasa asked Jesus to go away because they were afraid.

So Jesus got into the boat to go back to Galilee. ³⁸ The man he had healed begged to go with him. But Jesus sent him away, saying, ³⁹ “Go back home and tell people what God did for you.”

So the man went all over town telling what Jesus had done for him.

Jesus Gives Life to a Dead Girl and Heals a Sick Woman^(K)

⁴⁰ When Jesus went back to Galilee, the people welcomed him. Everyone was waiting for him. ^41-42 A man named Jairus came to him. He was a leader of the synagogue. He had only one daughter. She was twelve years old, and she was dying. So Jairus bowed down at the feet of Jesus and begged him to come to his house.

While Jesus was going to Jairus’ house, the people crowded all around him. ⁴³ A woman was there who had been bleeding for twelve years. She had spent all her money on doctors,^[f] but no doctor was able to heal her. ⁴⁴ The woman came behind Jesus and touched the bottom of his coat. At that moment, her bleeding stopped. ⁴⁵ Then Jesus said, “Who touched me?”

They all said they had not touched him. And Peter said, “Master, people are all around you, pushing against you.”

⁴⁶ But Jesus said, “Someone touched me. I felt power go out from me.” ⁴⁷ When the woman saw that she could not hide, she came forward, shaking. She bowed down before Jesus. While everyone listened, she told why she touched him. Then she said that she was healed immediately when she touched him. ⁴⁸ Jesus said to her, “My daughter, you are made well because you believed. Go in peace.”

⁴⁹ While Jesus was still speaking, someone came from the house of the synagogue leader and said, “Your daughter has died! Don’t bother the Teacher anymore.”

⁵⁰ Jesus heard this and said to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid! Just believe and your daughter will be well.”

⁵¹ Jesus went to the house. He let only Peter, John, James, and the girl’s father and mother go inside with him. ⁵² Everyone was crying and feeling sad because the girl was dead. But Jesus said, “Don’t cry. She is not dead. She is only sleeping.”

⁵³ The people laughed at him, because they knew that the girl was dead. ⁵⁴ But Jesus held her hand and called to her, “Little girl, stand up!” ⁵⁵ Her spirit came back into her, and she stood up immediately. Jesus said, “Give her something to eat.” ⁵⁶ The girl’s parents were amazed. He told them not to tell anyone about what happened.