Jesus Calls the First Disciples

5 On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by ^(A)the lake of Gennesaret, ^2 (B)and he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were ^(C)washing their nets. ³ Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon's, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And ^(D)he sat down and taught the people from the boat. ⁴ And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ^(E)“Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” ⁵ And Simon answered, “Master, ^(F)we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.” ⁶ And when they had done this, ^(G)they enclosed a large number of fish, and ^(H)their nets were breaking. ⁷ They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. ^(I)And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. ⁸ But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, ^(J)“Depart from me, for ^(K)I am a sinful man, O Lord.” ⁹ For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken, ¹⁰ and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.”^{[a] 11} And when they had brought their boats to land, ^(L)they left everything and followed him.

Jesus Cleanses a Leper

¹² While he was in one of the cities, ^(M)there came a man full of leprosy.^[b] And when he saw Jesus, he ^(N)fell on his face and begged him, “Lord, ^(O)if you will, you can make me clean.” ¹³ And Jesus^[c] stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him. ¹⁴ And he charged him ^(P)to tell no one, but “go and show ^(Q)yourself to the priest, and ^(R)make an offering for your cleansing, as Moses commanded, ^(S)for a proof to them.” ^15 (T)But now even more the report about him went abroad, and great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities. ¹⁶ But ^(U)he would withdraw to desolate places and ^(V)pray.

Jesus Heals a Paralytic

¹⁷ On one of those days, as he was teaching, Pharisees and ^(W)teachers of the law were sitting there, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem. And ^(X)the power of the Lord was with him to heal.^{[d] 18 (Y)}And behold, some men were bringing ^(Z)on a bed a man who was paralyzed, and they were seeking to bring him in and lay him before Jesus, ¹⁹ but finding no way to bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on ^(AA)the roof and let him down with his bed ^(AB)through the tiles into the midst before Jesus. ²⁰ And ^(AC)when he saw their faith, he said, “Man, ^(AD)your sins are forgiven you.” ²¹ And the scribes and the Pharisees began to question, saying, “Who is this who speaks ^(AE)blasphemies? ^(AF)Who can forgive sins but God alone?” ²² When Jesus ^(AG)perceived their thoughts, he answered them, “Why do you question in your hearts? ²³ Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? ²⁴ But that you may know that ^(AH)the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the man who was paralyzed—“I say to you, rise, pick up your bed and go home.” ²⁵ And immediately he rose up before them and picked up what he had been lying on and went home, ^(AI)glorifying God. ²⁶ And amazement seized them all, and they ^(AJ)glorified God and were filled ^(AK)with awe, saying, “We have seen extraordinary things today.”

Jesus Calls Levi

^27 (AL)After this he went out and saw ^(AM)a tax collector named ^(AN)Levi, sitting at the tax booth. And he said to him, “Follow me.” ²⁸ And ^(AO)leaving everything, he rose and followed him.

²⁹ And Levi made him a great feast in his house, and there was a large company ^(AP)of tax collectors and others reclining at table with them. ³⁰ And the Pharisees and ^(AQ)their scribes grumbled at his disciples, saying, ^(AR)“Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” ³¹ And Jesus answered them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. ^32 (AS)I have not come to call the righteous ^(AT)but sinners ^(AU)to repentance.”

A Question About Fasting

³³ And they said to him, ^(AV)“The disciples of John ^(AW)fast often and ^(AX)offer prayers, ^(AY)and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours eat and drink.” ³⁴ And Jesus said to them, ^(AZ)“Can you make wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? ^35 (BA)The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and ^(BB)then they will fast in those days.” ³⁶ He also told them a parable: “No one tears a piece from a new garment and puts it on an old garment. If he does, he will tear the new, and the piece from the new will not match the old. ³⁷ And no one puts new wine into old ^(BC)wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. ³⁸ But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. ³⁹ And no one after drinking old wine desires new, for he says, ‘The old is good.’”^[e]

Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath

6 ^(BD)On a Sabbath,^[f] while he was going through the grainfields, his disciples ^(BE)plucked and ate some heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands. ² But some of the Pharisees said, ^(BF)“Why are you doing ^(BG)what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?” ³ And Jesus answered them, ^(BH)“Have you not read ^(BI)what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him: ⁴ how he entered the house of God and took and ate ^(BJ)the bread of the Presence, ^(BK)which is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those with him?” ⁵ And he said to them, ^(BL)“The Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.”

A Man with a Withered Hand

⁶ On another Sabbath, ^(BM)he entered the synagogue ^(BN)and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was withered. ⁷ And the scribes and the Pharisees ^(BO)watched him, to see whether he would heal on the Sabbath, ^(BP)so that they might find a reason to accuse him. ⁸ But ^(BQ)he knew their thoughts, and he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come and stand here.” And he rose and stood there. ⁹ And Jesus said to them, “I ask you, ^(BR)is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to destroy it?” ¹⁰ And ^(BS)after looking around at them all he said to him, “Stretch out your hand.” And ^(BT)he did so, and his hand was restored. ¹¹ But they were filled with ^(BU)fury and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.

The Twelve Apostles

¹² In these days ^(BV)he went out to the mountain to pray, and all night he continued in prayer to God. ¹³ And when day came, ^(BW)he called his disciples ^(BX)and ^(BY)chose from them twelve, whom he named ^(BZ)apostles: ¹⁴ Simon, ^(CA)whom he named Peter, and ^(CB)Andrew his brother, and ^(CC)James and John, and Philip, and Bartholomew, ¹⁵ and ^(CD)Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon who was called ^(CE)the Zealot, ¹⁶ and ^(CF)Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

Jesus Ministers to a Great Multitude

¹⁷ And ^(CG)he came down with them and stood on a level place, with ^(CH)a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem and the seacoast of ^(CI)Tyre and Sidon, ¹⁸ who came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases. ^(CJ)And those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured. ¹⁹ And all the crowd ^(CK)sought to touch him, for ^(CL)power came out from him and healed them all.

The Beatitudes

²⁰ And ^(CM)he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, ^(CN)and said:

“Blessed are you who are poor, for ^(CO)yours is the kingdom of God.

^21 (CP)“Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you shall be satisfied.

^(CQ)“Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.

²² “Blessed are you when ^(CR)people hate you and when they ^(CS)exclude you and revile you and ^(CT)spurn your name as evil, ^(CU)on account of the Son of Man! ^23 (CV)Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven; for ^(CW)so their fathers did to the prophets.

Jesus Pronounces Woes

^24 (CX)“But woe to you who are rich, ^(CY)for you ^(CZ)have received your consolation.

²⁵ “Woe to you who are full now, for ^(DA)you shall be hungry.

“Woe to ^(DB)you who laugh now, ^(DC)for you shall mourn and weep.

²⁶ “Woe to you, ^(DD)when all people speak well of you, for ^(DE)so their fathers did to ^(DF)the false prophets.

Love Your Enemies

²⁷ “But I say to you who hear, ^(DG)Love your enemies, ^(DH)do good to those who hate you, ^28 (DI)bless those who curse you, ^(DJ)pray for those who abuse you. ^29 (DK)To one who ^(DL)strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic^[g] either. ^30 (DM)Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back. ³¹ And ^(DN)as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.

^32 (DO)“If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. ³³ And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. ³⁴ And ^(DP)if you ^(DQ)lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. ³⁵ But ^(DR)love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and ^(DS)you will be sons of ^(DT)the Most High, for ^(DU)he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. ^36 (DV)Be merciful, even as ^(DW)your Father is merciful.

Judging Others

^37 (DX)(DY)“Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; ^(DZ)forgive, and you will be forgiven; ^38 (EA)give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put ^(EB)into your lap. For ^(EC)with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”

³⁹ He also told them a parable: ^(ED)“Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit? ^40 (EE)A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is ^(EF)fully trained will be like his teacher. ^41 (EG)Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but ^(EH)do not notice the log that is in your own eye? ⁴² How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother's eye.

A Tree and Its Fruit

⁴³ “For ^(EI)no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, ⁴⁴ for ^(EJ)each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. ^45 (EK)The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces ^(EL)evil, ^(EM)for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

Build Your House on the Rock

^46 (EN)“Why ^(EO)do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you? ^47 (EP)Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is like: ⁴⁸ he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built.^{[h] 49 (EQ)}But the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and ^(ER)the ruin of that house was great.”

Adversaries Oppose the Rebuilding

4 Now when ^(A)the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the returned exiles were building a temple to the Lord, the God of Israel, ² they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of fathers' houses and said to them, “Let us build with you, for we worship your God as you do, and we have been sacrificing to him ever ^(B)since the days of ^(C)Esarhaddon king of Assyria ^(D)who brought us here.” ³ But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the rest of the heads of fathers' houses in Israel said to them, ^(E)“You have nothing to do with us in building a house to our God; but we alone will build to the Lord, the God of Israel, ^(F)as King Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded us.”

⁴ Then ^(G)the people of the land discouraged the people of Judah and made them afraid to build ⁵ and bribed counselors against them to frustrate their purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.

⁶ And in the reign of ^(H)Ahasuerus, in the beginning of his reign, they wrote an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.

The Letter to King Artaxerxes

⁷ In the days of Artaxerxes, Bishlam and ^(I)Mithredath and Tabeel and the rest of their associates wrote to Artaxerxes king of Persia. The letter was written ^(J)in Aramaic and translated.^{[a] 8} Rehum the commander and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king as follows: ⁹ Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their associates, the ^(K)judges, the ^(L)governors, the officials, the Persians, the men of Erech, the Babylonians, the men of Susa, that is, the ^(M)Elamites, ¹⁰ and the rest of the nations whom the great and noble ^(N)Osnappar deported and settled in the cities of Samaria and in the rest of the province Beyond the River. ¹¹ (This is a copy of the letter that they sent.) “To Artaxerxes the king: Your servants, the men of the province Beyond the River, send greeting. And now ¹² be it known to the king that the Jews who came up from you to us have gone to Jerusalem. They are rebuilding that rebellious and wicked city. They are ^(O)finishing the walls and repairing the foundations. ¹³ Now be it known to the king that if this city is rebuilt and the walls finished, they will not pay ^(P)tribute, custom, or toll, and the royal revenue will be impaired. ¹⁴ Now because we eat the salt of the palace^[b] and it is not fitting for us to witness the king's dishonor, therefore we send and inform the king, ¹⁵ in order that search may be made in the book of the records of your fathers. You will find in the book of the records and learn that this city is a rebellious city, hurtful to kings and provinces, and that sedition was stirred up in it from of old. That was why this city was laid waste. ¹⁶ We make known to the king that if this city is rebuilt and its walls finished, you will then have no possession in the province Beyond the River.”

The King Orders the Work to Cease

¹⁷ The king sent an answer: “To Rehum the commander and Shimshai the scribe and the rest of their associates who live in Samaria and in the rest of the province Beyond the River, greeting. And now ¹⁸ the letter that you sent to us has been ^(Q)plainly read before me. ¹⁹ And I made a decree, and search has been made, and it has been found that this city from of old has risen against kings, and that rebellion and sedition have been made in it. ²⁰ And mighty kings have been over Jerusalem, ^(R)who ruled over the whole province Beyond the River, to whom ^(S)tribute, custom, and toll were paid. ²¹ Therefore make a decree that these men be made to cease, and that this city be not rebuilt, until a decree is made by me. ²² And take care not to be slack in this matter. Why should damage grow to the hurt of the king?”

²³ Then, when the copy of King Artaxerxes' letter was read before Rehum and Shimshai the scribe and their associates, they went in haste to the Jews at Jerusalem and by force and power made them cease. ²⁴ Then the work on the house of God that is in Jerusalem stopped, and it ceased until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.

Book Five

Let the Redeemed of the Lord Say So