John the Baptist Makes the Way Ready for the Coming of Jesus ^(A)

1 The Good News of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, ² begins with the words of the early preachers: “Listen! I will send My helper to carry the news ahead of you. He will make the way ready. ³ His voice calls out in the desert, ‘Make the way ready for the Lord. Make the road straight for Him!’” ^(B)

⁴ John the Baptist preached in the desert. He preached that people should be baptized because they were sorry for their sins and had turned from them. And they would be forgiven. ⁵ People from over all the country of Judea and from Jerusalem came to him. They told of their sins and were baptized by John in the Jordan River.

⁶ John wore clothes made of hair from camels. He had a leather belt around him. His food was locusts and wild honey. ⁷ He preached, saying, “One is coming after me Who is greater than I. I am not good enough to get down and help Him take off His shoes. ⁸ I have baptized you with water. But He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

The Baptism of Jesus ^(C)

⁹ Jesus came to the Jordan River from the town of Nazareth in the country of Galilee. He was baptized by John. ¹⁰ As soon as Jesus came up out of the water, He saw heaven open up. The Holy Spirit came down on Him like a dove. ¹¹ A voice came from heaven and said, “You are My much-loved Son. I am very happy with You.”

Jesus Was Tempted ^(D)

¹² At once the Holy Spirit sent Jesus to a desert. ¹³ He was tempted by Satan for forty days there. He was with wild animals but angels took care of Him.

Jesus Preaches in Galilee ^(E)

¹⁴ After John the Baptist was put in prison, Jesus came to the country of Galilee. He preached the Good News of God. ¹⁵ He said, “The time has come. The holy nation of God is near. Be sorry for your sins, turn from them, and believe the Good News.”

Jesus Calls Simon and Andrew ^(F)

¹⁶ Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee. He saw Simon and his brother Andrew putting a net into the sea. They were fishermen. ¹⁷ Jesus said to them, “Follow Me. I will make you fish for men!” ¹⁸ At once they left their nets and followed Him.

Jesus Calls James and John

¹⁹ Jesus went on a little farther. He saw James and his brother John who were sons of Zebedee. They were in a boat mending their nets. ²⁰ Jesus called them and they left their father Zebedee. He was in the boat with men who were working for him.

Jesus Heals a Man with a Demon ^(G)

²¹ Jesus and His followers went to the city of Capernaum on the Day of Rest. They went to the Jewish place of worship where Jesus taught the people. ²² The people were surprised and wondered about His teaching. He taught them as One Who had the right and the power to teach and not as the teachers of the Law.

²³ There was a man in the Jewish place of worship who had a demon. The demon cried out, ²⁴ “What do You want of us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know Who You are. You are the Holy One of God.” ²⁵ Jesus spoke sharp words to the demon and said, “Do not talk! Come out of the man!” ²⁶ The demon threw the man down and gave a loud cry. Then he came out of him. ²⁷ The people were all surprised and wondered. They asked each other, “What is this? Is this a new teaching? He speaks with power even to the demons and they obey Him!” ²⁸ At once the news about Jesus went through all the country around Galilee.

Peter’s Mother-In-law Healed ^(H)

²⁹ Jesus and His followers came out of the Jewish place of worship. Then they went to the house of Simon and Andrew. James and John went with them. ³⁰ They told Jesus about Simon’s mother-in-law who was in bed, very sick. ³¹ He went and took her by the hand and raised her up. At once her sickness was gone. She got up and cared for them.

Jesus Heals in Galilee ^(I)

³² In the evening as the sun went down, the people took all who were sick to Jesus. They took those who had demons to Him. ³³ All the town gathered at the door. ³⁴ Jesus healed those who were sick of many kinds of diseases. He put out many demons. Jesus would not allow the demons to speak because they knew Who He was.

Jesus Keeps On Preaching in Galilee ^(J)

³⁵ In the morning before the sun was up, Jesus went to a place where He could be alone. He prayed there. ³⁶ Simon and the others looked for Jesus. ³⁷ They found Him and said, “All the people are looking for You.” ³⁸ Jesus said to the followers, “Let us go to the towns near here so I can preach there also. That is why I came.” ³⁹ He went through Galilee. He preached in their places of worship and put out demons.

Jesus Heals a Man with a Bad Skin Disease ^(K)

⁴⁰ A man came to Jesus with a bad skin disease. This man got down on his knees and begged Jesus, saying, “If You want to, You can heal me.” ⁴¹ Jesus put His hand on him with loving-pity. He said, “I want to. Be healed.” ⁴² At once the disease was gone and the man was healed. ⁴³ Jesus spoke strong words to the man before He sent him away. ⁴⁴ He said to him, “Tell no one about this. Go and let the religious leader of the Jews see you. Give the gifts Moses has told you to give when a man is healed of a disease. Let the leaders know you have been healed.” ⁴⁵ But the man went out and talked about it everywhere. After this Jesus could not go to any town if people knew He was there. He had to stay in the desert. People came to Him from everywhere.

Jesus Heals a Man Who Was Let Down through the Roof of a House ^(L)

2 After some days Jesus went back to the city of Capernaum. Then news got around that He was home. ² Soon many people gathered there. There was no more room, not even at the door. He spoke the Word of God to them. ³ Four men came to Jesus carrying a man who could not move his body. ⁴ These men could not get near Jesus because of so many people. They made a hole in the roof of the house over where Jesus stood. Then they let down the bed with the sick man on it.

⁵ When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the sick man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” ⁶ Some teachers of the Law were sitting there. They thought to themselves, ⁷ “Why does this Man talk like this? He is speaking as if He is God! Who can forgive sins? Only One can forgive sins and that is God!”

⁸ At once Jesus knew the teachers of the Law were thinking this. He said to them, “Why do you think this in your hearts? ⁹ Which is easier to say to the sick man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your bed, and start to walk?’ ¹⁰ I am doing this so you may know the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins.” He said to the sick man who could not move his body, ¹¹ “I say to you, ‘Get up. Take your bed and go to your home.’” ¹² At once the sick man got up and took his bed and went away. Everybody saw him. They were all surprised and wondered about it. They thanked God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”

Jesus Calls Matthew ^(M)

¹³ Jesus walked along the sea-shore again. Many people came together and He taught them. ¹⁴ He walked farther and saw Levi (Matthew) the son of Alphaeus. Levi was sitting at his work gathering taxes. Jesus said to him, “Follow Me.” Levi got up and followed Him.

Jesus Eats with Tax-Gatherers and Sinners

¹⁵ Jesus ate in Levi’s house. Many men who gather taxes and others who were sinners came and sat down with Jesus and His followers. There were many following Him. ¹⁶ The teachers of the Law and the proud religious law-keepers saw Jesus eat with men who gather taxes and others who were sinners. They said to His followers, “Why does He eat and drink with men who gather taxes and with sinners?” ¹⁷ Jesus heard it and said to them, “People who are well do not need a doctor. Only those who are sick need a doctor. I have not come to call those who are right with God. I have come to call those who are sinners.”

Jesus Teaches about Going without Food So You Can Pray Better ^(N)

¹⁸ The followers of John and the proud religious law-keepers were not eating food so they could pray better. Some people came to Jesus and said, “Why do the followers of John and the proud religious law-keepers go without food so they can pray better, but Your followers do not?” ¹⁹ Jesus said to them, “Can the friends at a wedding go without food when the man just married is with them? As long as they have him with them, they will not go without food. ²⁰ The days will come when the man just married will be taken from them. Then they will not eat food so they can pray better. ²¹ No man sews a piece of new cloth on an old coat. If it comes off, it will make the hole bigger. ²² No man puts new wine into old skin bags. The skin would break and the wine would run out. The bags would be no good. New wine must be put into new skin bags.”

Jesus Teaches about the Day of Rest ^(O)

²³ At that time Jesus walked through the grain-fields on the Day of Rest. As they went, His followers began to take some of the grain. ²⁴ The proud religious law-keepers said to Jesus, “See! Why are they doing what the Law says should not be done on the Day of Rest?” ²⁵ He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he and his men were hungry? ²⁶ He went into the house of God when Abiathar was head religious leader of the Jews. He ate the special bread used in the religious worship. The Law says only the Jewish religious leaders may eat that. David gave some to those who were with him also.” ²⁷ Jesus said to them, “The Day of Rest was made for the good of man. Man was not made for the Day of Rest. ²⁸ The Son of Man is Lord of the Day of Rest also.”

Jesus Heals on the Day of Rest ^(P)

3 Jesus went into the Jewish place of worship again. A man was there with a dried-up hand. ² The proud religious law-keepers watched Jesus to see if He would heal the man on the Day of Rest. They wanted to have something to say against Jesus. ³ Jesus said to the man with the dried-up hand, “Stand up.” ⁴ Then Jesus said to the proud religious law-keepers, “Does the Law say to do good on the Day of Rest or to do bad, to save life or to kill?” But they said nothing. ⁵ Jesus looked around at them with anger. He was sad because of their hard hearts. Then He said to the man, “Put out your hand.” He put it out and his hand was healed. It was as good as the other. ⁶ The proud religious law-keepers went out and made plans with the followers of King Herod how they might kill Jesus.

Jesus Heals by the Sea-Shore ^(Q)

⁷ Jesus went with His followers to the sea. Many people followed Him from the countries of Galilee and Judea. ⁸ They followed from Jerusalem and from the country of Idumea. They came from the other side of the Jordan River and from the cities of Tyre and Sidon. Many people heard all that Jesus was doing and came to Him. ⁹ He told His followers to have a small boat ready for Him because so many people might push Him down. ¹⁰ He had healed so many that the sick people were pushing in on Him. They were trying to put their hands on Him. ¹¹ When demons saw Him, they got down at His feet and cried out, “You are the Son of God!” ¹² He spoke strong words that the demons should tell no one Who He was.

Jesus Calls His Twelve Followers ^(R)

¹³ He went up on a mountain and called those He wanted. They followed Him. ¹⁴ He picked out twelve followers to be with Him so He might send them out to preach. ¹⁵ They would have the right and the power to heal diseases and to put out demons. ¹⁶ Jesus gave Simon another name, Peter. ¹⁷ James and John were brothers. They were the sons of Zebedee. He named them Boanerges, which means, The Sons of Thunder. ¹⁸ The others were Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Canaanite, ¹⁹ and Judas Iscariot. Judas was the one who handed Jesus over to be killed.

The Family of Jesus Holds Him Back

²⁰ When Jesus came into a house, many people gathered around Him again. Jesus and His followers could not even eat. ²¹ When His family heard of it, they went to take Him. They said, “He must be crazy.”

A Nation That Cannot Stand ^(S)

²² Teachers of the Law came down from Jerusalem. They said, “Jesus has Satan in Him. This Man puts out demons by the king of demons.” ²³ Jesus called them to Him and spoke to them in picture-stories. He said, “How can the devil put out the devil? ²⁴ A nation cannot last if it is divided against itself. ²⁵ A family cannot last if it is divided against itself. ²⁶ If the devil fights against himself and is divided, he cannot last. He will come to an end. ²⁷ No man can go into a strong man’s house and take away his things, unless he ties up the strong man first. Only then can he take things from his house. ²⁸ For sure, I tell you, all sins will be forgiven people, and bad things they speak against God. ²⁹ But if anyone speaks bad things against the Holy Spirit, he will never be forgiven. He is guilty of a sin that lasts forever.” ³⁰ Jesus told them this because they said, “He has a demon.”

The New Kind of Family ^(T)

³¹ Then His mother and brothers came and stood outside. They sent for Jesus. ³² Many people were sitting around Him. They said, “See! Your mother and brothers are outside looking for You.” ³³ He said to them, “Who is My mother or My brothers?” ³⁴ He turned to those sitting around Him and said, “See! My mother and My brothers! ³⁵ Whoever does what My Father wants is My brother and My sister and My mother.”